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Microsoft Project: The Basics If you're new to project management or Microsoft Project, you may have questions about creating and managing a project. This tutorial provides information about basic project management and Microsoft Project concepts, and then leads you through lessons where you'll learn how to create a plan, track its progress, and communicate the results. Each lesson for creating your plan, tracking progress, and communicating results contains a set of step-by-step directions with simple navigation to lead you through the process. Click a lesson under The Basics or follow the link below to get acquainted with project management and Microsoft Project. To start building your project right away, click Create a plan on the menu at the left. What is project management? What is project management? Project management is the process of planning, organizing, and managing tasks and resources to accomplish a defined objective, usually within constraints on time, resources, or cost. A project plan can be simple, for example, a list of tasks and their start and finish dates written on a notepad. Or it can be complex, for example, thousands of tasks and resources and a project budget of millions of dollars. Most projects share common activities, including breaking the project into easily manageable tasks, scheduling the tasks, communicating with the team, and tracking the tasks as work progresses. And all projects consist of three major phases: 1 Build the plan 2 Track and manage the project 3 Close the project The more successful these phases are, the greater your chance of a successful project. The project triangle The project triangle If only you could foresee your project's future.... In a way you can, if you understand three factors that shape every project: Time: The time to complete the project reflected in your project schedule. Money: The project budget, based on the cost of the resources: the people, equipment, and materials required to do the tasks. Scope: The goals and tasks of the project and the work required to complete them. This trio of time, money, and scope is the project triangle. Adjusting one of these elements affects the other two. While all three elements are important, typically one will have the most influence on your project. The relationship between these elements differs in every project and determines the kinds of problems you'll encounter and the solutions you can implement. Knowing where you're constrained or flexible makes it easier to plan and manage your project. The Microsoft Project database The Microsoft Project database As project manager, you have a lot to do. How does Microsoft Project help? First, it stores the details about your project in its database. And it uses that information to calculate and maintain the project's schedule, costs, and other elements, creating a project plan. The more information you provide, the more accurate the plan. Like a spreadsheet, Microsoft Project displays results of its calculations immediately. But the project plan isn't done until you enter critical information about all tasks. Only then do you see when your project will end or the dates when tasks are scheduled. Microsoft Project keeps the information you enter and the information it calculates in fields, which contain specific types of information, such as task names or durations. In Microsoft Project, each field usually appears in a column. Seeing the data you need Seeing the data you need Today, you're focused on deadlines. Tomorrow, costs. The project database contains a lot of information, but at any given time, you only need a portion of it. To get to information, use these tools: Views present a subset of project information in a format that's easy to interpret. For example, the Gantt Chart displays basic task information in columns and a bar graph. Tables define the columns displayed. Filters focus on specific tasks or resources. Like TV channels, each view presents a different kind of information. Tables and filters fine-tune the information. Just as switching channels doesn't delete them, changing views, tables, or filters may hide information, but it doesn't delete it. It's still in the database and is still updated. How Microsoft Project schedules How Microsoft Project schedules How does Microsoft Project schedule a task's start and finish? It takes into account many factors, including task dependencies, constraints, and interruptions, such as holidays or vacation days. Most importantly, Microsoft Project schedules each task using the formula duration=work/resource effort, where: Duration is the actual amount of time that passes before the task is done. Work is the effort required over a period of time to do the task. Resource effort is the amount of effort resources are assigned to the task and their allocation. For example, if: Three painters work two days on a task, with an effort of 8 hours per day, the work for each resource is 16 hours: (2 days * 8 hours). The total effort of the resources is 24 hours per day: (3 painters * 8 hours). The total work for the task is 48 hours: (2 days * 8 hours * 3 painters). The duration is 2 days: 48 hours / (3 painters * 8 hours). Understanding this formula is important to understanding how changes you make to tasks affect the project schedule. Putting it together Putting it together After you've created the task list and provided schedule information, your plan is built. You can see a full model of your project, including its finish date and the start and finish dates for every task. What's next? Review critical paths for potential problems. A critical path is a series of linked tasks that must be done on time for the project to finish on time. If any task on a critical path is delayed, it can end up delaying the project's finish date. Evaluate and optimize the plan until you're satisfied. Before you start your project and periodically during the project, you'll need to evaluate and adjust the project plan. Consider scope, resources, and schedule. Update Microsoft Project about the progress of tasks. In return, it'll show you an updated project plan. You can update the plan yourself, or your team can, with Microsoft Project Central or electronic mail. After the plan is updated, review it to see the effect of changes. Is the project over budget? Is a team member now scheduled to work overtime? Is your project going to end late? Close the project. Evaluate the lessons learned and best practices. Getting Help Getting Help This tutorial will help you get started, but you'll find additional components of Help by clicking the Home button or by using the Help menu. The Project Map. Click through the phases of a project to learn about all steps of project management, including project management concepts and practices, as well as how to use Microsoft Project. What's New. See What's New to learn about new features in Microsoft Project 2000. Quick Preview. Get an overview of the key parts of Microsoft Project 2000. The Office Assistant. The Office Assistant can answer your specific questions, leading you to the Help topics that best answer your questions. Reference. Click the Home button, and then click the Reference section for descriptions of all available views, tables, and filters; all fields; and project management concepts. Contents and Index. Choose Contents and Index from the Help menu to view an index of all Help topics. Create a project plan Create a project plan When you have defined project goals and thought out the major phases of your project, it's time to begin creating your plan. First, enter and organize the list of tasks to be completed, along with each task's duration. Next, add people, equipment, and materials and their costs to your plan. Then assign these resources to tasks. With this information, Microsoft Project creates a schedule. You can verify the schedule and adjust it as necessary. The lessons in this section guide you through creating your project plan. Begin Lesson: How do you set up a project? The first steps in creating a schedule are starting a new file, designating a project start or finish date, and entering general project information. When you've completed this lesson, you will have a Microsoft Project file containing the project name and other key information, the project's start or finish date, and the project calendar. This