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Project Management Alternatives to Working With MS Project

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 06:02:30 +0100

NASA is now using MS Excel alternatively to MS Project in some divisions. Read on to comprehend more. MS Project has long been a harbinger in project management, however many project managers are now discovering that MS Project limits the flexibility and control they have over the planning process. Many project managers are confused by the way in which MS Project calculate efforts or as MS Project refers to it as work. The relationship between work and duration is somewhat confused in MS Project as it was originally created as duration based planning tool.

First time project managers

Many first-time project managers find MS Project too complex to learn and understand. Many of the biggest features take years to get down pat and work with. This complexity usually leads to them looking for less complex approaches to establishing a Gantt Chart or spreadsheet view of their Project planning data. Many are moving to Microsoft Excel or a solution, this provides a far greater degree of adaptability in planning and control and requires upfront learning associated with a specific and proprietary project planning solution such as MS Project. Excel offers the first time project manager many substantial benefits and the ability to control and insert tasks exactly as required. It enables them to also devise their own planning framework within the Excel tool.

Experienced project managers

Knowledgeable project managers are becoming increasingly disappointed with MS Project and its many contrasting implementations. Someone will be used in MS Project enterprise edition to manage projects over an organisation. The architecture of MS Project provides a much greater degree of rigidity than many project managers would like.

The domains of modern project management often require integration with third party systems and the cost of implementing MS Project war MS Project enterprise edition to integrate with other databases such as manufacturing systems is simply prohibitive for many. This has resulted in a dramatic increase in the use of Excel based their charts. This enables the project manager to control the way calculations are accomplished and to decide how they would like to manage the project rather than being dictated by a third party software provider.

NASA moved across to Chartgantt.com to increase planning flexibility and control in one of its key delivery divisions. This enabled them to control projects effectively without the complexity of MS Project and importantly enabled a server based alternative to MS Project that could be implemented rapidly. Chartgantt was implemented without any formal with a training manual of only 4 key points.

You would be surprised at the organisations that are moving across to excel as their primary planning paradigm. Why not check it out for yourself.

Chartgantt is a leading provider of <a href="http://www.chartgantt.com">excel gantt charts</a>. Chartgantt has sold its world leading solution to key international parties such as NASA, ACCENTURE, and PEUGOT to enable simplified and more flexibile project planning. If you are running a server environment, Chartgantt is your answer, with prices starting from just $34 per user.

<a href="http://www.chartgantt.com">gantt chart tool</a>.

Building a cash flow in Gantt Chart Format

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 06:21:36 +0100

We have had a number of requests from clients to enable the use of numbers where the gantt chart bars normally appear. This would enable sophisticating cost allocation decisions to be made effectively using a standard gantt chart tool.

We first started building this solution for Ele consulting in Alabama and after 2 days realised that it was a major undertaking. If anyone has built this functionality please let me know as I now realise to accurately handle daily, weekly and monthly views is significantly more complex than most people would expect.

I would estimate that enabling automatic switching to a cash flow would take in the order of 2 weeks to construct. We hope to get onto this in 2012. It after 3 years of ongoing development of the Gantt Chart Templates, it is easy to forget the complexity that lies behind the scenes!

Gantt Chart Excel
Gantt Chart Template

The Power of Google - Small Melbourne Company Sells Enterprise Solution to NASA

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 01:12:27 +0100

Monday, September 19, 2011 - Chartgantt.com

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A Melbourne company that has sold its solution to NASA says Google has leveled the playing field for large enterprise software sales.

Marcus Tarrant, Managing Director of Chartgantt.com, says that colleagues and other small consulting firms often ask, "How did you manage to sell an enterprise level software solution to NASA?"

The answer is simple: "Google," says Tarrant.

After 24 months in operation, Chartgantt has amassed a client list that even the big 4 consulting firms would be envious of.

"We now have enterprise clients in 43 countries including some of the largest and most successful organisations in the world," says Tarrant. "Just last week, we signed Peugot in Europe, and Toll Holdings and Intergraph in the United States."

