Microsoft Project - The Complete Guide for Project Managers

Explore the Microsoft Project 2019 interface via a sample project file, focusing on the Gantt chart view, tasks, durations, and the top-down work breakdown structure.

Create a new Microsoft Project file from the blank project template, set core project info (start date, schedule from start date, calendar, priority), and save the file.

Learn to create and manage phases in a project using indent and outdent to form summary tasks, including scope, analysis, software requirements, design, development, testing, deployment, and post-implementation.

Learn to insert and indent new tasks under the analysis software requirements phase using the insert task option, and create AMISOM zero-duration milestones like analysis complete.

Explore how to define and manage task and phase dependencies in Microsoft Project, using finish-to-start and start-to-start links, and applying lag and lead times to shape the project timeline.

Customize the project calendar by setting Monday–Friday times to 9:00–13:00 and 14:00–18:00 with a one-hour break, add holidays as exceptions, and mark weekends non-working.

Document tasks by adding notes in the task information window, using the notes tab to share details, images, and links, so staff understand requirements and review the steering group structure.

Allocate and manage Microsoft Project resources by defining work, material, and cost resources, setting quantities and availability, and assigning them to tasks.

Allocate resources to tasks using the task information window and resource sheet, set euro costs, and adjust 100% or partial allocations to influence task duration and costs.

Explore Microsoft Project scheduling by contrasting duration-based and effort-based approaches, including fixed duration and fixed work, and learn how work equals duration times units and resource allocation affects duration.

Learn how to manage task deadlines and constraints in Microsoft Project, switching between effort-based and duration-based scheduling, applying deadlines and eight constraint types to balance timing and flexibility.

Learn to split tasks to pause work and create recurring tasks for weekly meetings, allocate resources across occurrences, and assign calendars to tasks.

Associate specific calendars with tasks to tailor work hours, and enable the ignore resource calendars option to suppress warnings. Adjust task priorities (0–1000) to guide resource levelling and resolve overallocations.

Explore the timeline view in Microsoft Project 2019 to see major milestones highlighted as a project summary, adjust the timeline, and export it for emails and presentations.

Identify and monitor the critical path to protect project duration, and use Microsoft Project to view critical vs non-critical tasks via a detailed Gantt view.

Learn how to establish and maintain a project baseline in the initiation and planning phases, monitor variances, and compare planned against actual to control scope, cost, and schedule.

Discover how to capture project progress with a tracking Gantt, compare percentage complete and percentage work complete, and update start, finish, and durations in Microsoft Project.

Learn how to track a project as scheduled in Microsoft Project by recording percent complete, actuals, and baselines, using update project, status dates, and scalable tracking methods.

Record actuals to reflect what happens in a project, including actual start, actual finish, actual duration, remaining duration, and actual work and costs, using tracking to relate to percentage complete.

Track detailed project progress in Microsoft Project by recording daily actual work at the task, assignment, or resource level using task usage and resource usage views.

Explore how Microsoft Project calculates costs using resource rates, fixed costs, and actual costs, and learn to reschedule, move remaining work, and split incomplete tasks when resources are unavailable.

Learn to view and analyze work and cost variances in Microsoft Project using split-screen views, variance tables, and auto filters, then perform what-if schedule analysis.

Use the inactivate feature in Microsoft Project professional to run what-if analyses by removing selected tasks' impact on schedule and cost. Reactivate to see updated plans.

Analyze resource usage in Microsoft Project using the resource sheet and usage views to identify over allocations and under allocations, then apply leveling (manual or automatic) considering priorities and slack.

Explore how to use work contours and availability profiles in Microsoft Project to shape task work distribution, manage resource capacity, and prevent overallocation across tasks.

Explore the team planner view, available in the professional version, to manage resource assignments, view timelines, and spot over allocations with drag-and-drop reassignments and filters.

Explore the task path function in Microsoft Project to visualize direct and driven predecessors and successors, with color highlighting in the Gantt chart.

Explore Microsoft Project views and reporting beyond the Gantt chart by customizing tables, adding columns, and creating new task and resource views to optimize data, costs, and variances.

Discover how to filter, group, and sort project data in Microsoft Project to tailor views for stakeholders, milestones, and resources, using auto filters, custom filters, and highlights.

Learn to use Microsoft Project dashboard reports and customize reports, including project overview and remaining work, generate visual reports with Excel or Visio, and master printing options.

Create custom views in Microsoft Project by editing an existing view in the view definition dialog, then name it and select table, group, and filter elements.

Explore free Microsoft Project templates to save time and provide a starting point for your plans. Customize start dates, calendars, resources, and phases to craft a business-ready project plan.

Explore how to use split screens, calendar view, and work breakdown structure codes in Microsoft Project to organize tasks, visualize timelines, and customize views for planning.

Learn to generate printouts from Microsoft Project using the print window to choose data ranges and page layout. Adjust landscape orientation, paper size, margins, headers, and legend, then preview results.

Customize Gantt chart styles in Microsoft Project by adjusting columns, applying view-specific formatting, and tailoring bar colors and milestones for clear reporting.