lesson has three procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... lessons Lesson: How do you enter and organize a task list? First, list the steps needed to accomplish your project's goals. Start with the large chunks of work and then break down each chunk into tasks with single deliverables. Add milestones. Finally, gather and enter duration estimates. After you enter task information, create an outline to help you see the project's structure. When you've completed this lesson, you will have a task list organized into summary and detailed tasks. This lesson has five procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: When will tasks start and finish? After you create and outline your task list, it's time to address how the tasks relate to each other and to specific dates. There are many types of task relationships, such as links that show one task starting as another finishes. These links are called task dependencies. Microsoft Project automatically determines the start and finish dates for tasks that have dependencies to other tasks. The advantage of dependencies or "linked" tasks is that whenever a task changes, linked tasks are automatically rescheduled. You can refine task schedules using constraints, overlap or delay tasks, and split tasks when work stops temporarily. When you've completed this lesson, you will have a schedule for your project. This lesson has five procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you assign resources? You should assign resources to tasks when you want to: Track the amount of work done by people and equipment assigned to tasks or monitor materials used. Have more flexibility in scheduling tasks. Monitor resources with too little or too much work assigned. Keep track of resource costs. If you don't enter resource information, Microsoft Project calculates your schedule using only task duration and dependencies. When you've completed this lesson, you will have added people, equipment, and materials to your project and assigned them to tasks. This lesson has five procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you enter costs? Whether you need to account for each task's expenses or the overall cost of the project, entering rates for a resource's work on tasks or for fixed task costs enables you to see whether you are staying within budget. You can choose when to accrue costs, enter per-use and overtime rates for resources, and plan for raises. When you've completed this lesson, you will have entered cost information for resources and tasks. If you don't need to keep track of costs in your project, click View the schedule at the left to go on to the next lesson. This lesson has five procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you view the schedule and its details? After entering the basic project data, review it. Will you meet your deadlines? If not, examine the tasks leading up to milestones and make sure you have scheduled them efficiently. First, look at the big picture: the start and finish date and the critical path. Then check the details. Display tasks and resources in views that you can change to suit your needs. When you've completed this lesson, you'll know how to see overall schedule information as well as details. This lesson has eight procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you adjust your schedule? If, after viewing your schedule, you find that you won't meet your project finish date, you can adjust tasks to shorten your schedule. Pay special attention to critical tasks because any changes to those tasks may affect the finish date. Can a task begin earlier? Use lead time. Is there a date that a task must absolutely start? Add a constraint. Are some resources overworked and others free? Reassign resources to shorten tasks. When you've completed this lesson, you'll have adjusted your schedule to meet the finish date. This lesson has five procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you save the plan along the way? After you've entered task, resource, and cost information for your project, you can save a snapshot of your original plan, called a baseline. To save a checkpoint of actual progress on the project, you can save an interim plan and compare changes to your baseline plan. After the project is underway, you can enter actual information and compare that data to the baseline. When you've completed this lesson, you'll have a baseline of your project for future reference. This lesson has two procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Track and manage progress When you manage a project, you need to monitor the elements of the project triangle: time, money, and scope. Adjusting one of these elements affects the other two. Events such as unexpected delays, cost overruns, and resource changes can cause problems in your schedule. If you keep your project information up to date, you can always see the latest status of the project. That way, you can identify problems early that might affect your project's success and use Microsoft Project to find solutions. The lessons in this section will show you how to track and manage work on your project. Click Begin lessons to get started. Begin lessons Lesson: How do you track the actual progress on tasks? Once you've set up your project and work has begun, you can keep track of actual start and finish dates, tasks' percentage of completion, and actual work. Tracking actuals shows you how changes affect other tasks and, ultimately, the project's finish date. When you've completed this lesson, you'll know how to enter actual task information and see its effects on the schedule. This lesson has seven procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you track the actual work by resource? You may need to track how much work each resource on your project completes task by task or cumulatively for the project. Then you can compare the planned and actual amounts of work. This comparison can help you keep track of your resources' performance and plan workloads for future projects. When you've completed this lesson, you'll know how to enter actual work done by a resource and see the variance between a resource's planned and actual work. This lesson has three procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you compare actual costs to budget? You may want to track cost overruns in a phase of your project or learn how much a particular resource costs you on a certain day. Or you may simply need to see how much total cost has accrued. Tracking costs for your project can help you see where changes need to be made to finish your project on time and within budget and can help in planning budgets for future projects. When you've completed this lesson, you'll know how to enter and view actual costs. This lesson has five procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you compare actual costs to budget? You may want to track cost overruns in a phase of your project or learn how much a particular resource costs you on a certain day. Or you may simply need to see how much total cost has accrued. Tracking costs for your project can help you see where changes need to be made to finish your project on time and within budget and can help in planning budgets for future projects. When you've completed this lesson, you'll know how to enter and view actual costs. This lesson has five procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you balance a resource's workload? You should check your schedule for resources with too much or too little work. If some resources are overallocated, see if adding more resources to a task or reassigning a task will give you the results you want. If this doesn't work, you can delay tasks assigned to an overworked resource until later in the schedule or reduce the amount of work for tasks. When you've completed this lesson, you'll know how to manage workloads. This lesson has five procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... The Basics What is project management? The project triangle The database Seeing the data How Microsoft Project schedules Putting it together Getting Help Create a plan Set up a project Enter a task list Schedule tasks Assign resources Enter costs View the schedule Adjust the schedule Save the plan Track and manage Track the schedule Track work Track costs Balance workloads Communicate Format the schedule Print the project Publish the project

