Project Planning and

Programming
Project Management concept an
In simple terms, project management is the concept of managing
introduction
the
tasks, time and resources required to achieve a given goal or
objective
within the constraints assigned.

A definition of some basic terms:

Tasks are the steps or jobs or activities that have to be done in
order to accomplish the goal of the project.
Time refers to the time (or duration) required to complete a task.
You need to determine how much time it will take to complete
each task so that the program can schedule the tasks
accordingly.
Resources include the people, materials, equipment and money
and in some cases time needed to get the tasks completed
 terms:

Constraints refer to the restrictions that have

been placed on the project such as when it needs
to be completed, how much you can spend, and
the number of people available and so on.

Once you know what the goal or objective of the

project is, you need to break the project down
into smaller jobs or as they are called in Project
management - tasks. The exact number of tasks
varies from project to project and from person to
person.
 LINKING TASKS
When you enter your tasks into the program, Ms-
project will schedule the tasks to start as soon as
possible, which means they start immediately.
Predecessor: is a task that has other tasks
depending on its completion or start.
Successor: is a task that depends on other tasks
to have completed or started.
Basically, the predecessor controls when the
successor can start or finish. Some tasks may
need several tasks to be completed before they
can start. In that case they have multiple
predecessors or a task may have multiple
successors.
 TASK RELATIONSHIPS
Basically, every task in a project should be
linked in some way to another task. Setting a
relationship between two tasks allows you to
control how project will re-schedule those
tasks when changes are made.
There are four different types of relationships
that you can have between two tasks.
Finish -to -start relationship: The
predecessor (Task A) must be finished before
the successor (Task B) can start. If Task A is
delayed, so is Task B. this is the most common
type of relationship and is also the default
 TASK RELATIONSHIPS
Finish to-Finish relationship: Both tasks finish
at the same time. Task B can not finish earlier,
since its finish time depends on when task A
finishes.
Start to- Start Relationship: both tasks start
at the same time. Task Bs starting time depends
on when task A starts and can not start without
Task A having started.
Start to finish Relationship: is very rarely used,
Task A (pred.) controls when Task B (Succ.) can
finish. E.g when you start a car, the starter (Task
B) continues until the engine starts
ADDING LAG/LEAD
Not all relationships can use the standard formats
discussed previously. Sometimes you may wish to
wait a certain amount of time after a task finishes
or starts before the next one begins. This is where
you can add Lag or Lead time between the
relationships.
Lag time is the amount of time that a successor
lags behind the controlling date of the predecessor
Lead time is the amount of time that the successor
leads the controlling date of the predecessor. Task
B will always be scheduled to start a certain
amount of time before task a finishes.
CRITICAL TASKS
A critical task is a task that if delayed,
delays the finish date of the entire project.
Critical tasks usually have no margin of
slippage. That definitely makes a task
critical. Any task marked as critical needs
to be watched very closely if the project is
to be completed on time.
Critical tasks weaving a path through your
project are referred to as the critical
Path
FLOAT TIME
Float or slack time is the amount of time
that a task can be delayed before it affects
another task. There are two types of float
time, free and total float.
Free float is the amount of time a task can
be delayed before it affects any other task.
Total Float is the amount of time that you
could delay a task without delaying a
critical task which means you will be
delaying the project.
 Creating a new project

STARTING MS-PROJECT
Start Microsoft Project on your computer using
whatever procedure is convenient on your
computer (depending on how it was installed)

THE PROJECT SCREEN

For the most part, the MS Project screen has the
same elements of most Windows applications.
Across the top of the screen is the Title Bar. The
name of the project currently open is displayed in
this bar, as well as, the minimize,
maximize/restore, and close buttons
Project screen
 Creating a new project

Beneath the title bar is the Menu Bar where you will be
accessing many of the commands. You can access the menu
by pressing A and the underlined letter of the option you want.
The Standard Toolbar displays a collection of buttons that
provide quick access to the most commonly used commands
within Project. Also at the bottom is the Formatting Toolbar.
The Entry Bar is where you will actually be typing your
information before you enter it into your project.
The Status Bar (located along the bottom of your screen)
displays various messages concerning the status of the project
as well as the keyboard.
The View Bar allows you to choose the view you want to work
with. You can choose to display your project from a variety of
views depending on what information needs to be displayed.
 The default view within Project is called the Gantt Chart.
The Gantt chart will display your tasks in the form of a table
(on the left) and a bar graph (on the right) along a time
scale.
Across the top of the Gantt chart is the Time Scale which
shows how the chart is broken down into time periods.
There is a Vertical Separator bar between the task table
and the Gantt Chart which can be used to change the width
of the Gantt chart or to display more columns of the task
table.
 OPENING A PROJECT

