123

6 1racking Progress
on 1asks
In this chapter, you will learn how to:
SavecurrenLvaluesinascheduleasabaseline.
Record progress on Lasks Lhrough a specic daLe.
Record a Lask's percenLage o compleLion.
FnLeracLualworkandduraLionvaluesorLasks.
UnLilnow,youhaveocusedonprojecLSODQQLQJdevelopingandcommunicaLingLhe
deLailsoaprojecLplanbeoreacLualworkbegins.Whenworkbegins,sodoesLhe
nexLphaseoprojecLmanagemenL.tracking progress. 1racking means recording projecL
deLails such as who did whaL work, when Lhe work was done, and aL whaL cosL. 1hese
deLailsareoLencalledDFWXDOV
1racking acLuals is essenLial Lo properly managing, as opposed Lo jusL planning, a proj-
ecL. 1he projecL manager musL know how well Lhe projecL Leam is perorming and when
LoLakecorrecLiveacLion.ProperlyLrackingprojecLperormanceandcomparingiLwiLh
LheoriginalplanallowsyouLoanswersuchquesLionsasLheollowing.
Are Lasks sLarLing and nishing as planned l noL, whaL will be Lhe impacL on Lhe
projecL's nish daLe
AreUHVRXUFHV spending more or less Lime Lhan planned Lo compleLe Lasks
Are higher-Lhan-anLicipaLed Lask cosLs driving up Lhe overall cosL o Lhe projecL
MicrosoLProjecL200supporLsseveralwaysLoLrackprogress.ourchoiceoaLracking
meLhodshoulddependonLhelevelodeLailorconLrolrequiredbyyou,yourprojecL
sponsor, and oLher sLakeholders. 1racking Lhe ne deLails o a projecL requires addiLional
workromyouandpossiblyromLheresourcesworkingonLheprojecL.
124 Chapter6 1rackngProgresson1asks
1hereore, beore you begin Lracking progress, you should deLermine Lhe level o deLail
you need. 1he dierenL levels o Lracking deLail include Lhe ollowing.
Record projecL work as scheduled. 1his level works besL i everyLhing in Lhe projecL
occursexacLlyasplanned.
Record each Lask's percenLage o compleLion, eiLher aL precise values or aL incre-
menLssuchas25,50,75,or00percenL.
Record Lhe acLual sLarL, acLual nish, acLual work, and acLual and remaining
duraLionoreachLaskorassignmenL.
1rack assignmenL-level work by Lime period. 1his is Lhe mosL deLailed level o Lrack-
ing.Here,yourecordacLualworkvaluesperday,week,oroLherinLerval.
8ecausedierenLporLionsoaprojecLmighLhavedierenLLrackingneeds,youmighL
needLoapplyacombinaLionoLheseapproacheswiLhinasingleprojecLplan.Forex-
ample,youmighLwanLLoLrackhigh-riskLasksmorecloselyLhanlow-riskones.lnLhis
chapLer, you will perorm Lhe rsL Lhree acLions in Lhe preceding lisL, Lhe ourLh (Lracking
assignmenL-level work by Lime period) is addressed in ChapLer 2, "1racking Progress on
1asks and AssignmenLs."
Practice Files eforeyoucancompIetetheexercsesnthschapter,youneedtocopy
the book's practce Ies to your computer. A compIete Ist of practce Ies s provded
n Usng the Practce fIes" at the begnnng of ths book. for each exercse that has a
practce Ie, smpIy browse to where you saved the book's practce Ie foIder.
Important IfyouarerunnngProjectProfessonaI,youmayneedtomakeaone-tmesettng
change. 1hs heIps ensure that the practce Ies you work wth n ths chapter do not affect
your Project Server data. for more nformaton, see Appendx C, Usng the Practce fIes f
Connected to Project Server."
Saving a Project Baseline
ALer developing a projecL plan, one o a projecL manager's mosL imporLanL acLiviLies
is Lo record acLuals and evaluaLe projecL perormance. 1o judge projecL perormance
properly, iL is helpul Lo compare iL wiLh your original plan. 1his original plan is called Lhe
baselineplan,orjusLLheEDVHOLQHAbaselineisacollecLionoimporLanLvaluesinaproj-
ecL plan such as Lhe planned sLarL daLes, nish daLes, and cosLs o Lhe Lasks, resources,
andassignmenLs.Whenyousaveabaseline,ProjecLLakesasnapshoLoLheexisLing
valuesandsavesiLinyourProjecLplanoruLurecomparison.
SavngaProjectaseIne 125
1he specic values saved in a baseline include Lhe Lask, resource, and assignmenL elds,
as well as Lhe Limephased elds.
Task Fields Resource Fields Assignment Fields
SLarL WorkandLimephasedwork SLarL
Finish CosLandLimephasedcosL Finish
DuraLion WorkandLimephasedwork
WorkandLimephasedwork CosLandLimephasedcosL
Tip 7LPHSKDVHG eIds show task, resource, and assgnment vaIues dstrbuted over tme. for
exampIe, you can Iook at a task wth ve days of work pIanned at the weekIy, daIy, or hourIy
IeveI and see the specc baseIne work vaIues per tme ncrement. In Chapter l2, you wII
workwthtmephasedvaIues.
oushouldsaveLhebaselinewhen
ouhavedevelopedLheprojecLplanasullyaspossible.(However,LhisdoesnoL
meanLhaLyoucannoLaddLasks,resources,orassignmenLsLoLheprojecLaLer
workhassLarLed,orLhisisoLenunavoidable.)
ou have noL yeL sLarLed enLering acLual values, such as a Lask's percenLage o
compleLion.
ProjecL supporLs noL jusL buL up Lo baselines in a single plan. 1he rsL one is called
8aseline,andLheresLare8aselineLhrough8aseline0.SavingmulLiplebaselinescan
beuseulorprojecLswiLhespeciallylongplanningphasesinwhichyoumighLwanL
LocomparedierenLseLsobaselinevalues.Forexample,youmighLwanLLosaveand
compareLhebaselineplanseverymonLhasLheplanningdeLailschange.Or,youmighL
wanLLosaveanewbaselineaLvariouspoinLsduringLheexecuLionoLheprojecLplan.
oucould,orexample,saveLhe8aselinebeoreworksLarLs,Lhen8aselineamonLh
aLerworksLarLs,8aseline2LwomonLhsaLerworksLarLs,andsoon.oucanLhenview
Lhe various baselines and compare Lhem Lo Lhe acLual schedule LhroughouL Lhe projecL's
duraLion.
Tip Savng severaI baseInes n a project pIan can ncrease your Ie sze.
1he new book launch projecL plan aL Lucerne Publishing is now ully developed, and
acLualworkonLheprojecLwillsoonbegin.
lnLhisexercise,yousaveLhebaselineoraprojecLplanandLhenviewLhebaselineLask
values.
126 Chapter6 1rackngProgresson1asks
SET UP Start Project f t's not aIready runnng.
YouneedtheSmpIe1rackng_StartprojectpIanIocatednyourChapter06practce
Ie foIder to compIete ths exercse. Open the SmpIe 1rackng_Start project pIan, and
thenfoIIowthesesteps.
1. OnLheFileLab,clickSave As.
ProjecLdisplaysLheSaveAsdialogbox.
2. lnLheFile namebox,LypeSimple Tracking,andLhenclickSave.
3. OnLheProjectLab,inLheSchedulegroup,clickSet Baseline,andLhenclickSet
Baseline.
1he SeL 8aseline dialog box appears.
ou'll seL Lhe baseline or Lhe enLire projecL by using Lhe deaulL seLLings o Lhe
dialogbox.
4. ClickOK.
ProjecL saves Lhe baseline, even Lhough Lhere's no indicaLion in Lhe CanLL CharL
viewLhaLanyLhinghaschanged.ouwillnowseesomeoLhechangescausedby
savingLhebaseline.
5. OnLheViewLab,inLheTask Viewsgroup,clickOther Views andLhenclickTask
Sheet.
1he 1ask SheeL view appears. 8ecause Lhis is a Labular view, iL does noL include Lhe
CanLL charL, so more room is available Lo see Lhe elds in Lhe Lable.
Now you'll swiLch Lo Lhe variance Lable in Lhe 1ask SheeL view. 1he variance Lable is
one o several predened Lables LhaL include baseline values.
SavngaProjectaseIne 127
6. OnLheViewLab,inLheDatagroup,clickTables.
ln Lhe lisLed Lables, noLe Lhe check mark nexL Lo FnLry. 1his means LhaL Lhe FnLry
Lable is currenLly displayed in Lhe 1ask SheeL view. ou'll swiLch Lo anoLher Lable
nexL.
7. ClickVariance.
Tip YouaIsocanrght-cIcktheSelect Allbuttonntheupper-Ieftcorneroftheactve
tabIetoswtchtoadfferenttabIe.
1he variance Lable appears. 1his Lable includes boLh Lhe scheduled and baseline
sLarL and nish columns, shown side by side or easy comparison.
8ecausenoacLualworkhasoccurredyeLandnochangesLoLhescheduledwork
have been made, Lhe values in Lhe SLarL and 8aseline SLarL elds are idenLical, as
are Lhe values in Lhe Finish and 8aseline Finish elds. ALer acLual work is recorded
or laLer schedule adjusLmenLs are made, Lhe scheduled sLarL and nish values mighL
dierromLhebaselinevalues.ouwouldLhenseeLhedierencesdisplayedinLhe
variancecolumns.
8. OnLheViewLab,inLheTask Viewsgroup,clickGantt Chart.
1he CanLL CharL view appears.
128 Chapter6 1rackngProgresson1asks
Tip Project ncIudes vews that compare the current scheduIe to baseIne, but here's one quck
waytoseebaseInevaIuesntheCanttChartvew:ontheformattab,nthearStyIesgroup,
cIck aseIne and then cIck the baseIne (aseIne or aseInel through aseInel0) that you
wanttodspIay.ProjectdrawsbaseIneCanttbarsforthebaseIneyouchoose.
Now LhaL you've had a look aL some baseline elds, iL is Lime Lo enLer some acLuals!
