Quick Reference Guide Master the Basics in Microsoft Project 2013

Transcription

1 Microsoft Project 2013 Quick Reference Guide Master the Basics in Microsoft Project 2013 TABS Navigate Microsoft Project 2013 The TABS on the ribbon are organized to present the relevant features for most of the work you ll do in Project The VIEW tab is the quickest way to move among Views. View Bar Choose the FORMAT tab in any View to customize the View. To show or hide the View Bar, click on the left edge of your pane using your right mouse button. Use the View Bar to change views. Project Management Training The Versatile Company All Rights Reserved.

2 Set Up Your Project 1 A New Project Set Project Defaults Path: FILE > Options > Schedule 1. Set the Project Calendar a. On the PROJECT tab, click Change Working Time in the Properties group. b. In the Change Working Time dialog, identify non-working time on the Exceptions tab and identify default working time on the Work Weeks tab. 2. Set Project Information a. On the PROJECT tab, click Project Information in the Properties group. b. Set the project Start date, Schedule from and Calendar. Use Manually Scheduled tasks when you want to schedule every task yourself. These tasks ignore Project s scheduling engine. The most important Scheduling Options decisions NOTE: We strongly recommend that these Project Default Options be identified and standardized across your company and/or departments. Every company is different and standard Project Default Options can vary from one department to another. These options must be set prior to scheduling a project. Failure to set these Project Defaults Options could result in inconsistent data among reports and users! Please contact us if you need more specific information concerning Project Default Options. Projects@VersatileCompany.com (866) Format the Task List On the FORMAT tab, in the Show/Hi group, check the box for: Outline Number - to show the outl number next to the task name. Project Summary Task - to show t summary task for the project. Summary Tasks - to display or hid summary tasks in the list. Use the Network Diagram View to Visualize the Schedule 1. Select the Network Diagram from the View Bar. 2. To format the Network Diagram, right-click in th a. Select Box Styles - to format Style settings, B b. Select Layout - to format Layout Mode, Link s

3 de Create the Task List Create a task list that breaks the project into Summary Tasks and tasks. This hierarchical list is also known as a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). 1. Begin by typing Tasks into the Task Name column. 2. Insert additional Tasks, Summary tasks and Milestones using the Insert group on the TASK tab. 3. Indent / Outdent Tasks to show task hierarchy: a. Select the task. b. On the TASK tab, in the Schedule group, click Indent Task or Outdent Task arrows. Create Task Relationships Task relationships show sequence constraints among tasks. 1. Create task relationships: a. Select the Predecessor task. b. Hold the Ctrl Key down and select the Successor task. c. On the TASK tab, in the Schedule group, click Link the Selected Tasks. 2. To Remove dependencies on Tasks: repeat 1a and 1b above and click Unlink Tasks. 3. An alternative approach is to enter the Task ID of the Predecessor task in the Predecessors column. 2 Build a Schedule Scroll to Task helps you find the task bar on the schedule. Select the task on the list and click Scroll to Task. Indent & Outdent Tasks Add or Remove Task Relationships Click to insert on the Task list ne e Add vertical lines to the Gantt Calendar for Current Date, Status Date, etc. Format the Task List e Network Diagram area to display the menu. orders, and Background information. tyles, Link colors, and Diagram options. Use a different color for critical tasks Format the Gantt Chart Control the colors, lines, and text on the chart: 1. In the Gantt Chart view, select the FORMAT tab, then in the Bar Styles group use check boxes for: a. Critical tasks to show critical tasks in red. b. Slack to show a line to represent slack (float). c. Late Tasks to show late tasks in black. 2. To format the Gantt Chart, right-click in the Gantt Chart area to display the menu. a. Select Bar Styles to format Gantt Chart text and bar information. b. Select Layout to format Gantt Chart bar Links, Date format, and Bar height.

