Managing dependcies when using Multiple Projects

[Dave Barr]

I am program manager for a technical project where there are project
schedules for different groups (engineering, test, support, marketing etc).
I want to find the best way to get a single project where I can have
dependencies that are shared between each of the groups. I also want the
individual groups to be able to update their task lists.

Currently the 2 ways I can see to do this are:

1) Have a single schedule where I copy paste each groups tasks into and
indent. Then whenever they want to make changes to their schedules they
would edit the overall project file
2) Have a master schedule with individual schedules inserted. Then have the
groups update their individual schedules and have that roll into the master
schedule.

Option 2 sounds like the best way to do this as I like having the ability to
have individual schedules managed by the group leads. But I am having
difficulties finding the best way to manage dependencies between the
schedules. Ideally I'd like to open the master schedule and simply put a
dependency in one of the expanded inserted projects that relates to a task
in another expanded inserted project using the task number in the master
schedule but that doesn't work because when you open up the individually
inserted schedule it has it's own task numbers and not those in line with
the master schedule.

The only other way I can think to do this is to manually insert external
dependencies between each indivudual schedule by opening the schedule,
locating it's task number and then inserting the projname\taskid in the
other schedule. But I think this will be time consuming and prone to errors.

Does anybody out there know of a better way to do this?

Thanks for any help,

Dave

 

[John]

I am program manager for a technical project where there are project
schedules for different groups (engineering, test, support, marketing etc).
I want to find the best way to get a single project where I can have
dependencies that are shared between each of the groups. I also want the
individual groups to be able to update their task lists.

Currently the 2 ways I can see to do this are:

1) Have a single schedule where I copy paste each groups tasks into and
indent. Then whenever they want to make changes to their schedules they
would edit the overall project file
2) Have a master schedule with individual schedules inserted. Then have the
groups update their individual schedules and have that roll into the master
schedule.

Option 2 sounds like the best way to do this as I like having the ability to
have individual schedules managed by the group leads. But I am having
difficulties finding the best way to manage dependencies between the
schedules. Ideally I'd like to open the master schedule and simply put a
dependency in one of the expanded inserted projects that relates to a task
in another expanded inserted project using the task number in the master
schedule but that doesn't work because when you open up the individually
inserted schedule it has it's own task numbers and not those in line with
the master schedule.

The only other way I can think to do this is to manually insert external
dependencies between each indivudual schedule by opening the schedule,
locating it's task number and then inserting the projname\taskid in the
other schedule. But I think this will be time consuming and prone to errors.

Does anybody out there know of a better way to do this?

Thanks for any help,

Dave

Dave,
I agree that option 2, a master with inserted projects, is the better
approach. From your post it sounds like you are trying to use standard
Predecessor linkages between subprojects in the master file and those
don't work as you found out. But there is a method that will work.

First a little information about master files. When individual projects
are inserted into a master as subprojects, the subproject files
themselves are not physically inserted into the master. Rather, the
master contains a pointer to each individual subproject and what you see
as the master is simply a view showing the elements of the master. That
is why the Task IDs in the master are not contiguous. Tasks that
actually belong to the master are in sequence but each subproject shows
its own Task ID sequence.

So what's the solution? Use external predecessors between subprojects.
There are various ways to set up external predecessors. Check the help
file and use the method that works best for you. In simple terms,
external links are displayed in the normal Predecessor and Successor
fields but with the full path to the linked subproject, including the
Task ID in the subproject file.

Whether you open the master or one of the individual subprojects,
external links will be readily evident by full path designations for
predecessors. You can also visually show externally linked tasks as
"ghost" tasks in the file by going to Tools/Options View tab and
checking the option to show external predecessors and successors. Note
that this setting is stored with the file (i.e. it is not a global
setting).

Hope this helps.
John
Project MVP

 

[Dave Barr]

Hi John

Thanks for the help. I have gone back to my base files and inserted external
dependencies which is painful but appears to work.

Dave

 

[John]

Hi John

Thanks for the help. I have gone back to my base files and inserted external
dependencies which is painful but appears to work.

Dave

Dave,
I'm not sure why you say it was painful. That almost sounds like you
manually entered the full path for each external link. If that is the
method you used there are much easier ways. The method I have used is to
set the view to display both the source and destination tasks so they
appear on the same screen (a filter can be used if the tasks are many
lines apart). Then click and hold your mouse on the center of the source
Gantt bar and drag to the center of the destination Gantt bar. The link
will be made automatically including the path if appropriate.

John

 

[Dave Barr]

Hi John

I just tried that and it also worked also. I also found an easier way after
sending the initial request to you. In my master schedule with all inserted
projects I can add a dependency to an inserted project just by referring to
it by name and not by the full path

I did this and it was eas

Thanks again (and look out for my next post entitled Filtering on late
milestones')