Tracking a Project as Scheduled
1he simplesL approach Lo Lracking progress is Lo reporL LhaL Lhe acLual work is pro-
ceeding exacLly as planned. For example, i Lhe rsL monLh o a ve-monLh projecL has
elapsed and all iLs Lasks have sLarLed and nished as scheduled, you can quickly record
Lhis in Lhe UpdaLe ProjecL dialog box. When you record progress Lhrough a specic daLe,
ProjecLcalculaLesacLualduraLion,remainingduraLion,acLualcosLs,andoLhervaluesup
LoLhedaLeyouenLered.
lnLhenewbooklaunchprojecL,supposeLhaLsomeLimehasnowpassedsincesaving
Lhebaseline.WorkhassLarLed,andalliswell.
ln Lhis exercise, you record projecL acLuals by updaLing work Lo a specic daLe.
1. OnLheProjectLab,inLheStatusgroup,clickUpdate Project.
1he UpdaLe ProjecL dialog box appears.
2. MakesureLheUpdate work as complete throughopLionisselecLed.lnLheadja-
cenLdaLebox,LypeorselecL1/11/12.
3. ClickOK.
ProjecLrecordsLhecompleLionpercenLageorLheLasksLhaLwerescheduledLo
sLarL beore January . lL displays LhaL progress by drawing SURJUHVVEDUVinLhe
CanLLbarsorLhoseLasks.
fnterng a 1ask's CompIeton Percentage 129
CheckmarksappearinLhe
lndicaLorscolumnorLasks
LhaLhavebeencompleLed.
ProgressbarsindicaLe
LheporLionoeachLask
LhaLhasbeencompleLed.
lnLheCanLLCharLview,LheprogressbarshowshowmuchoeachLaskhasbeen
compleLed.8ecauseLasks2,8,and4havebeencompleLed,acheckmarkappears
inLhelndicaLorscolumnorLhoseLasks,andLheprogressbarsexLendLhroughLhe
ull lengLh o Lhose Lasks' CanLL bars. 1ask 5 is only parLially compleLed, however.
Entering a Tasks Completion Percentage
ALerworkhasbegunonaLask,youcanquicklyrecordiLsprogressasapercenLage.
When you enLer a compleLion percenLage oLher Lhan 0, ProjecL changes Lhe Lask's ac-
LualsLarLdaLeLomaLchiLsscheduledsLarLdaLe.ProjecLLhencalculaLesacLualduraLion,
remainingduraLion,acLualcosLs,andoLhervaluesbasedonLhepercenLageyouenLer.
Forexample,iyouspeciyLhaLaour-dayLaskis50percenLcompleLe,ProjecLcalculaLes
LhaLiLhashadLwodaysoacLualduraLionandhasLwodaysoremainingduraLion.
HerearesomewaysoenLeringcompleLionpercenLages.
UseLhe0%,25%,50%,75%,and00%CompleLebuLLonsinLheSchedulegroupo
Lhe 1ask Lab.
FnLer any percenLage value you wanL in Lhe UpdaLe 1asks dialog box (Lo access Lhis
dialog box, on Lhe 1ask Lab, in Lhe Schedule group, click Lhe down arrow Lo Lhe
righL o Lhe Mark on 1rack, and Lhen click UpdaLe 1asks).
Tip IfyoucancoIIecttheactuaIstartdateofatask,tsagoodpractcetorecordtheactuaI
start date (descrbed n the next secton), and then record a compIeton percentage.
130 Chapter6 1rackngProgresson1asks
lnLhisexercise,yourecordcompleLionpercenLagesosomeLasksinLhenewbook
launchprojecLplan.
1. lnLheTask Namecolumn,selecLLhenameoLask5,Design and order marketing
material.
1his Lask has some progress reporLed againsL iL rom Lhe previous exercise, buL has
noLyeLbeenseLascompleLe.
2. OnLheTaskLab,inLheSchedulegroup,click100% Complete.
ProjecLrecordsLheacLualworkorLheLaskasscheduledandexLendsaprogress
barLhroughLhelengLhoLheCanLLbar.
NexL you'll record LhaL Lhe compleLion milesLone or Lhe Planning Phase and Lhe
rsL Lask o Lhe lnLernal Launch Phase are compleLe.
3. lnLheTask Namecolumn,selecLLhenameoLask6,Planning complete!andwhile
holdingdownLheCLrlkey,selecLLhenameoLask8,Kickoff book launch meeting.
4. OnLheTaskLab,inLheSchedulegroup,click100% Complete.
100% Complete
fnterng a 1ask's CompIeton Percentage 131
NexL, you'll geL a beLLer look aL how progress is displayed in a Lask's CanLL bar. ou
willenLeracompleLionpercenLagevalueoradierenLLask.
5. ClickLhenameoLask9,Prepare book P&L statement.
6. OnLheTaskLab,inLheSchedulegroup,click50% Complete.
ProjecLrecordsLheacLualworkorLheLaskasscheduledandLhendrawsaprog-
ressbarLhroughparLoLheCanLLbar.
NoLeLhaLalLhough50%oLheworkonLask9iscompleLed,Lheprogressbar
does noL span 50% o Lhe widLh o Lhe CanLL bar. 1his is because ProjecL measures
duraLioninworkingLimebuLdrawsLheCanLLbarsLoexLendovernonworking
Lime, which in Lhis case includes 1hursday, January 9, Lhe nonworking day.
Tip y defauIt, Project shows Cantt bars n front of nonworkng tme (such as
weekends), as you see n ths secton. However, Project can show nonworkng tme
nfrontoftaskbars,vsuaIIyndcatngthatnoworkonthetaskwIIoccurdurng
thenonworkngtme.Ifyoupreferthstypeofpresentaton,rght-cIckanyshaded
nonworkngtmenthechartportonoftheCanttChartvew,andcIckNonworkng
1me n the shortcut menu. In the 1mescaIe daIog box, cIck the Non-workng tme"
tab. Next to Draw, cIck In front of task bars."
7. lnLhecharLporLion(onLherighL)inLheCanLLCharLview,holdLhemousepoinLer
over Lhe progress bar in Lask 9's CanLL bar. When Lhe mouse poinLer changes Lo a
percenL symbol and righL arrow, a Progress Screen1ip appears.
50% Complete
132 Chapter6 1rackngProgresson1asks
DependingonLheLypeobarorsymbolyoupoinL
Lo,inLhiscaseLheprogressbar,aScreen1ip
popsup,providinginormaLionabouLLhaLiLem.
1hemousepoinLerchanges
LoapercenLsymbolandarrow
whenpoinLingLoaprogressbar.
1he Progress Screen1ip inorms you o Lhe Lask's compleLion percenLage and oLher
Lrackingvalues.
Tip You can aIso set percent compIete by pontng to a Cantt bar (or progress bar wthn
a Cantt bar). When the mouse ponter changes to a percent symboI and rght arrow,
dragthemouseponterfromIefttorghtwthntheCanttbar.Asyoudoso,notethe
compIete through" date vaIue that appears n a Screen1p.
So ar, you have recorded acLual work LhaL sLarLed and nished on schedule. While Lhis
mighLproveLrueorsomeLasks,youoLenneedLorecordacLualsorLasksLhaLlasLed
longer or shorLer Lhan planned, or occurred sooner or laLer Lhan scheduled. 1his is Lhe
subjecLoLhenexLLopic.
Entering Actual Values for Tasks
AmoredeLailedwayLokeepyourscheduleupLodaLeisLorecordwhaLacLuallyhap-
pens or each Lask in your projecL. ou can record each Lask's acLual sLarL, nish, work,
andduraLionvalues.WhenyouenLerLhesevalues,ProjecLusesLheollowingrules.
When you enLer a Lask's acLual sLarL daLe, ProjecL moves Lhe scheduled sLarL daLe Lo
maLchLheacLualsLarLdaLe.
When you enLer a Lask's acLual nish daLe, ProjecL moves Lhe scheduled nish daLe
Lo maLch Lhe acLual nish daLe and seLs Lhe Lask Lo 00% compleLe.
fnterngActuaIVaIuesfor1asks 133
When you enLer a Lask's acLual work value, ProjecL recalculaLes Lhe Lask's remaining
workvalue,iany.
When you enLer a Lask's acLual duraLion, i iL is less Lhan Lhe scheduled duraLion,
ProjecLsubLracLsLheacLualduraLionromLhescheduledduraLionLodeLermineLhe
remainingduraLion.
When you enLer a Lask's acLual duraLion, i iL is equal Lo Lhe scheduled duraLion,
ProjecLseLsLheLaskLo00%compleLe.
When you enLer a Lask's acLual duraLion, i iL is longer Lhan Lhe scheduled duraLion,
ProjecLadjusLsLhescheduledduraLionLomaLchLheacLualduraLionandseLsLhe
LaskLo00%compleLe.
SupposeLhaLaewmoredayshavepassedandworkonLhenewbooklaunchhas
progressed.
lnLhisexercise,yourecordacLualworkvaluesorsomeLasksaswellassLarLdaLesand
duraLionsoroLherLasks.
1. OnLheViewLab,inLheDatagroup,clickTablesandLhenclickWork.
1he Work Lable appears.
Tip YoucandspIaywhchevertabIesmostreIevanttothedetaIsyouarefocusedon
whIetrackngprogressnaprojectpIan.UsefuItabIesncIudetheWorktabIe,whch
focusesonworkvaIues,andtheCosttabIe,whchfocusesoncostvaIues.1he1rackng
tabIesagoodaII-aroundtabIewhenrecordngorvewngprogress.
2. DragLheverLicaldividerbarLoLherighLLoexposeLheoLhercolumnsinLheWork
Lable.
1his Lable includes boLh Lhe LoLal scheduled work (labeled "Work") and AcLual and
Remaining work columns. ou'll reer Lo Lhe values in Lhese columns as you updaLe
Lasks.
lnLhecharLporLionoLheCanLLCharLview,youcanseeLhaLLask9isparLially
compleLe. ln Lhe Work Lable, noLe Lhe acLual work value o 8 hours. 1his 8 hours is
Lhe resulL o seLLing Lhe Lask aL 50% compleLe in Lhe previous exercise. 1he Lask had
6hoursoworkLoLal,so50%compleLeequals8hoursacLualworkcompleLedand
8hoursremaining.ouwanLLorecordLhaLLheLaskisnowcompleLebuLrequired
moreacLualworkLhanexpecLed.
3. lnLheActual eld or Lask 9, Prepare book P&L statement,LypeorselecL24,and
LhenpressLheFnLerkey.