Click on the Open button (located on the standard

toolbar).
If you prefer accessing the menu: file, open...
Project will display a list of existing projects in the Open
window. Once you locate the file you wish to work with, double-
click on its name. You can also highlight the file and click on

Click on this button (located on the standard toolbar) to start a

new
project file. If you prefer to use the menu: then file, new. A
blank Gantt table and chart will be displayed.
 ENTERING PROJECT SPECIFICATIONS

Before you start programming the project tasks, there is need to enter
the project specifications. Most of these specifications will only be used
within the project reports.
Use the menu and select the following: file, Properties
Project displays a dialog box with several tabs. Click on the Summary
tab. Fill out any additional information you may have concerning the
project (e.g. project title, project manager, etc and click on
you are done.
 SETTING UP CALENDARS
When Microsoft Project is first shipped, it comes with a
standard
calendar file that is used to schedule your tasks. By default,
Saturdays
and Sundays are set as "Non-Working" days, and standard
working
hours are from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
To change the base calendar, you must access the following
menu: tools, Change Working Time...
SETTING UP CALENDARS
 SETTING UP CALENDARS

A pull-down menu is available at the top of the dialog box

to select different calendars if they are available. You also
have the choice of creating a new calendar if you need to
create different calendars for different shifts, companies or
projects.
CHANGING THE WORK SCHEDULE
If your project will be managed on a different schedule than
the default, or if you need to create a calendar for shift
workers, you can easily change the hours worked each day.
If all weekdays have the same schedule, highlight the
weekdays by dragging your mouse across the top of the
calendar. This will change every single weekday from now
on.
 CHANGING CALENDAR OPTIONS

In addition to setting the working and non-working days,

you can further customize your working schedule by clicking
on the button. This allows you to set such options as
when your work week or fiscal year begins, how many hours
per day/per week there are, and default starting and ending
work times.

Default start time - Select the default starting time.

Default end time - Select the default ending time.
Hours per day - Enter the default working hours/day.
Hours per week - Enter the default working hours/week.
 SETTING PROJECT START OR FINISH DATE

When a new project is started, there is need to specify the

Project Start or Finish date before scheduling the tasks.
To specify the dates, select Project Information from the
Project menu.
Start date Use this to define when the project is to start.
Finish date Use this to define the finish date of the
project.
Schedule from Determines whether to schedule from the
start and calculate the finish date, or to schedule from the
end and calculate the start date.
Current date Shows current date. Can be changed to see
what project would look like on another date.
 SETTING PROJECT START OR FINISH DATE

Calendar
Assigns a default calendar for the scheduling of tasks. This
is also used as a base for resource calendars. Click on the
down arrow () to select the type of work calendar to use.
Click on this button to obtain statistics for the
project, such as duration, cost or work hours.
 CUSTOMIZING THE GANTT CHART

The Gantt chart is used to display the tasks using graphic

bars and lines. Not only does this display the length of the
tasks visually, it also gives you an overview of when the
tasks are to be scheduled.
To customize the Gantt chart, you will use the Gantt Chart
Wizard and follow the steps outlined below:
1)

Click on this button to access the Gantt Chart Wizard.
Or select Gantt chart wizard from the Format menu.
 CUSTOMIZING THE GANTT CHART

2) Since the first screen within the Gantt Chart Wizard is

simply a welcome message, click on to immediately
move on to the next step.
3)Use this step to define what information should appear in
the Gantt chart. If you select Critical Path as your option,
all critical tasks will be displayed in red and non-
critical tasks will be displayed in blue.
4)This screen is used to select the information that should be
displayed along each task bar. Keep in mind the more data
you select, the more crowded (and unreadable) the chart
becomes. Click on to move on to the next step. Make
all necessary selections and then click on Finish, then Exit
Wizard.
 Entering tasks and Durations

