microsoft office project 2003 bible (2004)

Chapter 12 shows you how prob-to track progress on your individual tasks and view that progress in various ways.Chapter 13 is where you explore the power of generating reports on your pr

Office

2003 Bible Elaine Marmel

Office

2003 Bible

Office

2003 Bible Elaine Marmel

MicrosoftOffice Project2003 Bible

Copyright © 2004 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Library of Congress Control Number: 2003105690

ISBN: 0-7645-4252-4

Manufactured in the United States of America

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1O/RY/RR/QT/IN

Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108

of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA

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other countries, and may not be used without written permission All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.

About the Author

Elaine Marmel is president of Marmel Enterprises, Inc., an organization that

special-izes in technical writing and software training She routinely employs project ment software and skills to manage critical business projects, and otherwise spendsmost of her time writing Elaine has authored or coauthored more than 30 booksabout software, including Project, Word for Windows, Word for the Mac, Quicken for Windows, Quicken for DOS, 1-2-3 for Windows, Lotus Notes, and Excel Elaine is

manage-a contributing editor to the monthly mmanage-agmanage-azines Pemanage-achtree Extrmanage-a manage-and QuickBooks Extrmanage-a.

Elaine left her native Chicago for the warmer climes of Florida (by way of Cincinnati,Ohio; Jerusalem, Israel; Ithaca, New York; and Washington, D.C.) where she basks inthe sun with her PC, her dog, Josh, and her cats, Cato, Watson, and Buddy Elaine alsosings in the Toast of Tampa, an International Champion Sweet Adeline barbershopchorus

Quality Control Technicians

Carl William PierceBrian H Walls

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To my brother and sister-in-law, Jim and Mariann Marmel, who always believe in me, and to the memories of my mother, Susan Marmel (1914-2003) and my father, Harry Marmel (1914-1985),

who always made me feel loved and cherished.

Managing projects can be as exciting as scheduling the next space shuttle or

as mundane as planning routine production-line maintenance A project can

be as rewarding as striking oil or as disastrous as the maiden voyage of the Titanic.Projects can have budgets of $5 or $5,000,000 One thing that all projects have incommon, however, is their potential for success or failure — the promise that if you

do it right, you’ll accomplish your goal

Why You Need This Book

Microsoft Project is a tool for implementing project management principles andpractices that can help you succeed That’s why this book provides not only theinformation about which buttons to press and where to type project dates, but alsothe conceptual framework to make computerized project management work for you

How it’s designed

This book strives to offer real-world examples of projects from many industries anddisciplines You’ll see yourself and your own projects somewhere in this book Awealth of tips and advice show you how to address, control, and overcome real-worldconstraints

✦ As a tutorial You can use Microsoft Project 2003 Bible as a linear tool to learn

Project — from the ground up

✦ As a reference You can put it on the shelf and use it as your Project reference

book, to be pulled down as needed — for advice, information, and step-by-stepprocedures

Either way, this book is designed to enrich your Microsoft Project experience and

to make you a better project manager

Who it’s for

Unlike word processing or spreadsheet software, many of you may have come toproject management software never having used anything quite like it before You mayalso have used earlier versions of Project or other project management software

✦ If you’re new to project management This book is for you The early chapters

explain the basic concepts of computerized project management and what it can

do for you, so that you have a context for learning Project

✦ If you’re experienced with project management This book is also for you It

explains what’s new in the latest version of Project and shows you techniquesfor using the software that you may not have considered before

You will benefit most from this book if you have at least a basic understanding of theWindows environment, have mastered standard Windows software conventions, andare comfortable using a mouse But beyond that, you need only the desire to succeed

as a project manager, which this book will help you do

The Special Features of This Book

To help you maximize your use of this book, I’ve included many special features inits design and conception The following sections show you how they work

Formatting conventions

To streamline your learning experience, I’ve used the following formatting conventions:

✦ Text you’re asked to type When you’re asked to enter text into a Project

schedule, for example, it appears in boldface.

