Lead is a negative lag on a schedule relationship, allowing a successor activity to start before its predecessor fully completes, thereby overlapping the two. For example, a Finish-to-Start link with a lead lets follow-on work begin early. In data-center scheduling leads are used cautiously to compress programmes; schedule quality standards such as the DCMA checks discourage negative lags as they can mask logic problems.
Category: Planning, Scheduling & Project Controls · Subcategory: CPM Logic, Float & Delay Analysis · Part of the AIDC Technical Terminology reference.