Project scheduling tools
Project scheduling tools are usually used to manage Gantt Charts, as a small change to the timeline for one task can affect the timing of many other tasks in the Chart, making it difficult to update and maintain manually.
Dependencies
Scheduling software can also show relationships between tasks, such as tasks that must be completed before a particular task can be started. These relationships are called dependencies.
There are four types of dependencies:
• Start-to-Start, where a task cannot start until the linked task has started.
• Start-to-Finish, where a task cannot start until the linked task has finished. This is the most common type of dependency.
• Finish-to-Start, where a task cannot finish until the linked task has started.
• Finish-to-Finish, where a task cannot finish until the linked task has finished.
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Gantt chart is a graphical representation of the duration of tasks against the progression of time.
Henry Laurence Gantt (1861-1919) was a mechanical engineer, management consultant and industry advisor. Henry Laurence Gantt developed Gantt charts in the second decade of the 20th century. Gantt charts were used as a visual tool to show scheduled and actual progress of projects. Accepted as a commonplace project management tool today, it was an innovation of world-wide importance in the 1920s. Gantt charts were used on large construction projects like the Hoover Dam started in 1931 and the interstate highway network started in 1956.
Henry Gantts contribution to the management process is honored today through the The Henry Laurence Gantt Medal. The award established in 1929 is given for distinguished achievement in management and for service to the community.
Gantt charts are useful tools for planning and scheduling projects. Gantt Chart allows you to assess how long a project should take to see how remedial action may bring the project back on course, lay out the order in which tasks need to be carried out, help manage the dependencies between tasks, determine the resources needed, monitor progress. You can immediately see what should have been achieved at a point in time.