Fast-tracking is a schedule compression technique that shortens a project's timeline by overlapping tasks that were originally planned to run in sequence — starting a successor task before its predecessor is fully complete. Unlike crashing, which adds resources to shorten a task's duration, fast-tracking changes the sequencing itself, applying lead time to a dependency link so two tasks run partially in parallel.
Fast-Tracking a Task Chain: Worked Example
| Approach | Design Phase | Construction Starts | Total Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sequential (no fast-track) | Days 1–20 | Day 21 | Baseline |
| Fast-tracked (5-day overlap) | Days 1–20 | Day 16 | 5 days shorter |
How Much Overlap Is Safe?
Fast-tracking works best when only the genuinely independent portion of the successor task overlaps with the predecessor's remaining work. Starting construction on a building's foundation while architectural drawings for the upper floors are still being finalized is reasonable; starting construction on the upper floors themselves before the drawings exist is not. The riskier the overlap, the more likely the successor will need rework once the predecessor's output changes.
Fast-Tracking vs. Crashing
Crashing is the safer choice when cost budget exists and the work can be parallelized with additional resources. Fast-tracking is preferable when budget is fixed and the tasks have independent segments that can safely overlap. Crashing increases cost directly; fast-tracking does not increase cost directly, but it increases rework risk if the overlap was too aggressive. A project facing a hard deadline often uses both — fast-tracking the low-risk overlaps, crashing the tasks that genuinely need more resources.
Fast-Tracking in Maverick
In Maverick, fast-tracking is applied by adding a negative lag — lead time — to a dependency link, letting the successor's bar begin before the predecessor's bar ends on the Gantt chart. Maverick's AI chat can simulate the change before you commit to it: ask "which critical path tasks can be shortened, and what would be the effect on the end date?" and it identifies fast-tracking candidates based on float and task structure, or model a specific overlap on request before it's applied to the live schedule.
Related Terms
Schedule Compression · Crashing · Lead Time · Critical Path · Task Dependency
Simulate a Fast-Track Before You Commit
Start a free cloud trial and ask Maverick's AI chat to model an overlap on your critical path — see the effect on the finish date before you change a single dependency.
Start the Free Trial