IBM BPM, V8.0.1, All platforms > Participating in processes > Work with processes > Determining and modifying the process path

Critical path projection for a process

You can use the critical path projection within the critical path management tool in Process Portal to identify different paths through a process. With this information you can analyze how long it will take to complete the process under different circumstances.

The default projection for a process is pessimistic. To change the projected path for a process, select one of the options from the Projection list. Depending on the definition of the process, only one path through the process might exist. In this case, all three projection types will be the same. If the process contains one or more decision points, you can calculate more than one path through a process. The following table describes the projection options and the data used to calculate the critical path.

Critical path projection options

Projected path	Description	Data used to calculate the path
Optimistic	When one or more paths can be calculated for a process, the path that takes the least amount of time to complete is the optimistic path.	The shortest path is calculated using the durations and due dates of each pending activity.
Pessimistic	When one or more paths can be calculated for a process, the path that takes the most time to complete (excluding loops) is the pessimistic path.	The longest path is calculated using the durations and due dates of each pending activity.
Historical	When one or more paths can be calculated for a process, this is the path most likely to be taken based on past executions.	Performing a historical projection requires that the process has autotracking enabled and tracking definitions must have been sent to Business Performance Data Warehouse before instances of the processes started running. Historical projections are not valid if data does not exist in Business Performance Data Warehouse for the current process. You can select that you want to use for your projection from the Historical Scenario list

Tip: The durations and due dates for activities are based on the settings specified by the process designer in Process Designer. If the date displayed in the Projected Due Date field is later than the date displayed in the Current Due Date field, the current process is not going to complete on schedule according to the current projection.

When you change the projection, the Projected Due Date changes in the Instance Details section to show the impact of the projected path on the duration of the entire process. Also, the Critical Path Management section displays the milestones, activities, and tasks that are relevant to the projected path you have selected.

To view a graphical representation of the current projected path, click Show Process Instance Diagram on the toolbar.

Determining and modifying the process path in Process Portal