Chartgantt was commissioned by NASA to build an enterprise level solution based on the Chartgantt Ultimate product.

"They wanted to be able to set effort and duration relationships at the task level, which is not straightforward in other planning solutions," says Tarrant. "This solution has now been delivered and is operational within NASA's Jet Propulsion Division."

Chartgantt is proud to be working with NASA to take Excel based project planning to a new level of sophistication, previously only seen in expensive proprietary solutions.

About Chartgantt.com

Chartgantt is a Melbourne based company with a global reach. "Our project planning solutions are used by some of the largest names in industry globally, from the US government to leading shipping and logistics companies," says Marcus Tarrant, founder of Chartgantt.

Tarrant has a very simple philosophy on project planning: "Effort and Duration are fundamentally different concepts."

The success of Chartgantt can be clearly tracked with its strong Google ranking for key search terms.

Chartgantt is the culmination of many years of experience, and the simplicity that it can bring. The Chartgantt templates have been developed to offer very simple tools that any user with a basic level of Excel experience can add to, or modify.

Chartgantt.com is the leading provider of Professional Excel Based Gantt Charts. They have spent years building and developing templates that are now the best available in the world. Smart coding and structuring mean that the product offers far superior flexibility to any other planning tool available on the market

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Why should Business Founders Spend The Time To Plan?

Sun, 04 Sep 2011 23:31:56 +0100

Authored By: MARCUS TARRANT, Managing Director, Chartgantt.com

Abstract

A must read article for all Business Owners. Project Plans Business Owners or founders are often time poor, and are multi-tasking, juggling many balls in the air at once. Project planning one of the leading ways to accelerate all the balls without letting any of them fall. Most owners are very operationally focused, and cannot afford the time to plan the day, led alone the next week, month or year. Once business managers have been exposed to the principles of planning, they are much better able to perform their daily work with significantly less stress..

Body

Tip 1 - Don't focus on the short term

There are often so many short term issues confronting business owners and founders that they fail to improve their productivity and reduce their stress levels by planning. Some times the only way to create a plan is to turn off the phone and get out of the office. Take your head up from the detail and consider the longer term issues. Is Christmas Coming up, staff leave, 4th of July, these are key events that need early planning to ensure you deliver on your business promises and continue to prosper.

Tip 2 - Ensure you work on your business as well as in it

Ensure you build the maximum value possible with the minimum amount of work by planning planning planning. Without this many business owners find that they work hard all their life, but don't build a business of enduring value. One of the keys to success in business is knowing where to allocate your time. Start allocating time by scheduling in 2 hours per week for planning. You will find that this time has well and truly paid off within just a few weeks.

Tip 3 - Find out how to reduce stress and deliver more every day

Owning a business is very stressful. There are often a large number of issues and topics to be considered every single day. By planning things out you will find that you reduce the unknown element of your role. Having some certainty as to what you will do and when will significantly reduce stress levels. Chartgantt.com You can start simply by writing a list of things to complete at the beginning of the day. From there you can start to progress into formal project plans, known as Gantt Charts. Gantt charts help you to visualise and communicate your plans.

Tip 4 - Also Consider the flexibility and power you will get from working in Excel

Once you start writing lists of task, you will find that MS Excel becomes one of your best friends. Excel offers massive flexibility to business owners in planning. Using a pre-built and prte-structured excel based planning tool could be one of the best investments in your business that you have ever made. Search in Google for Gantt Chart Excel, and you will be presented with a wide variety of options for creating fantastic plans, and making better use of your time.

Summary

Some Business Owners find that Most owners are very operationally focused, and cannot afford the time to plan the day, led alone the next week, month or year. Once business managers have been exposed to the principles of planning, they are much better able to perform their daily work with significantly less stress. To resolve this issue there are a number of key steps that can be taken. the flexibility and power you will get from working in Excel Start allocating time by scheduling in 2 hours per week for planning. You will find that this time has well and truly paid off within just a few weeks. From there you can start to progress into formal project plans, known as Gantt Charts. Gantt charts help you to visualise and communicate your plans. Search in Google for Gantt Chart Excel, and you will be presented with a wide variety of options for creating fantastic plans, and making better use of your time.

