Looking at the Big Picture
After you create a first draft of a project, it is a good idea to carefully review all project, task, resource, and assignment information. After Project calculates the schedule and costs of the project, you need to step back from the details and look at the big picture. Does it make sense? How successfully has the project plan met the overall objectives? Is the project going to finish on time? Are costs within budget?
Often, the first draft of a project includes missed deadlines, costs that have exceeded the project budget, and other inconsistencies. After Project has calculated the schedule, a task’s finish date might now be scheduled five days after an internally imposed deadline, and the total cost for the project might be in excess of $5,000 over the contractually approved budget.
This chapter describes tools for evaluating the overall project against the objectives laid forth in the project defining and planning processes. Microsoft Project offers many tools to make this evaluation easy. The following are some of the things you can do to review a project plan:
Review the overall picture of the project, by viewing the project in a variety of ways.
Review tasks, resources, and assignments through the use of tables, filters, groups, and sorting, to focus on those that need special attention.
Review the critical path to pinpoint tasks where duration might be able to be reduced to meet internal and contractual deadlines.
Review project costs and strategies for reducing costs where current estimates have exceeded budgetary limitations.
Compare a rough draft with a final draft, to evaluate final changes to the plan.
Ensure accuracy by spell-checking the plan, and then distribute the plan via e-mail or printed reports.
You might feel overwhelmed by the multitude of details in a large project. From time to time, you might need to step back and look at the overall project, to keep a global perspective. You can begin by reviewing Project statistics to compare values against project objectives. You can then compress the timescale to review the project from a macro perspective, and collapse the task outline to view major phases of the project.
Reviewing Project-Level Statistics
 | After you have defined project, task, resource, and assignment information, you can use the Project Statistics dialog box, shown in Figure 12.1, to view currently estimated start and finish dates, as well as duration, work, and cost values. To display the Project Statistics dialog box, click the Project Statistics button on the Tracking toolbar or in the Project Information dialog box. |
Figure 12.1. You can use the Project Statistics dialog box to review project summary information. After you start work on the project and enter tracking information, the Actual Start, Start and Finish Date Variance, Actual and Remaining Duration, Work, and Cost values are also displayed.
NOTE
Notice that all the baseline information in Figure 12.1 appears as NA. Chapter 14, “Tracking Work on a Project,” describes how to capture and update the project baseline, which causes these fields to be populated.
→ To establish a baseline for a project, see “Working with Project Baselines,” p. 530.
Compressing the Timescale
 | You can usually gain an overview of the flow of activity in a project by viewing the Gantt Chart view with the timescale compressed. In Figure 12.2, for example, a project is displayed with the timescale compressed to show years in the top tier, months in the middle tier, and weeks in the bottom tier. This three-tier timescale is a new Project 2002 feature. (For clarity, a custom Gantt Chart view is displayed, in which resource names and dependency arrows have been removed from the Gantt chart bars). |
Figure 12.2. You can compress the timescale to get an overall view of the time dimension of a project.
→ To learn more about ways you can alter the appearance of views, see “Customizing Views, Tables, Fields, Filters, and Groups,” p. 835.
TIP
Collapsing the Task List Outline
 | The compressed timescale might be more meaningful if you also collapse the task outline. In Figure 12.3 the task list is collapsed to show Outline Level 1 of the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). This view provides an overview of the major phases of the project. You can collapse or expand the outline to any of the first nine levels by clicking Show on the Formatting toolbar. |
Figure 12.3. You can hide the subtasks in an outlined project to focus on the major phases of the project.
 | To collapse the outline to the first level, activate a pane that displays a task list table (for example, the Gantt Chart view), and then Click the Show button on the Formatting toolbar and choose Outline Level 1 from the list that appears. |
Using Custom WBS Code Formats
It is also important to analyze the Work Breakdown Structure to ensure that the project contains the proper level of detail. WBS codes in Project are calculated for each task, or you can manually enter them if corporate methodologies call for custom codes. The WBS format allows numbers, letters, and characters, and it can be very useful when you’re reviewing tasks based on custom codes to verify structure levels.