✦ When using the mouse A click indicates a left mouse-button click and click indicates a right mouse-button click Double-click designates two quick,successive clicks of the left mouse button

right-✦ Keystroke combinations These look like this: Alt+Tab Hold down the first keyand, without letting it go, press the second key

✦ Menu commands These are shown with the command arrow — for example,Choose File➪Open

✦ New terms When a new term or concept is introduced, it appears in italic.

Margin icons

Throughout the book, I’ve included special icons in the margins to call your attention

to added information, shortcuts and advice, warnings about potentially disastrouscourses of action, the new features of Project 2003, references to additional wisdom,and how to access the wonderful software on the CD-ROM that accompanies thisbook Here’s how they look:

When you have the time for a more comprehensive approach to the subject, however,the concepts that you find in sidebars may prove invaluable — providing the contextand depth necessary to a fuller understanding of Project’s functions.

The Note icon signals additional information about a point under discussion orbackground information that may be of interest to you

A tip is a bit of advice or a hint to save you time and indicate the best way to getthings done

This icon highlights a new feature in Project 2003

These helpful icons clue you in to sources of additional information on a topicunder discussion They point to another chapter or a specific heading elsewhere inthe book

The CD-ROM icon flags helpful software and templates that you’ll find on theaccompanying CD-ROM

How This Book Is Organized

This book is organized in the way that you will use Microsoft Project It begins withsome basic concepts, progresses through the features that you need to build a typicalschedule, and then track its progress The later chapters provide more advancedinformation for customizing Project, using it in workgroup settings, and taking Projectonline

Part I: Project Management Basics

Part I of the book explains the basic project management concepts and terminologythat you’ll need in order to learn Project In Chapter 1, you take a look at the nature

On the CD-ROM

Sagacious sidebars

Sidebars, such as this one, are departures into background details or interesting tion They’re designed so you may read around them if you’re in a hurry to accomplish aspecific task

informa-of projects themselves, how Microsinforma-oft Project can help you control them, and thelife cycle of a typical project In Chapter 2, you get your first glimpse of the Projectsoftware environment.

Part II: Getting Your Project Going

Here’s where you learn about the type of information that Project needs in order to

do its job In Chapter 3, you begin to build your first schedule and add tasks in anoutline structure In Chapter 4, you assign timing and construct timing relationshipsamong those tasks In Chapter 5, you begin assigning people and other resources toyour project; this chapter is also where you learn to determine how these resourcesadd costs to a project and how to handle issues such as overtime and shift work

Part III: Refining Your Project

Before your project is ready for prime time, you need to tweak some things, just asyou check spelling in a word-processed document Chapter 6 explains how to viewthat information to gain perspective on your project, and Chapter 7 helps you tomanipulate and customize views to make them work for you Chapter 8 shows youhow to make your project schedule look more professional by formatting the textand modifying the appearance of chart elements The next two chapters delve intothe tools that Project provides to resolve conflicts in your schedule Chapter 9explores resolving conflicts in the timing of your schedule, so you can meet yourdeadlines Chapter 10 considers the issue of resolving resource conflicts, such asoverworked people and underutilized equipment

Part IV: Tracking Your Progress

Here’s where you get the payoff for all your data entry and patient resolution of lems in your schedule After you set your basic schedule and the project begins,you can track its progress and check data on your status from various perspectives.Chapter 11 gives you an overview of the tracking process Chapter 12 shows you how

prob-to track progress on your individual tasks and view that progress in various ways.Chapter 13 is where you explore the power of generating reports on your projects foreveryone from management to individual project team members Chapter 14 givesadvice and methods for analyzing your progress and making adjustments as needed

to stay on schedule and within your budget

Part V: Working in Groups

Most projects worth the effort of tracking in Project aren’t done by a single person;workgroups, teams, and committees often form a day-to-day working project team.Chapter 15 shows you how to set up multiple projects to run concurrently or toconsolidate smaller projects into larger schedules, and Chapter 16 describes how tokeep members of your workgroup in touch using an e-mail workgroup

Part VI: Project, Project Web Access, and Project Server

In Chapters 17 through 22, learn how to plan, implement, and manage projectsusing Project, Project Web Access, and Project Server, Microsoft’s Web-basedproject-managed solution