Type the task name and enter the duration. Simply type in the
new task length, followed by an abbreviation indicating the
time period. Duration can be entered in "Working Time" or in
"Elapsed Time". Working Time refers to actual working time.
Elapsed Time refers to actual calendar time which includes
all non-working hours/days.
You can use the following abbreviations to enter duration:
Duration Working time Elapsed time
Minutes m em
Hours h eh
Days d ed
Weeks w ew
Months mon emon
 ADDING NOTES

There are times when you will want to add some notes for a
particular task such as why you assigned a particular
resource or some other information. When a note has been
added to a task, a note indicator appears in the
indicator column. To add a note to a task, follow these steps:
1) While in the Gantt Chart view, select the task to which a
note should be attached.
2) Click on this button to access the Task Notes
box:
3) In the Notes section, enter your comments.
 Entering tasks

CREATING MILESTONES
Throughout the project you will probably want to place task
markers to indicate important goals that have been
reached. These tasks are referred to as Milestones and
are used to monitor progress made. Milestones are
created by adding tasks with duration of zero.
INSERTING NEW TASKS
1) Place the pointer on the row where the new task to be
added should appear.
2) Select New Task from the Insert menu. Project pushes
the current task down and creates an empty row for
the new task
3) Enter the new task's name and other information as usual.
 Entering tasks

DELETING TASKS
1) Click on the task to be removed.
2) Select Delete Task from the Edit menu. The task will be
deleted from the schedule.
MOVING TASKS
1)Click on the task ID number of the task to be moved. The
entire task row will be selected.
2)Click on the task ID number again, but this time hold the
[LEFT] mouse button down and drag the task up/down
to where you want it.
SAVING THE PROJECT FILE
Use this button to save your file or click file, save then
enter the name of the project file and click save button.
 Entering tasks

WORKING WITH OUTLINES

Larger tasks, called summary tasks, represent each new
phase or level. Each summary task is broken down into
smaller detail tasks, called subordinates or subtasks
which are indented.
To create an outline, simply enter the tasks or milestones in
the order you want, and assign each task to a level by using
the outline buttons located on the Formatting toolbar, as
shown below.
Use this button to indent a task to a lower level.
Use this button to outdent a task to a higher level.
This can be used to turn a subtask into a summary task.
 Entering tasks

COLLAPSING THE OUTLINE

Once the outline has been created, you can "hide" the
different detail tasks for all or just part of the outline. Most
Managers, for example, don't want to be involved in all the
messy details - they just want to see a summary of what is
going on with the project.
To collapse a summary task, select the summary task(s)
to be collapsed and use this button to hide the task(s).
EXPANDING THE OUTLINE
To expand a summary task, select the summary
task(s) to be expanded and use this button to open
the task(s).
 Entering tasks
ADDING RECURRING TASKS
Adding a recurring task is useful for scheduling tasks that
occur repeatedly during a project. An example would be a
weekly office meeting scheduled for each Friday.

To add a recurring task, follow these steps:

1)Highlight the task that should come after the recurring task.

2)Access the following menu: insert recurring Task...

The following dialog box will be displayed:
 ADDING RECURRING TASKS

3) Use Name to enter the name for the task.

4) Enter the Duration of the task using the abbreviations
used for standard task durations. You can also use the
up/down arrows to increase/decrease the current setting.
 Recurring Tasks

5) In the This occurs section, select when this task will occur.
To the right of this box, you can define how often the task
will occur (e.g., every week, every other month). The exact
options depend on what you select in the previous section.
6) Define the Length of period for which the task will repeat.
By default, Project uses the start and finish dates of the
project. Instead of specifying a time period, you might want
to define the number of times For which the task will
repeat.
7) Once you have made your changes, click on .
Project adds a summary task to your plan. This task
actually represents each individual meeting. Notice the
indicator representing the recurring task
 Recurring Tasks

To see each individual meeting, click on the plus sign of the

summary
task, the subtasks will be revealed .
LINKING TASKS
While creating your outline, you should have noticed that all of
the tasks are scheduled to start immediately (ASAP), starting at
either the current date or at the project start date. Some of your
tasks will depend on others to be completed first before they can
get started. Project needs to know this and you will therefore have
to set up the Relationships between the tasks.
 LINKING TASKS

While creating your outline, you should have

noticed that all of the tasks are scheduled to start
immediately (ASAP), starting at either the current
date or at the project start date.