To see the WBS codes that are currently being used in a project, temporarily insert the WBS field in a task table that’s part of a task view, such as the Entry table in the Gantt Chart view. You can create custom WBS codes by selecting the Project, WBS, Define Code to designate the WBS format.
→ To learn how to create and use custom WBS code formats, see “Creating Custom WBS Codes,” p. 169.
Using Custom Outline Codes
There might also be internal codes that would help you to ensure that the structure of your plan is correct. When you need to apply a custom code to a task or resource, such as an internal accounting code or a predesignated organizational code, you use the Outline Code fields instead of Project’s WBS field. Ten Outline Code fields are available for use. These fields enable you to apply your own codes to tasks or resources.
The Outline Code fields provide a drop-down list from which users can look up authorized codes. By limiting users to the codes that are on the list, you prevent errors that inadvertently arise when codes are manually typed in.
You can also change the displayed field name to reflect the actual name you want to use for the code.
→ To learn how to alter properties of Outline Code fields, see “Customizing Fields,” p. 848.
Filtering the Task or Resource List
When reviewing the content and structure of a plan, you might want to filter the task and/or resource information. When you filter the task list, you impose conditions that must be met in order to display a task. All the tasks that meet the conditions are displayed and are known as filtered tasks, and all tasks that fail to meet the conditions are not displayed. You can apply filters, for example, to display critical tasks or milestones as shown in Figure 12.4.
Figure 12.4. A filtered task list that shows only milestones lets you focus solely on important completion dates.
You can also use a highlight filter, which displays all the tasks, whether they meet the conditions or not. The names of the tasks that meet the conditions are shown in blue, and the names of the tasks that do not meet the filter conditions are shown in black (see Figure 12.5). You can use the Text Styles dialog box (which you open by selecting Format, Text Styles) to alter the color of highlighted tasks. You can also use filters in resource views to display specific resources.
Figure 12.5. Having filtered tasks appear highlighted makes them stand out in the display.
NOTE
The summary tasks for filtered tasks are displayed based on a setting in the Filter Definition dialog box. If you don’t want to display summary tasks for a particular filter, you can create a new filter by choosing Project, Filtered For, More Filters. Select the filter and then click the Copy button to create a new filter. Give the new filter a name, edit the filter properties if necessary, and clear the Show Related Summary Rows check box.
Microsoft Project provides many predefined filters, and a few of them are interactive. A standard filter displays values that meet filter conditions immediately, and interactive filters prompt the user for values against which to apply conditions. The Date Range filter, for example, prompts you for two date values: the beginning and ending dates for the range. Project then displays all tasks whose schedule includes dates that fall within the user-defined dates.
Table 12.1 lists the predefined Project filters for reviewing a project.
TIP
The Summary Tasks filter is not usually a good substitute for collapsing the outline, as described earlier in this chapter. The Summary Tasks filter shows only summary tasks, but all summary levels in the outline are displayed. Furthermore, if any first-level task in the outline is not a summary task, the task is not included in the filtered list of tasks. If you want to focus only on the tasks up to a certain level in the outline, collapsing the entire outline to that level of tasks is a preferred method.
When you finish using a filter, you can remove it by pressing F3 or by applying the All Tasks filter.
CAUTION
If you edit tasks or resources while a filter is applied, you might change an element of a task or resource that affects whether the task meets the filter conditions. You must then reapply the filter to make the filtered display accurate. For example, suppose you apply the Tasks with Deadlines filter to display only the tasks that have deadlines. If you then, remove the deadline on one of the tasks, the filter does not automatically refresh and remove that task from the filtered list. You can use Ctrl+F3 to reapply (refresh) the current filter.
One of the most useful filters is the Tasks with Fixed Dates filter. You use this filter to identify all tasks that have constrained dates. Users often inadvertently place constraints on tasks and then don’t understand why Project doesn’t recalculate start and finish dates as expected. The Tasks with Fixed Dates filter allows you to review the tasks and be certain that the constraints are in fact necessary.
→ To better understand how Project defines constraints, see “Working with Task Constraints,” p. 207.