Part VII: Advanced Microsoft Project

Part VII provides advice and information to make your use of Microsoft Project easier

Learn about customizing the Project environment in Chapter 23 Chapter 24 providesinformation on macros, which are simple programs that enable you to record andautomatically play back series of steps that you use frequently, thus saving you timeand effort Chapter 25 shows you have to use VBA and VBScript to customize Project

so that it works the way you work Chapter 26 deals with importing and exportinginformation into and out of Project Importing information from other software cansave you the time and expense of reentering existing data And, in Chapter 27, you’llfind some case studies that show you ways in which Project has been used by avariety of companies

Part VIII: Appendixes

Appendix A covers the contents of and installation for the companion CD-ROM, whichcontains trial software, time-saving templates, and a Web page with links to sites ofinterest in the project management world — including sites to partners of MicrosoftProject Appendixes B–D on the CD-ROM provide resources and other additionalmaterials to make your work easier

The Glossary on the CD-ROM contains many specifically project management termsand concepts that have evolved over time These terms are defined when they arefirst used in the book, but you may want to look them up at a later date Use thishandy alphabetical listing to do so

No man (or woman) is an island, and this book is the product of the efforts of

several people Thank you, Terri Varveris, for your support and for makingthings easier in general, especially at the beginning of this project when my life wasdifficult at best Thank you, Pat O’Brien, for keeping me sane and for your excellentguidance in addressing issues I couldn’t figure out how to handle Thank you, JohnEdwards, for keeping the manuscript readable My thanks also go to the CD team atWiley for producing the Web page on the CD and handling the details of compilingthe CD And, thank you, Jim Peterson, for keeping me technically accurate and forthe wonderful insights you added

Thank you, Bob Woock of the M.I.S Guy, Inc in Tampa, Florida, for all the support,expertise and understanding you provided in helping me set up the hardware forthis project

Thank you, Ray Coker and Tom Sherry of Project Server Support, Inc and John Godleyand Alex Ovecka of Project Assistants for the information you provided that expanded

my horizons

My special thanks go to the co-authors of Chapter 25, Ira Brown and Roger Butler ofProject Assistants Ira is the Executive Vice President, CTO, and co-founder of ProjectAssistants, Inc, a Premier Microsoft Project Partner and Solution Provider specializing

in implementation services, integration, training, and custom software developmentfor Microsoft Project He has extensive project management and application devel-opment experience, and is recognized as a leading authority in developing customsolutions for Microsoft Project and Microsoft Project Server Roger is a Senior SolutionArchitect with Project Assistants who specializes in custom software developmentfor Microsoft Project and Microsoft Project Web Access and is an integration expert

to a variety of third party project management related applications Ira can be contacted by phone at (800) 642-9259, or email at ibrown@projectassistants.com.Roger can be contacted by phone at (610) 305-4572, or email at roger@projectassistants.com For more information about Project Assistants, visit their Web site

at www.projectassistants.com.You all helped me make this a better book than I could have produced by myself

Contents at a Glance

Preface ix

Acknowledgments xv

Part I: Project Management Basics 1

Chapter 1: The Nature of Projects 3

Chapter 2: Exploring the Microsoft Project Environment 21

Part II: Getting Your Project Going 43

Chapter 3: Creating a New Project 45

Chapter 4: Building Tasks 79

Chapter 5: Creating Resources and Assigning Costs 117

Part III: Refining Your Project 149

Chapter 6: Understanding the Basics of Views 151

Chapter 7: Using Views to Gain Perspective 203

Chapter 8: Modifying the Appearance of Your Project 245

Chapter 9: Resolving Scheduling Problems 287

Chapter 10: Resolving Resource Problems 309

Part IV: Tracking Your Progress 333

Chapter 11: Understanding Tracking 335

Chapter 12: Recording Actuals 355

Chapter 13: Reporting on Progress 385

Chapter 14: Analyzing Financial Progress 411

Part V: Working in Groups 439

Chapter 15: Coordinating Multiple Projects Outside Project Server 441

Chapter 16: Using Project in an E-mail Workgroup 469

Part VI: Project, Project Web Access, and Project Server 499

Chapter 17: Preparing to Use Project Server 501

Chapter 18: Installing and Configuring Project Server 513

Chapter 19: Organizational Roles and Project Server: The Administrator 561

Chapter 20: Organizational Roles and Project Server:

The Project/Resource Manager 623

Chapter 21: Organizational Roles and Project Server: The Day-to-Day User 667

Chapter 22: Organizational Roles and Project Server: The Executive 705

Part VII: Advanced Microsoft Project 725

Chapter 23: Customizing Microsoft Project 727

Chapter 24: Using Macros to Speed Your Work 757

Chapter 25: Customizing Microsoft Project Using VBA and Active Scripting 773

Chapter 26: Importing and Exporting Project Information 815

Chapter 27: Project Case Studies 851

Part VIII: Appendixes 873

Appendix A: What’s on the CD-ROM 875

Appendix B: Project Management Worksheet CD-ROM Appendix C: Available Fields and Functions for Custom Field Formulas CD-ROM Appendix D: Project Management Resources CD-ROM Glossary CD-ROM Index 885

License Agreement 925

Preface ix Acknowledgments xv

Chapter 1: The Nature of Projects 3

Understanding Projects 3Exploring project management 4Managing projects with project management software 11The Life Cycle of a Project 14Identifying your goal and the project’s scope 14Planning 15Revising 17Tracking 18Learning from your mistakes 18Summary 19

Chapter 2: Exploring the Microsoft Project Environment 21

Taking a First Look at Project 21Starting Project 23Examining the Gantt Chart view 28Using Project menus 30Examining the toolbars 34Entering information 35Changing views 37What’s New in Project 2003 38Summary 41

Chapter 3: Creating a New Project 45

Gathering Information 45Determining detail tasks 46Establishing time limits 47Lining up your resources 47Looking at dependencies 48

Opening a Project File 48Opening a project file — the usual way 48Other ways to open or start projects 48Establishing Basic Project Information 50Looking at Project Calendars 53Setting calendar options 53Setting schedule options 54Creating a new calendar 55Entering Tasks 58Adding Subtasks 60Saving Project Files 63Saving files 63Saving files as templates 65Protecting files 65Closing Project 66Working with a Project Outline 66Adjusting tasks in an outline 66Copying tasks 69Displaying and hiding tasks 71Getting Help 74Using the Help system 75Finding online help 76Summary 77

Chapter 4: Building Tasks 79

Establishing Timing for Tasks 79Fixed-unit tasks 80Fixed-duration tasks 81Fixed-work tasks 82Effort-driven tasks 82Assigning Task Timing 82Using the Task Information dialog box 83Using the Gantt table 85Using your mouse and the task bar 86Setting scheduling options 87Assigning a calendar to a task 88Creating milestones 88Timing for summary tasks 89Using Recurring Tasks 90Establishing Constraints and Deadline Dates 94Understanding constraints 94Using deadline dates 94Setting constraints and deadline dates 95Manipulating the Gantt Chart to View Timing 97Entering Task Notes 100

Establishing Dependencies among Tasks 102Understanding dependencies 103Understanding the interactions between

constraints and dependencies 103Allowing for overlap and delays 104Dependency types 107Establishing dependencies 111Viewing Dependencies 114Deleting Dependencies 115Summary 116

Chapter 5: Creating Resources and Assigning Costs 117

Understanding Resources 117How resources work 118How Project uses resource information to affect the schedule 119How Project gathers cost information 119Creating a Resource List 120Modifying Resource Information 124Assigning a communication method 124Specifying resource availability 126Specifying a booking type 126Creating a generic resource and assigning custom fields 127Adding notes to a resource 129Calendars and resources 130Using Resources and Tasks 132Assigning resources to tasks 132Getting help while selecting resources to assign 134Some tips about resource assignments 137Removing or replacing a resource assignment 139Handling Unusual Cost Situations 141Looking at the project’s cost 141Assigning fixed costs 141Accounting for resource rate changes 144Summary 147