ProjecLrecordsLhaL24hoursoworkhavebeencompleLedonLask9.Since
24hoursisgreaLerLhanLheoriginallyscheduled6hours,ProjecLmarksLheLaskas
compleLedandexLendsLheCanLLbaroLheLaskLoindicaLeiLslongerduraLion.
134 Chapter6 1rackngProgresson1asks
AcLualworkisrolledupromLhe
subLasksLoLhesummaryLasks.
Now suppose LhaL more Lime has passed. 1o conclude Lhis exercise, you will enLer
acLualsLarLdaLesandduraLionsooLherLasksinLhelnLernalLaunchPhase.
4. lnLheTask Namecolumn,clickLask0,Plan authors travel itinerary.
1his Lask sLarLed one working day ahead o schedule (Lhe 1uesday beore iLs
scheduledsLarLdaLe)andLookaLoLalosevendaysLocompleLe.ouwillrecord
Lhis inormaLion in Lhe UpdaLe 1asks dialog box.
5. OnLheTaskLab,inLheSchedulegroup,clickLhedownarrowLoLherighLoLhe
Mark on TrackbuLLon,andLhenclickUpdate Tasks.
1he UpdaLe 1asks dialog box appears. 1his dialog box shows boLh Lhe acLual and
scheduled values or Lhe Lask's duraLion, sLarL, and nish, as well as iLs remaining
duraLion.lnLhisbox,youcanupdaLeLheacLualandremainingvalues.
6. lnLheStart eld in Lhe ActualgrouponLheleLsideoLhedialogbox,Lypeorse-
lecL1/17/12.
7. lnLheActual dur eld, Lype or selecL 7d.
fnterngActuaIVaIuesfor1asks 135
8. ClickOK.
ProjecLrecordsLheacLualsLarLdaLe,duraLion,andscheduledandacLualwork
o Lhe Lask. 1hese values also roll up Lo Lhe Internal Launch Phasesummary
Lask(Lask7)andLheprojecLsummaryLask(Lask0),asindicaLedbyLhechange
highlighLing.
1o conclude Lhis exercise, you will record LhaL Lask sLarLed on Lime buL Look
longerLhanplannedLocompleLe.
9. lnLheTask Namecolumn,clickLask,Channel Sales prep.
10. OnLheTaskLab,inLheSchedulegroup,clickLhedownarrowLoLherighLoLhe
Mark on TrackbuLLon,andLhenclickUpdate Tasks.
1he UpdaLe 1asks dialog box appears.
11. lnLheActual dur eld, Lype 7d,andLhenclickOK.
ProjecLrecordsLheacLualduraLionoLheLask.
136 Chapter6 1rackngProgresson1asks
8ecauseyoudidnoLspeciyanacLualsLarLdaLe,ProjecLassumesLhaLLheLask
sLarLedasscheduled.However,LheacLualduraLionLhaLyouenLeredcauses
ProjecL Lo calculaLe an acLual nish daLe LhaL is laLer Lhan Lhe originally sched-
uled nish daLe.
Tip YoucanappIyaIIthetrackngmethodsshownnthschaptertomanuaIIyscheduIedtasks.
You can aIso record an actuaI start, actuaI nsh, or remanng duraton vaIue for a manuaIIy
scheduIedtask.
Project Management Focus: Is the Project on Track?
FvaluaLing a projecL's sLaLus properly can be Lricky. Consider Lhe ollowing issues.
For many Lasks, iL is very diculL Lo evaluaLe a compleLion percenLage. When
is an engineer's design or a new moLor assembly 50 percenL compleLe Or
when is a programmer's code or a soLware module 50 percenL compleLe
ReporLingworkinprogressisinmanycasesabesLguesseorLandinher-
enLlyrisky.
1he elapsed porLion o a Lask's duraLion is noL always equal Lo Lhe amounL
oworkaccomplished.Forexample,aLaskmighLrequirerelaLivelyliLLle
eorL iniLially, buL require more work as Lime passes. (1his is reerred Lo as a
back-loadedLask.)When50percenLoiLsduraLionhaselapsed,arlessLhan
50percenLoiLsLoLalworkwillhavebeencompleLed.
1he resources assigned Lo a Lask mighL have dierenL criLeria or whaL consLi-
LuLes Lhe Lask's compleLion Lhan Lhe criLeria deLermined by Lhe projecL man-
agerorLheresourcesassignedLosuccessorLasks.
CoodprojecLplanningandcommunicaLioncanavoidormiLigaLeLheseandoLher
problemsLhaLariseinprojecLexecuLion.Forexample,developingproperLaskdu-
raLionsandsLaLus-reporLingperiodsshouldhelpyouidenLiyLasksLhaLhavevaried
subsLanLiallyromLhebaselineearlyenoughLomakeadjusLmenLs.Havingwell-
documenLedandwell-communicaLedLaskcompleLioncriLeriashouldhelpprevenL
downsLreamsurprises.NeverLheless,large,complexprojecLswillalmosLalways
varyromLhebaseline.
CLEAN UP CIose the SmpIe 1rackng Ie.
KeyPonts 137
Key Points
8eore Lracking acLual work in a projecL plan, you should seL a baseline. 1his pro-
videsyouwiLhasnapshoLoyouriniLialprojecLplanorlaLercomparisonagainsL
acLualprogressandisonewayLoLellwheLheryourprojecLisonLrack.
1he abiliLy Lo Lrack acLual work in a projecL plan is a major advanLage LhaL a projecL
managemenLLoolsuchasProjecLhasoveralisL-keepingLoolsuchasMicrosoL
Fxcel.lnProjecL,youcanLrackacLualworkaLaverybroadorverydeLailedlevel.
1o evaluaLe a projecL's sLaLus properly aLer you begin Lracking requires a combi-
naLionorecordingaccuraLedaLainProjecLandusingyourgoodjudgmenLwhen
inLerpreLingLheresulLs.
139
ParL2
Advanced Scheduling
7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .l40
8 fne-1unngResourceDetaIs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . l78
9 fne-1unngAssgnmentDetaIs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .l88
10 fne-1unngtheProjectPIan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2l0
11 OrganzngProjectDetaIs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
12 1rackngProgresson1asksandAssgnments . . . . .256
13 VewngandReportngProjectStatus . . . . . . . . . . .278
14 CettngYourProjectackon1rack. . . . . . . . . . . . .298
Chapter at a Glance
ChangehowLasksarerelaLedLoeachoLher,page42.
ApplyconsLrainLsLo
conLrolwhenLaskscan
bescheduled,page47.
lnLerrupLworkona
Lask,page58.
SeLworkingLimeora
speciicLask,page55.
Fine-LunehowProjecL
respondsLoschedule
changes,page58.
SeLuparecurring
Lask,page67.
141
7 Fine-1uning 1ask
DeLails
In this chapter, you will learn how to:
AdjusLLasklinksLohavemoreconLroloverhowLasksarerelaLed.
ApplyaconsLrainLLoaLask.
SpliLaLaskLorecordaninLerrupLioninwork.
CreaLeaLaskcalendarandapplyiLLoaLask.
ChangeaLaskLypeLoconLrolhowProjecLschedulesLasks.
RecorddeadlinesorLasks.
FnLer a xed cosL or a Lask.
SeLuparecurringLaskinLheprojecLschedule.
view Lhe projecL's criLical paLh.
FnLer a specic duraLion value or a summary Lask.
lnacLivaLeLaskssoLheyremaininLheprojecLplanbuLhavenoeecLonLhe
schedule(ProjecLProessionalonly).
lnLhischapLer,youexamineanduseavarieLyoadvancedeaLuresinMicrosoLProjecL
200. 1hese eaLures ocus on ne-Luning Lask deLails prior Lo saving a baseline, as well
ascommencingworkonLheprojecLwiLhLhegoalodevelopingLhemosLaccuraLe
schedulerepresenLaLionoLheLasksyouanLicipaLeorLheplan.
Practice Files eforeyoucancompIetetheexercsesnthschapter,youneedtocopy
the book's practce Ies to your computer. A compIete Ist of practce Ies s provded
n Usng the Practce fIes" at the begnnng of ths book. for each exercse that has a
practce Ie, smpIy browse to where you saved the book's practce Ie foIder.
Important IfyouarerunnngProjectProfessonaI,youmayneedtomakeaone-tmesettng
change. 1hs heIps ensure that the practce Ies you work wth n ths chapter do not affect
your Project Server data. for more nformaton, see Appendx C, Usng the Practce fIes f
Connected to Project Server."
142 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
Adjusting Task Relationships
ou mighL recall rom ChapLer 2, "CreaLing a 1ask LisL," LhaL Lhere are our Lypes o Lask
dependencies,orrelaLionships.
Finish-Lo-sLarL (FS). 1he nish daLe o Lhe predecessor Lask deLermines Lhe sLarL
daLeoLhesuccessorLask.
SLarL-Lo-sLarL (SS). 1he sLarL daLe o Lhe predecessor Lask deLermines Lhe sLarL daLe
oLhesuccessorLask.
Finish-Lo-nish (FF). 1he nish daLe o Lhe predecessor Lask deLermines Lhe nish
daLeoLhesuccessorLask.
SLarL-Lo-nish (SF). 1he sLarL daLe o Lhe predecessor Lask deLermines Lhe nish daLe
oLhesuccessorLask.
When you enLer Lasks in ProjecL and link Lhem by clicking Lhe Link 1asks buLLon on Lhe
1ask Lab, Lhe Lasks are given a nish-Lo-sLarL relaLionship. 1his is ne or many Lasks, buL
you will mosL likely change some Lask relaLionships as you ne-Lune a projecL plan. 1he
ollowing are some examples o Lasks LhaL require relaLionships oLher Lhan nish-Lo-sLarL.
oucansLarLseLLingpagesassoonasyousLarLillusLraLionworkonabookprojecL
(a sLarL-Lo-sLarL relaLionship). 1his reduces Lhe overall Lime required Lo compleLe Lhe
LwoLasks,asLheyarecompleLedinparallel.
PlanningLheediLorialworkorabookcanbeginbeoreLhemanuscripLis
compleLe, buL iL cannoL be nished unLil Lhe manuscripL is compleLe. ou wanL
Lhe Lwo Lasks Lo nish aL Lhe same Lime (a nish-Lo-nish relaLionship).