→ To learn more about Project’s built-in filters, see “Exploring the Standard Filters,” p. 768.
 | Project includes filters to view the broad scope of the project (the Summary filter) and the specific deliverables of the project (the Milestones filter), but it has no filter to display just the detail tasks or subtasks. However, it is easy to create one. You simply create a filter that excludes both summary and milestone tasks (set Summary = no and Milestone = no) within the same filter definition. Only the subtasks remain in this filtered view, which allows the user to view only the specific detailed work of the project. It is at this level that activities are linked and resources are assigned. |
Sorting and Grouping Project Data
You can reorganize a list of tasks or resources in a project to better visualize certain aspects by sorting or grouping data. Sorting involves reorganizing the rows of information. You can design a sort that uses up to three fields to sort by. For example, by using a single-field sort, you could order the resource list by resource name (the Name field) to come up with an alphabetical list of resources. Or, you could use a multifield sort to order the resource list first by group, to display everyone from a particular department together, and then by name.
Grouping, on the other hand, can both sort and summarize a list of tasks or resources. With this powerful feature, you can designate the groups you want to create. For example, you can group a task list by critical and noncritical tasks and then group the list by resource group, as shown in Figure 12.6. The critical tasks are listed first, grouped by resource group. You simply scroll to see the noncritical tasks and the resource groups associated with those tasks.
Figure 12.6. The grouping feature allows you to select from several formatting options to alter the appearance of grouped data.
Sorting Task and Resource Lists
When you sort an outlined project, you can retain or ignore the outline structure. If you retain the outline structure, all tasks at Outline Level 1 are sorted (carrying their subtasks with them); then, within each summary task, all subtasks at the next outline level are sorted (carrying their subtasks with them), and so forth. If you choose not to keep the outline structure, subtask groups are broken up and dispersed throughout the task list independently of their summary tasks. If you do not keep the outline structure, you probably want to suppress the display of summary tasks and the indentation of subtasks.
To sort tasks or resources, choose Project, Sort, Sort By to access the Sort dialog box (see Figure 12.7).
NOTE
You need to keep in mind a number of issues related to sorting:
If you choose to ignore the outline structure during sorting, you cannot permanently renumber the tasks to match the new sort order—that would restructure the outline.
If the Permanently Renumber Tasks (or Resources) option at the bottom of the Sort dialog box option was selected the last time the Sort command was used, it will be used when you sort by selecting from the short list of fields, and the original ID numbers for each task or resource will be lost. Unless you immediately undo the renumbering, you will not be able to return the list to its original order.
You can undo the renumbering if you act immediately. To do so, choose Edit, Undo Sort. If you don’t undo the sort immediately, you can close the file without saving and then open it again. However, any changes you made to the file that have not been saved are then lost. This is why it is suggested that you always save a project file before performing any kind of sort.
If the task list is filtered when you sort or if some tasks are hidden because the outline is collapsed, the suppressed tasks remain suppressed and are not displayed after sorting.
Some of the most commonly used fields for sorting appear in a short list when you choose Project, Sort. Although you can select a field from this list when you want to sort on only that one field (the list will be sorted in ascending order), it is usually best to use the Sort By command.
Some of the names that appear above the columns of information in a view are slightly different from the actual field names that Project uses. For example, the Task Name field displayed in the Gantt Chart view or Task Sheet view is the Name field in the Sort drop-down list. Another example can be found in the Resource Sheet view, where the Resource Group field is actually the Group field. The rationale for using slightly different names is to provide the user with more descriptive names when he or she is viewing the data.
→ To learn more about sorting resources, see “Sorting Resources,” p. 319.
If you are sorting a list of tasks, you might want to hide the display of summary tasks and remove the indentation from the display of subtasks. To do so, follow these steps:
1. |
Choose Tools, Options. The Options dialog box appears. |
2. |
Click the View tab on the Options dialog box. |
3. |
Uncheck the check bo XEs Show Summary Tasks and Indent Name. |
4. |
Click OK to close the Options dialog box. |
If you edit a list that has been sorted, the list doesn’t automatically re-sort based on your changes. You might want to sort the modified list again, to take into account the values that have changed, as the changes might affect the sort order. To sort the list again, using the current sort keys, press Ctrl+Shift+F3 or activate the Sort dialog box again. The sort keys are still defined as you last set them, and you can simply click the Sort button in the sort dialog box again.
