Looking for a potential manager is like looking for a potential project. There must be careful selection and assessment are then done to make sure that the candidate is properly chosen. The manager has to meet the demands and brave himself with the quest that he is about to lead. The As manager, he should possess the talents, the skills and the leadership that will make firm in making and standing for decisions.

Managers must understand the whole process that they are going to take and will not just focus on how to aim for the objectives and handle the resources. A manager must know to connect with the stakeholders, because what matters after is the satisfaction coming from them that will generate more projects to come, simply because they are satisfied with how the manager handled people. Though the idea of an effective manager is relative form one person to another, there these qualities that must be observed in managers:

1. The managers must be able to predict or anticipate the risks or the constraints that may take place and create the plans on how to resolve it.
2. Managers are known to be organized people who know how to make schedules and religiously following them. They are focused and they know how to prioritize things according to its importance.
3. Managers are leaders. They are the kind of people who know how to make people follow them. Leadership is a skill that can be honed through various training programs. The managers have sure ways to make people inter connected and how to reach them. The managers must be able to motivate the stakeholders and help them keep their interest in the project. They have to inspire, negotiate and make amends when needed.
4. Managers are good communicators. They use every possible ways on how to connect with people, deliver reports, and get decisions. They usually take advantage of using email and conducting meetings to make it possible.
5. Managers are analytical. They get things done on the specified date and nothing can ever stop them from achieving what they want. They are much focus on how to accomplish the work.
6. Project managers do not forget to depend on their people. The trust that is endowed on them motivates them to go further. They assess the stakeholders’ concerns and address them.
7. The managers know to create impact and articulate the vision to motivate his employees. They are after of getting things done by including his tem in planning and not just doing everything by himself.
8. A good manager spreads out his goals and making sure that no one is neglected. He takes care of assessing the performance of people and helping them to improve.
9. A manager is a good decision maker and do not let the constraints ruin the entire project. There must a quick response and an immediate act.
10. A manager should be also adept in handling technicalities and must have all the knowledge about the whole project. Having a sound knowledge will help the manager understand the nature of the problems and will help implement the methodologies effectively. Best practices in management will empower the manager to do what is required of him.
11. Managers ensure good relationships by ethical practices, transparency and honesty. Leaders are passionate and committed on their goals which are reflected through optimism.
12. Managers understand the needs and desires of people without judging them. They do not forget that their team members have lives other than work. 
13. Competent managers have proven background that will serve as a proof that they can do the job as what is expected of them. They have the ability to inspire, lead and influence people.
14. Managers have the abilities to delegate tasks by studying the aspects of work against the skills and abilities of those who will be assigned to do it. The manager needs to scrutinize and control the delegation of tasks.
15. Another desirable quality that the managers must have is the ability to take control of their emotions even though they are almost at the end of the rope. The ability to take charge of one’s own emotions also reflects the ability to take charge of the negative events. Being composed during stressful situations will be able to think and decide well.
16. Managers must know how to unite their people and keep them together. The leader must know the dynamics required for the change if needed.
17. Managers have superior problem solving skills.

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Managers should cultivate a clear vision about the project and develop and must promote a well-driven atmosphere. The managers have to have a clear picture on where they are going and make sure that all the resources are maximized. They must also be committed to the vision and goals of the company to shape a desirable outcome.

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The nature of the project directly affects the planning and execution of work. The project specific activities, deliverables and timelines should be properly documented and must be communicated to the client. This document which is also called as Statement of Work  (SOW) can be made out of any hardware or software and can be written in any type of format. Companies generally create their own version of statement of work which aims to grant the requests and suggestions of the stakeholders.

Statement of Work is a legal document and a very powerful project tool. This covers the requirements and expectations that the project should achieve. The written and specified details of the statement of work must be agreed upon by the parties involved. The statement of work must be created in a certain level making it more comprehensible. This must include the work required, the duration of the work involved, the deliverables, and the timeline to be followed in order to succeed in the project.

The way statement of work works

Statement of Work can be written by addressing the common areas of a project. First, the scope has to be developed. It must include the systems to be sued in the project. If technology is involved in accomplishing a project, it must be written in the statement of work. Another factor to look at is the location where the work will be performed and the description of the resources and how these are to be used. Timeline is another crucial factor in the development of the SOW. It shows the time frame or the duration of the entire project. This illustrates when the project started and when it did finish. Timeline also includes the schedule as to when the deliverables are to be sent out to the customers. Next is the acceptance criteria where the deliverables are being tested and verified before it reaches the customer. It has to ensure the quality of the product. There must not be any defects or glitches before it is given to the customer. Mode of contract and payments must also be considered when creating statement of work. There can be fixed bid or a retainer. The former is when everything remains constant and the provider will be the one responsible for the optimization of the available resources, while the latter is concerned with meeting the delivery schedule and not with the number of products to be produced.

