Gus Cicala

The Project Managers Guide to Microsoft Project 2019

Covers Standard, Professional, Server, Project Web App, and Office 365 Versions

Gus Cicala
Wilmington, DE, USA
ISBN 978-1-4842-5637-4e-ISBN 978-1-4842-5635-0
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4842-5635-0
© Gus Cicala 2020
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While the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication, neither the authors nor the editors nor the publisher can accept any legal responsibility for any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein.
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To all the Zen masters of project management who strive for the promise of “delivering the future into the present” one day at a time through their mastery of the arts and science of our profession:

• May your patience with the reality of the present enable you to craft the expected project outcomes through a skillful re-synching of the revised plan with the passionless and relentless unfolding of reality.

• May you always have a keen awareness and unconditional acceptance of what “is.”

• May the winds of unfavorable variances be always at your back, propelling your project to deliver the transformational benefits for our species and the wider universe.

• May you be bestowed with a wealth of resilience and an abundance of composure that inspires your stakeholders to consistently accept the new realities of the present.

• May you prevail despite the ongoing resistance from those who desperately grasp for the unwelcome and unexpected past to be controlled and maybe even attempt to rewrite that unforgiving history to align to the ever-elusive and now long lost original baseline.

…Namaste!

Acknowledgments
I would like to acknowledge and thank everyone who played an important role in the development and publication of this book:

  • Noreen Hackman, a true leader who aggressively attacks every challenge with gusto, for her instrumental role in unknotting the mysteries of turning a corporate training guide into a successful commercial publication

  • Daniel Cicala, for bringing his command of the English language to tame and herd the expertise of technical people into a clear and coherent text

  • Asha Hossain, for providing her fantastic graphical art support for the Project Assistants brand over the past 20 years, including the cover of this book

  • Bill Gundrum, a powerhouse of Microsoft Project expertise and experience, who again has fine-tuned the technical content to make for a clean, accurate, and complete product

I would be remiss in not mentioning many of the past team members who were so instrumental in developing an indispensable portion of the original content that has survived through to this edition: Jan Goodman, Alex Ovecka, Fred Oettle, Denise Cicala, Ira Brown, Michael Steinberg, Graham McHardy, John Godley, Laurie Van Dusen, and Jeremy Cottino.

I am grateful and blessed for your dedication, commitment, and valuable contributions to our success.

