Targeted Optimization

Targeted Optimization is an optimization mode that lets users define a goal and identify which tasks can be accelerated to achieve it. This mode uses a proprietary task-based optimization algorithm that optimizes based on task logic rather than resource availability. We recommend this mode when:

• You want rapid insights with minimal setup time required
• The schedule doesn’t have detailed resource data
• You want to pinpoint which tasks have the greatest impact on your schedule
• You have a target date in mind and need to know how to achieve it

Targeted optimization includes a user-friendly guided setup process and allows for the creation of custom presets, so that you can quickly run your favorite optimizations on any plan in a project.

Table of Contents:

1. How to use targeted optimization
2. Run a targeted optimization
3. How the targeted optimization algorithm works

How to use targeted optimization

1. Import a schedule to ALICE 
2. Run a targeted optimization
3. Analyze the generated schedule to review which tasks were accelerated and by how much
4. Action the insights with the project team to improve project outcomes. 

Targeted optimization will tell you which tasks are worth accelerating to achieve your goals, and by how much, but it does not tell you how to accelerate them. To action the insights, work with your team to identify the best strategies for accelerating the most important tasks. 

You can also use the Resource optimization mode to explore how best to accelerate those tasks.

Run a Targeted Optimization

1. Go to the Optimize page and click the Targeted Optimization button
2. Select which schedule to optimize
3. Define your optimization goal
   1. Overall schedule:  reduces overall duration as much as possible
   2. Specific milestones (most popular): select a specific milestone and a target date for it
4. Choose which activities ALICE can consider for acceleration, and define a max acceleration limit (increments of 5 are supported up to 90%). You may choose one or more groups of activities.
   1. Note: if you have selected a specific milestone, the activity selection window will pre-filter all tasks to only show those that can impact the selected milestone. Irrelevant tasks will not be shown.
5. Review the configuration settings on the confirmation page. ALICE will automatically generate a name and description for the scenario, which you can edit on this page
6. To quickly run this configuration on other schedules, you may optionally save it as a preset
7. Click Run scenario to optimize your schedule

The goal setting page of Targeted Optimization setup

How the targeted optimization algorithm works

Targeted optimization will always identify the most efficient and least disruptive way to accomplish your goal. 

Here’s an example for how this works when selecting a milestone target:

• I set a goal of accelerating the finish date by 10 days and select a group of 100 tasks that can be accelerated by up to 20%.
• ALICE generates a schedule that accomplishes the goal. It accelerates 15/100 of these tasks and leaves 85/100 untouched. Of the accelerated tasks, some are only accelerated by 5%.

In this example, the algorithm determined that only 15 activities needed to be accelerated to achieve the target date - the other 85 were unnecessary and therefore left untouched. For the accelerated tasks, in some cases only a modest 5% acceleration was needed, and going beyond that would not add any benefit to the project.