Creating a statement of work is not an easy thing to do, but it has to bear in mind this document is very essential to any project that a company will have to undertake. This statement is fundamental to determine the success or failure of the project, depending on how the stakeholders respond to the responsibilities being given to them, and how the resources are being utilized, and lastly the communication level that the parties have built to exchange information. The statement of work defines the scope of work required and the time it has to be accomplished. It allows to meet the expectations and goals of the parties involved in the project.

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Project Teams without plans and have no idea on what the goals are and chaotic are bound to failure.

In defining projects, there must be strong organizational skills to be employed. Successful Project Teams have the ability to organize the structures, observe hierarchy and function well can lead a project into motion.  The Project Team must be willing to communicate and address the issues to the right people. When everyone is free to be assertive and air their needs, they also have to be good listeners when the other people are speaking. Good communication is essential to the success of the project.

A Project Team is a group of professionals who are able to identify the issues, assess what possible solutions could be working it and arriving at decisions. If there mistakes being done, they do not blame one another because they know that is going to be just waste of time. Instead, they would look for possible resolutions to the problem.

But, how to build a Project Team that brings Success?

• A Project Team must clearly define the roles of each member, without having a clear definition of the roles, there will be confusions and lack of interest. The roles to be given to them must be matched with their personalities and capabilities as employees. By doing so, they would be able to function well and perform their duties. To lead a Project Team will also require a leader to establish his leadership skills and build it in trust and loyalty, rather than fear and rejection.
• Allowing individual differences to exist in a group makes it stronger. The diversity of individuals makes it possible to accomplish different tasks which need different capabilities as well. The different ages, cultures and genders matter a lot to a business because it allows the business to become more flexible.
• Promote innovations and thinking out of the box. Do not just be settled on the same old beliefs, these will drive the Project Team backwards, not forward. Teach the Project Team how to take risks and demonstrate the bravery to overcome the challenges.
• The Project Team must develop sense of responsibility even when the leader is not around or the big bosses are not walking around. The Project Team must be taught how to be dependable and take charge of something when needed.

Respect is the key to work through some disputes within the team. The Project Team must demonstrate work ethics to ensure that the project will be done on the specified time.

There must also be a spirit of appreciation to spread the good vibes and inspire other members to work harder. Gratefulness will make the Project Team members feels that they are significant members of the organization.

Each member must be treated as a valuable asset to the company. When someone gives an idea, be glad to accept it. Neglecting someone’s idea would make others feel that they are not allowed to speak anymore.

It is also a need to be sensitive to the feelings of the Project Team members. Be open and let them vent out when needed. People have different ways on how to deal with a particular situation. When there are disputes, find immediate ways to resolve them. The leader must act as the mediator in these cases. There is also a need to clarify directives to lead people to where they are heading to. Do not give false hopes, they would appreciate more if you are upfront. Trust and cooperation serve as the foundation in the relationships among the Project Team members. Take chances on how to improve what is needed to improve by establishing good communication. The Project Team must be encouraged to share information and gain access to it when needed. Allow each member to have their own contributions and let them work for it altogether.

Also remember that communication is the most important factor in team work. Remain open to suggestions and questions. Let the whole team work together when there is a problem to be resolved. Be able to communicate with them about their progress and the areas they need to improve. Address teamwork and standards at the same time. The goals have to be clear with them and times frames must be established in order for them to understand their responsibilities in the Project Team. There are rules to be followed and there should be a established methods on creating guidelines which to be transferred to them. This will serve as their guide toward achieving the goals of the company. Brainstorming ideas is also emphasizing to allow the Project Team members to learn and improve their problem solving skills. Allowing debates during meetings will pave way to creative thinking.

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Companies always focus on the total increase of productivity and removing impediments in the project management. Lots of project management practices have been formulated in order find alternatives and provide established processes. These would always aim to eliminate unsuccessful and unproductive activities within any project and maximize the skills of the people. Good software techniques are meant to evolve or transform a system to focus on the efforts of the people and letting them do their best.

