Project Management Quick Reference Guide

for Project 2007

Before beginning a new project, an organization must
determine whether the project fits its strategic goals.
Executives should classify proposed projects that focus on
mission-critical activities as high-priority and projects that are
peripheral to organization goals as lower priority.
Before work begins, an executive sponsor should be identified.
The organization should complete a high-level evaluation of
the projects business case, its limitations, and its technical
and financial requirements. Finally, a project manager should
be identified, who can then set up a project plan in Microsoft
Office Project 2007.
Need a more detailed guide to project management with
Project 2007? Use the Project Roadmap, available on Office
Online.
1. Create a new
project file

To create a new blank project in Project 2007, click New on the File menu. On the New
Project task pane, click Blank Project.
To create a new project from a template in Project 2007, click New on the File menu. On
the New Project task pane, click On computer and then click the Project Templates
tab. Click the template that you want. If your organization stores templates on the Web,
click the Enterprise Templates tab.

2. Set the project

start date

On the Project menu, click Project Information. In the Start date box, enter your project
start date.

3. Define the project

calendar

On the Tools menu, click Change Working Time. Identify working and non-working days and
times for your project.

4. Save the project

file

On the File menu, click Save. In the File name box, type the project name.
If you are publishing the project to Microsoft Office Project Server 2007, type the name of the
project and include any values for custom fields that are required by your organization.
In the planning stage, you devise a workable scheme to
accomplish the projects goals. To do this, you identify the
projects milestones, deliverables, and tasks. This plan can be
your work breakdown structure (WBS). You develop and refine
the schedule, and identify the resources required to implement
the project.

1. Enter tasks

On the View menu, click Gantt Chart. In the Task Name field, enter tasks. Tasks can also
include summary tasks, milestones, and WBS items.

2. Outline tasks

Create your task hierarchy, including tasks and milestones under summary tasks, which can
represent phases or other work divisions. Click a task (or several tasks), and then click the
Indent or Outdent button
on the toolbar.

3. Enter durations

Click the Duration field for a task and enter a duration; for example, type 4d to indicate 4
days. To specify a milestone without a duration, type 0d. To indicate that a duration is an
estimate, add a question mark; for example, type 6d?.
Note Avoid entering start and finish dates for tasks. Instead, enter a duration and let Project
2007 automatically set these dates, which might change anyway as resources are assigned to
tasks.

4. Link tasks to show

relationships

Select the tasks that you want to link, and then click the Link Tasks button
on the toolbar.
To change the default finish-to-start dependency type, double-click the line between the tasks
that you want to change, and then select a task link from the Type list.

5. Create
deliverables

After your project is underway, you might learn that other projects depend on your project as a
deliverable. On the Collaborate menu, click Manage Deliverables. This requires Microsoft
Office Project Professional 2007.

Assignments are the associations between specific tasks and

the resources needed to complete them. You can assign more
than one resource to a task. In addition to work resources
(people), you can assign material resources (such as cement)
and cost resources (such as travel) to tasks.
1. Define the
resource pool

On the View menu, click Resource Sheet. In the Resource Name field, type the names of
the resources you will use for this project.
If you are using Project Professional, click Build Team from Enterprise on the Tools menu to
add resources from the enterprise resource pool.

2. Assign resources
to tasks

On the View menu, click Gantt Chart. Select a task to which you want to assign a resource.
Click the Assign Resources button
. In the Assign Resources dialog box, click the
resource names, and then click Assign.
You can also assign resources to tasks using the Task Form. While in the Gantt Chart view, click
Split on the Windows menu.

3. Enter the amount

of work resources
spend on tasks

When scheduling tasks, project managers sometimes prefer to enter the amount of work (or
the amount of labor) needed to complete a task, rather than the duration for the task. Entering
work reflects real-world scheduling.
To enter work hours for resources assigned to tasks, add the Work column to the Gantt Chart
view. On the Insert menu, click Column.

4. Know your task

type

As soon as you assign resources, Project 2007 determines how to schedule the task based on
the task type. You might actually see durations change as resources are assigned to tasks.

How task types work

Work, duration, and units (% allocation) are determined by the formula: Work = Duration *
Units.
In a . . .

If you revise
work . . .

If you revise
duration . . .

If you revise
units . . .

Fixed units task

Duration changes

Work changes

Duration changes

Fixed work task

Duration changes

Units change

Duration changes

Fixed duration
task

Units change

Work changes

Work changes

To set a default task type for the entire project, click Options on the Tools menu, and
then click the Schedule tab. In the Default task type box, select Fixed Units (the
default), Fixed Duration, or Fixed Work.
To change the task type for an individual task, select the task, and then click the Task
Information button
. Click the Advanced tab, and then in the Task type box, click
the task type that you want to create.

