A Gantt chart is a type of bar chart because a Gantt chart shows graphical data that relate to a bar chart. There are 4 main types of Gantt charts. Gantt charts vary in complexity and application. Basic Gantt charts display tasks as bars over time. Advanced versions include features like resource allocation, task dependencies, and real-time progress tracking. Digital Gantt charts offer collaborative tools for simultaneous updates and viewing.
Research on Gantt ChartsSmith shows that Gantt charts simplify complex projects by breaking them into smaller tasks, enhancing clarity. Jones h finds that Gantt charts improve team coordination and communication with a clear visual timeline. Some critics argue that traditional Gantt charts may not capture real-time changes effectively. This is why it’s helpful to have a visual overview of a project schedule and know when each activity is completed and who is working on it.
Modern Gantt charts provide real-time updates and collaborative features. They track progress and manage workflows, adapting to project changes. You’ve come to the right place if you’ve always wanted to learn what Gantt charts are and how you can benefit from them. Before jumping straightaway to its benefits, let’s first understand what they are:
Essential Components of a Gantt Chart
Reading a Gantt chart comes down to understanding how the various elements combine to make the Gantt chart work. Gantt charts can seem complicated at first. But once you learn to read them, you can tell where your projects are and what needs to happen to guide them to success.
Task list
It is on the left of the Gantt chart and outlines project work in groups and subgroups. So, if in one major project, several sub-tasks must be done. A Gantt chart helps the project manager or team to see all the sub-tasks in a project, and there is no way someone forgets that a particular task should be done or has delayed it.
Due dates
The dates show when the project will start and end and when each job will take place. These are shown at the top of the graph. The dates are one of the most essential aspects of a Gantt chart since they show project managers.
Bars
Horizontal markers on the right side represent tasks and show progress, duration, and start/end dates. Bars represent the time frame in which each task should be performed after the subtasks have been stated. This ensures that each subtask is finished on time, ensuring the overall project is completed on time.
Milestones
Yellow diamonds that highlight significant events, dates, decisions, and deliverables. Finishing an achievement gives a feeling of achievement and progress. Unlike the minor things that must be completed, milestones are represented by different shapes or icons after each block on a Gantt chart. Milestones are tasks critical to a project’s completion and success.
Dependencies
Light gray lines connect tasks that must occur in a specific order. In an undertaking, a few errands and subtasks rely upon each other. For instance, one task must be completed before another can begin. Little bolts between the taskbars are by and large used to show these connections. Task dependencies represent this type of relationship on a Gantt chart.
Taskbars
The taskbars are shaded to represent the portion of each task performed previously, indicating progress. While many sub-tasks can be accomplished quickly, you will occasionally want to know how your project is progressing at a glance.
Track Progress
Indicates how much work has been completed, often shown by percent complete or shaded bars. This identification system has made the project easy to understand.
Resource Assigned
Identifies the person or team responsible for completing a task.
Task ID
The errand ID is remembered for the Gantt outline to help everybody in question promptly distinguish the assignment you’re talking about. In today’s hyperwork world, you probably have numerous tasks simultaneously.
Types of Gantt Chart and Dependencies
In project management, a Gantt chart is a type of bar chart. It presents a project schedule. Bar charts represent visually the project timeline, tasks management, project durations, and the dependencies between them. However, let’s see some
- Finish to Start (FS).
- Start to Start (SS).
- Finish to Finish (FF).
- Start to Finish (SF).
Finish to Start (FS)
FS dependencies are the most common and logical in a project’s dependency chart. It is the most popular type of Gantt chart. The first ending is indicated by an arrow to the right from start to finish. In other words, this type of Gantt chart is used where a task can only commence subsequent to it having been accomplished or done. Sometimes, tasks overlap, falling on FF, SS, and SF.
For example, Finish to start in project management means that task A must be finished before task B can be started. It is a characteristic that every ancestor undertaking will complete before its replacement task begins.
Start to Start (SS)
An SS relationship is when tasks need to be started in sequence but have no dependency on their completion. A Gantt chart with this type of task dependency shows that another group of tasks cannot begin until the first one has started. The arrow on this chart points from the starting point to the starting point, and the chart can have two times.
For example, you can start painting the door (task B) after putting the door in place (task A). In other words, task B cannot begin before task A starts.
Finish to Finish (FF)
Finish to Finish is another well-known type of Gantt chart tool. AFF dependency means that dependent task B can only be completed once task A is completed. For example, you will only pay the electrician (task B) once they have completed the assigned work (task A). In short, task B can only be finished once task A has finished.
Start to Finish (SF)
This type of dependency is rare in the project management domain. An ASF dependency means task B cannot be completed until task A starts. when a task can only be started once it has been completed. While the Gantt bar for SF-dependent tasks is similar to that of FF tasks, it does not have an arrow pointing from start to finish because there is no need to show when a task starts. It is relatively easy if you break it down into smaller jobs.
Popular Online Gantt Chart Tools
Gantt chart is used to plan high-level projects, project tracking, and manage a project by maintaining a good standard. However, let’s see some popular online Gantt chart tools that are widely used for project management like planning, tracking, managing, etc.
GanttChart.com
A free online Gantt chart tool with limited features. It’s suitable for essential project planning and tracking. It was developed in the 20th century but still, it is one of the best project management, planning, and project tracking tools.
GanttPRO
A user-friendly tool with a clean interface and customizable templates. It offers features like resource management, dependency tracking, and progress tracking.
Smartsheet
A versatile project management platform that includes a Gantt chart feature. It also consists of collaboration tools, task management, and report generation.
