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Project, project management, and you
In this chapter
Thank you for adding this book to your Microsoft Project Online desktop client skills development plan. This book is designed to be a learning and reference resource. Most of the chapters that follow include hands-on Practice tasks activities in Project.
This chapter does not involve hands-on work in Project. Instead, read it to better understand how Project and project management fit with your personal skills development goals. This chapter introduces you to Project and the field of project management.
Meet the Project program
Project can be the go-to tool in your preferred project-management toolbox. This book explains how to use Project to build schedules (which are generally called plans), complete with tasks and resources.
Project is a powerful program that you can use to plan and manage a wide range of projects. From meeting crucial deadlines and budgets to selecting the right resources, you can be more productive and realize better results by using the set of features Project offers. You can use Project to do the following:
Create plans at the level of detail that’s right for your project. You can work with summary data initially and then shift to a more detailed approach when needed.
Control which tasks Project can schedule automatically and which tasks you want to schedule manually.
Manage tasks, resources, work, and costs at whatever level of detail is appropriate for your project’s needs.
Work with your plan’s data in a variety of views and reports.
Track and manage your plan throughout the life of the project.
Collaborate and share data with others in your organization.
Use resource pools, consolidated projects, and cross-project links to extend your project-management focus across multiple projects.
Project Online desktop client builds on previous versions to provide powerful project-management tools. See the sections “See the new features in Project Online desktop client” and “Review features in earlier versions” later in this chapter for a list of the major new features from the last several releases of Project and for cross-references to the related topics in this book.
Meet the Project family
The Project desktop program is available in several different editions:
Project Standard This edition is the entry-level desktop program for creating, modifying, and tracking plans.
Project Professional This edition includes all the functionality of Project Standard plus a few additional features, such as Team Planner view. Project Professional may connect to other solutions (listed next), such as Project Online.
Project Online desktop client Obtained through a Microsoft 365 subscription, this edition is cloud based and provides all the functionality of Project Professional. A subscription version enables you to receive new features faster and use extra features, such as the Task Board view. It can be used as a desktop program or can be connected to other solutions as listed next.
In addition to installing the Project desktop program on your computer, other options for working with and connecting to Project plans include:
SharePoint Online Delivered through Microsoft 365, SharePoint is an information management solution that provides task list synchronization with Project plans.
Project Online Delivered through Microsoft 365, Project Online is the Microsoft project portfolio management (PPM) solution based on SharePoint. Project plans are centrally shared in a PPM solution.
Project Server This is the Microsoft on-premises PPM solution.
Project Web App (PWA) This is the accompanying browser-based interface for the selected PPM solution.
Planner Delivered through Microsoft 365, this solution is task focused, and a Planner plan may be connected to a task in a Project plan if a PPM solution is used.
Project for the web Delivered through Microsoft 365, this is a browser-based, easy-to-start solution for managing projects. This is the newest solution for managing projects and is based on the Microsoft Power Platform. Project plans may be imported into this browser-based solution.
Tip
Organizations will choose a mix of solutions to meet their task management, collaboration, and scheduling needs. Refer to your organization to learn more about what solutions you have available and how they’re being used.
Tip
For more information on using Project with other solutions, see Appendix C, “Integration with Microsoft 365 solutions for collaboration.” To learn more about SharePoint Online, go to https://products.office.com/sharepoint. To learn more about Planner, go to https://support.microsoft.com/planner. To learn more about Project Online and Microsoft 365 subscription offerings, including Project for the web, go to https://www.microsoft.com/microsoft-365/project/project-management-software.
Users of Project Standard and Project Professional
This book focuses on the features in Project Online desktop client. Users of Project Standard and Project Professional will benefit from this book as well. When a feature is unique to a specific version(s), it will be pointed out.
Project Standard and Project Professional users will have all the features listed in “Review features in earlier versions” later in this chapter except where indicated.
In the next section, “See the new features in Project Online desktop client,” the features “Task Boards added to reports,” and “Ongoing enhancements” are not available in either Project Standard or Project Professional.
The feature “Enhanced integration with Microsoft 365 solutions” requires subscriptions that vary by organization and may be available to Project Professional users and where indicated may be available to Project Standard users.
Chapter 21, “Use Agile project management with Project,” uses features available only to Project Online desktop client and does not apply to Project Standard or Project Professional users.
Project Standard users will be notified to skip additional sections of the book that do not apply. Refer to “Inactivate tasks” in Chapter 12, “Fine-tune the Project Plan,” for an example.
See the new features in Project Online desktop client
The Project Online desktop client version of Project includes some new and improved features, including the following:
Task Board view For Agile projects, it’s easier to apply the Kanban framework on a task board. A visual card interface lets you manage tasks by sprint, by status, or by resource. Any plan created in Project has the option to work in Task Board view. For more information, see Chapter 21.
