(upbeat music)
- Do you find yourself wishing you could see your project
as it progresses over time?
Is it difficult to predict how much time
and effort it will take to complete your project tasks?
If your traditional vertical to-do list
doesn't give you the insight you need
to manage your project, a Gantt chart may be what you need.
We believe you can effectively manage projects
with the right tools in place
and a Gantt chart is one of them.
There are numerous advantages of using a Gantt chart in
project management from allocating resources
more effectively, to ensuring project tasks
are completed on time.
However many people don't know just how useful
and beneficial Gantt charts can be.
The purpose of a Gantt chart is to equip you
with the tools you need to oversee
every aspect of your project.
You can use a Gantt chart to schedule, assign
and track project tasks from kickoff to completion.
Its horizontal structure makes it easy
to see how work stacks up over time
so you can actively monitor progress along the way.
So why is a Gantt chart important in project management?
Because it puts the plan at the center of your project.
And when your plan's at the center everyone knows
what to expect and what it will take to deliver the project
on time and on budget.
To give you a clearer idea of why Gantt charts are useful,
we outline 10 benefits of Gantt charts
in project management.
Project managers have a basic need.
Complete knowledge of a project's timeline.
Using a Gantt chart is the best response to this need.
Creating a Gantt chart provides a total overview
of the project from start to finish,
the members involved in each step
and all the tasks required to complete the project.
Once your project's Gantt chart is complete,
you now have a grip on the project.
You can see it and visualize the steps to completion.
Communication is critical in project management
and that's one of the biggest advantages of Gantt charts.
Crystal clear project communication.
If everyone can see the project's Gantt chart,
then everyone can be on the same page
by setting clear task dates
and important project milestones.
Within a Gantt chart, you can delegate tasks
to different people and align team resources
without overloading people in the process.
When resources are properly managed,
a project is more likely to be completed on time.
Once you schedule your project in a Gantt chart,
you have the ability to check in
and see how the project is progressing.
Gantt charts are useful because everyone on your project
can update the percent complete of each of their tasks.
This provides a quick view of how far behind
or ahead of schedule your project is.
Once you have a plan and a Gantt chart
you can start working towards getting tasks done.
There's no need to stress about remembering the next steps,
who's doing what or what may have been forgotten.
Everything is in the Gantt chart.
You can now focus your precious time, effort and brain power
on actual work.
Members of a project can see when they need
to get their tasks done.
They can also see if future tasks depend on them.
When others see exactly what their role is in a project
and how others depend on them, it provides real motivation.
Good project managers use more carrots than sticks.
Nobody likes a micromanager, but in the world
of project management, it pays to know
what your team is up to.
Gantt charts help you do that.
A few simple clicks will show you how tasked up
a team member is, who has a lot of time on their hands
and who might need a few more carrots.
Visualizing this information in a heat map
helps project managers keep their team accountable
and provide some mentoring along the way.
A Gantt chart is much more than a glorified calendar.
One advantage of Gantt charts is that they provide
a whole suite of features that make you
a better project manager.
One of the best, the ability to reduce costs.
Wouldn't your client love it if you were able to tell them
we delivered your project under budget?
Personnel costs are often overlooked in project management.
Yet people are the most expensive and utilized factor
in any project.
The more you pay the people involved in the project,
the more the project's going to cost.
Luckily, Gantt charts can be a powerful budgeting tool.
For example, let's say you're managing
a software project that involves high level oversight
from a VP of development.
The VP's decision-making role involves
a considerable expenditure of his time resources.
In a conventional management model,
it would be impossible to visualize the economic impact
of the VP's involvement.
With a Gantt chart however, you can quickly spot
the expensive pitfalls of the project and plan accordingly.
When you as the project manager have total oversight
of the resources, timelines, dependencies
and start to finish visualization, magic happens.
A Gantt chart shows you management opportunities
to lower the overall cost of your project.
Have you ever looked at a map
and found a shortcut to where you are going?
You locate point A and point B
and then you spot away to get to your destination faster.
A Gantt chart is kind of like a map.
This map makes it easy to see those projects' shortcuts.
Simple changes can produce big results
like slashing a week or a month off a project.
Gantt charts don't just show you what needs to get done.
They also make it easy to prevent bottlenecks
and spot opportunities for efficiency.
As a project manager, it's your job to take stock
of your resources and apply them where they're needed most.
Dependencies give you a clear view of task priorities.
When you can clearly see who's available
and what needs to happen when ,you can schedule work
without creating log jams.
And because Gantt charts make the timeline visual,
it's easy to see where you can batch similar tasks
together to save time and find the quickest path to finish.
Some people think that productivity is the result
of insane drive and genius time management hacks,
and they're right, but that's not all.
In a team context, productivity is the result
of having the right systems software and processes in place.
Gantt charts are the ideal tool for teams
to amp up their productivity, allowing them to work together
seamlessly, efficiently and successfully.
Every tool has strengths and weaknesses and Gantt charts
are no different.
A common criticism of Gantt charts
is that they're too complex to build, read and update.
In fact, some people see Gantt charts as a waste of time
when you can simply make a list,
but modern Gantt chart software makes it a whole lot easier
to build and share detailed project plans
without getting lost in those details.
You'll find clean design that's easy on the eyes,
plus drag and drop scheduling that makes building
and adjusting timelines fast and painless.
And since everything happens online, your whole team
can update progress and collaborate on projects
in real time.
And that's it for this video
on the advantages of Gantt charts in project management.
I hope you found it helpful.
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I'll see you next time.