Table of Contents
Part I: Introduction to Project Management1
Chapter 1:​ Introduction 3
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 3
1.​1 Using This Guide 4
Downloading Exercise Files Used in This Book 5
1.​2 High-Level Overview of Microsoft Project 2019 7
Chapter 2:​ Understanding Project Management Concepts 9
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 9
2.​1 What Is Project Management?​ 10
What Makes a Project a Project?​ 11
What Defines a Successful Project?​ 12
The Project Management Process 12
The Four Principles of Effective Project Managers 14
Project Management Tools 15
Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Project Management Software Tools 15
Conclusion 15
2.​2 The Importance of Methodology to Project Management 16
2.​3 Project Phases and the Project Lifecycle 17
Project Phase Deliverables 17
Characteristics of the Project Lifecycle 18
Representative Project Lifecycles 20
2.​4 Project Stakeholders and Organizational Influences 21
Organizational Influences 23
2.​5 Project Processes 24
2.​6 Process Groups 24
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 25
Chapter 3:​ Introduction to Microsoft Project 2019 31
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 31
3.​1 How Microsoft Project 2019 Handles Data 32
3.​2 The Ribbon in Microsoft Project 2019 34
3.​3 Navigating in Microsoft Project 2019 Views 37
Familiarizing Yourself with the Microsoft Project 2019 Screen 37
3.​4 Help Options in Microsoft Project 2019 46
3.​5 Finding the Right Information 47
Selecting a View 48
Display the Information You Want 59
Using the View Bar 60
Timeline View 62
Calendar View 64
How Microsoft Project 2019 Uses Data 65
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 67
Part II: Project Definition73
Chapter 4:​ Understanding Project Definition 75
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 75
4.​1 Defining Your Project and Understanding the Definition Process 75
Defining a Project Definition Document 76
The Anatomy of a Definition Document 76
Backing into Project End Dates 78
4.​2 Initiating a Project 78
Inputs to Initiation 78
Tools and Techniques for Initiation 79
Outputs from Initiation 80
4.​3 Planning the Scope of a Project 80
Inputs to Scope Planning 81
Tools and Techniques for Scope Planning 81
Outputs from Scope Planning 81
4.​4 Scope Definition 82
Inputs to Scope Definition 83
Tools and Techniques for Scope Definition 83
Outputs from Scope Definition 84
4.​5 Scope Verification 85
Inputs to Scope Verification 85
Tools and Techniques for Scope Verification 85
Outputs from Scope Verification 86
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 86
Chapter 5:​ Defining Your Project Using Microsoft Project 2019 89
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 89
5.​1 Creating a New Project 90
Blank Project 90
New from Existing Project 92
Project Templates 95
Excel Workbooks 95
SharePoint Tasks List 100
5.​2 Providing Project Information 102
5.​3 Setting File Properties 105
5.​4 Setting Local Calendar Information 109
Calendar Options 109
Adding a Holiday to the Project Base Calendar 110
5.​5 Project Definition Review Exercise 113
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 114
Part III: Project Task Planning117
Chapter 6:​ Developing a Work Breakdown Structure 119
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 119
6.​1 Creating a Project Work Plan 120
Project Planning Summary 120
Referencing the Project Definition Document to Start Your Work Plan 121
Methodologies and Planning 121
Determining How the SOW Summary Schedule Was Built 122
Starting a Plan with a New Task Outline 122
Defining Activities 122
Creating a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) for Deliverables 123
6.​2 Determining Logical Relationships of Tasks in Your WBS 126
Task Dependencies 126
Activity Sequencing 127
The Critical Path 128
The Critical Path As an Estimate 130
Estimating the Duration of Activities 130
Schedule Development 132
Determining Resource Requirements 134
Avoiding Over-allocation with Load Leveling 135
Optimizing the Plan 136
The Baseline and Project Manager Accountability 137
6.​3 Resource Planning and Acquisition 138
Resource Planning 138
Staff Acquisition 139
6.​4 Team Development 140
6.​5 Cost Estimating and Budgeting 141
Cost Estimating 141
Cost Budgeting 142
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 143
Chapter 7:​ Building a Work Breakdown Structure with Microsoft Project 2019 149
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 149
7.​1 Building the Work Breakdown Structure 150
Determining the Primary Goal and Creating the Project Shell 150
Determining the Project’s Sub-goals 152
Organizing the Project 153
Entering Project Tasks 154
7.​2 Modifying and Editing the WBS 160
Alternate Methods for Adding New Tasks to Your WBS 160
Moving a Task in Your Task List and Cutting/​Pasting a Summary Task 162
Using the Task Summary Name Field 164
Viewing Outline Numbers 165
Bringing in a Task List from Excel 167
Import Outlook Tasks Dialog Box 173
7.​3 Creating Task Dependencies 174
Setting Task Dependencies 174
Alternate Ways to Link Tasks 177
Establishing Other Types of Dependencies 181
Determining the Proper Order of Tasks in a Project 184
7.​4 Task Types and Scheduling 187
Determining Task Types 188
7.​5 Estimating Task Size 192
7.​6 Manual Task Scheduling 195
Manually Scheduling New Tasks 195
Top-Down Summary Tasks 197
Respect Links 198
Inactive Tasks 198
7.​7 Task Planning Review Exercise 200
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 202
Chapter 8:​ Managing Project Resources and Assignments 207
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 207
8.​1 Defining Project Resource Types with Microsoft Project 2019 208
Viewing Resources in the Resource Sheet 209
8.​2 Assigning Resources to Tasks 213
Assigning a Resource to a Task 213
Interrupting Work on a Task 221
Team Planner 223
Modifying Assignments When Work Is the Basis for Your Schedule 224
The Effect of Effort-Driven Scheduling 227
Modifying Assignments When Assignment Units Is Set 229
Using Smart Tags to Simplify Making Changes 231
Viewing Your Resource Assignments 232
8.​3 Cost Planning with Microsoft Project 235
Determining Costs in Microsoft Project 235
Alternate Cost Rate Tables 241
Adding Fixed Cost to a Task 243
Displaying Cost over Time, by Task (Or Phase) 244
Displaying Cost over Time, by Resource 246
8.​4 Constraints 248
Applying Constraints to Tasks in a Project Scheduled from the Project Start Date 248
Entering Task Constraints 250
Setting Task Constraints 252
Deadline Dates 257
An Alternative to Deadline Dates 258
8.​5 Resource and Assignment Review Exercise 259
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 260
Chapter 9:​ Using Microsoft Project 2019 to Optimize the Plan 265
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 265