Task Boards added to reports A new category of reports provides information by board, by sprint, or by status. For more information, see Chapter 21.
Enhanced integration with Microsoft 365 solutions There are more ways to share and connect information with other solutions including Planner and Project for the web. For Project Professional users, these features may be available. For Project Standard users, the ability to upload a plan into Project for the web may be available. For more information, see Appendix C.
Ongoing enhancements Subscribers to Project receive regular updates and improvements automatically. To review your Microsoft 365 update settings and to see what’s new, review your Account page in Backstage view.
To display the Account page and review updates
Select the File tab to display the Backstage view, and then select Account. Figure 1-1 shows the resulting Account page.
FIGURE 1-1 Use the Account page to confirm your Project version and review updates and new features applied.
Do either of the following:
Select Update Options to view the available update settings as shown in Figure 1-2.
Select What’s New to see the most recently installed updates.
FIGURE 1-2 Office Updates delivers Microsoft 365 updates to your computer.
Tip
Office Updates and What’s New will show updates for Microsoft 365. When appropriate, there is an option to filter for updates that are unique to Project. The dates shown for updates reflect Microsoft’s release schedule. Organizations may choose to delay these updates. Check with your organization to learn more about the availability and release schedule of Microsoft 365 updates.
If you’re upgrading to Project Online desktop client from a previous version, you’re probably most interested in the differences between the old and new versions and how they affect you. The following sections list new features that Project 2019, Project 2016, Project 2013, and Project 2010 introduced. Depending on the version of Project you are upgrading from, some of these previously new features might be new to you as well.
Review features in earlier versions
Even though Project regularly releases enhanced versions of its software, you might not have upgraded with every new release due to organizational standards, version compatibility, or other reasons. We have included the features that were delivered with each release for your reference. If you’ve been keeping up with Project versions, this section could be a reminder of some of the exciting features and when they were introduced.
New in Project 2019
The 2019 version included the following new features:
Improved task linking A multilevel task list is available from predecessor or successor fields displayed in views and dialogs. This list offers linking via checkboxes. For more information, see “Link tasks to create dependencies” in Chapter 4, “Build a task list.”
Timeline view updates Each timeline bar can have a unique label, and task progress is now displayed in the timeline. For more information, see “Format a Timeline view” in Chapter 16, “Format and print views: In-depth techniques.”
Task Summary Name field added You can add a task’s immediate summary task name to tables (such as the Usage table in Resource Usage view) to further clarify where the task is in the plan’s outline. For more information on creating new tables or adding a column to a table, see “Create new tables” in Chapter 13, “Organize plan details.”
Accessibility improvements Project is now more compatible with screen reader programs, and enhancements have been made to visual contrast and keyboard support. For more information, go to https://support.office.com and search for accessibility in project. In this book, we’ve included notes to help colorblind readers navigate Project, and, where appropriate, we offer suggestions to format your plan differently to address the visual needs of the team.
New in Project 2016
The 2016 version of Project included some new and improved features, including the following:
Timeline view updates You can display multiple timeline bars with custom date ranges. For more information, see “Format a Timeline view” in Chapter 16.
Tell Me This is a help and feature search text box on the ribbon. Use it to quickly find a Project feature (or to find help content about that feature). For more information, see Chapter 2, “Take a guided tour.”
New themes To change the visual style of Project, you can apply one of the new Office themes. You do so on the General page of the Project Options dialog (available from the File tab).
New in Project 2013
The 2013 version included the following new features:
Reports Project 2013 replaced the previous tabular reports feature with an entirely new way of visualizing your Project data. The reports feature includes a dynamic mix of tables, charts, and textual content, and it’s also highly customizable. For more information, see, “Customize reports” in Chapter 7, “Format and share your plan,” and see Chapter 17, “Format reports: In-depth techniques.”
Task Path Use this feature to quickly identify the Gantt bars of the selected task’s predecessors and successors. For more information, see “See task relationships by using Task Path” in Chapter 9, “Fine-tune task scheduling.”
Redesigned Backstage and OneDrive integration As with other Office programs, quick access to Microsoft OneDrive storage is integrated into the Project Backstage view. For more information, see “Manage files and set options in the Backstage view” in Chapter 2.
A much later project finish date The latest possible date Project can work with moved from December 31, 2049, to December 31, 2149.
Support for touch input As in other Office programs, you can optimize the Project interface (primarily the commands on the ribbon) for either touch or mouse input.
Skype integration (not available in Project Standard) In Project, you can start a Skype for Business chat or create an email message to a resource directly from Project. To do so, point to the resource name and start an instant messaging session or video chat.
TipIf your organization is using Teams, this feature works similarly.