Contact the Author:

Chartgantt.com

MARCUS TARRANT

Managing Director

marcus.tarrant@missionhq.com.au

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4 Tips on Project Planning in Excel

Tue, 30 Aug 2011 05:41:45 +0100

Abstract

A must read article for all Project Managers. Project Planning in Excel Many project managers have tried using MS Project and other proprietary tools, but often find the way these systems operate imposes severe restrictions on the way they plan and manage projects Many project managers are not aware that Excel based project planning exists. They do not fully understand the immense graphic capabilities that Excel offers, enabling the simple creation of gantt and pert charts. There are a number of leading excel based tools that are used by large and small companies alike. Companies as large as NASA are moving to excel based project planning for greater flexibility and control of their project functions..

Body

Tip 1 - Don't slavishly use proprietary project planning solutions

Whilst proprietary solutions such as MS Project are generally accepted as mainstream planning solutions, this doesn't mean that the necessarily meet the needs of every project manager. Some organisations mandate the use of proprietary project planning solutions, often against the advice of experienced project managers. Look around, there are a number of existing solutions and excel also offers you the ability to build your own with a little knowledge and ingenuity. Search for gantt chart excel in Google. This search will provide you with great information on existing tools that may meet the needs of your organisation.

Tip 2 - Ensure you explore the freedom you might obtain by using Excel as a platform

Existing platforms have significant issues with the way that effort and duration relationships are handled. This leads to mis-leading progress indication and even worse, incorrect cost calculations. Many project managers are not aware that alternatives to highly structured and programmed solutions exist. Search for alternative excel based solutions. The sales pages on these websites will give you a good overview of what is possible by using excel based gantt charts. Many websites offer a free trial download. It doesn't cost anything but your time to further explore what might be possible when you move your planning platform to excel.

Tip 3 - Find out what is possible by using MS Excel as a platform

Imagine that you could calculate anything in your project plan in any way you want. You could also insert rows and columns as you like, and easily create custom status indicators. You can also simply and easily relate your projects together. Many project managers simply haven't considered the possibilities of using excel. When they are exposed to an excel based solution, the smile on their face is priceless. 44 Milne St Think creatively, with excel anything you can imagine is most likely possible. Write a wish list of things you might like to achieve with your project plaining solution. Be create and imagine possibilities not achievable with traditional approaches.

Tip 4 - Also Consider buying an off the shelf solution rather than spending weeks constructing your own

Building your own excel based solution can take months of development. Remember you are building a solution, not just a quick gantt chart. For some reason some project managers are hell bent on creating their own solution. In many cases, people are fearful of macros that may be built into off the shelf solutions. Write a list of requirements for an off the shelf solution. Many leading providers of excel based planning tools can very easily customise their solution to your needs. Check out the wide array of solutions available online, and select one that is macro free, flexible, and lets you achieve your project planning dreams.

Summary

Some Project Managers find that Many project managers are not aware that Excel based project planning exists. They do not fully understand the immense graphic capabilities that Excel offers, enabling the simple creation of gantt and pert charts. There are a number of leading excel based tools that are used by large and small companies alike. Companies as large as NASA are moving to excel based project planning for greater flexibility and control of their project functions. To resolve this issue there are a number of key steps that can be taken. buying an off the shelf solution rather than spending weeks constructing your own Many websites offer a free trial download. It doesn't cost anything but your time to further explore what might be possible when you move your planning platform to excel. Write a wish list of things you might like to achieve with your project plaining solution. Be create and imagine possibilities not achievable with traditional approaches. Check out the wide array of solutions available online, and select one that is macro free, flexible, and lets you achieve your project planning dreams.

Project Planning

Project Plan Excel

Using Excel Based Gantt Chart for Program Management

Wed, 06 Jul 2011 07:03:17 +0100

We have recently found that many of our gantt chart clients are using our product to manage program level issues.

