Lessons Learned with Microsoft Project (Part 4)

Dr. Andrew Makar is an IT program manager and is the author of the Microsoft Project Made Easy series. For more project management advice, visit the website TacticalProjectManagement.com.

  Lessons Learned  

Lesson Learned #4:  Use Project and Team Resource Calendars.

How often have you reviewed the project plan and found a task was planned to be complete this week, but it won't because the assigned resource went on vacation? Does your project have out-of-town consultants that work Monday through Thursday 10 hours a day and fly home on Friday?

When building the project schedule, it is important to include all company holidays, team members' vacation and work schedules into the project plan. Schedule variances unintentionally occur when company holiday or team member work schedules are not incorporated into the project schedule. This is a common planning error that can be easily overlooked.

During the planning phase, identify all the planned company holidays and any other non-work days (company picnic, off-sites, etc). Ask your team members to submit their vacation schedules for the next few months. It is unlikely all team members will know their yearly vacation schedule, but identifying potential absences is important in building the project schedule. Just before baselining the project plan, confirm the work schedules with your team members to ensure their vacations will not adversely impact the project schedule.

MS-Project supports project, task and team resource calendars. The tool adjusts the overall project schedule …

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