Chapter 6: Understanding the Basics of Views 151

What Is a View? 151Changing a table 152Changing a Details section 154Examining Indicators 155

Admiring the Views 156Calendar 158Detail Gantt 159Gantt Chart 160Leveling Gantt 161Tracking Gantt 162Multiple Baselines Gantt 164Network Diagram 165Descriptive Network Diagram 169Relationship Diagram 170PERT analysis views 171Resource Allocation 176Resource Form 177Resource Graph 178Resource Name Form 179Resource Sheet 180Resource Usage 181Rollup views 183Task Details Form 191Task Entry 192Task Form 193Task Name Form 194Task Sheet 195Task Usage 196Printing Your Project 197Summary 202

Chapter 7: Using Views to Gain Perspective 203

Customizing Views 203Changing tables 203Working with views 210Ordering Tasks in a View 216Sorting tasks 216Creating WBS codes 220Renumbering WBS codes 224Defining outline numbers 226Filtering Views to Gain Perspective 230Applying a filter to a view 234Creating custom filters 236Using AutoFilters 237Using grouping 238Summary 243

Chapter 8: Modifying the Appearance of Your Project 245

Changing Project’s Looks 245Using the Gantt Chart Wizard 247Formatting Elements One by One 251Working with text 251Changing taskbars 254Changing network diagrams 263Formatting the Calendar view 270Inserting Drawings and Objects 273Copying pictures 273Using visuals in schedules 278Inserting visual objects 279Using the Drawing toolbar 281Modifying graphics and drawings 284Summary 285

Chapter 9: Resolving Scheduling Problems 287

Resolving Scheduling Conflicts 287Adding resources to tasks 288Using overtime 288Adding time to tasks 290Adjusting slack 290Changing task constraints 292Adjusting dependencies 294Splitting a task 296Using the Critical Path to Shorten a Project 298Identifying the critical path 299Shortening the critical path 302Using Multiple Critical Paths 305Summary 308

Chapter 10: Resolving Resource Problems 309

Understanding How Resource Conflicts Occur 309Spotting Resource Conflicts 311Using views to spot resource conflicts 311Using filters to spot resource conflicts 313Resolving Conflicts 315Changing resource allocations 315Scheduling overtime 318Redefining a resource’s calendar 319Assigning part-time work 320

Controlling when resources start working on a task 322Delaying tasks by leveling resource workloads 323Contouring resources 328Pooling resources 332Summary 332

Chapter 11: Understanding Tracking 335

Understanding the Principles of Tracking 335Estimates versus actuals 336Making adjustments as you go 337Using Baselines 338What is a baseline? 338Setting a baseline 339Changing the Baseline 341Adding a task to a baseline 342Using interim plans 343Clearing a baseline or interim plan 345Viewing Progress with the Tracking Gantt View 345Interpreting the Tracking Gantt view 346The Task Variance table 348The Task Cost table 349The Task Work table 350Understanding Tracking Strategies 351Tackling the work of tracking 351Keeping track of tracking 352Summary 353

Chapter 12: Recording Actuals 355

Organizing the Updating Process 355Understanding Calculation Options 356Updating Tasks to Reflect Actual Information 360Setting actual start and finish dates 360Recording actual durations 361Setting remaining durations 362Setting the Percent Complete value 364Setting work completed 365Using Actuals and Costs 366Using the Cost table for tasks 367Using the Cost table for resources 368Overriding resource cost valuations 369

Techniques and Tips for Updating 371Tracking work or costs regularly 372Accelerating the updating process 375Letting Project reschedule uncompleted work 376Reviewing Progress 378Using the Tracking Gantt view 378Using the Work table for tasks 379Using the Work table for resources 380Viewing progress lines 381Summary 383