Support for apps for Office Project supports third-party add-ins and apps available from the Office Store, located at store.office.com.
New in Project 2010
The 2010 version included the following new features:
The ribbon interface The ribbon interface organized all the commands that most people use in a new way, making them quickly accessible from tabs at the top of the program window. For more information, see “Explore the Project user interface” in Chapter 2.
The Backstage view All the tools you need to work with your files are accessible from one location. For more information, see “Manage files and set options in the Backstage view” in Chapter 2.
Manually scheduled tasks You can begin creating tasks with whatever information you might have, and you don’t have to worry about automatically scheduling tasks until you’re ready. Manually scheduled tasks are not affected by changes in duration, start or finish dates, dependencies, or other items that otherwise would cause Project to reschedule a task. You can also switch individual tasks or an entire plan from manual to automatic scheduling. For more information, see “Create tasks” and “Switch task scheduling from manual to automatic” in Chapter 4.
Timeline view Create a “project at a glance” view that includes just the summary tasks, tasks, and milestones that you choose. You also can easily copy the Timeline view as a graphic image to paste into other programs. For more information, see “Add tasks to a Timeline view” and “Copy views and reports” in Chapter 7.
Improved pasting to Excel and Word When you paste Project data into Microsoft Excel or Word, you can preserve the column headings and outline structure of your Project data. For more information, see “Copy Project data to and from other programs” in Chapter 19, “Share information with other programs.”
Customizable ribbon Create your own tabs and groups to suit the way you work. For more information, see “Customize the ribbon and Quick Access Toolbar” in Chapter 18, “Customize Project.”
Custom fields When you start typing a numeric value, date value, or text string into the rightmost column in a table, Project identifies the right data type. For more information, see “Create new tables” in Chapter 13.
AutoFilter improvements You can use Excel-like column filtering, in addition to sorting and grouping, directly from AutoFilter arrows on column headings. For more information, see “Filter plan details” in Chapter 13.
Save as PDF or XPS You create PDF or XPS-format documents directly within Project. For more information, see “Print and export views” in Chapter 16.
Team Planner view (not available in Project Standard) You can perform actions such as reassigning a task from one resource to another with simple drag-and-drop actions in the Team Planner view. For more information, see “Adjust assignments in the Team Planner view” in Chapter 11, “Fine-tune resource and assignment details.”
Inactivate tasks (not available in Project Standard) You can disable (but not delete) tasks from a plan so that they have no effect on the overall schedule; then you can reactivate them later, if you need them. For more information, see “Inactivate tasks” in Chapter 12.
SharePoint Task List integration (not available in Project Standard) You can publish and synchronize tasks between Project and a SharePoint list. For more information, see Appendix C.
Take a project manager’s perspective
Project management is a broadly practiced art and science. Since you’re reading this book, chances are good that either you’re seriously involved in project management or you want to be.
Project is unique among the Microsoft programs, in that Project is a specialized tool designed for the specific domain of project management. You might be invested in your professional identity as a project manager, or you might not identify yourself with project management at all. Either way, your success as a user of Project is largely related to your success as a project manager. Let’s take a moment to explore this subject.
At its heart, project management is a combination of skills and tools that help you predict and control the outcomes of endeavors that your organization undertakes. Your organization might be involved in other work, apart from projects. Projects (such as developing a new product) are distinct from ongoing operations (such as running payroll services). Projects are defined as temporary endeavors undertaken to create some unique deliverable or result. With a good project-management system in place, you should be able to answer questions such as the following:
What tasks must be performed, and in what order, to produce the deliverable of the project?
When should each task be performed, and what is the final deadline?
Who will complete these tasks?
How much will it cost?
What if some tasks are not completed as scheduled?
What’s the best way to communicate project details to those who have an interest or stake in the project?
Good project management does not guarantee the success of every project, but poor project management often leads to failure.
A core principle of this book’s instructional strategy is that success with Project is built on success with basic project-management practices. Although Project is a feature-rich program, mastery of its features alone is no guarantee of success in project management. For this reason, this book includes material about project-management best practices. See, for example, the following:
The many “Project management focus” sidebars throughout the chapters
Let’s get started!
In the Practice tasks hands-on activities in this book, you play the role of a project manager at a fictitious children’s book publishing company, Lucerne Publishing. Each new book (even this one) constitutes its own project; in fact, some are complex projects that involve costly resources and aggressive deadlines. We think you’ll recognize many of the scheduling needs that the project managers at Lucerne Publishing encounter and then transfer their strategies and solutions to your own scheduling needs.
We’ve been working with Project since it debuted for Windows, and each version has offered something that made project planning and management a little easier. Project Online desktop client continues that tradition for desktop project management, and we look forward to showing you around.