There are a number of interesting reasons for this. The primary reason is flexibility. At a program level, more so than a project level massive flexibility is critical to enable modeling the program from a number of points of view.

By using Chart gantt templates, large clients have been able to import all individual project plans from MS Project into separate tabs (using the Copy tab function). Once the MS project project plans are in Chart Gantt, then they can be related. New resource tables and WBS structures can be created as required. Feeds can be taken from various corporate systems to hand items such as employee leave schedules.

Relatively quickly these clients have been able to build out a number of individual project plans (some upto 1,000 lines long) into on Workbook. This workbook can contain upto 20 individual project plans 1,000 lines long. Then group resource tables can be constructed to give a more accurate program level view.

The final step is to create a program or portfolio level view. This can then be constructed by linking cells from each of the individual project plans within the same workbook. Any updates in the individual project plans are then reflected at the program level. This approach can incorporate both PMI, OPM3 and Prince 2. The solution is offered in Excel 2007, Excel 2010 and Excel 2011.

Using Excel for Project Planning

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 04:58:32 +0100

Planning your project is easier with excel based gantt charts.

Using a proprietary project planning package means that you are locked in to the developers way of thinking.

With a well crafted excel based solution, you are able to embed your way of thinking into the tool. If you want to use effort based scheduling, calculate project costs, or determine actual's in the way you want then excel is your answer.

For more on excel based project scheduling

5 reasons a Gantt Chart can help improve your project planning

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 23:12:42 +0100

Gantt Chart Reason#1: Finally you can see what you are doing!
Looking at a column of start and finish dates for tasks, is the primary alternative to using a Gantt Chart. Each row of your plan requires you to think about the dates, and position those dates in the context of preceding and dependent tasks. This thought process, attempting to visualize your dates in your head, takes valuable thinking time, and more importantly can only be performed effectively on one or two tasks at once. A Gantt Chart enables you to see the entirety of your project plan, often on one page. It is important that your project plan can be viewed in different timescales (daily, weekly or monthly) and can be collapsed to higher level tasks, so that you can visualize your entire project on a single page. This visualization enables you to see new relationships between tasks, and to create new improvements in your plan. Major timeframe improvements can be made in your Gantt Chart by identifying tasks that can be run in parallel, rather than needing to be run sequentially.

Gantt Chart Reason#2: You can communicate more effectively with stakeholders
Many high performing business people operate visually. Your Gantt chart provides a means for these people to navigate simply through a very high level of complexity in your project plan. As the data is “visualized for them”, all stakeholders are looking at the same representation of the information.

Gantt Chart Reason#3: You can more clearly see the relationships between tasks
A key benefit of being able to visualize the relative timing of tasks, is to better understand the impacts of your plan, and better visualize relationships, which simply cannot be seen by looking at rows of data. Your Gantt Chart should clearly identify relationships if possible as these relationships can be used to simplify and automate the management of your project. By creating dependent relationships between tasks in your Gantt Chart, you are able to have any slippages automatically reflected throughout the plan.

Gantt Chart Reason#4: You can see ahead…for miles
A good gantt chart tool will enable you to plan well in advance. Sometimes visualizing longer term plans can feed back to changing your short term plans. A good gantt chart should let you plan at least 10 years in advance, however be able to change your view so that the entire planning range can be visualized on one page.

Gantt Chart Reason#5: You can identify resource clashes
Using a Gantt Chart, you can easily see periods when a resource is scheduled on multiple tasks. If this scheduling is a full time allocation to each task, then something as to give. A gantt chart enables you to see these emerging issues in advance and take evasive action, otherwise known as project management.

5 Reasons you should create your next Gantt Chart in Excel and Not Project

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 23:11:31 +0100

Gantt Chart Reason#1: More Control

Using excel gives you more control over the gantt chart creation process. It provides you with the freedom to control key planning variables as you see fit. For example if you would like to convert 8 hours, or 7.5 hours into one day, it is straight forward to do with a simple formula. If you would rather plan in minutes, you can do this too. Whilst structured planning tools such as MS Project do have a place, experience suggests that for an experienced project manager, more precise control can be established using excel. This provides you the freedom to calculate fields as you see fit, and ensure your Gantt Chart more closely complies with your requirements. Not every project is the same and different information is critical for each project you might plan. Give yourself greater freedom and control, give excel a go.