Chapter 13: Reporting on Progress 385

Reporting Commonalities 385Looking at the Big Picture 388Project Summary 389Top Level Tasks 389Critical Tasks 390Milestones 390Working Days 390Generating Reports on Costs 391Cash Flow 391Earned Value 393Budget 394Overbudget reports 394Producing Reports on Time 395Unstarted Tasks 396Tasks Starting Soon 397Tasks in Progress 397Completed Tasks 398Should Have Started Tasks 398Slipping Tasks 399Making Reports on Work Assignments 399Who Does What 399Who Does What When 400

To Do List 401Overallocated Resources 401Presenting Reports on Workloads 402Task Usage 402Resource Usage 404Customizing Reports 405Custom reports 405Customizing an existing report 408Summary 410

Chapter 14: Analyzing Financial Progress 411

Understanding Earned Value 411Understanding earned value fields 412Using earned value tables 417Evaluating Cost Information 421Charting earned value 421Analyzing timescaled information 427Using PivotTables for analysis 431Making Adjustments During the Project 436Changing the schedule 437Modifying resource assignments 437Summary 438

Chapter 15: Coordinating Multiple Projects

Outside Project Server 441

Consolidating Projects 441Setting up to use consolidation 442Inserting a project 444Using inserted projects and their source files 450Consolidating all open projects: A shortcut 451Moving subprojects within a consolidated project 452Understanding Consolidated Projects and Dependencies 453Linking tasks across projects 453Changing links across projects 455Consolidated projects — to save or not to save 456Viewing Multiple Projects 458Viewing the Critical Path across Projects 459Sharing Resources Among Projects 462Creating a resource pool and sharing the resources 463Opening a project that uses a resource pool 464Updating information in the resource pool 465Quit sharing resources 466Summary 468

Chapter 16: Using Project in an E-mail Workgroup 469

Setting Up an E-mail Workgroup 470Editing the registry 470Installing the Project Workgroup Message Handler 475Setting up the workgroup in Project 475Building a Resource Workgroup 477

Communicating via E-mail 478Publishing all information 479Publishing new and changed assignments 481Republishing assignments 484Requesting a status update 486Customizing Your Workgroup 487Establishing Management Procedures 489Sending Notes and Routing Files 489Sending Project notes 489Routing a Project file 490Using the Web Toolbar 492Working with Hyperlinks 493Inserting a hyperlink 494Editing hyperlinks 495Moving or copying hyperlinks 497Summary 498

Part VI: Project, Project Web Access,

Chapter 17: Preparing to Use Project Server 501

Understanding Project Server and Project Web Access 501Planning the Project 504Assessing requirements 504Designing the system 506Developing a strategy for implementation and configuration 509Avoiding the Pitfalls 510Summary 512

Chapter 18: Installing and Configuring Project Server 513

Reviewing Requirements 513Meeting software requirements 514Meeting hardware requirements 515Assessing the network environment 516Considering software/hardware scenarios 516Installing Peripheral Software 518SQL Server and Analysis Services 519Internet Information Services (IIS) 521Setting up Windows accounts 524Installing and Configuring Windows SharePoint Services 528Extending the WSS site 533Completing the integration of Project Server and WSS 536Installing Project Server 539

Connecting to Project Server through Project Web Access 549Setting up mail server information 552Modifying SharePoint portal server information 553Changing operation modes 554Entering OLAP server information 555Entering WSS server information 556Troubleshooting Your Installation 558Summary 559

Chapter 19: Organizational Roles and Project Server:

The Administrator 561

Double-Checking the Settings 562Specifying Project Server features for your organization 563Managing user authentication options 565Managing Windows SharePoint Services 566Managing security templates 568Managing groups 570Working with views 571Working with categories 575Managing Users 578Managing Enterprise Project Versions 581Working with the Enterprise Global Template 583Creating custom fields 583Creating calendars 587Setting Up and Editing Enterprise Resources 587Creating the Enterprise Resource Pool 588Editing resources in the Enterprise Resource Pool 589Importing Projects 593Setting Up Administrative Projects 597Customizing Project Web Access 599Establishing Project Web Access menus 599Establishing tracking settings 599Selecting the Gantt taskbar styles and timescales 601Selecting grouping formats 602Setting the default home page appearance 603Establishing notifications and reminders options 604Completing Housekeeping Chores 605Managing the OLAP cube 605Updating resource tables 615Checking in enterprise projects and resources 616Managing information in the Project Server database 618Managing SharePoint sites and synchronizing

administrator accounts 619Summary 620

Chapter 20: Organizational Roles and Project Server:

