gantt chart for market research

7 Gantt Chart Examples You'll Want to Copy [+ 5 Steps to Make One]

Published: June 26, 2024

Gantt charts. Love ‘em, hate ‘em, or can’t live without ‘em, they’re a reality of a marketer’s life. But how do you make yours stand out from the rest?

Below, you’ll see some of the best examples around, along with some free templates to get you started. Dive in below and find your favorite

Table of Contents

• What is a Gantt chart?

How to Use HubSpot’s Gantt Chart Template

Components of a gantt chart, benefits of using a gantt chart, how to make a gantt chart, examples of gantt charts, what is a gantt chart.

Gantt charts are project management tools that help marketers visualize project timelines, progress, and deliverables. Visual lines or bars clearly display which tasks are completed and what’s to come, allowing managers to allocate time and responsibility accordingly.

The basic principle of a Gantt chart is that it charts projects against time.

Like most charts, it has horizontal and vertical axes. The tasks or projects you want to complete are usually on the vertical axis. The timeline to complete these projects or tasks is usually on the horizontal axis.

Gantt charts also have horizontal bars that represent progress with each task or project. The length of the bars represents your progress with each task.

Free Gantt Chart Template

This Gantt chart template makes it easy to...

• Outline your project.
• Highlight key stages.
• Set due dates.

A Gantt chart‘s primary goal is to track a project’s timeline and completion. It’s beneficial for project managers (PMs) who must keep team momentum on campaigns with many moving parts, like product launches or marketing events.

Here are some additional benefits of using Gantt charts:

• Visual tracking gives an overarching view of projects and their timelines, helping the directly responsible individuals (DRIs) understand progress and assign responsibility accordingly.
• Clear project timelines aid with resource planning, as you'll know which tasks require which tools and exactly when DRIs will need those tools.
• Visual understanding of which project elements rely on each other for completion so PMs can inform responsible individuals of high-priority tasks.
• Increased transparency, as all parties are aware of expectations and how individual progress impacts team progress.
• Update project name and start date.
• Configure the Gantt chart.
• Review project scope.
• Identify key tasks and milestones.
• Estimate task dates.

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This Gantt chart template makes it easy to outline your project's key stages, deliverables, and dates.

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How to use a Gantt chart for a research project

Using a Gantt chart for a research project can give all stakeholders a better understanding of timelines and the resources needed for each task.  With all project activities neatly laid out within a timeline and every minor detail accounted for, a Gantt chart provides your team with the framework for successful project operations.

In this article, we’ll discuss a Gantt chart and how you can use it in a research project to maximize efficiency and promote greater transparency. We’ll also share how you can use monday.com’s project management Work OS to simplify the management of any research project further.

What is a Gantt chart?

A Gantt chart is a bar chart popularized in the early 1900s by Henry Gantt. It lets you establish a detailed project plan according to when you need each task completed.

If done correctly, a Gantt chart creates a realistic time frame for a project by establishing a start date for the whole project and each task. Then, you can pair these start dates with an estimation of how long the task will take, broken down by days, weeks, or months.

What makes a Gantt chart unique is that it establishes dependency relationships between all relevant tasks, which can help you better understand necessary workflows.

For example, let’s say you’re creating a research proposal. One of your tasks is to promote awareness and garner support for the proposal on social media. However, before you can do that, you need to create informational materials you can distribute and have the proposal outline ready for viewing. Since these necessities are clearly outlined in the Gantt chart, you can plan your project timeline accordingly.

How can you use a Gantt for research projects?

Research projects are vast undertakings that require a lot of your time, effort, and brain power. Sometimes it’s easy to get sidetracked or confused about what comes next in your research or how you should put it together.

A clear understanding of objectives and deadlines can help you organize even the most complex research project undertakings. Even better, a Gantt chart provides clear step-by-step instructions with dependency relationships marked to ensure every team member understands their responsibilities.

A Gantt chart ensures all research project team members clearly understand objectives, deadlines, and task dependency relationships.