Gantt Chart Reason#2: More Flexibility

Every project is different, and sometimes you need to display different information in your gantt charts. Perhaps you need to see resource utilization by day, or by hour. When creating your gantt chart in excel with a leading, structured template, you are free to insert columns and plan as you see fit. When selecting your Excel based Gantt Chart template, be sure to look for one that does not use macros for major calculations. These can limit your ability to insert rows and columns, and can increase the risk of unpredictable results

Gantt Chart Reason#3: More Column Options

Whilst it is true, that MS Project has an almost unlimited number of column options for planning your project, running calculations between columns is complex and challenging. In excel you can calculate and insert columns exactly the way you would like without having to learn programming in the process. Given that in excel you can insert hundreds of planning columns into your spreadsheet, a further advantage is to be able to easily arrange them displaying only the columns that are relevant to you.

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Gantt Chart Reason#4: Determine how you want numbers or dates calculated

It is likely that you want to use some logic for calculating your project dates. In our experience when you rely on the inbuilt logic in MS Project, you end up with quite unpredictable results. Results that can severely impact on your plan itself, but more importantly, impact on your and your team’s confidence in the tool itself. When using a Excel Gantt Chart Template you can drive your task dates off any database or calculation method you may like to specify.

Gantt Chart Reason#5: Use standard scaling features in Excel to print and insert in documents and presentations
Have you ever tried to print or insert a MS project plan into a document or powerpoint presentation? If you have, then I don’t need to say much more about this. For those of you that haven’t tried it yet, here’s the tip. Don’t even try it! After a day of frustration you are likely to give up and settle for a very below average screen shot of not exactly what you wanted to capture. A tool like chart gantt excel can greatly improve your embedding process by using the inherent scaling functions in MS Excel.

5 Tips on Planning with A Gantt Chart

Sun, 07 Nov 2010 21:46:17 +0100

Gantt Chart Reason#1: Put aside distractions and focus on your plan

Planning requires deep concentration. Try to avoid getting distracted during your planning time. Perhaps try working from home for a day, or lock yourself in the boardroom with “busy” posted on the door. The level of concentration and analysis you can put into your plan upfront will pay significant dividends down the track. Usually the creation of a gantt chart involves the expenditure of cash or resources on a series of tasks. The better though out your plan from the outset, the greater your saving during the execution phase. A gantt chart is a great tool to help you get your thoughts in order.

Gantt Chart Reason#2: Think about the relationships between tasks

A key benefit of being able to visualize the relative timing of tasks, is to better understand the impacts of your plan, and better visualize relationships, which simply cannot be seen by looking at rows of data. Your Gantt Chart should clearly identify relationships if possible as these relationships can be used to simplify and automate the management of your project. By creating dependent relationships between tasks in your Gantt Chart, you are able to have any slippages automatically reflected throughout the plan.

Gantt Chart Reason#3: Flip between views (daily, weekly and monthly) get a better overview of your plan.

If you are stuck in a daily view of your gantt chart, it is sometimes difficult to see the forest for the trees. Ensure you “step back” from your plan, but zooming in and out on your timescales to investigate particular issues.

Gantt Chart Reason#4: Plan further ahead than you feel comfortable doing
A good gantt chart tool will enable you to plan well in advance. Sometimes visualizing longer term plans can feed back to changing your short term plans. A good gantt chart should let you plan at least 10 years in advance, however be able to change your view so that the entire planning range can be visualized on one page.

Gantt Chart Reason#5: Analyze your resource allocation to tasks to ensure you are not “Double Dipping” on resources
Using a Gantt Chart, you can easily see periods when a resource is scheduled on multiple tasks. If this scheduling is a full time allocation to each task, then something as to give. A gantt chart enables you to see these emerging issues in advance and take evasive action, otherwise known as project management.