The Project/Resource Manager 623

Connecting to Project Server 624Creating a Project Server logon account 624Logging on to Project Server 626Creating a Web-Based Project 628Assigning resources to projects 640Tracking progress 652Summary 665

Chapter 21: Organizational Roles and Project Server:

The Day-to-Day User 667

Logging on to Project Web Access 668Reviewing the Home Page 669Changing Your Password 670

A word about passwords and security 671Setting your password 672Working with Your Tasks 673Entering time on tasks 675Adding tasks 678Project Web Access and Microsoft Outlook 680Notifying managers of workday changes 688Delegating a task 690Working with Documents 692Attach supporting documents to projects 693Viewing documents 694Posting a document 695Creating a document library 697Viewing Information 698Reporting Status 702Logging Off 704Summary 704

Chapter 22: Organizational Roles and Project Server:

The Executive 705

Reviewing Your Portfolio 705Identifying Trends and Potential Problems 708Answering the Famous “What If” Question 713Summary 724

Part VII: Advanced Microsoft Project 725

Chapter 23: Customizing Microsoft Project 727

Using Custom Fields 727Customizing data entry 728Using formulas in custom fields 732Customizing the Interface 737Windows taskbar icons 737Saving Project files 739Using the Organizer 741Making changes to toolbars 742Customizing project menus 751Summary 756

Chapter 24: Using Macros to Speed Your Work 757

Using Macros 757Recording Macros 758Running Macros 761Using Shortcuts to Run Macros 762Assigning a macro to a toolbar button 762Assigning a macro to a menu command 766Assigning a keyboard shortcut to a macro 770Summary 772

Chapter 25: Customizing Microsoft Project Using

VBA and Active Scripting 773

Example One: Creating a Filter to See Critical Tasks and Resource Assignments 774Recording a macro to create a filter for critical tasks 774Editing the macro to show only specified resources 778Testing the code 781Example Two: Creating a UserForm Object to Adjust Work 783Designing the UserForm 784Adding code to the UserForm 793Adding a sub procedure to show the UserForm 799Example Three: Customizing the Project Guide 800Content of the Project Guide XML document 802Project Guide XML document elements 803Defining the Project Guide for a project 806Summary 814

Chapter 26: Importing and Exporting Project Information 815

Understanding General Importing and Exporting Concepts 815Exporting Information 816Exporting to Office files 816Exporting Project information to a graphic image 826Exporting to other formats 828Saving Project files as Web pages 830Creating XML files from Project data 832Importing Information 835Inserting another project 835Importing Office files 835Importing other files 846Troubleshooting 847Project imports incorrect times in data from Microsoft Excel 848Linked or embedded objects don’t import or export 848The export file contains more or less information

than expected 848Project imports invalid information 849The values of imported information change 849The imported project is empty 849Project displays imported information in the wrong fields 849Summary 850

Chapter 27: Project Case Studies 851

Case 1 851Problem statement 852Problem solution 852Business Benefits 854Problem solvers 855Case 2 855Problem statement 855Problem solution 856Problem solvers 856Case 3 856Problem statement 857Problem solution 857Problem solvers 858Case 4 858Problem statement 858Problem solution 859Problem solver 860

Case 5 860Problem statement 860Problem solution 861Problem solver 864Case 6 864Problem statement 864Problem solution 865Problem solvers 866Case 7 866Problem statement 866Problem solution 866Problem solvers 868Case 8 868Problem statement 868Problem solution 869Problem solvers 869Case 9 869Project statement 870Project solution 870Problem solvers 870Summary 871

Appendix A: What’s on the CD-ROM 875 Appendix B: Project Management Worksheet CD-ROM Appendix C: Available Fields and Functions

for Custom Field Formulas CD-ROM Appendix D: Project Management Resources CD-ROM

Glossary CD-ROM Index 885 License Agreement 925

Project Management Basics

I

The Nature of Projects

Everybody does projects Building a tree house is a

pro-ject; so is putting a man on the moon From the simplesthome improvement to the most complex business or scien-tific venture, projects are a part of most of our lives Butexactly what is a project, and what can you do to manage allits facets?

