Chapter 13
On the Right Track
In This Chapter
Using tracking tools
Recording actual activity on tasks
Specifying percentage of work complete
Updating fixed costs
Using Update Project to make big-picture changes
Moving a task
Consolidating multiple projects
After a project moves out of the planning stage and into action, it’s like a constantly changing game in which there are rules, goals, and a general time frame, but no one really knows which team will win (and sometimes where the ball is) until it’s over.
Whether a task happens as planned or wanders off in an unexpected direction, your job at this stage of the game is to record that activity, an activity referred to as tracking.
Tracking starts when your team reports their activity on the project. Then you (or someone else assigned to deal with tracking) must manage inputting that activity task by task.
When you track activity, you’ll be amazed at what data Project returns to you. Some of it will be good news and some bad, but all of it is useful in managing your project throughout its lifetime.
Gathering Your Data
The first step in tracking progress on your project is to get information about what’s been going on. The amount of data you collect will be determined by what you need to track and at what level of detail. For example, some people don’t even create and assign resources to tasks because they use Project only to create a timeline for their activities, not to manage resource time or tally costs. Others use resources ...
