What Is A Gantt Chart

What Is a Gantt Chart?
A Gantt chart is a commonly used graphical depiction of a project schedule. It's a type of bar chart
showing the start and finish dates of a project's elements such as resources, planning, and
dependencies.
Henry Gantt (1861-1919), an American mechanical engineer, designed the Gantt chart.
 A Gantt chart is a visualization that helps in scheduling, managing, and monitoring specific tasks
and resources in a project.
 It consists of a list of tasks and bars depicting each task's progress.
 The horizontal bars of different lengths represent the project timeline, which can include task
sequences, duration, and the start and end dates for each task
 It's the most widely used chart in project management.
 Gantt charts are used in heavy industries for projects like building dams, bridges, and highways,
as well as software development and building out of other goods and services.
What are Gantt charts used for?
Gantt charts are one of the many project management tools. They present in one chart all the tasks in a
project. They show the order in which they tasks should be done and the time needed to complete
them. This is valuable information to have when managing projects for the following reasons:
 Progress monitoring. Project managers can see if individual tasks are completed on time and
adjust the project schedule. The charts also show which goals were met on schedule, helping
managers gauge employee productivity.
 Project planning. Managers can set deadlines, milestones and schedules for various project
components.
 Resource management. Project planners can coordinate resource allocation with the project
schedule. Managers can see the amount of time each process takes and designate resources
accordingly.
To draw up a Gantt chart, it must follow these steps:

Step 1 - List all activities in the plan. For each task, show the earliest start date, estimated length
of time it will take, and whether it is parallel or sequential. If tasks are sequential, show which
stages they depend on.
Step 2 - Head up graph paper with the days or weeks through to task completion.
Step 3 - Plot the tasks onto the graph paper. Next draw up a rough draft of the Gantt Chart. Plot
each task on the graph paper, showing it starting on the earliest possible date. Draw it as a bar, with
the length of the bar being the length of the task. Above the task bars, mark the time taken
to complete them.
Step 4 - Schedule activities. Now take the draft Gantt Chart, and use it to schedule actions.
Schedule them in such a way that sequential actions are carried out in the required sequence.
Ensure that dependent activities do not start until the activities they depend on have been
completed. While scheduling, ensure that you make best use of the resources you have
available, and do not over-commit resource.
Step 5 - Presenting the analysis. The final stage in this process is to prepare a final version of the
Gantt Chart. This should combine the draft analysis (see above) with your scheduling and analysis
of resources. This chart will show when you anticipate that jobs should start and finish.
What are the benefits of using a Gantt chart?
Some benefits of using a Gantt chart include the following:
 Efficiency. Gantt charts help project managers calculate realistic project completion times and
set goals based on available resources. Both of these advantages increase productivity.
 Teamwork. Team members have access to the same information, keeping everyone informed of
a project's progress. Because of this, it's possible to hold all team members, including remote
workers, accountable for their tasks. Team members can reference the chart and establish roles
and responsibilities.
 Tracking. Gantt charts allow project planners and team members to analyze workflows for
constraints and adjust their work accordingly. Gantt charts help project managers track
benchmarks and tasks throughout the project process. Team members can easily visualize which
elements may be missing from the Gantt chart.
 Versatility. Gantt charts help teams balance multiple projects at once. They prompt managers to
estimate which resources are needed when. They are also easy to change.
 Visualization. Gantt charts provide a project roadmap at a glance, allowing for easier
management, monitoring and organization of project components. The chart gives a holistic
view of the project timeline and tasks. It also provides high-level visibility into the who, what,
when and where of a project. Employees can quickly see the status of the project or a project
phase.
Gantt chart limitations
Gantt charts are useful project management tools, but they have flaws, such as the following:
 Lack of dependencies. Gantt charts don't indicate task dependencies or critical paths of projects
in detail. Users cannot tell how one task falling behind schedule affects other tasks. The PERT
chart, another popular project management method, is designed to do this.
 Lack of specificity. Gantt charts are good for providing a high-level view of project workflows.
However, they can leave some things to interpretation. This is especially true for large-scale IT
projects, such as DevOps Certain details about priorities, deadlines and expectations may be left
out of the high-level view of complex projects.
 Quantity of work. A third issue with Gantt charts is that the task bar doesn't show the quantity
of work each task requires. It may show a specific length of time, which roughly implies a certain
number of resources. However, it does not designate the resources. That creates ambiguity and
can lead to resource contention.
Short note to prepare Gantt Chart
Make your own Gantt chart in Excel
Microsoft Excel has a Bar chart feature that can be formatted to make an Excel Gantt chart.
Step 1. List your project schedule in an Excel table. List each task as a separate row and structure your
project plan by including the start date, end date and duration.
Step 2. Set it up as a standard bar chart based on start dates.
Step 3. Add the duration of your tasks.
Step 4. Add task descriptions to the Gantt chart.
Step 5. Transform the bar graph into the Excel Gantt chart through formatting.

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What Is a Gantt Chart?

 It consists of a list of tasks and bars depicting each task's progress.

 It's the most widely used chart in project management.

What are Gantt charts used for?

To draw up a Gantt chart, it must follow these steps:

What are the benefits of using a Gantt chart?

Some benefits of using a Gantt chart include the following:

Gantt chart limitations

Short note to prepare Gantt Chart

Make your own Gantt chart in Excel

Step 2. Set it up as a standard bar chart based on start dates.

Step 3. Add the duration of your tasks.

Step 4. Add task descriptions to the Gantt chart.

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