Introduction to Microsoft Project PDF

Introduction to Microsoft Project NGN110 Dr. Ayman El-Hag & Dr. Murat Gunduz 1 Project Management Projects are the means to achieve companies’ objectives. All organizations have projects which could be a large task or a complex activity. Projects may be efforts to move an office full of people to an...

Introduction to Microsoft Project NGN110 Dr. Ayman El-Hag & Dr. Murat Gunduz 1 Project Management Projects are the means to achieve companies’ objectives. All organizations have projects which could be a large task or a complex activity. Projects may be efforts to move an office full of people to another location, create a new product, construct a high rise building, etc. The ability to better manage projects is a way to achieve the company objectives and edge over competitors. One way to manage projects is through “Gantt Graphs” 2 Gantt Graph - Definition Gantt was a mechanical engineer that developed the graph in the 1910s. The chart bearing his name can be used to portray a variety of activities including: Project time lines Task dependencies Parallel activities Gantt graphs are usually generated in the planning phase of a project. 3 Gantt Graph – How to draw  A Gantt graph is made by placing the tasks that make up a project in a vertical line.  Then we draw as (hollow) horizontal bars the durations of the tasks. The bars indicate starting and ending times for each task. The x-axis represents time, either absolute (exact dates) or relative (from the project's beginning).  Milestones can be represented as diamonds (or other shapes) past the completion of a task.  Complex projects with hundreds of tasks may be represented by many graphs, each plotting the time line of a certain group of tasks.  After a project has started, a manager may fill up the (initially hollow) bars to indicate the percentage of completion of a task. 4 Gantt Graph - Uses  A Gantt graph assists in:  Making a realistic assessment of the duration of a project.  Sequencing the tasks, one after the other, as well as in parallel.  Determining task dependencies - which task is dependent on what.  Once a project is under-way, the Gantt graph can be used to:  Estimate progress  Allocate resources ahead of time. 5 Example (source : http://www.smartdraw.com/tutorials/gantt/tutorial_01.htm ) 6 Creating a Gantt Graph General purpose software: Excel OpenOffice Photoshop Specialized software: Microsoft Project Smartdraw Ganttproject 7 (http://www.icewalkers.com/Linux/Software/519680/ganttproject.html 1. MS Project 2010 Setup Select File, Options, click on “Schedule” tab For New Tasks Created: select “Auto Scheduled” For Duration is entered in: select “weeks” For default task type: select “fixed duration” Make sure New tasks are effort driven is NOT checked Click OK when finished 8 2. Defining the project Starting MS Project is the same like starting any MS office programs. The following page will open: 9 2. Defining the project In the first part, the different part of the Gantt chart will be entered. Double click on Task name 10 2. Defining the project The following menu will appear where you can enter the first task and then you can move to the second and so on. 11 2. Defining the project Assume we want to generate a Gantt chart for your design project. Task Duration Literature review 2 weeks Comparison between designs 1 week Design specifications 2 weeks Building and testing a prototype 1 week Report writing 2 weeks 12 2. Defining the project Each task will be entered one by one using the task information. Enter the task name Enter the starting and finish dates 13 2. Defining the project The first entry will be shown as follows. Working days 14 2. Defining the project After entering all terms, we will have the following ready Gantt chart. 15 3. Editing the project After entering all terms, different editing can be done to the existing project. To insert a new task, select insert new task. Insert a new task called Order Components. 16 3. Editing the project If a task is a pre-request for another task, this can be specified as follows: 1. Double click on the task that will have a pre-request, for example double click on “Building and testing a prototype” 2. The following menu will appear, choose “Predecessor” 17 3. Editing the project 3. Select “Task Name” and choose “Order components” 4. Press OK and the following change will happen to the Gantt chart 18 3. Editing the project 1. Tasks can be subdivided into subgroups. 2. This can be achieved by first inserting three new tasks called Phase I, II and III as shown below. 19 3. Editing the project 3. Then select each group and use the indent button as shown below. 20 3. Editing the project 4. The Gantt chart will be modified as follows: 21 3. Editing the project 5. In a similar way the total number of days of the project can be calculated and shown as follows: 22 3. Editing the project 6. You can show the actual completion of the project along with your schedule. 7. Double click on the task, the following menu will appear: 23 3. Editing the project 8. Enter the finished percentage of the work and press OK, then the Gantt chart will be modified as follows: 9. If the work has been finished then this will be shown in the tasks as follows: 24 4. View Options 1. There are several view options that has different applications. 2. Assume in our example, the following tasks has been finished with the shown percentage: 3. Edit the Gantt chart to reflect these changes Task Percentage of finished work Literature review 100% Comparison between designs 100% Design specifications 85% Order components 50% Building and testing a prototype 0% Report writing 10% 25 4. View Options 4. Go to the “view” and select “Tracking Gantt” as shown: 5. The following details will be shown in the Gantt chart. 6. The percentage completion of each task, phase and total project are shown. 26 4. View Options 7. The red path shows “the critical path” of the project. 8. Delay in tasks identified as critical path will result in the delays of the whole project. 9. This is where managers must concentrate their efforts to avoid delay of the whole project. 27 4. View Options 1. To see more views click on more views: 2. The following menu will appear 28 4. View Options 1. One of the views is the “Network Diagram” option. 2. The Gantt chart will look like the following diagram: 29 5. Management of Project Resources 1. As a manager, you will need people to accomplish all those tasks that you've identified in the previous sections. 2. Those people are resources that you need to manage well to achieve the project's objectives. 3. You may also need some material resources like equipment, supplies, raw materials, etc., that you will have to schedule and pay for. 4. Management of the resources can be included along with the tasks in MS Project. 30 5. Management of Project Resources 1. Choose view then resource sheet. 2. The following sheet will appear. 31 5. Management of Project Resources 1. You can enter both the labor and material in the resource sheet. 2. Both hourly rate for the labor and material cost will be entered. 3. After that, the cost of both the labor and material will be linked to the Gantt chart as shown in the following slides. 32 5. Management of Project Resources 1. Go back to the view, then Gantt chart. 2. Select Insert, then column definition, the following screen will appear. 3. Select cost 4. The following column will be inserted. 33 5. Management of Project Resources 1. You can assign resources, people or material, to each one of the tasks. 2. A task may have several resources. 3. Double click on the required task, the following screen will appear: 4. Select the resource name and specify the number of units to be used. 5. Add the cost for all other parts of the project 34 5. Management of Project Resources 1. After entering the cost for all components, the Gantt chart will look like the following: 35