To reset the list to normal order (by ID number), press Shift+F3 or access the Sort dialog box and click the Reset button and then the Sort button.
There might be times when you want to permanently renumber a list after it has been sorted. You most frequently do this with resource lists, and almost never with task lists. To permanently renumber a list, follow these steps:
1. |
In the Sort dialog box, set up the sort criteria. If you are renumbering a task list, double-check that the Keep Outline Structure check box is selected. You cannot renumber tasks unless Keep Outline Structure is turned on. |
2. |
Choose the Permanently Renumber Tasks check box for tasks or the Permanently Renumber Resources check box for resources. |
3. |
Grouping the Task and Resource Lists
Grouping lets you reorder and summarize a task or resource list to better assess your project. When you organize the list into groups, the individual data for each item in that group is rolled up into totals for the entire group. Grouping project data is an excellent way to generate summary information that would otherwise be difficult to ascertain.
 | Microsoft Project contains several predefined groups. To apply a predefined group to a task sheet or resource sheet, click the Group By tool on the Standard toolbar and select a group. Some of the most useful groups for reviewing a project are shown in Tables 12.2 and 12.3. |
Customizing Groups
In addition to using the predefined groups, you can customize existing groups or create new groups. There are two ways to customize existing groups:
Use the Customize Group By Option— If you have applied a group to data and then want to customize the active group, you use the Project, Group By, Customize Group By option. This displays the Customize Group By dialog box, which shows the specific settings for the active group (see Figure 12.8). In this dialog box you can specify Field Name, Sort Order, Text Font and Color, Background Color and Pattern, and (where applicable) Group Intervals.
If you alter a predefined group, the changes you make are temporary. To retain the changes, you must save the revised group under a different name. Click the Save button in the Customize Group By dialog box to save the group.
CAUTION
Clicking the Reset button in the Customize Group By dialog box removes all the settings in the dialog box; it does not restore the original settings to the group.
Edit an Existing Predefined Group— If you have not applied a group to the data (or you want to alter a group other than the active group), you can select Project, Group By, More Groups. This displays the More Groups dialog box, from which you can select a group and click Edit. A dialog box that is virtually identical to the one shown in Figure 12.8 appears, and in it you can permanently edit the settings for an existing predefined group. It is recommended, however, that you create a new group as opposed to editing predefined groups.
Some fields that you can group on allow you to designate intervals, or ranges, for the group. For example, the Complete and Incomplete Resources group (which uses the % Work Complete field) has only three intervals: 0, 1–99, and 100. If you want to expand the number of intervals, click the Define Group Intervals button (refer to Figure 12.8) to display the Define Group Interval dialog box, which is shown in Figure 12.9.
Figure 12.9. You can use commas to separate the intervals in the Define Group Interval dialog box.
Other fields that allow you to designate intervals are Cost fields, Integer fields, Duration fields, Work fields, Date fields, and Text fields.
Creating New Groups— You can also create your own custom groups to sort and summarize project information, leaving the original default groups available for future use. To create a group to meet your specific needs, select Project, Group By, More Groups, New.
NOTE
Like many other custom project items, new groups you create are attached only to the active project. If you want to use a custom group in another project file, you can copy the group to the other project through the Organizer. If you want to make it available to all project files, you can use the Organizer to copy the group to the Global template file. Refer to Chapter 4, “Managing Project Files,” for more information on using the Organizer and the Global template.
To delete a custom group, you must use the Organizer.
→ To learn more about custom groups, see “Creating Custom Groups,” p. 869.
→ For information on copying custom groups to other project files, see “Working with the Organizer and the Global File,” p. 110.
→ To make sure any custom items you create in a project will be available in all your other projects, see “Working with the Organizer and the Global File,” p. 110.
 | You can print a view to which a group has been applied just as you would print any view. Start by selecting File, Print Preview (or by clicking the Print Preview button on the Standard toolbar). |
→ To learn about the printing options you have access to, see “Printing the Project Task List,” p. 175.