Despite having a lot of methodologies available in the market nowadays, most companies still choose to implement Agile Project Management. Agile management has been introduced as an incremental method in building products and promoting agile process and techniques which makes it special among the rest of the methodologies. This method enables the team to focus on the delivering work features to the customer. It gives the customer the right to give feedback and changes or transformations are quickly done.  It also supports the life cycle of the product through providing visible progress and better direction of the processes.

The Bright Side of using Agile Project Management

Agile project management focuses on the independence of skilled, adaptable, and talented members of the team. It also provides flexibility in determining how a particular product should look or look like in the end. The capability to adapt to the changing needs of the industry events gives the whole team the chance to complete the project on the specified time. An Agile environment provides value driven and collaborative approach to project management. However, this kind of approach will not suit every situation. Where there are feedbacks which are impossible to attain or to do, it is going to be difficult to do it using Agile.

Agile project management emphasizes the idea of unity. The team members are given equal importance and allowing them to do their tasks and activities independently. Communication among the parties is equally given importance as well. It provides a simple framework of communication to be done by the team members. It also means fast production and delivery of products. Also, it promotes non-hierarchical type of leadership which allows its members to express their thoughts and feedback to ensure that the demands are met.

An Agile team can have an internal solution to a specific problem for the value of the business. The development team can star running as agile when they get used to the concept of sprints and delivering small pieces of work at a time. When the team members are finally comfortable with the demands of the project, they may do it using the agile method and they may actually extend it with self-governing teams. It needs to keep them informed of the business and educate them about the expectations set to them. It is a must that everyone understands the goals and the expectations as well to give them a clear and right direction in achieving the organizational and operational goals of the project. Inform them too, that there could be constraints coming their way or while in the midst of dong the project, thus resiliency must be observed. Post conferences are also encouraged to help people understand what did go wrong. It is also the best opportunity to let them clarify what confuses them and help them be enlightened. Above all, it will make them learn from their mistakes and improve themselves the next time around.

Changes are needed when trying to implement agile project management. The need to commit to a variable cost will help the team have or come up with cost of a solution right away. This solution will get better in time so long the customer provides feedback. Lessons to be learned in Agile project management could bring salient implications be it long term or short term. The results in this type of management can be challenging and it needs collaborative efforts that ensures increased transparency, reporting and delivery of dates are being estimated based on the feature backlog and current developments are also studied. Project adapts as the requirements and priorities change.

When a company decides to employ an Agile project management, it focuses on the development rather than the outcomes. The management ensures that there is clarity among all the scope, the processes and the activities which incorporate it. Beneath every project manager are teams thaty work sprints and review the process in retrospectives. The main drawback on this tyope of management is that the developers only rely on the project manager to define the scope and direction of the business. Everyone works together and is involved in every stage of the project. This promotes self-governance and collaboration that allows change to be incorporated efficiently which heightens business value.

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Gathering Project Requirements is an essential part of the project management. Understanding the Project Requirements can help the team to finish the project fast and lead it to success. Requirement collection is not only important for the project. It is also important in the project management to function. This is collecting things that are needed for the project. This collection will be coming from the customers and other stakeholders.

The Importance of Project Requirements

Requirements elicitation is non-trivial because there is no assurance that all of these will be gathered by simply asking them to do so. This process may include interviews, surveys, observation, workshops and brainstorming. Project Requirements are also the basis of each project. If a team doesn’t have the requirements, the project would be a failure because they did not gather the essential information to make the project work. Requirements are also the biggest reason for the success of a project.

Gathering Project Requirements is all about creating a clear, concise and accepted set of customer requirements that will allow the group to provide what the customers need or want they want.

Data Collection

Data collection could be in different ways. It can be an In Person Requirement Collection where Project Requirements can occur during one on one meetings or group brainstorming sessions.

Further, Collection of Project Requirements via Surveys is a compilation of questions which are designed to collect the written Project Requirements or feedback coming from one or more stakeholders another to look at is Project Requirements Collection via Observation which requires interactions with the customers to observe and to identify the requirements on the recent workflows and trainings.

How to Collect Project Requirements?

Collecting Project Requirements may involve different parties who would have significant impact or who may influence the progress of the project.

This will include the Participants who would participate in the specification process. The contributors should be chosen according to the project role, deliverable stakes, expertise, experience and organizational status.

Next is the Timing and Scope which refers to how long would be allotted for the Requirements collection This will also help to be able to determine the data collection methods that are needed to be used. Lastly, the Goals which refer to the group that needs to achieve the Project Requirements collection goals. The data, details and the information should validated and verified for Project Requirements assumptions, they also need to collect more Project Requirements feedback at the broadest contents and format.