Best practices for planning and scheduling a research project

Understanding the best practices for planning and scheduling a research project can help you get the most out of your Gantt chart . A few best practices include:

• Have a clear goal : Before sitting down to plan your research project, ask yourself some crucial questions. What are you trying to achieve? Why are you trying to achieve it? When do you need to complete it?
• Use scheduling tools : Use task and resource scheduling tools when possible to reduce the risk of human error.
• Get the team involved :  Gather your team together for a brainstorming session, if possible, when developing a list of tasks required to meet your final objective.
• Consider dependency relationships :  Consider the dependency relationships between objectives carefully and be realistic about time frames. Ensuring your team has enough time to successfully and thoroughly complete each task from the beginning sets your research project up for success.
• Identify potential issues : Identify risks and potential roadblocks in your schedule and have a backup plan for each to ensure a steady workflow with minimal pushbacks.
• Consider resource requirements : Consider the resources necessary to complete each task. Remember to include work hours as resources and schedule each team member appropriately to achieve objectives in the desired time frame.
• Plan for reporting : Assign specific times, or interval periods, for progress reports and compare these with your initial estimations. If these reports show alterations are necessary, don’t be afraid to make changes.
• Identify KPIs :  Before the research project begins, identify key performance metrics and track them as you go to define your success clearly. You may find using a relevant tool or platform the easiest way to track performance metrics.

Having the right Gantt chart tools can increase efficiency, decrease downtime, and ensure objective deadlines are not only met but exceeded.

Managing research projects on monday.com

monday.com’s robust project management Work OS makes managing research projects easier by:

• Centralizing projects from start to finish : Our Work OS lets you centralize all projects from conception to completion, with customizable dashboards that show you the information you deem most important. Quickly assess risks, bottlenecks, and roadblocks to keep your research project moving forward.
• Streamlining project workflows : Streamline workflows by automating routine tasks and assigning teammates to the work they’re most qualified for. Then, track individual and project-wide progress in real-time with regular task updates. Use color coding to make task management even more straightforward.
• Enabling communication across teams :  Our Work OS promotes communication between project members and across different teams, so all stakeholders know where things stand at all times. You can share documents, leave notes, and work together in real-time for more effective communication that allows you to exceed every deadline and meet every objective.

monday.com can provide your team with a Gantt chart view to make project management easier. Get started with monday.com’s powerful Work OS by building a research project workflow from scratch or try a few of our other templates for managing research projects easier.

Related templates

A basic Gantt chart can help you plan your research project in detail. On monday.com, you can add a Gantt View to any type of project board. Below are some of our recommended templates from our Template Center that you can use to fine-tune other essential aspects of your research project.

Keyword power tools template

Our  Research Power Tools Template uses a Gantt chart format to help you visualize project timelines, manage project resources, and monitor each phase of your research projects from one platform.

Publication and journals template

Our  Publications and Journals Template is an excellent tool for content publishing companies. You can use our template to:

• Manage your publication process: Our template enables whole-process management from submission to approval. Easily track article status and monitor writer workload to ensure you meet publishing deadlines.
• Visualize your publishing pipeline: Customizable dashboards allow you to receive a high-level overview of all current and upcoming articles and where they stand.
• Track individual contributions: Ensure each writer meets minimum contributions and isn’t given too large a workload by tracking individual contributions.

By now, you should have a working idea of Gantt charts and how they increase transparency and efficiency in project management. However, if you still have questions, we’ve answered a few FAQs below.

How do you create a dissertation in a Gantt chart?

To create a Gantt chart for a dissertation, you should first understand your timeline and deliverables. Once you’ve written these down, create detailed task lists of how you’ll accomplish each deliverable and consider dependency relationships between each. Finally, use the Gantt chart to outline your dissertation from start to finish.

What should be in a dissertation timeline?

In a dissertation timeline, you should include the following:

• Role assigning (if applicable)
• Research tasks
• Experiments, social or scientific (if applicable)
• Data collection and analysis
• First draft completion
• Submission to the advisor (first) and dean (at completion)

How do you create a Gantt chart in Word?

You can create a Gantt chart in Microsoft Word by:

• Opening a new Word document
• Change the document orientation from vertical to horizontal
• Insert a bar graph into your document
• Make format alterations as necessary to make the graph look like a Gantt chart
• Insert information and customize as necessary

Any team can increase transparency in their research projects with monday.com

Using a Gantt chart to create a detailed project timeline can help increase transparency and promote greater efficiency in your organization’s research projects.