Asana
One of the most well-known and used applications for the management of tasks and, among them, work timelines in the form of Gantt charts. It enables teaming, workload assignment and organization, and monitoring of performance.
Monday. Com
A project management system that is integrated to allow it to be tailored according to the project with a Gantt chart. It gives the automation feature, the connections with other apps, and the possibility to track the changes in time.
ProjectManager. Com
An application that includes a schedule diagram ingredient on it. It has features that allow for managing resources, tracking time, and even preparing reports.
TeamGantt
A Gantt chart that is unique to its purpose compared to other software designed for requirement and simplicity. It has functionality as essential as creating tasks, defining dependencies, and tracking the progress of the flowchart.
History of Gantt Charts
The origin of the Gantt chart is with Henry Gantt and Jermani. Karol Adamiecki developed the Harmonograph in the late 1800s to enhance production schedules, but it was published in Polish and Russian only. In 1910, Henry Lawrence Gantt, a management consultant, developed a similar tool to portray work schedules for managers.
Observing the fact, the Gantt has been advanced and made famous as the Gantt chart. Henry Gantt has been accredited with the creation of the Gantt chart. Gantt charts from the internet complement current project management through streamlining in scheduling of tasks and tracking them. Due to the need for better planning and organization of tasks in projects, Petro Stefani and his team used the idea of Gantt charts, and the lack of practical tools, the application of such charts became widespread in different fields of human activity.
To this day, they continue to be the essential component of project management software tools, allowing users to plan and oversee projects with contingencies such as interrelated tasks and their due dates.
Why are Gantt Charts Helpful?
What is essential for the managers is the Gantt charts help with simplifying the planning process. Gantt charts have a timeline perspective, which is helpful in scheduling and planning activities. They enable one to determine the time a project will take, the resources needed, and the relations between activities and their order. They refresh as the project progresses, ensuring all teams, clients, and stakeholders are posted. Thus, Gantt charts eliminate or minimize the number of meetings as they offer outcome progress and issues tracking indicators.
Advanced Features to Look for in a Modern Gantt Chart
Modern Gantt charts include task dependencies, critical path tracking, and resource allocation to improve project management. Real-time collaboration, custom views, and progress tracking simplify communication and monitoring. Milestones mark key phases, tool integration enhances functionality, and baseline comparisons highlight deviations. Mobile access allows teams to manage tasks efficiently and stay on top of deadlines from any location.
- Team collaboration
- Numerous venture sites including Kanban sheets, task records, and schedule sees
- Reporting
- Time tracking and hourly estimates
- Workload management
- Mobile access
- Integration
Gantt Chart Best Practices
To create effective Gantt charts, use clear task descriptions, estimate time realistically, and ensure consistent measurements. Track task dependencies, allocate resources appropriately, and regularly update the chart. Enhance clarity with visual cues and use technology for efficient management. By following these practices, you can effectively plan, track, and manage your projects.
How To Make a Gantt Chart
To make a Gantt chart project the project charts can be developed using a project management tool or a spreadsheet application such as Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.
Planning To Create a Gantt Chart
- List of tasks
- Start and end dates for each task
- Task dependencies
- Task owners
- Team members allocated to each task
Create a Task List: List all project tasks and estimate their duration, resources, and dependencies.
Allocate Resources: Use the estimates to allocate resources and be ready to adjust as the project evolves.
Develop Gantt Chart: Input tasks with start and end dates into a Gantt chart, adding details like dependencies and resources.
Create a Gantt Chart in Excel
To give you a Gantt chart in Excel, start using your statistics in the Excel sheet in the form of a table with the columns Task Name, Start Date, Durations, and End Date. Input every project with its start date and period. Highlight the data, click the Insert tab, and choose a Stacked Bar Chart.
Right-click the chart, select Select Data, and add series for Start Date and Duration. Adjust the Horizontal Axis to display tasks. Change bar colors, format the X-axis to show dates clearly, and remove extra elements like the legend or grid lines for a cleaner look.
Gantt Chart Software
Gantt charts are essential for project scheduling and are available in most project management software. Desktop Gantt chart tools allow updates only by the user, requiring manual sharing of changes. Online Gantt chart software offers automatic updates and easy sharing with stakeholders. When selecting Gantt chart software, ensure it supports
- Defining and updating milestones
- Linking tasks with dependencies
- Collaborating on a dynamic plan
- Sharing files (text, images, videos, notes)
- Monitoring task progress against plans
Conclusion
A Gantt chart is a type of bar chart that illustrates a project schedule. Since you’ve read a lot about Gantt charts, you must have understood their importance by now. ProofHub is a great starting point if you still have some concerns. ProofHub Gantt chart software helps you schedule projects, track progress on tasks, set task dependencies, and manage resources effectively. Apart from these great features, it also integrates other project management features.
Frequently Asked Question
Can Gantt Charts be Used for Agile Project Management?
Gantt charts can be adapted to agile methodologies because they incorporate iterative planning and flexible timelines. Indeed, the Gantt chart is related to waterfall project management. So, the Gantt chart can easily cooperate Agile project management system.
Gantt Charts are First Used in Which Phase?
Gantt charts are first used in the planning phase of a project. Indeed traditional Gantt charts are more reliable and useful in the project planning phase. It is the best tool for tracking a project with a big team and large stockholders.
What do Gantt Charts and PERT Charts have in Common?
Gantt charts and PERT charts are two project management methods that can present and schedule project timelines. Indeed, both show data with different styles and different project management methodologies but they have more similarities like time management, project management, project progress tracking, etc.