Project Requirements are important for a project because it can be used for the content of the project. Requirement collection is important because this will help to ensure the business requirements shall be collected; the needed to ensure the solution that is being organized meets the requirements for business will be addressed; this will also help to ensure the solutions designed will be used to express that the business requirements are complied with organizational and operational goals.

It is also important to include that having poor requirements will result in the failure of the project. To avoid failure in the project, the requirements should be verified first, before being implemented.

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Workforce management is the process of combining the categorization of the logistic components of a certain project by a software application. This is also a system that explains the tasks, project positions and person who is assigned for the project. To add, it is all about arranging the logistic aspect of the project in accordance to the requirements set by the stakeholders of the project. All of the logistic methods take place to the workflow engine. This encompasses all the activities needed to maintain a productive team. There are different tasks handled by this system: The Technical Field is responsible for the data collection, utilization of the resources and technology. On the other hand, Software Usage is the programming of all tasks beyond leaving some tasks for the project manager. It gives high efficiency on the project when it comes to tracking processes. Tracking it may be done through a Dashboard this will help the project group has a view on the complete process of the project components.

A great workforce management is an essential factor that is needed to make the project to succeed. This project can be thought of compilation of activities, tasks that were designed to achieve a particular goal in an organization, this comes with definite performance or quality needed while meeting some subjects in time and cost necessity. Graphical Tools can be used to show an illustration on how to manage, edit and report each work breakdown structures.

The Two Types of Workforce Management

Traditional Management and workflow management differ from one another. Traditional management is very disciplined and detailed when it comes to planning and controlling the methods used in a project. Everything must be orderly and completed before the next stage begins. Traditional management involves initiation of project objectives, and identifying time schedule and budget allocation; planning of baseline and estimates; execution of the planned tasks; tracking and monitoring whether the plans are carried out; and closing which involves delivering of the product to the customer.

Workflow driven methods are designed, controlled and audited with the use of a graphical workflow engine. The organization and work breakdown structures give organization to make or create, to manage, and report or discuss the functional and proven hierarchies and track details to any level of information. There are specified tasks to be given in each department and letting them take charge. It also involves communication among the stakeholders to guarantee that the objectives are attained. This type of management is also concerned with getting feedback to improve the system and modify the strategies being used. This is mainly focused on tracking IT projects, workforce costs, and billable projects. Project Workforce Management is designed to unify the coordination of the projects and workforce processes.

Conclusion:

Project workforce management is a system that explains procedure on the project tasks, project positions and the people who are assigned for the projects. It is then implemented to maintain the most efficient employees to work and make use of the available resources to make the project achieve.

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Agile Management is a method of project management that is non-hierarchical, iterative, and incremental way of managing design, and building engineering activities, information technology and other businesses. This is also highly flexible and interactive. It focuses on continuous improvements, scope, team input and delivering the products on the specified time.

It is a kind of method where the individuals interact over the processes and the tools. It requires comprehensive documentation about the processes and activities undertaken. It also promotes customer collaboration to constantly give their feedback and negotiate on the improvement of the product.

Agile also consists of its underlying principles:

1. Customer satisfaction. This method prioritizes customers and their satisfaction on the product. This can be achieved to quality made products and early or on time delivery.
2. It is flexible in nature. This method aims to achieve the goal of the business even when there are constraints. These constraints are resolved right away.
3. It also promotes short time scale in the deliverables.
4. The stakeholders engage in the business process and must work collaboratively.
5. This method allows its employees to work and decide on themselves. Trivial things are not escalated to the higher management unless necessary. It builds projects where their needs are being supported.
6. It promotes consistent communication through face-to-face conversations and it also allows resolving issues before it becomes bigger. The workers are informed accurately and in real time.
7. It provides a software that is responsible for the measurement of the works’ progress.
8. Technical excellence and good designs are also considered.
9. This method is simple and the tasks and activities are being optimized to come up with desirable results.
10. It has regular intervals so the teams can reflect on how to become more efficient.

An Agile project management consists of different stages:

Agile Stage 1:

The product owner formulates the vision and goal of the business processes. It is the definition of the what your product is, and how it will support the company to improve its strategies.

Agile Stage 2:

A product road map is made that serves as a framework to represent the requirements with loose time frame. It also identifies the requirements of the product and the project estimates.

Agile Stage 3:

It creates a release plan as to when the products are to be released.

Agile Stage 4:

Sprint planning sessions take place where the team identifies the requirements for iteration.