When you pair a Gantt chart with monday.com’s robust project management system, you have the tools you need to meet deadlines, complete objectives, and exceed expectations.

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Gantt Chart Examples, Templates, and Styles

By Diana Ramos | October 31, 2022

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Gantt charts are the bread and butter of project scheduling. We’ve assembled dozens of example images and templates to help you make the best Gantt charts possible. 

Included on this page, you’ll find 30 downloadable Gantt charts, with helpful examples for marketing , software development , project management , product development , and human resources . Plus, read expert tips on making Gantt charts for various formats , including Google Sheets, Excel, Microsoft Word, and more.

What Does a Gantt Chart Look Like?

A Gantt chart is a simple bar chart that shows all the tasks, events, and milestones in a project. The x-axis depicts the project timeline, and the y-axis depicts project phases. Each horizontal bar represents a project task. 

In most Gantt charts, the current date is represented by a vertical line, which looks like a progress bar. 

Other common symbols are diamonds or stars, which represent milestones. 

Many Gantt charts use color-coding to separate project phases.

“When creating a Gantt chart, each task is represented by a bar that extends over the duration of the task,” says Danny Trichter, Co-Founder of AccessibilityChecker.org . “The length of the bar indicates the duration of the task, and the placement of the bar indicates when the task will begin and end. In addition, Gantt charts often include information such as task dependencies, milestones, and resources.” 

For some projects, especially those with tight deadlines, it can be helpful to include project dependencies in your chart. These are typically represented with arrows. You can use arrows to distinguish between the four types of dependencies: finish-to-start, start-to-start, finish-to-finish, and start-to-finish.

You can also use Gantt charts to represent lead time, lag time, predecessor tasks, and successor tasks when necessary. 

“Gantt charts should be created in a way that is easy to read and understand. I believe if it's not simple, people won't use it,” says Chad Sibila , Sales Manager at VT Industries. “I really like to see a left-to-right, start-to-finish for one project, with the steps to complete along the way.”

For more detailed information about making and using Gantt charts for your upcoming projects, see this basic Gantt chart guide with how-to videos.

Gantt Chart Examples by Format

The format you choose for your Gantt chart depends on the type of project, accessibility needs, and preference. For example, if your team conducts most of their work in Microsoft Suite, then PowerPoint, Excel, and Microsoft Word are better options.

Gantt charts are popular because they are easy to use and adaptable. You can create them in any spreadsheet, word processing, or presentation software. For projects where collaboration and access are key, Google formats such as Google Docs and Google Sheets are the most useful.

Jan Schiller, Partner and Chief Project Officer at Berkshire Consulting, LLC , recommends that you select a tool that can create a Gantt chart from source data, such as Excel or Google Sheets. “The Gantt chart can be lifted into any format that is meaningful to stakeholders,” she explains. “I recommend using one format consistently. Why? For information integrity and transparency that supports informed decision-making. Seamlessly switching between source data and the Gantt chart improves trust and credibility while greatly reducing the effort of maintaining an accurate Gantt chart.”

Gantt Chart Example Template for Excel

Download the Sample Construction Project Gantt Chart Template for Excel Download the Blank Construction Project Gantt Chart Template for Excel

Microsoft Excel is a popular software for creating and designing Gantt charts. For example, streamlined formulas allow you to keep all of your data in a centralized location, while generating Gantt charts automatically. Download the sample or blank template to see an example Gantt chart in Excel for a new home construction project.  

“I prefer using Excel for creating Gantt charts because it is easy to use and provides a lot of flexibility,” says Trichter. “I can easily add more information, such as task dependencies, milestones, and resources. Also, I can easily format the chart to make it look more professional.”

Find a how-to video, a step-by-step guide, and helpful tips for creating your own Gantt chart with this comprehensive guide to creating Gantt charts in Excel .

Gantt Chart Example Template for PowerPoint

Download the Sample Architecture Project Gantt Chart Template for PowerPoint Download the Blank Architecture Project Gantt Chart Template for PowerPoint

Download a detailed example of a Gantt chart or a blank version in PowerPoint for an architecture project. This easy-to-use Gantt chart PowerPoint is the perfect solution for anyone looking to create or present a dynamic project schedule in a presentation format. 

“If I were creating a Gantt chart to share with a large group of people, I might choose to use PowerPoint so that I could include more visuals and make the chart easier to understand,” explains Trichter.

