Parallon Business SolutionsMicrosoft Project Server 2010

Project Server 2010Concepts of Working with Tasks

Training Outline

• Project Planning Process• Task Development• Fine Tuning Task Details• Effort-Driven Scheduling• Project Baselines• Inter-Project Links

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Project Planning Process

Project Planning Process

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Task Development

Task Development• Entering Project Tasks

– Be “action” oriented. Tasks represent the work to be done to accomplish the goals of the project.

– Techniques: Tasks should begin with action words. For example: Build, Conduct,

Manage, etc.Remove all checklists, questions, and notes from the task list and put

them in the notes.Use a top-down approach. Identify major phases or products

(deliverables) of the project before filling in the tasks required to complete those phases.

Sometimes less is more.

Task Development• Creating Milestones

– Milestones represent important events reached on a project, such as the completion of a phase or deliverables.

– Techniques:• Use milestones to identify the completion of a phase or project

deliverables.• Milestones should have zero duration.• Milestones are marked by entering a task with a zero duration or

by flagging them as milestones within the Task Information dialog box (Advanced tab).

Task Development

• Task Durations– Tasks that are too long are more difficult to manage.

– Techniques:• If tasks have long durations, determine if they can be broken

into additional smaller tasks.

If not, consider dividing the task into 32h work

packages.

Develop App Develop AppConduct Unit Testing

Develop App Develop App – Week 1Develop App – Week 2

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Fine Tuning Task Details

Fine Tuning Task Details

• Task Links– Projects require tasks to be done in a specific order. Task links

provides the necessary predecessor/successor relationships.

– Techniques:• Most tasks should have a task link.• Let the system build your project schedule. Representing task

relationships and handling changes to scheduled start and finish dates is one area where using a scheduling engine like Microsoft Project really pays off.

• When working with links between multiple summary tasks, its preferable to link the summary tasks than to link the subtasks. However, you can NOT link summary tasks to one of it’s own subtasks.

Fine Tuning Task DetailsFinish-to-Start (FS)

The finish date of the predecessor task determines the start date of the successor task. This is the system default.

Start-to-Start (SS)

The start date of the predecessor task determines the start date of the successor task

Finish-to-Finish (FF)

The finish date of the predecessor task determines the finish date of the successor task

Start-to-Finish (SF)

The start date of the predecessor task determines finish date of the successor task (rarely ever used).

Fine Tuning Task Details• Demonstrations:

– Creating task links• Toolbar• Gantt chart• Task Information dialog box

– Establishing lag time (delays)– Establishing lead time (overlap)

Fine Tuning Task Details• Task Constraints

– Every task you enter into Microsoft Project has some type of constraint applied to it. A constraint controls the start or finish date of a task and the degree to which that task can be rescheduled.

Flexible As Soon As Possible Task is occur as soon as it can occur. This is the default for a project scheduled from start date.

As Late As Possible Task will occur as late as it can occur. This is the default for projects scheduled from finish date.

Semi-flexible Start No Earlier Than Task to start on or after the constraint date you specify.Start No Later Than Task to start on or before the constraint date you specify.Finish No Earlier Than Task to finish on or after the constraint date you specify.Finish No Later Than Task to finish on or before the constraint date you specify.

Inflexible Must Start On Task to start on the constraint date you specifyMust Finish On Task to finish on the constraint date you specify

Fine Tuning Task Details

• Splitting Tasks– You can split tasks to indicate when work times will be

interrupted.

– Techniques:Use the split task button on the toolbar to show work

interruptions.

Fine Tuning Task Details

• Recurring Tasks– Many projects require repetitive tasks, such as attending project

status meetings, creating status reports, or running quality control inspections.

– Technique:• To create recurring tasks, click Recurring Task within the Insert

menu.

Fine Tuning Task Details• Changing Task Types

– Microsoft Project used the scheduling formula to calculate a task’s work value.

– Scheduling Formula: Duration x Units = Work• Examples:

– 5 days x 100% (1 resource) = 5 days Work– 5 days x 200% (2 resources) = 10 days Work– 5 days x 50% (resource working 1/2 day) = 2.5 days Work

– A task type determines which of the three scheduling formula values remains fixed if the other two values change.

Fine Tuning Task Details

Duration Units Work

Fixed Duration

Work Work Units

Fixed Units Work Duration Duration

Fixed Work Units Duration Duration

If the task type is

…and you change the

…then Microsoft Project recalculates

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Effort-Driven Scheduling

Effort-Driven Scheduling• Effort-Driven Defined

– When effort driven is applied, a task’s work value remains constant regardless of the number of additional resources you assign. The most visible effect of effort driven scheduling is seen when you apply additional resources to a task, the tasks duration will decrease (work stays constant).

– Technique:The effort-driven flag is found within the Task Information dialog box (Advanced Tab).

You define the amount of work a task represents when you initially assign a resource or resources.

If effort-driven scheduling is on, when additional resources are added or subtracted, work will remain constant. Think about the scheduling formula and reference the task type to assess how your task will change.

Effort-Driven Scheduling

Effort-Driven = Fixed Work

or

Effort-Driven = Work ChangesConsidered First

Effort-Driven Scheduling

• Effort-Driven Questions:How will the task change with regards to duration, units, and work?

Task Change Task Type Effort-Driven Answers

Add resource Fixed Units YesAdd resource Fixed Units No

Add resource Fixed Duration Yes

Add resource Fixed Duration No

Add resource Fixed Work N/A

Hint: Duration x Units = Work

Duration Decreased

Work Increased

Units Decreased

Work Increased

Duration Decreased

Effort-Driven Scheduling• When should Effort-Driven Scheduling Apply?

– How would you configure these tasks with regards to task type and the effort-driven flag?:• 3 hour Requirements Gathering Sessions• Development Tasks• System Testing

– Techniques:No single rule exists about when you should apply effort-driven scheduling and when you should not. As the project manager, you should analyze the nature of the work required for each task in your project and use your best judgment.

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Project Baselines

Project Baselines• Defined– The baseline represents the original project plan, saved for later

comparison. The baseline includes the planned start and finish dates of tasks and assignments, as well as their planned costs.

– Techniques:From the Ribbon in Project Professional 2010, select Ribbon Project (Tab) Schedule (Section) Set Baseline (Icon) Set Baseline… (Option)

Microsoft Project plans can have up to 11 baselines

Usually set at project kick-off , you must save a baseline before project tracking can take place

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Inter-Project Links

Inter-Project Links

Without Opening Each Project:• To create a link between Enterprise Projects without opening each Project, select the

successor Task and open the Task Information dialog box. Go to the Predecessors tab.

• Beneath the ID column, enter the following information:

<>\predecessor project\task #

For Example: <>\SoftwareDevProjectPlanV1\10

By Opening Each Project:

• To create a link between Enterprise Projects by opening each Project, select the source Task and then, while holding down the [Ctrl] key, select the target Task in the other opened Project.

• Click on the [Link Tasks] option in the Ribbon under the Schedule section..

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Questions & AnswersTraining End

Reference Books

Project Managers

• Step by Step – Microsoft Office Project 2010– By Carl Chatfield & Timothy Johnson

• Dynamic Scheduling– By Eric Uyttewaal

Project Management Office• Lean Project Management – Eight Principals For Success

– By Lawrence P Leach• Critical Chain Management

– By Lawrence P Leach• Enterprise Architecture & Strategy

– By Jeanne W Ross, Peter Weill & David C Robertson• 100 Questions to Ask your Software Organization

– By Mark I Himelstein

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