Agile Stage 5:

Daily meetings are held to give feedback and being able to apply them in the next cycle.

Agile Stage 6:

Sprint review is done to review that past processes and the actions taken. It also includes the possible constraints encountered and how these are resolved.

Agile Stage 7:

Sprint retrospective is the total review of the whole process.

This type of project management method also consists of people namely:

• The development team: These people are responsible for getting the activities and tasks done. They are the programmers, testers, designers or writers.
• The product owner: he is the expert on the product’s and the customers’ needs. The product owner ensures that everything is being catered and attended to.
• Scrum master: This person is responsible for supporting the development team through clearing the blockages.
• Stakeholders: These people are directly involved in the conceptualization, to the execution of the tasks and to the delivery of products.
• Agile Mentor: This is the person who has the experience and all the knowledge in the implementation of the agile projects.

Agile project management provides a quick summary on how to achieve the organizational and operational goals of the business. It also provides a full list of what is the scope of the project depending on the priority level. This gives the information on the product requirements and the complete time frame in task completion. It involves seeking alternative approach to conventional or traditional management. Its approach help the team respond to unpredictable event amidst the business process. It provides opportunities to assess the direction of a project throughout the development cycle. This is achieved through regular sprints or iterations and focuses on the repetition of the all the processes. This is an “inspect and adapt” approach to reduce expenditures by building the right product. It also empowers the teams to optimize their skills in performing the tasks.

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What is Project Integration Management ?

One of the major concerns of the companies is to make sure that the operations are working out fine. These procedures are regularly checked by using and taking advantage of technology in form of software and hardware to provide accurate results.

The collection of processes consists of different elements of the projects and must be properly coordinated. Trade-offs are made among these elements to ensure customer satisfaction, and as much as possible, go beyond their expectations. For a project to progress and get over on time, within budget and with required quality, the steps needed to be planned in advance, and who will do, what, when the project will be done.

The project movement can be described as a continuous flow of stages and elements. Time management must be used wisely to avoid delays in the deliverables. The cost management must also reflect the whole budget or expenditures of the project to carefully examine the returns. Also, there could be problems in staffing, that is why human resource must also be equipped enough to do their part. Nevertheless, it is the knowledge in project management that ensures good coordination among the project’s activities and tasks. This is necessary to keep track the entire process and accomplish it was scheduled. It touches the phases of the management namely: initiating, planning, executing, monitoring, controlling and closing. When these are properly integrated, there would be a guaranteed project success.

Project Integration Management Processes

Implementing Project Integration Management requires a series of processes that will make the plan come into life. The stages involve reflects different features which are essential to the production of product and services, by making it more appealing to all the stakeholders. The manager who will oversee the entire production should fully understand the whole process and implement the plan the way it is expected to be executed.

A Project Charter has to be made to formalize the project. The charter describes the project goals, its process and the desired results. The manager is being identified and is given the rights to manage the whole project and its resources. An official “go ahead” is needed to proceed with the whole project. After the formalization of the project selection, the Project Management Plan should be made. It includes all the necessary documents in the execution of the project. It includes the schedule, the resources, budget and the projector scope. This serves as the summary of the whole project which also gives a glimpse or the gist of the entire plan. After creating the master plan, the Direct and Manage Project Work takes place. The manager leads the whole team and ensures that the plan is being implemented. Should there be unforeseen changes or lapses come out, it is the duty of the manager to patch things up. The manager has to make sure that all the tasks and the activities are correctly done. The Monitoring and Controlling stage is the process when the performance level of the team is being observed and measured. The needs of the people or of the resources must be met during this process so the flow of work will not be hindered because of conflicts or lack of resources. The Closing process entails the successful delivery of the products to the waiting customer. Feedback may be given in a form of survey to gauge the satisfaction of the consumer.

Every project needs a well-developed plan and a responsible manager. The implementation of  project integration is necessary to be able to monitor and check the whole process of the project. It is intended to make sure that all the coordination among all the components is properly executed. The role of the manager also creates a big impact on how these processes are going to be implemented. It is a must that all of the processes are accurately done. The manager must also follow all the subsidiary plans such as Risk management plan, the Schedule management plan,  and the Communication plan. All the facets of the project lie on the hand of the manager. A thorough understanding of the work flow anchored to the organizational objectives will yield desirable results and profits. Project integration management comprises of deliberate planning and coordinating of all schemes. Creating a consistent and documents serve as the guide map of the whole project. The execution of the plan must be done strategically as well, so the possible constraints can be resolved. Modification and alterations must also be given attention, especially when there are lapses in the execution of the process.