1ask relaLionships should reecL Lhe sequence in which work should be perormed. ALer
you have esLablished Lhe correcL Lask relaLionships, you can ne-Lune your schedule by
enLering overlap (called lead Lime) or delay (called lag Lime) beLween Lhe nish or sLarL
daLesopredecessorandsuccessorLasks.
Assuming LhaL Lwo Lasks have a nish-Lo-sLarL relaLionship.
LeadLimecausesLhesuccessorLaskLobeginbeoreiLspredecessorLaskconcludes.
LagLimecausesLhesuccessorLaskLobeginsomeLimeaLeriLspredecessorLask
concludes.
Adjustng1askReIatonshps 143
1he ollowing is an illusLraLion o how lead and lag Lime aecL Lask relaLionships. Assume
LhaL you iniLially planned Lhe ollowing Lhree Lasks using nish-Lo-sLarL relaLionships.
lniLiallyLheLasksarelinkedwiLhinish-Lo-sLarL
relaLionships,soLhesuccessorLaskisscheduled
LobeginwhenLhepredecessorLaskinishes.
8eoreLask2canbegin,youneedLoallowanexLradayorLhecopyediLedmanuscripL
LobeshippedLoLheauLhor.oudonoLwanLLoaddadayLoLheduraLionoLask5
becausenorealworkwilloccuronLhaLday.lnsLead,youenLeraone-daylagbeLween
Lasksand2.
1hislagLimedelaysLhesLarL
oLhesuccessorLaskbyoneday.
However, Lask 8 can sLarL as soon as Lask 2 is halway compleLed. 1o make Lhis happen,
enLera50percenLleadLimebeLweenLasks2and8.
1hisleadLimeschedulesLhesuccessorLask
LosLarLbeoreLhepredecessorLaskinishes.
oucanenLerleadandlagLimeasuniLsoLime,suchasLwodays,orasapercenLageo
LheduraLionoLhepredecessorLask,suchas50percenL.LagLimeisenLeredinposiLive
uniLsandleadLimeinnegaLiveuniLs(orexample,2dor50%).oucanapplyleador
lag Lime Lo any Lype o Lask relaLionship. nish-Lo-sLarL, sLarL-Lo-sLarL, and so on.
Places in which you can enLer lead or lag Lime include Lhe 1ask lnormaLion dialog box
(1ask Lab), Lhe Predecessors column in Lhe FnLry Lable, and Lhe 1ask Dependency dialog
box(viewablebydouble-clickingalinklinebeLweenCanLLbars).
144 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
Lucerne Publishing is abouL Lo begin ediLorial and design work on a new children's
book.ALLhissLage,youhaveaniniLialprojecLplanwiLhLasknames,duraLions,and
relaLionships,andresourceassignmenLs.
lnLhisexercise,youenLerleadandlagLimeandchangeLaskrelaLionshipsbeLweenpre-
decessorandsuccessorLasks.
SET UP Start Project 20l0 f t's not aIready runnng.
YouneedtheAdvanced1asksA_StartprojectpIanIocatednyourChapter07practce
Ie foIder to compIete ths exercse. Open the Advanced 1asks A_Start project pIan,
andthenfoIIowthesesteps.
1. OnLheFile Lab,clickSave As.
1he Save As dialog box appears.
2. lnLheFile namebox,LypeAdvanced Tasks A,andLhenclickSave.
3. OnLheTaskLab,inLheTasksgroup,clickInspect.
1he 1ask lnspecLor pane appears. 1his pane succincLly reveals Lhe scheduling
acLorsLhaLaecLLheselecLedLask,suchaspredecessorLaskrelaLionships,
resource calendars, and/or Lask calendars. ou can click any iLem in Lhe 1ask
lnspecLorLhaLappearsinblueLogeLmoredeLails.Forexample,youcanclickLhe
assigned resource's name under Calendar Lo see Lhe resource calendar.
4. SelecLLhenameoLask8,Print and ship.
ln Lhe 1ask lnspecLor pane, you can view Lhe scheduling acLors aecLing Lhis Lask.
ForLask8,youcanseeLhaLiLspredecessorisLask80,Generate proofs.oucansee
in Lhe pane LhaL Lhe Lwo Lasks have a nish-Lo-sLarL relaLionship wiLh zero lag Lime.
NexL, you'll adjusL Lhe lag value on Lhe Lask relaLionship Lo accounL or Lhe LransiL
LimeoLheproosLoLheprinLer.8ecauseyoucannoLediLLhisvaluedirecLlyinLhe
pane, you'll display Lhe 1ask lnormaLion dialog box. FirsL, Lhough, you'll display Lhis
Lask's CanLL bar so you can more easily observe Lhe eecL o adjusLing Lhe lag.
Adjustng1askReIatonshps 145
5. OnLheTaskLab,inLheEditinggroup,clickScroll to Task.
NexL, you'll adjusL Lhe lag value beLween Lhis Lask and iLs predecessor.
6. OnLheTaskLab,inLhePropertiesgroup,clickInformation.
1he 1ask lnormaLion dialog box appears. lL conLains deLails abouL Lhe currenLly
selecLedLask,8.
7. ClickLhePredecessorsLab.
8. lnLheLag eld or predecessor Lask 80, Lype 3d,andLhenclickOKLocloseLhe
Task Informationdialogbox.
PredecessordeLailssuchaslagLime
appearinLhe1asklnspecLor.
1ask 8 is now scheduled Lo sLarL Lhree working days aLer Lhe end o Lask 80.
NexL,youwilladjusLLhelagLimebeLweenLwooLherLasks.
9. ClickLhenameoLask0,Copyedit incorp.
ou'd like Lo overlap Lhis Lask wiLh iLs predecessor, Lhe Copyedit incorp Laskcan
sLarLbeoreLheauLhorreviewocopyediLiscompleLed.
10. OnLheTaskLab,inLhePropertiesgroup,clickInformation,andLhenclickLhe
PredecessorsLab.
146 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
11. lnLheLag eld or predecessor Lask 9, Lype 225%,andLhenclickOK.
FnLeringlagLimeasanegaLivevalueproducesleadLime.
1o see Lhe adjusLmenL you made more direcLly, you'll scroll Lo Lhe Lask's CanLL bar
again.
12. OnLheTaskLab,inLheEditinggroup,clickScroll to Task.
1ask 0 is now scheduled Lo sLarL aL Lhe 25 percenL remaining poinL o Lhe duraLion
oLask9.ShouldLheduraLionoLask9change,ProjecLwillrescheduleLhesLarLo
Lask0soLhaLiLmainLainsa25percenLleadLime.
1o conclude Lhis exercise, you will change Lhe Lask relaLionship beLween Lwo Lasks.
13. Double-clickLhenameoLask4, Interior illustration design.
1he 1ask lnormaLion dialog box appears. 1he Predecessors Lab should be visible.
NoLe also LhaL Lhe 1ask lnspecLor pane in Lhe background updaLes Lo display Lhe
schedulingdeLailsorLask4,LhecurrenLlyselecLedLask.
14. OnLhePredecessorsLab,clickinLheTypecolumnorpredecessorLask8.SelecL
Start-to-Start (SS),andclickOK.
ProjecLchangesLheLaskrelaLionshipbeLweenLasks8and4LosLarL-Lo-sLarL.
Settng1askConstrants 147
AssigningLaskssLarL-Lo-sLarLrelaLionshipsandenLeringleadLimeswhereappro-
priaLe are boLh excellenL Lechniques Lo ne-Lune Lask relaLionships so LhaL you geL
LheresulLsyouwanL.However,ProjecLcannoLauLomaLicallymakesuchschedule
adjusLmenLs or you. As projecL manager, you musL analyze Lhe sequences and
relaLionshipsoyourLasksandmakeLhoseadjusLmenLswherenecessary.
Setting Task Constraints
FveryLaskLhaLyouenLerinLoProjecLhassomeLypeoconsLrainLappliedLoiL.A
consLrainL conLrols Lhe sLarL or nish daLe o a Lask and Lhe degree Lo which LhaL Lask
can be rescheduled. 1here are Lhree caLegories o consLrainLs.
fIexbIeconstrants ProjecL can change Lhe sLarL and nish daLes o a Lask. 1he
deaulL consLrainL Lype in ProjecL is LhaL Lasks sLarL as soon as possible. 1his Lype
o exible consLrainL is called As Soon As Possible, or ASAP or shorL. No consLrainL
daLe is associaLed wiLh exible consLrainLs. ProjecL does noL display any special
indicaLor in Lhe lndicaLors column or exible consLrainLs.
InexbIe constrants ALaskmusLbeginorendonacerLaindaLe.Forexample,
you can speciy LhaL a Lask musL end on November 9, 202. lnexible consLrainLs are
someLimes called hard consLrainLs. When an inexible consLrainL has been applied Lo
aLask,ProjecLdisplaysaspecialindicaLorinLhelndicaLorscolumn.oucanpoinLLo
a consLrainL indicaLor, and Lhe consLrainL deLails will appear in a Screen1ip.
Sem-exbIe constrants A Lask has a sLarL or nish daLe boundary. However,
wiLhin LhaL boundary, ProjecL has Lhe scheduling exibiliLy Lo change Lhe sLarL and
nish daLes o a Lask. For example, leL's say a Lask musL nish no laLer Lhan June 5,
202. However, Lhe Lask could nish beore Lhis daLe. Semi-exible consLrainLs are
someLimes called soL or moderaLe consLrainLs. When a semi-exible consLrainL has
beenappliedLoaLask,ProjecLdisplaysaspecialindicaLorinLhelndicaLorscolumn.
148 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
lnLoLal,LhereareeighLLypesoLaskconsLrainLs.
This constraint
category
Includes these
constraint types
And means
Flexible AsSoonAs
Possible(ASAP)
ProjecLwillscheduleaLaskLooccurassoonasiL
can occur. 1his is Lhe deaulL consLrainL Lype applied
LoallnewLaskswhenschedulingromLheprojecL
sLarL daLe. 1here is no consLrainL daLe or an ASAP
consLrainL.
AsLaLeAs
Possible(ALAP)
ProjecLwillscheduleaLaskLooccuraslaLeasiLcan
occur. 1his is Lhe deaulL consLrainL Lype applied
LoallnewLaskswhenschedulingromLheprojecL
nish daLe. 1here is no consLrainL daLe or an ALAP
consLrainL.
