Schedule Compression

Correct Answer: Crashing

The most effective schedule compression technique for this scenario is Crashing. Here's why:

1. Highly sequential tasks: The question states that tasks cannot be overlapped, which eliminates fast-tracking as an option.

2. Budget allows for additional resources: This is a key point that suggests adding resources to tasks is possible.

3. Crashing: This technique involves adding resources to critical activities to reduce their duration, which aligns perfectly with the given scenario.

Explanation of other options:

Fast-tracking with increased parallelism is not applicable here because tasks are highly sequential and cannot be overlapped.

Resource leveling to optimize existing team allocation would not be effective in this case since the budget allows for additional resources, and we need to compress the schedule rather than just optimize existing resources.

Scope reduction, while maintaining critical path activities, could potentially shorten the project duration but is not the best option when additional resources are available and the full scope can be delivered in a shorter timeframe through crashing.

In conclusion, crashing is the most effective technique as it allows for shortening the project duration by adding resources to critical tasks, which is feasible given the available budget and the sequential nature of the project.

Correct Answer: Crashing

In this case, when a project needs to be expedited, cannot be parallelized, and the budget can be increased, the most suitable schedule compression technique to use would be 'Crashing'. This involves adding more resources to the project, which can potentially accelerate the project but at an increased cost. The other options given are not applicable due to the constraints mentioned. 'Fast-tracking' is not feasible because it involves doing tasks in parallel which is not possible in this situation. 'Resource Leveling' is a technique aimed at smoothing the distribution of resources and would not necessarily speed up processes but rather ensure that resources are used efficiently over time. 'Do Nothing' is self-explanatory and would obviously not meet the requirement to expedite the project. Therefore, 'Crashing' is the correct choice presented here.

Correct Answer: Hire additional workers or authorize overtime working to accomplish tasks faster using the crashing method.

Given that tasks can't be done concurrently and additional budget is available, the most effective schedule compression method would be to hire additional workers or authorize overtime, which is known as the crashing method. This approach allows the project to be completed faster despite the inability to run tasks in parallel. The other options are not as effective. Inspecting which tasks can be eliminated (second option) might not necessarily result in a significant reduction in the timeline, especially if all tasks are critical. Using the fast-tracking method (third option) is not feasible since the problem statement mentions tasks cannot be done concurrently. Extending the project timeline (fourth option) is a direct contradiction to the principal stakeholder's demand for an earlier project completion.