MS Project Training2

7/28/2019 MS Project Training2

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Microsoft® Office

Project 2007 Training

Linking Project tasks

[Your company name] presents:




Course contents

• Overview: Save time as you manage your project

• Lesson 1: Dependency links

• Lesson 2: Create task dependency links

• Lesson 3: Create lag time and lead time

Two of the three lessons include a list of suggested tasks;all include a set of test questions.




Overview: Save time as you manage your project

After you define your project’s tasks

and estimate how long they’ll take,you’re ready to link them.

Linking tasks creates a plan based on

sequence and dependencies,

regardless of specific dates. If the startdate, duration, or finish date of one

task changes, Project automatically

reschedules all related tasks.

Linking makes your plan more flexible

and more reliable.




Course goals

• Apply any of the four task dependency types.

• Know when to use each of the task dependencies.

• Know when and how to use lead and lag time.



Lesson 1

Dependency links




Dependency links

You can use four

types of task

dependencies (or links) to define the

relationships between

tasks in your Project

plan.

If you link tasks, Project will automatically adjust your

schedule when any part of your plan changes.

If instead you enter specific start and finish dates for

tasks, you override that automatic adjustment. So you

see the advantage to understanding how Project

dependency types are used to link tasks.




Linking tasks 101

After you define your

plan’s tasks and

estimate how long itwill take to complete

them, you’re ready to

schedule the tasks by

creating task

dependency links.

By default, Project schedules all tasks to begin on the

project’s start date and calculates the project’s finish

date based on the last task to finish.

When you enter task dependencies, Project adjusts the

schedule to assign more accurate dates to each task.




Linking tasks 101

The picture illustrates

the concepts.

1

2

All tasks in a Project plan start at the project start date

unless you specify otherwise.

With no task dependencies or constraints applied, the

project finish date is the same as the longest task’s finish

date.




Linking tasks 101


the concepts.

3 Task dependencies, such as the Finish-to-Start

dependency between the first and second tasks (shown

here), can change the project’s scheduled finish date.




Predecessor tasks and successor tasks

The four dependency

types shown in the

picture can help youschedule your real-

world situation.

A predecessor is a task whose start or finish date

determines the start or finish date of its successor task.

A successor is a task whose start or finish date is

driven by its predecessor task.




Predecessor tasks and successor tasks

The four dependency

types shown in the

picture can help youschedule your real-

world situation.

The type of relationship between a predecessor task and

a successor task determines the type of task

dependency to use.




Finish-to-Start dependencies

When the work of

Task 2 can start only

after all the work of Task 1 is finished, the

tasks have a Finish-

to-Start (FS)

dependency.

The FS dependency is created by default when you link

two tasks in Project. The order in which you select the

tasks treats the first as the predecessor, the second asthe successor.

Task 1 is the predecessor of Task 2, and Task 2 is the

successor of Task 1.




Start-to-Start dependencies

When the work of

Task 2 cannot start

until Task 1 starts, thetasks have a Start-to-

Start (SS)

dependency.

In the real world, SS dependencies generally occur

because you want the work of two tasks to overlap.

For example, “Level concrete” (Task 2) can’t begin until

“Pour foundation” (Task 1) begins.




Start-to-Start dependencies

Overlapping work also

helps to reduce the

overall duration of aproject.

If Task 1 will take 10 days to complete, and Task 2 will

take 5 days to complete, and you set an FS

dependency, the overall duration of the two tasks is15

days.

If you set an SS dependency, the overall duration of the

two tasks is only 10 days (the time required by Task 1).




Finish-to-Finish dependencies

When the finish date

of Task 1 determines

the finish date of Task2, they have a Finish-

to-Finish (FF)

dependency.

For example, “Inspect electrical” (Task 2) can’t finish

until “Add wiring” (Task 1) finishes.




Finish-to-Finish dependencies

Like SS

dependencies, FF

dependencies reducethe overall amount of

time it takes to

complete work on two

tasks, if the work can

overlap or be done inparallel.

If Task 1 will take 10 days to complete, and Task 2 will

take 5 days to complete, and you set an FS

dependency, the overall duration of the two tasks is15

days.

If you set an FF dependency, the overall duration of the

two tasks is only 10 days (the time required by Task 1).




Start-to-Finish dependencies

When the start date of

Task 1 determines the

finish date of Task 2,the tasks have a

Start-to-Finish (SF)

dependency. This is

how you create just-in-

time scheduling.

Say a related task needs to finish before a milestone or

project finish date, but it doesn’t matter when and you

don’t want a late finish to affect the just-in-time task.

Create an SF dependency between the task you want

scheduled just in time (the predecessor) and its related

task (the successor).




