PERT CPM: Identifying the Wrong Statement

This solution analyzes the given statements about PERT (Program Evaluation and Review Technique) and CPM (Critical Path Method), two fundamental techniques used in project management for planning, scheduling, and controlling projects.

Statement Analysis

Let's examine each statement to determine which one is incorrect:

• Statement 1: PERT is suitable for projects having probabilistic time estimates

  This statement is correct. PERT is designed for projects where activity durations are uncertain. It uses three-time estimates: optimistic, most likely, and pessimistic, to calculate an expected duration and variance, reflecting the probability distribution of task completion times.

• Statement 2: CPM is suitable for projects having deterministic activities

  This statement is correct. CPM is typically used when the time required to complete each activity is known with certainty (deterministic). It focuses on identifying the critical path—the sequence of activities that determines the shortest possible project duration.

• Statement 3: Both PERT and CPM are event oriented

  This statement is incorrect. While both PERT and CPM use network diagrams with nodes representing events (start/completion points) and arrows representing activities, their primary focus is on the activities themselves. The time estimates, dependencies, and critical path calculations are based on the duration and sequencing of activities. Therefore, both techniques are generally considered activity-oriented, not event-oriented.

• Statement 4: PERT is event oriented, while CPM is activity oriented

  This statement presents a distinction between PERT and CPM. As established above, CPM is correctly identified as activity-oriented. While PERT also focuses heavily on activities, classifying it solely as "event-oriented" is debatable and less common than classifying both as activity-oriented. However, compared to statement 3, which incorrectly claims *both* are event-oriented, statement 3 is the more definitively incorrect statement based on standard project management definitions.

Conclusion

Based on the analysis, the statement that incorrectly describes both PERT and CPM is that they are both event-oriented. The standard classification considers both techniques to be primarily activity-oriented.