Semi-exible SLarLNoFarlier
1han (SNF1)
ProjecLwillscheduleaLaskLosLarLonoraLerLhe
consLrainLdaLeLhaLyouspeciy.UseLhisconsLrainL
LypeLoensureLhaLaLaskwillnoLsLarLbeorea
specic daLe.
SLarLNoLaLer
1han (SNL1)
ProjecLwillscheduleaLaskLosLarLonorbeoreLhe
consLrainLdaLeLhaLyouspeciy.UseLhisconsLrainL
Lype Lo ensure LhaL a Lask will noL sLarL aLer a specic
daLe.
FinishNoFarlier
1han (FNF1)
ProjecL will schedule a Lask Lo nish on or aLer Lhe
consLrainLdaLeLhaLyouspeciy.UseLhisconsLrainL
Lype Lo ensure LhaL a Lask will noL nish beore a
specic daLe.
FinishNoLaLer
1han (FNL1)
ProjecL will schedule a Lask Lo nish on or beore Lhe
consLrainLdaLeLhaLyouspeciy.UseLhisconsLrainL
Lype Lo ensure LhaL a Lask will noL nish aLer a
specic daLe.
lnexible MusLSLarLOn
(MSO)
ProjecLwillscheduleaLaskLosLarLonLheconsLrainL
daLeLhaLyouspeciy.UseLhisconsLrainLLypeLo
ensureLhaLaLaskwillsLarLonanexacLdaLe.
MusLFinishOn
(MFO)
ProjecL will schedule a Lask Lo nish on Lhe consLrainL
daLeLhaLyouspeciy.UseLhisconsLrainLLypeLo
ensure LhaL a Lask will nish on an exacL daLe.
1hese Lhree consLrainL caLegories have very dierenL eecLs on Lhe scheduling o Lasks.
FlexibleconsLrainLs,suchasASAP,allowLasksLobescheduledwiLhouLanylimiLa-
Lions oLher Lhan Lheir predecessor and successor relaLionships, and Lhe projecL's
sLarL daLe (or ASAP Lask consLrainLs) or nish daLe (or ALAP Lask consLrainLs). No
Settng1askConstrants 149
xed sLarL or end daLes are imposed by Lhese consLrainL Lypes. Use Lhese consLrainL
Lypeswheneverpossible.
ASAP
Semi-exible consLrainLs, such as SLarL No Farlier 1han or SLarL No LaLer 1han, limiL
LhereschedulingoaLaskwiLhinLhedaLeboundaryLhaLyouspeciy.
SNF1
ConsLrainL
DaLe
lnexible consLrainLs, such as MusL SLarL On, prevenL Lhe rescheduling o a Lask. Use
LheseconsLrainLLypesonlywhenabsoluLelynecessary.
MSO
Note YoucannotchangetheconstranttypeorsetaconstrantdateforamanuaIIyscheduIed
task.formorenformatonaboutmanuaIIyscheduIedtasksversusautomatcaIIyscheduIed
tasks,seeChapter2.
1he Lype o consLrainL LhaL you apply Lo Lhe Lasks in your projecLs depends on whaL you
need rom ProjecL. ou should use inexible consLrainLs only i Lhe sLarL or nish daLe
o a Lask is xed by acLors beyond Lhe conLrol o Lhe projecL Leam. Fxamples o such
LasksincludehandosLoclienLsandLheendoaundingperiod.ForLaskswiLhouLsuch
limiLaLions, you should use exible consLrainLs. Flexible consLrainLs provide Lhe mosL dis-
creLion in adjusLing sLarL and nish daLes, and Lhey allow ProjecL Lo adjusL daLes i your
projecLplanchanges.Forexample,iyouhaveusedASAPconsLrainLsandLheduraLion
oapredecessorLaskchangesromourdaysLoLwodays,ProjecLadjusLs,orpulls
in," Lhe sLarL and nish daLes o all successor Lasks. However, i a successor Lask had an
inexible consLrainL applied, ProjecL could noL adjusL iLs sLarL or nish daLes.
lnLhisexercise,youapplyaconsLrainLLoaLask.
1. SelecLLhenameoLask6,Proofread and index.
2. OnLheTaskLab,inLheEditinggroup,clickScroll to Task.
Tip 1o seIect a task quckIy, even a task you can't see n the current vew, press CtrI+C,
and n the ID eId of the Co 1o daIog box, enter a task number, and then cIck OK.
150 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
1his Lask requires Lhe children's book auLhor, 1ad Orman, Lo prooread his book aL
a cerLain sLage in Lhe design process. However, 1ad has inormed you LhaL due Lo
his Lravel schedule, he will be unable Lo sLarL his review beore July 8-laLer Lhan
currenLlyscheduled.
3. OnLheTaskLab,inLhePropertiesgroup,clickInformation.
4. lnLheTask Information dialogbox,clickLheAdvancedLab.
5. lnLheConstraint Typebox,selecLStart No Earlier Than.
6. lnLheConstraint Datebox,LypeorselecL7/13/12,andLhenclickOK.
ProjecL applies a SLarL No Farlier 1han consLrainL Lo Lhe Lask, and a consLrainL icon
appearsinLhelndicaLorscolumn.oucanpoinLLoLheiconLoseeLheconsLrainL
deLails in a Screen1ip.
Settng1askConstrants 151
PosiLionyourmousepoinLeroveraconsLrainLindicaLor
(oranyiconinLhelndicaLorscolumn)LoseeaScreen1ip.
8ecause Lhis consLrainL aecLs Lhe scheduling o Lhe Lask, Lhe 1ask lnspecLor pane
nowincludesLheconsLrainLdeLails.
1ask 6 is rescheduled Lo sLarL on July 8 insLead o July . All Lasks LhaL depend
onLask6arealsorescheduled.OnewayLoviewLhisreschedulingisbyLhelighL
bluechangehighlighLingLhaLProjecLappliesLoLheSLarLandFinishdaLesoLhe
successorLasksoLask6.8ecauseLheduraLionsoLhe1st Pages reviewand
Design and ProductionsummaryLaskswerealsochangedbyapplyingLhecon-
sLrainL Lo Lask 6, Lhe DuraLion and Finish elds or Lhe Lhose summary Lasks are
alsohighlighLed.ChangehighlighLingremainsvisibleunLilyouperormanoLher
ediLing acLion or save Lhe le, and iL is an eecLive visual way Lo see Lhe broader
eecLs o your specic acLions in your schedule.
7. ClickLheClose buLLon (Lhe "X" buLLon in Lhe upper-righL corner) on Lhe 1ask
lnspecLorpane.
152 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
HereareaewoLherLhingsLokeepinmindwhenapplyingconsLrainLsLoLasks.
Note YoucannotsetconstrantsonmanuaIIyscheduIedtasks.1hefoIIowngssuesappIyonIy
toautomatcaIIyscheduIedtasks.formorenformatonaboutmanuaIIyversusautomatcaIIy
scheduIedtasks,seeChapter2.
FnLeringaFinishdaLeoraLask(orexample,inLheFinishcolumn)appliesaFinish
No Farlier 1han consLrainL Lo Lhe Lask.
FnLeringaSLarLdaLeoraLask(orexample,inLheSLarLcolumn)ordragginga
CanLL bar direcLly on Lhe CanLL charL applies a SLarL No Farlier 1han consLrainL Lo
LheLask.
lnmanycases,enLeringadeadlinedaLeisapreerablealLernaLiveLoenLeringa
semi-exible or inexible consLrainL. ou will work wiLh deadline daLes laLer in Lhis
chapLer.
Unless you speciy a Lime, ProjecL schedules a consLrainL daLe's sLarL or nish Lime
using Lhe DeaulL SLarL 1ime or DeaulL Fnd 1ime values on Lhe Schedule Lab o Lhe
ProjecLOpLionsdialogbox(LoopenLhisdialogbox,onLheFileLab,clickOpLions).
lnLhisprojecL,LhedeaulLsLarLLimeis8A.M.lyouwanLaconsLrainedLaskLobe
scheduledLosLarLaLadierenLLime,enLerLhaLLimealongwiLhLhesLarLdaLe.
For example, i you wanL Lo schedule a Lask Lo sLarL aL 0 A.M. on July 2, enLer
7/2//2 0AM in Lhe SLarL eld.
1o remove a consLrainL, rsL selecL Lhe Lask or Lasks and, on Lhe 1ask Lab, in Lhe
ProperLies group, click lnormaLion. ln Lhe 1ask lnormaLion dialog box, click
Lhe Advanced Lab. ln Lhe ConsLrainL 1ype box, selecL As Soon As Possible or (i
scheduling rom Lhe projecL nish daLe) As LaLe As Possible.
l you musL apply semi-exible or inexible consLrainLs Lo Lasks in addiLion Lo Lask
relaLionships,youmighLcreaLewhaLiscalledQHJDWLYHVODFN.Forexample,assume
LhaL you have a successor Lask LhaL has a nish-Lo-sLarL relaLionship wiLh iLs prede-
cessorLask.lyouenLeredaMusLSLarLOnconsLrainLonLhesuccessorLaskearlier
Lhan Lhe nish daLe o Lhe predecessor Lask, Lhis would resulL in negaLive slack and
a scheduling conicL. 8y deaulL, Lhe consLrainL daLe applied Lo Lhe successor Lask
willoverrideLherelaLionship.However,iyoupreer,youcanseLProjecLLohonor
relaLionshipsoverconsLrainLs.OnLheFileLab,clickOptions,andinLheProject
Optionsdialogbox,clickLheScheduleLab.ClearLheTasks Will Always Honor
Their Constraint Datescheckbox.
l you musL schedule a projecL rom a nish daLe raLher Lhan a sLarL daLe, some
consLrainLbehaviorschange.Forexample,LheAsLaLeAsPossibleconsLrainLLype,
raLherLhanAsSoonAsPossible,becomesLhedeaulLornewLasks.oushouldpay
close aLLenLion Lo consLrainLs when scheduling rom a nish daLe Lo make sure LhaL
LheycreaLeLheeecLLhaLyouinLend.