To learn how to create, import, and customize your own Gantt chart for a presentation, see this comprehensive guide to creating Gantt charts in PowerPoint .

Gantt Chart Example Template for Microsoft Word

Download the Sample Clinical Trial Project Gantt Chart Template for Microsoft Word Download the Blank Clinical Trial Project Gantt Chart Template for Microsoft Word

Get started with a blank Microsoft Word template, or download the sample template for a prepared version that shows real data for a research project. In this case, the example is for a clinical trial of a new product. Microsoft Word is a great format option if you need a simple, printable Gantt chart. Use this template to track daily project tasks in a single document. Assign start and end dates, responsible team members, and statuses for each task in the chart. 

“Microsoft Word and Google Docs are formats that I typically use for more static content, such as reports or articles,” says Tricther.

To learn how to make and customize a Gantt chart, use this step-by-step guide to creating Gantt charts in Microsoft Word .

Gantt Chart Example Template for Google Sheets

Download the Sample Business Plan Gantt Chart Template

Excel | Google Sheets

Download the Blank Business Plan Gantt Chart Template

Download the sample template in Google Sheets to see how a project manager might use a Gantt chart to make a business plan. Google Sheets is hard to beat for a collaborative, accessible option with lots of helpful formulas and features. Use this template to track every task in your project in one shareable, web-based document. 

For additional templates, guides, and helpful tips, see this comprehensive article on creating a Gantt chart for Google Sheets .

Gantt Chart Example Template for Google Docs

Download the Sample Sales Plan Gantt Chart Template

Microsoft Word | Google Docs

Download the Blank Sales Plan Gantt Chart Template

Google Docs is another easily shareable and printable format option for making a Gantt chart. Try this Gantt chart template to track the phases and milestones of any project. Download the sample template for a version of a Gantt chart for a sales plan.

Gantt Chart Examples for Marketing

Whether it’s a social media, print, email, or other type of marketing campaign, Gantt charts can help you account for every step along the way. We’ve gathered a helpful list of example images and templates for your next marketing project.

“I started using Gantt charts for mobile project development, as they were taking over two to three months and involving dozens of people,” says Benjamin Poirrier, Founder and CEO of the marketing agency Prodima . “Nowadays, I use them to manage smaller digital marketing campaigns with various stakeholders (developers, designers, content writers, account managers), so I can follow up on the progress of their tasks.”

Marketing Campaign Gantt Chart Example Template

Download a Sample Marketing Campaign Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Microsoft Word

Download a Blank Marketing Campaign Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Microsoft Word

This downloadable example template provides a roadmap for a basic marketing project. From project conception and initiation to launch and measurement, this template has you covered. Assign task owners, set deadlines, and track statuses of every step in the project.

Gantt Chart Example for Market Research

Download the Sample Market Research Gantt Chart Template for Excel Download the Blank Market Research Gantt Chart Template for Excel

Use this straightforward Gantt chart template to map all the phases of your market research project, from planning and developing a mission statement to conducting client surveys, focus groups, environmental studies, and more.

Gantt Chart Example for Video Production

Download a Sample Video Production Gantt Chart Template for  Excel | Microsoft Word

Download a Blank Video Production Gantt Chart Template for Excel for Excel | Microsoft Word

Use a Gantt chart for your next video production project to ensure that you account for all important tasks, from pre- to post-production. Download the blank template to begin mapping your project. For more guidance, try the completed template with sample text to see how someone might use a Gantt chart to schedule a video production project.

Digital Marketing Campaign Gantt Chart Example

Download a Sample Digital Marketing Campaign Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Download a Blank Digital Marketing Campaign Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

A successful digital marketing campaign can significantly expand the reach and impact of your brand or product. Use this template to monitor the various components of a digital marketing campaign. Track the timelines of your local marketing, content marketing, social media, web, and sales campaigns all in one convenient Gantt chart.

Example Gantt Chart for an Email Marketing Campaign

Download a Sample Email Marketing Campaign Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Download a Blank Email Marketing Campaign Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Email marketing campaigns are an effective way to inform existing and potential customers of upcoming sales, events, initiatives, and more. Follow the steps and phases in the customizable sample Gantt chart template for an example of how to effectively design, write, review, and release an email marketing campaign. Download the blank Gantt chart template to start from scratch.