Lesson: How do you track the actual progress on tasks? Once you've set up your project and work has begun, you can keep track of actual start and finish dates, tasks' percentage of completion, and actual work. Tracking actuals shows you how changes affect other tasks and, ultimately, the project's finish date. When you've completed this lesson, you'll know how to enter actual task information and see its effects on the schedule. This lesson has seven procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you track the actual work by resource? You may need to track how much work each resource on your project completes task by task or cumulatively for the project. Then you can compare the planned and actual amounts of work. This comparison can help you keep track of your resources' performance and plan workloads for future projects. When you've completed this lesson, you'll know how to enter actual work done by a resource and see the variance between a resource's planned and actual work. This lesson has three procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you compare actual costs to budget? You may want to track cost overruns in a phase of your project or learn how much a particular resource costs you on a certain day. Or you may simply need to see how much total cost has accrued. Tracking costs for your project can help you see where changes need to be made to finish your project on time and within budget and can help in planning budgets for future projects. When you've completed this lesson, you'll know how to enter and view actual costs. This lesson has five procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you balance a resource's workload? You should check your schedule for resources with too much or too little work. If some resources are overallocated, see if adding more resources to a task or reassigning a task will give you the results you want. If this doesn't work, you can delay tasks assigned to an overworked resource until later in the schedule or reduce the amount of work for tasks. When you've completed this lesson, you'll know how to manage workloads. This lesson has five procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Communicating results To manage a project effectively, you need to communicate and distribute project information. You might prepare reports or presentations; publish information on a Web site; or use Microsoft Project Central to communicate with your workgroup on the Web. With Microsoft Project, you can format and publish views and print reports to meet the needs of a particular person or group. You can publish the information in Web format (HTML) or include it in a presentation using a program such as Microsoft PowerPoint. The lessons in this section show how to communicate and distribute results on your project. Begin lessons Lesson: How do you format the schedule to look the way you want? When you have a large task list, it can be difficult to focus on areas that concern you. To emphasize what you need to see, you can customize the format of the task list and the Gantt bars. You can format categories of information, such as all tasks that must end by a certain date. You can also make some tasks bold or use a different font for them. This lesson has four procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you print project information? After you've entered the basic information about your project, you may want to print it and review the plan. To make it easy to identify your project, you can add headers, footers, and page numbers. If you want to review certain areas of the plan, you can change to another view, customize the view to show only the information you need, and print it. When you've completed this lesson, you'll know how to print the information you want. This lesson has four procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson... Lesson: How do you distribute project information online? Microsoft Project puts the communication potential of the World Wide Web at your fingertips with a variety of Internet and intranet features. With Microsoft Project, you can take advantage of the power of the Web by: Communicating project plans and collecting project information from team members. Copying information as a static picture and saving the picture in a Web-compatible file format. Distributing documents on the Web related to your project. When you've completed this lesson, you'll have a published version of your plan. This lesson has three procedures. Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen to move through the lesson: . Begin the lesson...

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What is project management?

Microsoft Project: The Basics

If you're new to project management or Microsoft Project, you may have questions about creating and managing a project. This tutorial provides information about basic project management and Microsoft Project concepts, and then leads you through lessons where you'll learn how to create a plan, track its progress, and communicate the results.

Each lesson for creating your plan, tracking progress, and communicating results contains a set of step-by-step directions with simple navigation to lead you through the process. Click a lesson under The Basics or follow the link below to get acquainted with project management and Microsoft Project. To start building your project right away, click Create a plan on the menu at the left.

What is project management?