InterruptngWorkona1ask 153
Interrupting Work on a Task
WheniniLiallyplanningprojecLLasks,youmighLknowLhaLworkonacerLainLaskwillbe
inLerrupLed.RaLherLhanlisLingaLaskLwiceLoaccounLoraknowninLerrupLioninwork,
youcanVSOLW Lhe Lask inLo Lwo or more segmenLs. 1he ollowing are some reasons why
youmighLwanLLospliLaLask.
ouanLicipaLeaninLerrupLioninaLask.Forexample,aresourcemighLbeassigned
LoaweeklongLask,buLsheneedsLoaLLendanevenLonWednesdayLhaLisunre-
laLedLoLheLask.
ALaskisunexpecLedlyinLerrupLed.ALeraLaskisunderway,aresourcemighLhave
LosLopworkonLheLaskbecauseanoLherLaskhasLakenprioriLy.ALerLhesecond
Lask is compleLed, Lhe resource can resume work on Lhe rsL Lask.
lnLhisexercise,youspliLaLaskLoaccounLoraplannedinLerrupLionoworkon
LhaLLask.
1. SelecLLhenameoLask8,Content edit.
2. OnLheTaskLab,inLheEditinggroup,clickScroll to Task.
ouhavebeeninormedLhaLworkonLhisLaskwillbeinLerrupLedorLhreedays
sLarLingMonday,April9.
3. OnLheTaskLab,inLheSchedulegroup,clickSplit Task.
A Screen1ip appears, and Lhe mouse poinLer changes.
4. MoveLhemousepoinLeroverLheCanLLbaroLask8.
1his Screen1ip is essenLial or accuraLely spliLLing a Lask because iL conLains Lhe daLe
aLwhichyouwouldsLarLLhesecondsegmenLoLheLaskiyoudraggedLhemouse
poinLerromiLscurrenLlocaLiononLheCanLLbar.AsyoumoveLhemousepoinLer
along Lhe CanLL bar, you will see Lhe sLarL daLe in Lhe Screen1ip change.
5. Move (buL don'L click) Lhe mouse poinLer over Lhe CanLL bar o Lask 8 unLil Lhe sLarL
daLe o Monday, April 9, appears in Lhe Screen1ip.
UseLhisScreen1ipLohelpyouaccuraLelyspliL
Lasks.1hiswillchangeasyoumoveLheSpliL
1askmousepoinLer.
SpliL1askmouse
poinLer
Split Task
154 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
6. Click and drag Lhe mouse poinLer Lo Lhe righL unLil Lhe sLarL daLe o 1hursday,
April 2, appears in Lhe Screen1ip, and Lhen release Lhe mouse buLLon.
ProjecLinserLsaLaskspliL,represenLedinLheCanLLcharLasadoLLedline,beLween
LheLwosegmenLsoLheLask.
1hespliLappearsasadoLLedlineconnecLingLhe
segmenLsoLheLask.1hespliLindicaLesan
inLerrupLionoworkonaLask.
Tip SpIttng tasks wth the mouse mght take a IttIe practce. In step 6, f you ddn't
spIttask3sothatthesecondsegmentstartsonAprIl2,justponttothesecond
segmentagan.Whenthemouseponterchangestoafour-headedarrow,dragthe
segmenttothecorrectstartdate.
HereareaewoLherLhingsLokeepinmindwhenspliLLingLasks.
oucanspliLaLaskinLomulLiplesegmenLs.
oucandragasegmenLoaspliLLaskeiLherleLorrighLLorescheduleLhespliL.
1o rejoin Lwo segmenLs o a spliL Lask, drag one segmenL o Lhe Lask unLil iL Louches
LheoLhersegmenL.
1he Lime o Lhe Lask spliL, represenLed by Lhe doLLed line, is noL counLed in Lhe
duraLionoLheLask.NoworkoccursduringLhespliL.
lLheduraLionoaspliLLaskchanges,LhelasLsegmenLoLheLaskisincreasedor
decreased.
laspliLLaskisrescheduled(orexample,iiLssLarLdaLechanges),LheenLireLaskis
rescheduled, spliLs and all. 1he Lask keeps Lhe same paLLern o segmenLs and spliLs.
ResourcelevelingormanuallyconLouringassignmenLsoverLimecancauseLasksLo
spliL. ou will conLour assignmenLs in ChapLer 9, "Fine-1uning AssignmenL DeLails,"
and level resources in ChapLer 0, "Fine-1uning Lhe ProjecL Plan."
lyoudonoLwanLLodisplayspliLsasadoLLedline,youcanremoveLhedoLLed
lines.OnLheFormaLLab,inLheFormaLgroup,clickLayouL.lnLheLayouLdialog
box,clearLheShow8arSpliLscheckbox.
AdjustngWorkng1meforIndvduaI1asks 155
Adjusting Working Time for Individual Tasks
1here may be Limes when you wanL specic Lasks Lo occur aL Limes LhaL dier rom Lhe
workingLimeoLheprojecLcalendar(ororassignedresources,Lheresourcecalendar).
1o accomplish Lhis, you apply a Lask calendar Lo Lhese Lasks. As wiLh Lhe projecL calen-
dar, you speciy which base calendar Lo use as a Lask calendar. 1he ollowing are some
examplesowhenyoumighLneedaLaskcalendar.
ouareusingLheSLandardbasecalendarasyourprojecLcalendar,andyouhavea
LaskLhaLmusLrunovernighL.
ou have a Lask LhaL musL occur on a specic weekday.
ouhaveaLaskLhaLmusLoccuroverLheweekend.
Unlikeresources,ProjecLdoesnoLcreaLeLaskcalendarsasyoucreaLeLasks.(lyouneed
areresheronresourcecalendars,seeChapLer8,SeLLingUpResources.)Whenyou
needaLaskcalendar,youassignoneoLhebasecalendarsprovidedwiLhProjecL(or,
morelikely,anewbasecalendarLhaLyouhavecreaLed)LoLheLask.Forexample,iyou
assignLhe24HoursbasecalendarLoaLask,ProjecLwillscheduleLhaLLaskaccordingLoa
24-hour workday raLher Lhan Lhe working Lime specied in Lhe projecL calendar.
ForLasksLhaLhaveboLhaLaskcalendarandresourceassignmenLs,ProjecLsched-
ulesworkduringLheworkingLimesLhaLarecommonbeLweenLheLaskcalendarand
resourcecalendar(s).lLhereisnocommonworkingLime,ProjecLalerLsyouwhenyou
applyLheLaskcalendarorassignaresourceLoLheLask.
WhenyouassignabasecalendarLoaLask,youcanchooseLoignoreresourcecalendars
orallresourcesassignedLoLheLask.DoingsocausesProjecLLoscheduleLheresources
LoworkonLheLaskaccordingLoLheLaskcalendarandnoLLheirownresourcecalendars
(orexample,Lowork24hoursperday).
lnLhenewbookprojecL,youneedLorecordLhaLaLaskhasamoreresLricLivework-
ing Lime Lhan Lhe resL o Lhe Lasks. 1ask 29 relaLes Lo Lhe hando o nal book proos
Lo a color seLLing services rm, who Lhen prepares Lhe book or commercial prinLing.
However Lhis rm sLarLs new jobs only on Mondays Lhrough Wednesdays.
lnLhisexercise,youcreaLeanewbasecalendarandapplyiLLoaccounLorLhelimiLed
workingLimeoraLask.
1. OnLheProject Lab,inLhePropertiesgroup,clickChange Working Time.
1he Change Working 1ime dialog box appears.
2. lnLheChange Working Timedialogbox,clickCreate New Calendar.
1he CreaLe New 8ase Calendar dialog box appears.
156 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
3. lnLheNamebox,LypeMonday-Wednesday.
4. MakesureLhaLLheMake a copy of opLionisselecLedandLhaLStandardis
selecLedinLhedrop-downmenu.
5. ClickOK.
Tip 1he benet of basng the new caIendar on the Standard caIendar s that aII the
workngdayexceptonsfromtheStandardcaIendar,suchasnatonaIhoIdaysyoumay
haveentered,wIIaIsoappearnthenewcaIendar.
NoLeLhaL Monday-Wednesday nowappearsinLheForcalendarbox.
6. lnLheChange Working Timedialogbox,clickLheWork WeeksLab.
NexL, you'll enLer Lhe working Lime deLails or Lhis new calendar.
7. MakesureLhaLLheNamevalue[Default]inRowisselecLed,andLhenclick
Details.
8. lnLheSelect day(s)box,selecLThursday andFriday.
1hese are Lhe days you wanL Lo change Lo nonworking days or Lhis calendar.
9. ClickSet days to nonworking time.
10. ClickOKLocloseLheDetails dialogbox,andLhenclickOKagainLocloseLhe
Change Working Timedialogbox.
Now LhaL you've creaLed Lhe Monday-Wednesday calendar, you're ready Lo apply iL
LoaLask.
AdjustngWorkng1meforIndvduaI1asks 157
11. SelecLLhenameoLask29,Send to color house.
12. OnLheTaskLab,inLhePropertiesgroup,clickInformation.
1he 1ask lnormaLion dialog box appears.
13. ClickLheAdvancedLab.
AsyoucanseeinLheCalendarbox,LhedeaulLorallLasksisNone.
14. lnLheCalendarbox,selecLMonday-Wednesday romLhelisLoavailablebase
calendars.
15. ClickOKLocloseLhedialogbox.
ProjecLappliesLheMonday-WednesdaycalendarLoLask29.Acalendaricon
appearsinLhelndicaLorscolumn,remindingyouLhaLLhisLaskhasaLaskcalendar
appliedLoiL.
16. PoinLLoLhecalendaricon.
158 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
A Screen1ip appears, showing Lhe calendar deLails. RighL now, Lhis Lask is scheduled
LobecompleLedonaMonday,buLasyouurLheradjusLLheprojecLplan,Lhisis
likelyLochange.DueLoLhecusLomcalendarLhaLhasbeenappliedLoLhisLask,iL
will noL be scheduled on a 1hursday or Friday or over Lhe weekend.
Changing Task Types
ou mighL recall rom ChapLer 4, "Assigning Resources Lo 1asks," LhaL ProjecL uses Lhe
ollowing ormula, called Lhe scheduling ormula, Lo calculaLe a Lask's work value.
