Microsoft Office Project 2007 Advanced Tips

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Microsoft Office Project 2007 Advanced Tips
Tricks
Keith Wilson, Executive/Senior Consultant Project
Management Practice Inc.
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Microsoft Office Project 2007 Advanced Tips and
Tricks
Improved Business Results
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What is a project?

• A Temporary Endeavor
• Undertaken to Create
• a Unique
• Product or Service

PMBOK
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What makes a project fail?

• Project goals are not known or understood in
  specific and measurable terms
• Not enough detail in the project plans, leading
  to insufficient time allocated to achieve goals
  and inadequate budget and/or other resources
• No risk analysis
• Scope creep
• Lack of buy-in

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Failing to Plan is Planning to Fail

• The bottom line on failed projects
• 51 of all projects come in over budget or run
  past the original deadline
• 15 of projects fail altogether
• 55 billion wasted on failed projects in U.S.
  alone!

Can your business afford the cost of failed
projects?
Source The Standish Group, CHAOS Chronicles,
2003
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Why is Project Management Important?

• Align activities to achieve your organizational
  goals
• Clearly define project activities vs. daily
  ongoing tasks
• More adaptable to changes and customer demands
• More effective focus on deliverables
• Doing more with less more efficient resource
  utilization
• Produces faster response and turnaround times
• Provides a better approach on dealing with
  unique, temporary, and complex endeavors
• Better able to deal with scope, time, and
  resource constraints

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Constraints Operations Have to Live By
OfficeProject 2007
Managing your constraints
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Getting Started Get productive quickly

• How does the project start date affect the
  schedule?
• How do I adjust project options?
• How do I use change work time?
• How can the Project Guide help?
• How can I save time and ensure consistency across
  multiple projects?

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Demo Getting Started
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What We Discussed Getting Started

• Setting the project start date
• Adjusting project options
• Changing work time
• The Project Guide
• Using Templates

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PLAN Effectively Manage Understand Schedules

• How can I determine the factors that are
  affecting task dates and easily trace the source
  of issues?
• How do I leverage existing task lists from
  Microsoft Office Excel and Microsoft Office
  Outlook?
• How do I create a work break down structure?
• How do I manage multiple projects?
• How do I calculate the Critical Path?
• How do deadline dates affect the schedule?
• How do I share resources?
• How can I gain greater control of resources and
  finances?
• How do I resolve Resource Conflicts?
• How can I easily see the impacts of a change?

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Demo Plan
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What We Discussed PLAN Effectively Manage
Understand Schedules

• The factors that affect task dates
• Leveraging existing task lists from Microsoft
  Office Excel and Microsoft Office Outlook
• Review- Creating a work break down structure
• Managing multiple projects
• Calculating the Critical Path
• Deadline dates
• Sharing resources
• Control of resources and finances
• Resolving Resource Conflicts
• See the impacts of a change

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COMMUNICATE Build professionalcharts and
diagrams

• How do I experiment with what-if scenarios?
• How do I create custom columns with graphical
  indicators?
• How do I quickly access the information I need?
• How do I create and modify tables and views?
• How do I highlight cells to convey a different
  meaning?
• How do I analyze and report project data in
  professional reports and charts?

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Demo Communicate
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What We Discussed COMMUNICATE
Buildprofessional charts and diagrams

• What-if scenarios
• Creating custom columns with graphical indicators
• Accessing necessary information
• Creating and modifying tables and views
• Highlighting cells to convey a different meaning
• Analyze and report project data in professional
  reports and charts

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TRACK ANALYZE Effectively Track Analyze
Projects to Meet Goals

• How do I update tasks?
• How do I create or use baseline data
• How do I track projects according to specific
  needs?
• How do I easily identify the difference between
  versions of projects?

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Demo Track Analyze
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What We Discussed TRACK ANALYZE Effectively
Track Analyze Projects to Meet Goals

• Updating tasks
• Creating or using baseline data
• Tracking projects according to specific needs
• Identifying the difference between versions of
  projects

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What are the End Results?

• Set up plans quickly and easily
• Communicate more effectively to keep project
  stakeholdersinformed aligned
• Track analyze to stay on course and resolve
  problems

• Achieve Your Goals and Meet Challenges

• Define and understand project costs and compare
  with ROI goals
• Clearly understand the impact of change in scope,
  time and cost
• Easy to use tools to track progress and identify
  resolve problems early on
• Effectively manage project objectives and
  changing requirements to meet or exceed customer
  expectations

• Quickly develop effective timelines and determine
  if they are realistic
• Use templates or create phases tasks to adhere
  to standards
• Easily plan projects and identify constraints to
  obtain buy-in
• Access share the right information quickly to
  inform and align stakeholders
• Easily identify and communicate resource types
  and workload needs

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Summary
Communicate Project Data Effectively
Plan Projects Quickly
Efficiently Track Analyze Projects
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Questions AnswersKeith Wilsonkwilson_at_pmpracti
ce.comSean Creaghan [phone]screaghan_at_p
mpractice.com www.pmpractice.comhttp//www.pmp
ractice.com/tnt_form.htmFor a free copy
ofProject Management PowerPoint
Presentations,White Papers, and Microsoft Office
Project Templates
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Thank You!