9.​1 Completing the Plan 266
9.​2 Identifying the Critical Path 266
Network Diagram 266
9.​3 Adding Recurring Tasks and Using Task Calendars 270
Adding Occurrences to a Recurring Task and Adding Resource Assignments to Them 273
9.​4 Managing Resource Workloads and Resolving Resource Over-allocations 276
Viewing Resource Workloads and Task Assignments 276
Resolving Resource Over-allocations 279
Task Leveling vs.​ Resource Leveling 285
9.​5 Setting the Project Baseline 288
Applying the Baseline Table 289
Setting the Project Baseline 290
Viewing Baseline Information 291
Multiple Baselines 293
Capturing Interim Plans 295
Clearing a Baseline 297
Protect-Saved Baselines 298
9.​6 Communicating the Project Plan (Introduction) 299
Taking a Picture of Your Gantt Chart 299
9.​7 Optimizing the Plan Review Exercise 301
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 301
Part IV: Enterprise Project Management307
Chapter 10:​ Creating Enterprise Projects 309
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 309
10.​1 How Microsoft Project 2019 Communicates with Project Server 2019 and Project Online 310
10.​2 Publishing a Project to Microsoft Project Server 2019 312
Setting Up Access to Project Server from Project Professional 312
Creating a New Enterprise Project 315
Creating a New Project with the Save As Method 319
Creating a New Project in Project Web App 322
Creating a New Project from a Template 326
Creating a New Project Template 328
Publishing a Project to Project Server 2019 330
Safely Exiting Microsoft Project 2019 When Connected to Project Server 332
Working with Published Projects Off the Network 333
Managing the Local Project Cache 338
10.​3 Enterprise Resource Management 341
Classifying Resources 342
Using Team Builder 343
Additional Team Builder Functionality 346
Generic Resources 347
10.​4 Working with Multiple Projects:​ Inter-project Dependencies 348
Showing an Inter-project Dependency 348
Creating a Consolidated Project 355
10.​5 Program Management 360
Master Projects 360
Program Viewing Within the Project Center 360
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 362
Chapter 11:​ Monitoring and Controlling—The Project Manager’s Functions 367
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 367
11.​1 Project Execution—Background 368
What Is Project Control?​ 368
Progress Tracking 369
11.​2 Tracking with Microsoft Project 2019 374
Tracking Options in Microsoft Project 2019 374
Track Progress:​ Tracking Dates vs.​ Tracking Work 378
11.​3 Entering Actual Progress Information 379
Using the Update Tasks Dialog Box 379
Ways to Track Other Than Using Update Tasks 385
Rescheduling the Remaining Work in Your Project 389
Viewing Progress Lines 394
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 399
Chapter 12:​ Using Project Web App for Tracking 405
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 405
12.​1 Publishing Project Assignments to Team Members 406
12.​2 The Project Web App Home Page 407
Viewing Your Home Page 408
The Project Center 411
Adding an Alert 414
My Queued Jobs 417
12.​3 Tracking Progress Using Project Web App 418
Displaying My Tasks and My Timesheets 420
Timesheet Page 426
Task Time Approval 431
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 434
Chapter 13:​ Other Features in Project Web App 439
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 439
13.​1 Organizing and Viewing Information in Project Web App 440
Overview of Project Server Security 441
Project Web App Views 441
13.​2 Web-Based Projects 442
Project Center 442
13.​3 Team Builder 450
13.​4 Resource Engagements 452
Checking Assignment Attributes 452
13.​5 Resource Engagements from the Project Manager’s End 454
Creating Requests Using the Task and Engagement Inspectors 454
Manually Creating Requests 462
13.​6 The Resource Manager’s End 464
13.​7 Returning to the Project Manager’s View 470
13.​8 From a Portfolio Analysis Perspective 470
Request Reminders 472
13.​9 Managing Non-project Time 473
Creating Resource Engagements to Manage Non-project Time 474
13.​10 Resource Center 477
13.​11 Conclusion on Resource Engagements 482
13.​12 Risks, Issues, Deliverables, and Documents 483
Project Sites 484
13.​13 Project Details Page 487
Issues 488
Risks 494
Editing Issues and Risks 497
List Management 499
Documents 506
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 513
Chapter 14:​ Variance Analysis, Plan Revision, and Project Communication 517
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 517
14.​1 Variance Analysis 518
Overview of Variance 518
Types of Variances 518
Interpreting Variances 520
14.​2 Plan Revision and Scope Management 524
Preserving the Integrity of the Plan 524
Getting Concurrence 525
Why Plans Should Be Revised 525
Aggressive Revision 526
Strategies for Plan Recovery 526
The Foundations of Change Control 527
14.​3 Project Communication Principles 530
The Elements of a Meaningful Status Report 530
Project Communications Planning 531
Administrative Closure 533
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 534
Chapter 15:​ Presenting Project Information with Microsoft Project 2019 537
Learning Objectives for This Chapter 537
15.​1 Communication Options 538
Options with the Gantt Chart View 538
Using Bar Styles to Change the Appearance of the Gantt Chart 539
Analyzing Variances in Your Project with Microsoft Project 2019 546
Comparing the Baseline to Actual Data 547
15.​2 Using Tables, Filters, Views, and Groups in Microsoft Project 2019 548
Selecting the Right View 549
Customizing Tables 554
Filtering Project Information 561
Sorting Project Information 571
Grouping Project Information 573
Defining Custom Views 576
15.​3 Defining and Using Custom Fields 579
The Organizer and Sharing Custom Objects 585
15.​4 Communicating Project Information 589
Exploring Preconfigured Reports 589
Creating a New Report 605
Customizing Reports 609
Getting Started 619
Sharing Project Information 622
15.​5 Exporting Project Information 628
Visual Reports 628
End of Chapter Quiz Questions 639
Conclusion:​ The Human Touch 645
Index 647
About the Author
Gus Cicala

is the founder and CEO of Project Assistants, an Inc. 500 company founded in 1996. Project Assistants focuses on best practices, proven technology, and highly trained consultants in order to help companies optimize their business strategy. Gus and his team deliver process, technology, and people-based solutions across many industry verticals in the United States and Western Europe and have been awarded Silver Competency in project and portfolio management by Microsoft. Gus specializes in Microsoft Project Server and online deployment, training, application development, and portfolio management consulting. He is a certified Microsoft Cloud and Office 365 partner.

 
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