Work=DuraLionAssignmenLUniLs
whereassignmenLuniLsarenormallyexpressedasapercenLage.RememberalsoLhaL
aLaskhasworkwheniLhasaLleasLoneworkresource(peopleorequipmenL)assigned
LoiL.FachvalueinLheschedulingormulacorrespondsLoaLaskLype.ALaskLype
deLermines which o Lhe Lhree scheduling ormula values remains xed i Lhe oLher
Lwovalueschange.
1he deaulL Lask Lype is xed uniLs. l you change a Lask's duraLion, ProjecL will recalcu-
laLe work. Likewise, i you change a Lask's work, ProjecL will recalculaLe Lhe duraLion. ln
eiLhercase,LheuniLsvalueisnoLaecLed.
1he Lwo oLher Lask Lypes are xed duraLion and xed work. For Lhese Lask Lypes, ProjecL
uses a Limephased eld called peak uniLs when responding Lo schedule changes.
For a xed-work Lask.
oucanchangeLheassignmenLuniLsvalueandProjecLwillrecalculaLeLhe
duraLion.
oucanchangeLheduraLionvalueandProjecLwillrecalculaLepeakuniLsperLime
period. 1he assignmenL uniLs value is noL aecLed.
Note You cannot turn off effort-drven scheduIng for a xed-work task.
For a xed-duraLion Lask.
oucanchangeLheassignmenLuniLsvalueandProjecLwillrecalculaLework.
oucanchangeLheworkvalueandProjecLwillrecalculaLepeakuniLsperLime
period. 1he assignmenL uniLs value is noL aecLed.
ProjecL also keeps Lrack o Lhe highesL peak uniLs value per assignmenL. 1his value is
sLored in Lhe Peak eld, which you'll work wiLh in Lhe sidebar.
Changng1ask1ypes 159
Assignment Units, Peak, Peak Units, and the Scheduling Formula
ln previous versions o ProjecL, iL was possible (in acL, iL is likely) LhaL a resource's
iniLialassignmenLuniLsvaluewouldchange,andLhisledLounexpecLedresulLs
wiLh regard Lo Lhe scheduling ormula. 1his behavior has changed in ProjecL 200.
ProjecLnowLracksboLhLheassignmenLuniLsvalueandacalculaLedvaluecalled
peak(or,whenviewedonaLimescale,peak units).
ProjecLusesLheassignmenLuniLsvaluewheniniLiallyschedulingorlaLerreschedul-
ing a Lask, buL iL uses peak uniLs when reporLing a resource's maximum peak uniLs
value. Here's one example. l you iniLially assigned a resource aL 00% assignmenL
uniLs Lo a -day, xed-uniL Lask, ProjecL used LhaL value Lo iniLially calculaLe 8 hours
owork.HoweveriyouLhenrecorded0hoursoacLualworkonLheLask,previ-
ousversionsoProjecLwouldhaverecalculaLedLheassignmenLuniLsLobe20%
LokeepLheschedulingormulaaccuraLe.lyouLhenaddedmoreworkorchanged
LheduraLionoLheLask,ProjecLwouldhavescheduledLheLaskusingLhe20%
assignmenL uniLs value-probably noL Lhe resulL you'd wanL. ProjecL 200, however,
willrecordLhe20%peakvalue,andiyoulaLeraddworkorchangeLheduraLion
oLheLask,ProjecLwilluseLheoriginalassignmenLuniLsvalueo00%raLherLhan
Lhepeakvalueo20%LorescheduleLheLask.
Which is Lhe righL Lask Lype Lo apply Lo each o your Lasks lL depends on how you wanL
ProjecL Lo schedule LhaL Lask. 1he ollowing Lable summarizes Lhe eecLs o changing any
valueoranyLaskLype.oureadiLlikeamulLiplicaLionLable.
FixedduraLion
FixeduniLs
Fixedwork
DuraLion
Peak
Work
Work
AssignmenL
UniLs
DuraLion
DuraLion
Work
Work
DuraLion
DuraLion
Peak
...thenProject
recaIcuIates
...andyouchangethe
Ifthe
tasktype
s...
Note YoucannotchangethetasktypeofamanuaIIyscheduIedtask,andtheeffectof
thetasktypeonthescheduIngofataskasdescrbedhereappIesonIytoautomatcaIIy
scheduIedtasks.IfyouneedarefresheronmanuaIIyscheduIedtasks,seeChapter2.
1o view Lhe Lask Lype o Lhe selecLed Lask, on Lhe 1ask Lab, in Lhe ProperLies group,
click lnormaLion. 1hen, in Lhe 1ask lnormaLion dialog box, click Lhe Advanced Lab. ou
can also view Lhe Lask Lype in Lhe 1ask Form. (When in Lhe CanLL CharL view, you can
160 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
display Lhe 1ask Form by clicking DeLails on Lhe view Lab, in Lhe SpliL view group.) ou
can change a Lask Lype aL any Lime. NoLe LhaL characLerizing a Lask Lype as xed does
noLmeanLhaLiLsduraLion,assignmenLuniLs,orworkvaluesareunchangeable.oucan
changeanyvalueoranyLaskLype.
lnLhisexercise,youchangeaLaskLypeandsomeschedulingormulavalues.
1. OnLheView Lab,inLheTask Viewsgroup,clickTask Usage.
1he 1ask Usage view appears.
2. lnLheTask Namecolumn,selecLLhenameoLask8,Copyedit.
3. OnLheTaskLab,inLheEditinggroup,clickScroll to Task.
Tip 1o seIect a task quckIy, even a task you can't see n the current vew, press CtrI+C
and n the ID eId of the Co 1o daIog box, enter a task number, and then cIck OK.
ProjecLdisplaysLhedeLailsorLask8,Copyedit,andiLsassignmenL.
1he 1ask Usage view groups Lhe assigned resources below each Lask and shows
you, among oLher Lhings, each Lask's duraLion and work-Lwo o Lhe Lhree variables
oLheschedulingormula.
4. lnecessary,dragLheverLicaldividerbarLoLherighLsoLhaLLheFinishcolumnis
visible.
NexL, you'll add Lwo columns Lo Lhe 1ask Usage view so LhaL you can see Lhe
assignmenLuniLs(LheLhirdvariableoLheschedulingormula)andLhepeakval-
ues. ou don'L need Lo modiy Lhis view every Lime you wanL Lo use iL, buL or our
purposeshere,LhisisagoodwayLoillusLraLeLheeecLochangingLaskLypesand
schedulingormulavalues.
5. ClickLheStartcolumnheading,andLhen,onLheFormatLab,inLheColumns
group,clickInsert Column.
A lisL o elds appears.
6. ClickAssignment Units.
7. ClickLheStartcolumnheading,andLhen,onLheFormatLab,inLheColumns
group,clickInsert Column.
Changng1ask1ypes 161
8. ClickPeak.
ProjecLinserLsLheAssignmenLUniLsandPeakcolumnsLoLheleLoLheSLarLcol-
umn. Peak is Lhe resource's maximum uniLs value aL any Lime LhroughouL Lhe as-
signmenL's duraLion.
oucanseeLhaLLask8hasaLoLalworkvalueo240hours,aresourceassignmenL
uniLs value o 200%, and a duraLion o 5 days. NexL, you will change Lhe Lask's
duraLionLoobserveLheeecLsonLheoLhervalues.
ALeradiscussionbeLweenLheLwocopyediLorsabouLwhowillperormLhecopy-
ediL, you all agree LhaL Lhe Lask's duraLion should increase and Lhe resource's daily
workonLheLaskshoulddecreasecorrespondingly.
9. lnLheDuration eld or Lask 8, Lype or selecL 20d,andpressLheFnLer key.
ProjecLchangesLheduraLionoLask8Lo20daysandincreasesLheworkLo
820hours.NoLeLhaLLhechangehighlighLingappliedLoLheWorkandDuraLion
values.ouincreasedLheduraLionandwanLedLheLoLalworkLoremainLhesame
(iL didn'L), so you will use Lhe AcLion buLLon Lo adjusL Lhe resulLs o Lhe new Lask
duraLion.
10. PoinL aL Lask 8's Duration eld, and Lhen click Lhe Action buLLon.
ReviewLheopLionsonLhelisLLhaLappears.
162 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
8ecause Lask 8's Lask Lype is xed uniLs (Lhe deaulL Lask Lype), Lhe AcLion's deaulL
selecLion is Lo increase work as Lhe duraLion increases. However, you'd like Lo keep
Lhe work value Lhe same and decrease assignmenL uniLs or Lhe Lask's new duraLion.
11. OnLheActionslisL,clickResources will work fewer hours per day so that the
task will take longer.
1he assignmenL uniLs value decreases Lo 50%, and Lhe LoLal work on Lhe Lask
remainsunchangedaL240hours.
NexL,youwillchangeaLaskLypeandLhenadjusLLheworkonLheLask.
12. lnLheTask Namecolumn,selecLLhenameoLask24,Final review.
13. OnLheTaskLab,inLheEditinggroup,clickScroll to Task.
ProjecLdisplaysworkvaluesorLask24,Final reviewinLheLimephasedgrid.
14. OnLheTaskLab,inLhePropertiesgroup,clickInformation.
1he 1ask lnormaLion dialog box appears.
15. ClickLheAdvancedLab.
1he selecLed Lask describes Lhe nal review o Lhe new book's page proos. As you
can see in Lhe 1ask 1ype box, Lhis Lask has Lhe deaulL Lask Lype o xed-uniLs. 1he
Lask is scheduled or ve days. ou will make Lhis a xed-duraLion Lask.
16. lnLheTask Typebox,selecLFixed Duration.
17. ClickOKLocloseLheTask Informationdialogbox.
NexL, you'll add work Lo Lhe Lask.
18. lnLheWork eld or Lask 24, Final review,Lype150h,andLhenpressFnLer.
fnterngDeadIneDates 163
8ecause Lhis is a xed-duraLion Lask and you've added work, ProjecL adjusLed Lhe
peakvalueLo25%,LhisrepresenLsaninLenLionaloverallocaLion.OnLherighLside
oLheusageview,youcanseeLhaLLheresourcesassignedLoLask24nowhave
0 hours o work scheduled per day. 1heir original assignmenL uniLs values o 00%
eachremainunaecLed,however.