4 Add Resources for the Project on the Resource Sheet 1. On the VIEW tab, in the Resource Views group, click Resource Sheet. 2. Enter the name of the new resource in the Resource Name column. 3. In the resource Type column, select Work, Material, or Cost resource. a. Use Work for people, equipment, and other resources that are paid by time, such as hourly, daily, weekly. b. Material resources are assigned a cost by unit of purchase, such as gallon of gas or cubic yard of concrete. c. A Cost resource is a cost category. The actual value of the cost is assigned within the task. 3 Manage Resources Create a Split View 1. Select Gantt Chart from the View Bar. 2. On the VIEW tab check the box for Details (this splits the view into an upper pane Gantt Chart and a lower pane Task Form). Task Types Determine Schedule Calculations Task Types change the assumptions about how adding resources will affect the cost and schedule of a task. Project uses the formula Work = Duration x Units. Select a Task Type to hold one of the three variables constant. 1. Fixed Units 2. Fixed Duration 3. Fixed Work It is essential to understand how Project uses the task type setting! This table demonstrates how Project recalculates these three variables when the user makes a change to one of the variables. Assign Resources to Tasks in a Split View After adding resources to the Resource Sheet, assign resources to tasks using the Split View of Details. 1. In the upper pane Gantt Chart view, select the task by clicking the Task ID to select the task row to assign the resource. 2. In the lower pane Task Form view: a. Click into the first empty row under the Resource Name field and select the Resource Name from the drop-down list. b. Enter Units to set the resource level. 50% of a Work resource means the resource will be working half-time on the project. c. The Work field shows the planned hours for this task. Task Type If Units are Changed If Duration is Changed If Work is Changed Fixed Units Duration is recalculated Work is recalculated Duration is recalculated Fixed Work Duration is recalculated Units are constant Duration is recalculated Fixed Duration Work is recalculated Work is recalculated Units are constant For Project Management resources visit

5 Track Schedule Progress Against a Baseline The Baseline saves a copy of current cost and schedule. Capture the baseline when the plan is complete and before beginning to update status. Save the current baseline: 1. On the PROJECT tab, in the Schedule group, click Set Baseline and select Set Baseline to open the dialog. 2. In the Set Baseline dialog, select Baseline Options and click OK. View the schedule baseline on the Gantt Chart view: 1. Select the FORMAT tab. 2. In the Bar Styles group, click Baseline and select the Baseline to display. Clear the Project Baseline 1. On the PROJECT tab, in the Schedule group, click Set Baseline and select Clear Baseline to open the dialog. 2. In the Clear Baseline dialog, select baseline to clear in the Clear Baseline Plan menu. 4 Manage the Schedule Tables control which columns you see. Manage the schedule using the Tracking Table. Select a Table using the VIEW tab and the Tables button. Update Task Progress in the Tracking Gantt view Select the Tracking Gantt view and Tracking table to update % Complete. 1. Select the Tracking Gantt from the View Bar. 2. Update Task Progress by using % Complete. a. Select the task by clicking the Task ID to select the task row. b. On the TASK tab, in the Schedule group, select the % Complete value. For Project Management resources visit

6 The Timeline View To format a task bar, right click on the bar. To add a task to the Timeline, right click on a task name. Format the Timeline Add a task to the Timeline: 1. Select the task clicking the Task ID or Task Name. 2. Right-click and select Add to Timeline from the menu. 3. Repeat to add Summary and Milestone tasks. Format a Task Bar or Milestone on the Timeline: 1. Right-click on the Task Bar or Milestone on the Timeline to display the Font and Timeline menus. 2. Edit Font Type, Size, or Color and to Display as a Callout. Format the Timeline using the contextual FORMAT Ribbon and TIMELINE TOOLS tab. 1. Click into the Timeline to display the contextual Format Ribbon and TIMELINE TOOLS tab. 2. The contextual Format Ribbon and TIMELINE TOOLS tab now displays commands used to format the Timeline. 3. Click into the Gantt Chart to remove the TIMELINE TOOLS tab, replaced by GANTT CHART TOOLS tab. Add or Remove the Timeline Select the Gantt Chart view. On the VIEW tab, in the Split View group, use the check box for Timeline. The Versatile Company delivers hands-on training in project management, Microsoft Project, SharePoint and Project Server. Our Mastering Microsoft Project 2013 course is recommended by Microsoft. Attend Public, Private, Online or On-site Classes. Project Management Training We wrote the #1 book on practical, results-driven Project Management!