SSRN Id1282479

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UVA-OM-1097
Tastee Snax Cookie Company (B)
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UVA-OM-1097
TASTEE SNAX COOKIE COMPANY (B)
Kevin Lindeman was happy with the network diagram that Katy Motte had prepared for
him. However, after realizing the product introduction would take a year to implement, he
wanted Motte to see if she could shorten the implementation time. Each week by which the
project was shortened would allow Tastee Snax to capitalize on a peak demand period. In
addition, the earlier the product entered the market, the quicker it would be able to gain market
share.
Motte analyzed the various tasks and worked with the company’s staffing coordinator.
By matching the available employee skills with the tasks at hand, she developed a list of tasks
that could potentially be completed more quickly, or “crashed,” by increasing the resources
allocated to them. Because Motte would be taking resources away from other projects, her
project would be billed for any additional work needed. In order to minimize project
expenditures, Motte needed to determine the most cost-effective way to decrease the project’s
timeline.
Below is the list of activities that potentially could be completed faster, together with the
original and “crashed” time for each activity and the cost for crashing. Time and cost values
between those shown may be estimated using a linear interpolation—for example, the duration of
activity A3 can be reduced by one week at a cost of $1,100.
Activity Original Crashed Additional

Time Time Cost
A3 Develop special equipment list 5 wks 3 wks $2,200
A4 Prepare manufacturing specifications 6 wks 3 wks $3,900
A7 Receive and install equipment 6 wks 4 wks $7,000
B2 Develop and test packaging and product names 10 wks 8 wks $3,200
B5 Perform taste test 4 wks 3 wks $1,700
B6 Review results and choose products 4 wks 3 wks $3,000
This note was prepared by Joseph Parkhill (MBA ‘04), under the supervision of Kamalini Ramdas, Associate
Professor of Business Administration at the Darden Graduate School of Business. It was written as a basis for class
discussion rather than to illustrate effective or ineffective handling of an administrative situation. Copyright  2003
by the University of Virginia Darden School Foundation, Charlottesville, VA. All rights reserved. To order copies,
send an e-mail to [email protected]. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, used in a spreadsheet, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or otherwise—without the permission of the Darden School Foundation. Rev 10/04. ◊
-2- UVA-OM-1097
What is the cheapest way to shorten the project duration by four weeks? Five weeks? Six
weeks? What is the maximum number of weeks by which the project can be shortened? What
will it cost to shorten the project by as many weeks as possible?

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