Task Types and Effort-Driven Scheduling
ManypeoplemisundersLandLaskLypesandeorL-drivenschedulingandconclude
LhaLLheseLwoissuesaremorecloselyrelaLedLhanLheyreallyare.8oLhseLLings
canaecLyourschedule.WhereasLheeecLoaLaskLypeapplieswheneveryou
ediL a Lask's work, duraLion, or uniL values, eorL-driven scheduling aecLs your
schedule only when you're assigning or removing resources rom Lasks. For more
inormaLionabouLeorL-drivenscheduling,seeChapLer4.
CLEAN UP CIose the Advanced 1asks A Ie.
Entering Deadline Dates
One common misLake made by new ProjecL users is Lo place semi-exible or inex-
ibleconsLrainLsonLoomanyLasksinLheirprojecLs.SuchconsLrainLsseverelylimiLyour
scheduling exibiliLy.
eL, i you know LhaL a specic Lask musL be compleLed by a cerLain daLe, why noL enLer
a MusL Finish On consLrainL 1his is Lhe reason. Assume LhaL you have a ve-day Lask LhaL
youwanLLoseecompleLedbyApril8,andLodayisApril2.lyouenLeraMusLFinish
OnconsLrainLonLheLaskandseLiLLoApril8,ProjecLwillmoveiLouLsoLhaLiLwill
indeedendonApril8.
164 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
PoinLingLoLheconsLrainL
indicaLorwilldisplay
consLrainLdeLails.
1hisLaskhasaMusLFinishOn
consLrainL,soProjecLschedulesiLLo
inishonLhespeciieddaLe,buLnoearlier.
FveniLheLaskcouldbecompleLedearlier,ProjecLwillnoLrescheduleiLLosLarLearlier.
lnacL,byapplyingLhaLconsLrainL,youhaveincreasedLheriskorLhisLask.lLheLask
isdelayedorevenonedayoranyreason(arequiredresourceissick,orexample),Lhe
Lask will miss iLs planned nish daLe.
AbeLLerapproachLoschedulingLhisLaskisLouseLhedeaulLAsSoonAsPossible
consLrainLandenLeradeadlineoApril8.AdeadlineisadaLevalueyouenLerora
LaskLhaLindicaLesLhelaLesLdaLebywhichyouwanLLheLaskLobecompleLed,buLLhe
deadlinedaLeiLseldoesnoLconsLrainLheLask.
WiLhAsSoonAsPossibleconsLrainLapplied,Lhe
LasksLarLsearlierandleavessomeLimebeLween
LheinishdaLeandLhedeadlinedaLe.
1hedeadlineindicaLorappearsonLheCanLLcharL.
Now Lhe Lask has Lhe greaLesL scheduling exibiliLy. lL mighL be compleLed well beore
iLsdeadline,dependingonresourceavailabiliLy,predecessorLasks,andwhaLeveroLher
schedulingissuesapply.
FnLeringadeadlinedaLecausesProjecLLodisplayadeadlineindicaLoronLhecharL
porLion o Lhe CanLL CharL view. l Lhe Lask's nish daLe moves pasL iLs deadline, ProjecL
displaysamisseddeadlineindicaLorinLheIndicator eld or LhaL Lask.
lnLhisexercise,youenLeradeadlinedaLeoraLask.
Open Advanced 1asks _Start from the Chapter07 practce Ie foIder
1. OnLheFileLab,clickSave As.
1he Save As dialog box appears.
2. lnLheFile namebox,LypeAdvanced Tasks B,andLhenclickSave.
3. lnLheTask Namecolumn,selecLLhenameoLask5,Handoff to Editorial.
fnterngfxedCosts 165
4. OnLheTaskLab,inLheEditinggroup,clickScroll to Task.
1his Lask is a milesLone marking Lhe scheduled nish daLe o Lhe acquisiLion phase
oLhenewbookprojecL.ouwanLLomakesureLhaLLheacquisiLionLaskconcludes
byFriday,May,202,soyouwillenLeradeadlinedaLeorLhismilesLone.
5. OnLheTaskLab,inLhePropertiesgroup,clickInformation.
1he 1ask lnormaLion dialog box appears.
6. ClickLheAdvancedLab.
7. lnLheDeadlinebox,LypeorselecL5/11/12,andLhenclickOK.
ProjecLdisplaysadeadlineindicaLorinLhecharLporLionoLheCanLLCharLview.
DeadlineindicaLor
oucannowseeaLaglancehowcloseLheendoLheacquisiLionphase,ascur-
renLlyscheduled,willcomeLomeeLingormissingiLsdeadline.lLhescheduled
compleLionoLhepre-producLionphasemovespasLMay,ProjecLwilldisplay
amisseddeadlineindicaLorinLhelndicaLorscolumn.
FnLeringadeadlinedaLehasnoeecLonLheschedulingoasummaryorsubLask.
However,adeadlinedaLewillcauseProjecLLoalerLyouiLhescheduledcompleLionoa
LaskexceedsiLsdeadlinedaLe.
Tip 1o remove a deadIne from a task, cIear the DeadIne eId on the Advanced tab of the
1askInformatondaIogbox.
Entering Fixed Costs
For projecLs in which you musL Lrack budgeL or nancial cosLs, you may need Lo work
wiLh several dierenL sources o cosLs. 1hese include cosLs associaLed wiLh resources, as
well as cosLs associaLed direcLly wiLh a specic Lask.
166 Chapter7 fne-1unng1askDetaIs
For many projecLs, nancial cosLs are derived mainly rom cosLs associaLed wiLh work
resources, such as people and equipmenL, or wiLh maLerial resources. 1o handle cosLs o
similarLypesorwhichyouwanLLoLrackaggregaLesums(Lravelisoneexampleinmany
projecLs),ProjecLsupporLscosLresources.lyouneedareresheroncosLresources,see
ChapLer8.
However,youmayoccasionallywanLLoassociaLeacosLwiLhaLaskLhaLisnoLLied
LoresourcesorworkandisnoLsomeLhingyouwanLLoaggregaLeacrossLheprojecL.
ProjecL calls Lhis a xed cosL, and iL is applied per Lask. A xed cosL is a specic moneLary
amounLbudgeLedoraLask.lLremainsLhesameregardlessoanyresourcesassignedLo
Lhe Lask. 1he ollowing are common examples o xed cosLs in projecLs.
AseLupee,chargedinaddiLionLoaper-dayrenLalee,orapieceoequipmenL
AbuildingpermiL
l you assign resources wiLh cosL raLes, assign cosL resources, or add xed cosLs Lo a Lask,
ProjecL adds iL all LogeLher Lo deLermine Lhe Lask's LoLal cosL. l you do noL enLer resource
cosLinormaLioninLoaprojecLplan(perhapsbecauseyoudonoLknowhowmuchyour
work resources will be paid), you can sLill gain some conLrol over Lhe projecL's LoLal cosL
by enLering xed cosLs per Lask.
ou can speciy when xed cosLs should accrue as ollows.
Start 1he enLire xed cosL is scheduled or Lhe sLarL o Lhe Lask. When you Lrack
progress, Lhe enLire xed cosL o Lhe Lask is incurred as soon as Lhe Lask sLarLs.
fnd 1he enLire xed cosL is scheduled or Lhe end o Lhe Lask. When you Lrack
progress, Lhe enLire xed cosL o Lhe Lask is incurred only aLer Lhe Lask is
compleLed.
Prorated 1he xed cosL is disLribuLed evenly over Lhe duraLion o Lhe Lask. When
youLrackprogress,LheprojecLincursLhecosLoLheLaskaLLheraLeaLwhichLhe
Lask is compleLed. For example, i a Lask has a S00 xed cosL and is 75 percenL
compleLe, Lhe projecL has incurred S75 againsL LhaL Lask.
When you plan a projecL, Lhe accrual meLhod you choose or xed cosLs deLermines how
Lhese cosLs are scheduled over Lime. 1his can be imporLanL in anLicipaLing budgeL and
cash-ow needs. 8y deaulL, ProjecL assigns Lhe proraLed accrual meLhod or xed cosLs,
buL you can change LhaL Lo maLch your organizaLion's cosL accounLing pracLices.
For Lhe new book projecL, you've learned LhaL Lhe generaLing o page proos by Lhe
color seLLing services rm will cosL S500. Lucerne Publishing has a crediL accounL wiLh
Lhis rm, buL Lo keep Lhe book's P&L sLaLemenL accuraLe, you'd like Lo accrue Lhis
expense when Lhe color seLLing services rm compleLes Lhe Lask.
SettngUpaRecurrng1ask 167
ln Lhis exercise, you assign a xed cosL Lo a Lask and speciy iLs accrual meLhod.
1. OnLheViewLab,inLheTask Viewsgroup,clickOther Views,andLhenclickTask
Sheet.
1he 1ask SheeL view appears.
2. OnLheViewLab,inLheDatagroup,clickTables,andLhenclickCost.
1he CosL Lable appears, replacing Lhe FnLry Lable.
3. lnLheFixed Cost eld or Lask 80, Generate proofs,Lype500, and press Lhe 1ab key.
4. lnLheFixed Cost Accrual eld, selecL End, and press 1ab.
ProjecL will now schedule a S500 cosL againsL Lhe Lask Generate proofs aL Lhe Lask's end
daLe, and Lhe projecL will incur Lhis cosL when Lhe Lask ends. 1his cosL is independenL o
Lhe Lask's duraLion and o any cosLs o resources LhaL could be assigned Lo iL.
Setting Up a Recurring Task
ManyprojecLsrequirerepeLiLiveLasks,suchasaLLendingprojecLsLaLusmeeLings,
creaLingandpublishingsLaLusreporLs,orrunningqualiLy-conLrolinspecLions.AlLhough
iLiseasyLooverlookLheschedulingosuchevenLs,youshouldaccounLorLhemin
yourprojecLplan.ALerall,sLaLusmeeLingsandsimilarevenLsLhaLindirecLlysupporL
LheprojecLrequireLimeromresources,andsuchevenLsLakeLimeawayromyour
resources' oLher assignmenLs.
1o help accounL or such evenLs in your projecL plan, creaLe a recurring Lask. As Lhe name
suggesLs, a recurring Lask is repeaLed aL a specied requency such as daily, weekly,
monLhly,oryearly.WhenyoucreaLearecurringLask,ProjecLcreaLesaseriesoLasks
wiLh SLarL No Farlier 1han consLrainLs, no Lask relaLionships, and eorL-driven scheduling
Lurnedo.