Social Media Campaign Gantt Chart Example

Download a Sample Social Media Campaign Gantt Chart Template for  Excel | Google Sheets

Download a Blank Social Media Campaign Gantt Chart Template for  Excel | Google Sheets

Use a Gantt chart to streamline your multiplatform social media campaign to ensure that posts are consistently on-brand, timely, and polished. In this example, the chart separates tasks by platform making it easy for your team to give the appropriate amount of attention to each advertisement, whether it’s on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, or another platform.

Virtual Event Planning Gantt Chart Example

Download the Sample Virtual Event Planning Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Download the Blank Virtual Event Planning Gantt Chart Template for Excel for Excel | Google Sheets

Event planning can be stressful and complicated. Use a Gantt chart to keep hiring staff, planning music and activities, and booking locations simple and organized. This Gantt chart demonstrates a timeline for planning a successful virtual event.

Gantt Chart Example for Event Marketing for Excel

Download the Sample Event Marketing Gantt Chart Template for Excel Download the Blank Event Marketing Gantt Chart Template for Excel

For an event to be successful, teams need to devote resources to promoting it, reaching out to donors or potential guests, and ensuring there is media in place so that the event will be adequately covered. Track every part of your event marketing campaign simultaneously with this comprehensive color-coded Gantt chart.

Examples of Gantt Chart for Software Projects

For software projects, opt for Gantt charts that support Agile methodology. These charts break down projects into sprints, allowing you to track requests from stakeholders and clearly depict key dependencies. 

“Gantt charts are used in both the Waterfall and Agile project management approaches,” says Rafał Gatkowski, Senior Python Developer at STX Next . “They perform especially well with Waterfall since a linear plan is developed to match customer expectations after gathering them at the beginning of a project. At STX Next, we mostly use the Agile approach to set our goals and use continuous customer feedback to update our plan in real time.”

Agile Gantt charts are a popular option for project managers leading software development projects. Assign various development teams to tackle different features, and trace dependencies using arrows. 

For projects with only one development team, you can use a simpler Gantt chart that tracks the status and dependencies of each individual task.

Gantt Chart Example for a Software Development Project for PowerPoint

Download the Sample Software Development Project Gantt Chart Template for PowerPoint Download the Blank Software Development Project Gantt Chart Template for PowerPoint

This presentation-ready, Agile Gantt chart will help you map out, schedule, and share your software development project roadmap. Diamond symbols represent key milestones, while arrows indicate the dependencies among tasks.

Gantt Chart Example for Website Development

Download a Sample Website Development Gantt Chart Template for  Excel | Google Sheets

Download a Blank Website Development Gantt Chart Template for  Excel | Google Sheets  

A user-friendly, functional website is key to the health of any company or brand. Account for every detail in the website development process by downloading a Gantt chart template for Excel or Google Sheets. Track due dates for design, features, development, and launch.

Gantt Chart Example in Software Engineering for Excel

Download the Sample Agile Software Engineering Gantt Chart Template for Excel Download the Blank Agile Software Engineering Gantt Chart Template for Excel

Track each phase in a software engineering project with an Agile Gantt chart. This Gantt chart tracks the development of each feature, separating each into sprints. Download and customize the blank Gantt chart template to create a dynamic timeline for any Agile project.

External IT Project Gantt Chart Template for Excel

Download the Sample IT Project Gantt Chart Template for Excel Download the Blank IT Project Gantt Chart Template for Excel

Use this sample template as a comprehensive tool to help you plan and schedule an external IT project. Customize the project name, task names, and start and end dates in the left-hand column to populate the Gantt chart on the right. Select and move the milestone markers to indicate the various stages or milestones of your IT project. 

Download the blank version to get started mapping your project timeline, or download the version with sample data to see how an IT project progresses from planning graphics to testing, rollout, and documentation.

Mobile App Development Agile Gantt Chart Example Template

Download the Sample Mobile App Development Agile Gantt Chart Template for Excel Download the Blank Mobile App Development Agile Gantt Chart Template for Excel

Gantt charts that incorporate Agile methodology are perfect for software projects such as mobile app development. In this sample template, you can see how to use an Agile Gantt chart to map the sprints in a mobile app development project, from research and analysis to launch.