5. Identify factors
affecting task
schedules

You can use Project 2007 to help you understand how changes to one task can affect the rest of
the project and to track schedule changes. On the View menu, click Show Change
Highlighting.
You can view more detailed task scheduling and change information using task drivers. Select a
task and then click Task Drivers

Create a baseline or an interim plan so that later you can

compare your up-to-date schedule to your baseline. Saving a
baseline plan enables you to identify and solve discrepancies
and plan more accurately for similar future projects.

1. Save the baseline

plan

After your project plan is solidly in place for the finish date, budget, and scope, you can submit
the plan for approval. Once it has been approved, save the baseline plan. On the Tools menu,
point to Tracking and then click Set Baseline.

2. View baseline
data in a Gantt
Chart view

On the View menu, click Tracking Gantt. In the chart area, the baseline information is shown
as the lower of the two Gantt bars for each task.

3. View baseline
data in a table

On the View menu, point to Table, and then select Variance. This table includes fields for
baseline and variance start and finish.
Updating the progress of your project is the only way to make
sure it stays on track as work is performed. The focus at this
point is on managing changes, updating the schedule, tracking
progress, and communicating project information.
Note Project 2007 tracks three sets of dates: current,
baseline, and actual. When you first set the baseline, current =
baseline. When a task is 100% complete, current = actual.
Baseline, current, and actual values exist for the start date,
finish date, duration, cost, and work.

1. Manage changes

Managing changes involves modifying durations, dates, dependencies, resource assignments,

or tasks based on requested changes or new information. Keep the current fields up to date
and compare them to the baseline.

2. Track actual dates

and durations

Its best to decide on a single method for tracking progress. You can enter percentage
complete, actual start and finish dates, actual and remaining durations, or actual and
remaining work.
Select the task for which you want to enter actual progress. On the Tools menu, point to
Tracking, and then click Update Tasks. In the Update Tasks dialog box, enter progress data
in the fields that match your tracking method.

3. Track actual hours

and costs

If you want to enter actual and remaining work hours or costs, use the tracking table. On the
View menu, point to Table, and then click Tracking. Enter progress data in the Act. Work or
Act. Cost fields for the task.
You can also use the tracking table to enter percent complete, actual start and finish dates, and
actual and remaining duration.
Keep stakeholders and team members up-to-date on project
progress by providing them with access to online or printed
views and reports.
Project 2007 provides many ways to print and distribute both
detailed and overview information project information quickly
and efficiently.

1. Format a view for

printing

On the Format menu, click Text Styles or Bar Styles to set up styles that will apply to
multiple tasks. Or, on the Format menu, click Font or Bar to format individual elements for a
specific task. Click Timescale, Gridlines, or Layout on the Format menu to change those
aspects of the current view.

2. Print a view as a
report

Set up the current view the way that you want it to look when printed. On the File menu, click
Print Preview to check the view layout. To print the view, click Print.

3. Generate a report

On the Report menu, click Visual Reports to see your projects data in PivotTable reports in
Microsoft Office Excel 2007 and PivotDiagram views in Microsoft Office Visio Professional 2007.
You can also view basic reports that dont require Excel or Visio. On the Report menu, click
Reports. Double-click a report category, and then double-click the predefined report. Enter
any requested information. A preview of the report appears. To print the report, click Print.

4. Add a field
(column) to a
table

Click anywhere in a column to the left of where you want to insert a new column. On the Insert
menu, click Column. In the Field name box, click the name of the field that you want to add
as a new column.

5. Customize views

On the View menu, click More Views. Click New or Edit. In the View Definition dialog box,
specify the table, group, and filter that you want to use to define the view.

6. Customize tables

On the View menu, point to Table, and then click More Tables. Click New or Edit. In the
Table Definition dialog box, specify the information that you want to include in the table.

7. Customize groups

On the Project menu, point to Group by, and then click More Groups. Click New or Edit. In
the Group Definition dialog box, specify how you want to group project information.

8. Customize filters

On the Project menu, point to Filtered for and then click More Filters. Click New or Edit. In
the Filter Definition dialog box, specify how you want to filter project information.
Just because your project is almost finished doesnt mean that
your work is done. You still need to resolve any final project
details and obtain customer acceptance of final deliverables.
Conduct a lessons learned session, recording information
about areas for improvement and best practices. Make any
final updates to the project plan. Finally, archive the project
plan according to your organizations guidelines.

1. Create a final
report

On the Report menu, click Visual Reports to see your projects data in PivotTable reports in
Excel 2007 and PivotDiagram views in Visio Professional 2007.
You can also view basic reports that dont require Excel or Visio. On the Report menu, click
Reports. Double-click a report category, and then double-click the predefined report. Enter
any requested information. A preview of the report appears. To print the report, click Print.

2. Save a project as
a template

After completing a project, you should leverage what youve learned in the project by making it
a template for future projects. On the File menu, click Save As, and then in the Save As Type
box, click Template.