Some of your tasks will depend on others to be

completed first before they can get started.
Project needs to know this and you will therefore
have to set up the Relationships between the
tasks.
 LINKING TASKS

To link two or more tasks together, you must select them

from the outline. Although you can link summary tasks, you
have more control over the relationships between individual
tasks if you only link the detail tasks together.
Once the tasks to be linked have been selected,
click on the link tool located on the toolbar.
By default, Project reschedules all the linked tasks in a
Finish-to-Start relationship. As soon as one task is
completed, the next one is scheduled to start.
UNLINKING TASKS
1) Select the two tasks that are to be unlinked.
2) Click on the Unlink button located on the toolbar.
 VIEWING THE PERT CHART

MS Project provides a special chart known as the PERT

(Program Evaluation Review Technique) chart just for
this purpose. This PERT chart displays your project as a
series of boxes (tasks or nodes) with dependency lines
connecting the individual tasks.
To change to the PERT chart, you must change your View.
pERT Chart
 CHECKING THE PROJECT STATUS

If you want to see what the current status of your project is

as of now, you can review such items as the start/finish
dates, project duration, total working hours and total cost.
These items are summarized in the Project Statistics box.
 CHECKING THE PROJECT STATUS

MENU: project
project Information...
Project displays the following
dialog box:

To see the Project status,

click on
After you have reviewed
the information, click on
 TASK RELATIONSHIPS

When you enter your tasks into the program, Project will
schedule the tasks to start as soon as possible (ASAP), which
means that they start immediately.
Predecessor is a task that has other tasks depending
on its completion or start.
Successor is a task that depends on other tasks to
have completed or started.
Basically, the Predecessor controls when the Successor can
start or finish. For example, if you plan on repainting a room
and laying in a new carpet, you would probably want to paint
the room first before you lay the new carpet. Painting the room
is therefore a predecessor, while laying the new carpet is the
successor.
 TASK RELATIONSHIPS

Some tasks may need several tasks to be completed

before they can start. In that case they will have multiple
predecessors:

Or a task may have multiple successors:

 TASK RELATIONSHIPS
Most tasks will act as a predecessor as well as a successor to
other
tasks:
 TASK RELATIONSHIPS

Every task in a project should be linked in some way to

another task. Setting a relationship between two tasks
allows you to control how Project will re-schedule those
tasks when changes are made to the schedule.
There are four different types of relationships that you can
have between two tasks:

Finish-to-Start relationship: The predecessor (Task A) must be

finished before the successor (Task B) can Start. If task A is
delayed, so is task B. This is the most common type of
relationship and is also the default in Project.
 TASK RELATIONSHIPS

Finish-to-Finish relationship: Both tasks finish at the same time. Task B cannot finish
earlier since its finish time depends on when task A finishes.

Start-to-Start relationship: Both tasks start at the same time. Task B's starting time
depends on when task A starts and cannot start without A having started.

Start-to-Finish relationship and is rarely used. Task A (predecessor.) controls when

Task
B (successor.) can finish.
 ADDING LAG/LEAD

Not all relationships can use the standard formats discussed

above. Sometimes you may wish to wait a certain amount of
time after a task finishes or starts before the next one begins.
This is where you can add Lag or Lead time between the
relationships.
Lag time is the amount of time that a successor lags behind the
controlling date of the predecessor. The diagram below shows
the starting date of task B lagging behind the finish date of
task A:

Lead time is the amount of time that a successor leads the

controlling date of the predecessor. The diagram below shows
the starting date of task B leading the finish date of task A:
Task B will always be scheduled to start a
certain amount of time before task A finishes.
 CRITICAL TASKS

A critical task is a task that if delayed, delays the finish date of

the entire project. Critical tasks usually have no margin for
slippage. That definitely makes a task critical. Any task marked
as critical needs to be watched very closely if the project is to
be completed on time. Critical tasks weaving a path through
your project are referred to as the Critical Path.
FLOAT TIME
Float or Slack time is the amount of time that a task can be
delayed before it affects another task. There are two types of
float time, free and total float.
Free Float is the amount of time a task can be delayed before
it affects any other task.
Total Float is the total amount of time that you could delay a
task without delaying a critical task, which means you will be
delaying the project.