Some projects are defined by their randomness Missed lines, unpleasant surprises, and unexpected problems seem to

dead-be as unavoidable as the weekly staff meeting Other projectshave few problems Nevertheless, the project that goessmoothly from beginning to end is rare Good planning andcommunication can go a long way toward avoiding disaster

And although no amount of planning can prevent all possibleproblems, good project management enables you to deal withthose inevitable twists and turns in the most efficient mannerpossible

In this chapter, you begin exploring tools and acquiring skillsthat can help you become a more efficient and productive pro-ject manager The goal of this chapter is to provide a survey ofwhat a project is, what project management is, and howMicrosoft Project 2003 fits into the picture

Understanding Projects

When you look up the word project in the dictionary, you see

definitions such as “plan” and “concerted effort.” A project inthe truest sense, then, isn’t a simple one-person effort to per-form a task By this definition, getting yourself dressed — diffi-cult though that task may seem on a Monday morning — isn’t

A project is a series of steps that are typically performed by more than one person.

In addition, the following items describe a project:

✦ A project has a specific and measurable goal You know you have finished

the project when you have successfully met your project goal

✦ Projects have a specific time frame The success of a project is often

mea-sured by how successfully the project has been completed within the amount

of time allotted to it

✦ Projects use resources Resources aren’t just people; resources can include

money, machinery, materials, and more How well these resources are cated and orchestrated is another key measure of a project’s success or failure

allo-✦ All projects consist of interdependent, yet individual, steps called tasks No

piece of a project exists in a vacuum If one task runs late or over budget, ittypically affects other tasks, the overall schedule, and the total cost of theproject

Projects can last for months or even years By their nature, projects are dynamic;they tend to grow, change, and behave in ways that you can’t always predict.Consequently, you, as a project manager, have to remain alert to the progress andvagaries of your projects or you will never reach your goals Documentation andcommunication are your two key tools for staying on top of a project throughout its life

Exploring project management

Project management is a discipline that examines the nature of projects and offers

ways to control their progress Project management attempts to organize and tematize the tasks in a project to minimize the number of surprises that you mayencounter

sys-Project management and project managers concern themselves with the followingkey areas:

To manage these aspects of projects, certain tools have evolved over the years.

Some of these are conceptual, such as the critical path; others involve specific mats for charting progress, such as a Gantt Chart The following sections introducesome key project management concepts and tools

for-Critical path and slack

The critical path marks the series of tasks in a project that must be completed ontime for the overall project to stay on schedule For example, suppose that you areplanning a going-away party at your office You have three days to plan the party

The following table lists some of the tasks that are involved and indicates their timeframes

Signing the good-bye card three days

Buying a good-bye gift one day

The shortest task, reserving a room, takes only one hour Assuming that plenty ofrooms are available for holding the party, you can delay reserving the room untilthe last hour of the third day Delaying this task doesn’t cause any delay in holdingthe party — as long as you accomplish this task by the end of the longest task,which is getting everyone to sign the good-bye card Therefore, the task of reserv-ing a room isn’t on the critical path However, you can’t delay the task of signing thegood-bye card, which is projected to take three days to accomplish, without delay-ing the party Therefore, the card-signing task is on the critical path (Of course, thisexample is very simple; typically, a whole series of tasks that can’t afford delayform an entire critical path.)

The following points further define and clarify these concepts:

✦ The critical path changes as the project progresses Remember that a critical

path is a means of identifying tasks that have no leeway in their timing to

ensure that they don’t run late and affect your overall schedule Knowingwhere your critical path tasks are at any point during the project is crucial tostaying on track Figures 1-1 and 1-2 show the same schedule — first with alltasks displayed and then filtered to show only the tasks that are on the criti-cal path