What is a Gantt Chart?

A Gantt chart is a graphical depiction of a project schedule in which project task durations are shown as horizontal bars. Gantt charts are the easiest and most intuitive way to communicate a project schedule.  They are created as part of the Project Management Plan, and give stakeholders an instant....

10 Gantt Chart Templates: Beautiful, Professional, and Free

Sometimes the easiest way to create a Gantt chart is by starting from a template and customizing it to your project. To that end, we present the following 10 templates, which have been designed to be easily customized to your project. Using only basic Excel skills, you should be able....

3 Simple Gantt Chart Examples

A Gantt chart is a horizontal bar chart showing the start and end dates of each task within a project.  It shows the tasks on the vertical axis and time on the horizontal axis.  The tasks are shown sequentially.  It can have many other pieces but these are the basic....

How to Create a Gantt Chart in Excel

Believe it or not, gantt charts can be created relatively painlessly in MS Excel.  A simple one will take about 15 minutes with only a basic knowledge of Excel, and I'm going to show you how. Step 1: Enter the Task data The first step is to enter your tasks....

The Complete Guide to Gantt Charts

A Gantt Chart is to a project manager like a hammer is to a carpenter. It is the project manager's most used tool.  It is used to convey the most critical information.  And it plays an outsized role in project success. Since a project is by definition temporary, the completion....

Project Schedule Management According to the PMBOK

Because a project is defined as a temporary endeavor (PMBOK 1.1), deadlines are baked into the success criteria of all projects.  Since all projects have a defined end point, the circumstances around this end point can result in project success or failure. Managing the project schedule can be one of....

Project Stakeholder Management According to the PMBOK

All projects have stakeholders.  If they didn't, the project wouldn't exist.  As a minimum, the project sponsor is a stakeholder who is expecting to receive the project's deliverables.  Usually there are expectations to receive them at a certain time, cost, quality level, or other criteria as well. The project manager....

Project Procurement Management According to the PMBOK

Most projects require some form of external purchasing (procurement) in order to meet their goals.  Executing these procurements to fulfill the needs of the project falls under the knowledge area of Project Procurement Management. Contractors usually have better expertise or experience and can provide a higher quality product.  But often they are....

Project Communications Management According to the PMBOK

Many project managers have executed the technical work to perfection only to find out that stakeholders were not satisfied because communication was poor.  Thus, project communication is sometimes more important than the technical work. Of course, the project manager needs to communicate when unexpected events occur.  That's the domain of....

Project Resource Management According to the PMBOK

Managing the project resources is how the project manager spends most of their time.  From ordering supplies, to training team members, to paying bills, the project resources are a seemingly bottomless pit of active management.  Meanwhile, the project team is one of the most important components of project success -....