Test 1, question 1

If you’re not certain how the work of Task A relates to the

work of Task B, which dependency type should you create?

(Pick one answer.)

1. Start-to-Start (SS).

2. Finish-to-Start (FS).

3. Finish-to-Finish (FF).

4. Start to Finish (SF).




Test 1, question 1: Answer

Finish-to-Start (FS).

By using the FS dependency type, you avoid introducing scheduling

conflicts and can take advantage of Project’s ability to update the plan

automatically when changes occur.




Test 1, question 2

After “Lay the Carpet” and “Install the Lights” are both

finished, “Paint the Walls” should start immediately. To put

these task relationships in your plan, which dependencytypes should you create? (Pick one answer.)

1. “Lay the Carpet” Finish-to-Start with “Install the Lights,” and

“Install the Lights” Finish-to-Start with “Paint the Walls.”

2. “Lay the Carpet” Start-to-Start with “Install the Lights,” and

“Paint the Walls” Finish-to-Start with “Lay the Carpet.”

3. “Lay the Carpet” Finish-to-Finish with “Install the Lights,” and

“Paint the Walls” Finish-to-Start with “Lay the Carpet.”





“Lay the Carpet” Finish-to-Finish with “Install the Lights,” and “Paint the

Walls” Finish-to-Start with “Lay the Carpet.”

The minute that both “Lay the Carpet” and “Install the Lights” are

finished, you can start on “Paint the Walls.”




Test 1, question 3

It will take a writer 12 days to write a manual and an editor 6

days to edit it. Which type of dependency will get the work

completed in the shortest possible time? (Pick one answer.)

1. FS — finish writing and then start editing.

2. SS — start writing and start editing at the same time.

3. FF — finish editing at the same time as finish writing.





FF — finish editing at the same time as finish writing.

Editing will finish when the writing finishes. And because the two tasks

overlap, the overall duration is 12 days.



Lesson 2

Create task dependency links




Create task dependency links

It’s time to learn how

to create links

between tasks andafter that, to think

about when to link

them.

If you move a task or insert a new task, Project

automatically links it in the same way as the tasks

around it.

By getting all of your tasks in order first, you make

sure that the link you like stays just the way you

want it.




Create an FS dependency

After you’ve identified

two tasks that will be

dependent on eachother, identify one task

as the predecessor.

Then select the

predecessor task byclicking its ID number.

Next, press the CTRL key and select the task that will be

the successor of the task that you have already

selected.

Then, click Link Tasks on the Standard toolbar.




Create an FS dependency

After you’ve identified

two tasks that will be

dependent on eachother, identify one task

as the predecessor.

Then select the

predecessor task byclicking its ID number.

If you need to remove a dependency link:

1. Select the linked tasks. The order of selection does

not matter.

2. Click Unlink on the Standard toolbar.




Type dependencies in the Predecessors column

What if you need to

set dependencies

between tasks that arequite far apart in the

Project plan?

Project provides a simple solution, as shown in Figure 1:

You can create dependency links by typing directly in the

Predecessors column.

1





What if you need to

set dependencies


Project plan?

First, note the predecessor task’s ID number. Then,

scroll to the task that will become its successor.

In the Predecessors field of the successor task, type the

predecessor task’s ID number and the appropriate

dependency abbreviation: SS, FF, FS, or SF.

T d d i i h P d l





What if you need to

set dependencies


Project plan?

To remove a dependency link from the Predecessors

column, select the ID number of the predecessor task,

and then press the DELETE key.

S i f i




Suggestions for practice

1. Create an FS dependency by using the Link Tasks button.

2. With a single button click, create multiple FS dependencies.

3. Create an FS dependency by typing in the Predecessors column.

4. Change an FS dependency to an SS dependency.

5. Change a task duration.

Online practice (requires Project 2007)

T t 2 ti 1

http://office.microsoft.com/training/Training.aspx?AssetID=RP102106991033&CTT=6&Origin=RC102106881033





Test 2, question 1

What method can you use to make a task that appears lower

in the task list (with a higher task ID number) the predecessor

of a task that is higher in the list (with a lower task IDnumber)? (Pick one answer.)

1. Use your mouse to drag across the tasks from top to bottom,

and then click Link Tasks.

2. Hold the CTRL key, click the lower task, click the task that

appears higher in the task list, and then click Link Tasks.

3. Hold the Shift key while clicking each task, and then click Link

Tasks.

T t 2 ti 1 A





Hold the CTRL key, click the lower task, click the task that appears

higher in the task list, and then click Link Tasks.

Tasks are linked in the order in which you selected them when you use

the CTRL key.

