The President of a Consulting Firm Wants to Minimize the Total

Multiple Choice

The president of a consulting firm wants to minimize the total number of hours it will take to complete four projects for a new client. Accordingly, she has estimated the time it should take for each of her top consultants-Charlie, Betty, Johnny, and Rick-to complete any of the four projects, as follows: $$\begin{array} { c } \quad \quad \quad \quad \quad { \text { Project (Hours) } } \\\begin{array} { l c c c c } \text { Consultant } & \text { A } & \text { B } & \text { C } & \text { D } \\\hline \text { Charlie } & 13 & 16 & 11 & 13 \\\text { Betty } & 11 & 15 & 14 & 18 \\\text { Johnny } & 15 & 22 & 12 & 15 \\\text { Rick } & 17 & 17 & 12 & 22\end{array}\end{array}$$ For the optimal schedule, what is the total number of hours it will take these consultants to complete these projects?

A) 53 hours
B) 46 hours
C) 50 hours
D) 61 hours
E) 54 hours