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Project Management is a methodology being utilized to be able to achieve the goals and vision of an organization. It is the application of dynamic processes, methods, knowledge, skills and experience to meet specific success criteria. There are a lot methodologies and techniques to be used. In fact, with the advent of technology it is then improved to meet the global challenges and needs.

Extreme Project management differs from any other existing traditional methods. Extreme Project Management is short and flexible unlike the others. It is a methodology used to describe how to deliver projects on time at a reasonable budget.

Extreme Project Management vs. Conventional Project Management

The Conventional or Traditional approach assesses the project through fixed stages. These stages may include initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and completion. The prior stage must always end at a specific time to be able to let the next stage to start otherwise, the cycle will be hampered. Traditional project management is plan driven, and is used for linear work pattern. On the contrary, Extreme Project Management is ideal for past paced projects with unpredictable results. This method is complex and self-correcting process to arrive at the expected result. There are possibilities that the requirements change throughout the project. These changes may be brought by competition, technology and economic conditions. The delivery cycle may only last up to two weeks only, compared to the traditional approach that can take longer time.

The Mindset

It requires intensive training when applying the extreme management approach. The management team is responsible for the preparation of mindset of the team. The team should be oriented properly and must be informed that some activities may be chaotic. They should be informed that uncertainties may occur. Since that this type of approach is uncontrollable, changes may occur along the way. The management team should also ensure security as the project progress.

Self-Management

The project manager serves as the facilitator and mentor. The responsibilities must be distributed among the members of the team. It brings organizational structure to move spontaneously. Each member should develop motivation and concentration skills to help overcome procrastination at work. It is a skill that will involve setting of goals and time management to effectively function even without much supervision.

Conclusion

A manager has to make sure whether to implement Extreme Project Management in the team or venture for other options. It is not an easy method to be employed because it is a very complex approach. It is strongly recommended that the manager to have enough training on this type of project management. Intensive trainings on this approach will help the manager become flexible and have thorough understanding on how this type of management is being applied. Managing a project under extreme pressure with everything on the line, millions of dollar at stake, and company at stake is the whole idea of extreme project management. It is finding oneself doing whatever is necessary, trying to focus on what is the most important at the moment, fixing it, and moving on to the next stages.

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Charts are powerful tools commonly used to show visual representation of project management timelines by creating task names, start dates, durations and other activities that occur in the process.

Gantt chart has been one of the most favorite charts to be used by project managers to keep track of the activities and deliverables. It presents the amount of the work done, the resources, or the production completed in certain periods of time in relation to the amount of planned for those duration.

The Use of Gantt Chart

Gantt chart is a bar graph which indicates the detailed Work Breakdown and illustrates the start and finish dates of terminal elements of the project. Its complexity depends on the size of projects. It may become more complex when applied to a larger project. Microsoft Excel can be used when creating Gantt template. Further, there are a lot of Gantt chart templates available online. It is an essential tool for tracking tasks involved in the software development cycle.

Creating Your Own Project Gantt Chart

A person who would want to create his own chart may explore the web and may discover a lot of templates to take as a model. The most important thing is to identify first the purpose of the chart to use. Anyone may create a chart from scratch, but it is more convenient to modify an existing model through Microsoft and other third-party companies.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Gantt Charts

The main advantage of using Gantt chart is making the project appear more comprehensible. There are instances that it is hard to grasp the meaning of documents that sets out a project. Creating a Gantt chart is a technique to provide a pictorial method of project management. The goal is to make complex things simpler and clearer for the people involved in the project. However, too much complexity of the chart produces information overload and people will feel pressured. Next, the size of the bar does not equate to the amount of work. More so, it needs to be updated regularly to catch up with the changes happening in the process. Lastly, it is difficult to see on a sheet of paper, and requires a lot of “cut and paste” and can be very time consuming.

Conclusion

Gantt chart is proven to be one of the most effective ways to represent a project. It makes the work of a manager easier and plays an important role to plan execution. It serves as a guide on how to accomplish the tasks at given set of time.it helps the people to completely understand the stages that they will go through before they can finish the project. There is graphical representation of how each project resource has been allocated and scheduled.  But, one of the drawbacks it could bring is it could be very complex if the project is too big. The chart may be difficult to read and comprehend. Most companies hire project managers to handle the various details of the project. The project management team should also be sensitive to the expectations and due dates.

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