T t 2 ti 2




Test 2, question 2

The duration of your current Project plan is 11 days, and it

has a Finish-to-Start dependency between all four tasks. Task

1 is two days; Task 2 is three days; Task 3 is four days; andTask 4 is two days. Which of the following changes will create

a Project plan with the shortest overall duration — without

changing the project’s start date? (Pick one answer.)

1. Create a Start-to-Finish dependency between Task 1 and Task

2.


3.


4.

T t 2 ti 2 A





Create a Start-to-Finish dependency between Task 3 and Task 4.

This shortens the overall duration to 9 days without affecting the start

date of the Project plan.



Lesson 3

Create lag time and lead time

C t l ti d l d ti





Life can be

complicated.

What if your plan

needs to include

complex task

relationships?

In Project, you can build in a delay between the finish of

one task and the start of another. Or you can make one

task overlap with another.

C t l ti d l d ti






each approach.

1

2

For delay, use lag time. This accounts for something that

must happen between two tasks, such as waiting for a

shipment of supplies to arrive.

For overlap, use lead time. If a task can start a week

before the previous one is finished, a lead time of seven

days gets that second ball rolling.

L ti




Lag time

Lag time is a delay

between dependent

tasks.

For example, suppose you plan to start editing a manual

three days after writing starts.

For the “Edit Manual” task, you’d enter 3 in the Lag field

on the Predecessors tab in the Task Information

dialog box, and then click OK.

Lag time




Lag time

Lag time is a delay

between dependent

tasks.

You can also enter lag time directly in the Predecessors

column of the successor task in the chart portion of the

Gantt Chart view.

If “Write Manual” is Task 1 and “Edit Manual” is Task 2,

in the Predecessors column of Task 2, you could type

1SS3.

Lead time




Lead time

Lead time is overlap

between dependent

tasks.

For example, if the “Prepare Binders” task can start two

days before its predecessor task “Print Manual” is

finished, you can create a lead time of two days, and

work on the tasks will overlap, proceeding at the same

time.

Lead time




Lead time

Lead time is overlap

between dependent

tasks.

Lead time is entered as a negative value in the Lag field

on the Predecessors tab in the Task Information

dialog box.

For this example, you’d double-click “Prepare Binders”

to open the dialog box, select the Predecessors tab,

then type -2 in the Lag field. Finally, you’d click OK.






1. Create lag time between tasks.

2. Create lead time between tasks.

3. Add a task.

Online practice (requires Project 2007)

Test 3 question 1






Test 3, question 1

Suppose the task “Paint the Walls” cannot start until after the

task “Lay the Carpet” has started. The tasks are both ten

days long, and work on them can overlap. Which dependencytype and lag time or lead time will get the work completed in

the correct sequence and in the shortest possible time? (Pick

one answer.)

1. “Lay the Carpet” Start-to-Start to “Paint the Walls” with a leadtime of three days.

2. “Lay the Carpet” Start-to-Finish to “Paint the Walls” with a lag

time of three days.

3. “Lay the Carpet” Start-to-Start to “Paint the Walls” with a lag

time of three days.

Test 3 question 1: Answer





“Lay the Carpet” Start-to-Start to “Paint the Walls” with a lag time of

three days.

This schedules “Lay the Carpet” to start first and “Paint the Walls” to

start three days later.

Test 3 question 2




Test 3, question 2

The task “Select Pictures” must be completed at least one

week before the task “Presentation” finishes. Which

dependency type and lag time or lead time will get all thework done in the shortest possible time? (Pick one answer.)

1. “Select Pictures” Finish-to-Finish to “Presentation” with a lead

time of one week.

2. “Select Pictures” Start-to-Finish to “Presentation” with a lead

time of one week.

3. “Select Pictures” Finish-to-Finish to “Presentation” with a lag

time of one week.






“Select Pictures” Finish-to-Finish to “Presentation” with a lead time of

one week.

The tasks are linked by their finish dates, but “Select Pictures” will finish

one week before “Presentation” does.

Test 3 question 3




Test 3, question 3

The task “Write Manual” will take 15 days, and the task “Edit

Manual” will take 12 days. Which dependency type and lag

time or lead time will get all of the work done in 18 days?(Pick one answer.)

1. Assign the editing task a Start-to-Start dependency type with a

lead time of 6 days.

2. Assign the editing a Start-to-Start dependency type with a lag

time of 6 days.

3. Assign the editing an Finish-to-Start dependency type with a

lead time of 6 days.






Assign the editing a Start-to-Start dependency type with a lag time of 6

days.

Editing will start 6 days after the start of writing. Writing and editing will

overlap for 9 days and then editing will continue for another 3 days,

making the overall duration 18 days. Well planned!

Quick Reference Card



Quick Reference Card

For a summary of the tasks covered in this course, view the

Quick Reference Card.



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