See this comprehensive guide on using Gantt charts for Agile with a template and examples to learn more.

Project Management Gantt Chart Examples

Gantt charts are a fundamental tool in project management. These blank and example Gantt chart templates cover various areas of project management. Find samples that you can use as a guide for creating a proposal, planning, consulting on a roadmap, and more. 

“Once properly created and maintained, a Gantt chart brings clarity to a lot of information, which improves the success of the project manager and, therefore, of the organization,” says Schiller. “Gantt charts help to improve project performance by improving coordination, decision making, and communication.”

Whether you’re consulting, drafting a project proposal, or leading a construction project, Gantt charts will help you stay on schedule. Try Gantt charts that incorporate the critical path method.

Gantt Chart Example for a Project Proposal for PowerPoint

Download the Gantt Chart Project Plan Timeline for PowerPoint

Incorporate a Gantt chart into your project proposal presentation with this Gantt chart project plan timeline. This presentation-ready format is a great option for project managers who want to give a broad visual overview of the project timeline to stakeholders or company executives. Simply add this slide to your project proposal presentation to get the most out of this straightforward Gantt chart. 

For more resources and information on project proposals, see this article on writing a winning project proposal .

Project Plan Gantt Chart Example with Template

Download the Sample Gantt Chart Project Plan With Dependencies for Excel Download the Blank Gantt Chart Project Plan With Dependencies for Excel

A project plan is a more detailed version of a project proposal. Use a Gantt chart to allot your team enough time to research and write every section, including overview, scope, schedule, budget, and more. By doing so, you can rest assured that your project plan will be successful. Download the blank version to get started identifying your project plan phases, or download the version with sample data to see how much time to allow for each phase.

To learn best practices and find expert tips on creating project plans, see this guide to writing a winning project plan .

Gantt Chart Example for a Consulting Project Roadmap

Download a Sample Consulting Project Gantt Chart Roadmap Template for  Microsoft Word | PowerPoint | Google Slides  

Download a Blank Consulting Project Gantt Chart Roadmap Template for Microsoft Word | PowerPoint | Google Slides  

Create a consulting project roadmap as a Gantt chart to produce a clear and visually dynamic graphic of your timeline. In this example, every part of a consulting project, from developing partner strategy to reviewing the partnership development process, has a phase with individual tasks to which you can assign an owner, deadline, and status.

Construction Project Gantt Chart Example with a Critical Path

Download the Sample Construction Project Gantt Chart Critical Path Template for Excel Download the Blank Construction Project Gantt Chart Critical Path Template for Excel

By combining Gantt charts with the critical path method (CPM), project managers can optimize their schedules and minimize unexpected delays. Although CPM is appropriate for any project, it is particularly useful for those with many strict dependencies, such as construction projects. 

Try this free, customizable template that combines Gantt charts with critical path methodology. Download the blank version, and enter your tasks, start and finish dates, assignees, and statuses. The template will populate the Gantt chart at the bottom of the spreadsheet as you enter your data. You can also download the version with sample data for a construction project Gantt chart example. 

Learn about Gantt charts and the critical path method in this CPM guide with templates and examples .

Product Development Management Gantt Chart Examples

A Gantt chart can help simplify even the most ambitious product development project. From ideation and research to costing and commercialization, these Gantt chart examples can help set you and your team up for success.

“Gantt charts outline the proper order for completing tasks, as well as the amount of time required,” says Gatkowski. “Having this knowledge is useful while managing projects, as you can monitor the progress, plan the whole project, and manage resources. Project managers can check to see if specific activities are finished on time and modify the project plan accordingly.”

New Product Development Gantt Chart Example for Microsoft Word

Download the Sample New Product Development Gantt Chart Template for Microsoft Word Download the Blank New Product Development Gantt Chart Template for Microsoft Word

A new product development project requires careful planning. Try this simple Gantt chart to break down your project into manageable segments, such as developing a prototype, setting up materials acquisition, and creating a marketing plan.

Gantt Chart Example for Product Roadmap

Download a Sample Product Roadmap Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Download a Blank Product Roadmap Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Create a product roadmap using this comprehensive Gantt chart tool. Track every product feature as you move through the development process, from grouping management controls and notifications to drafting product segment reports.

Product Launch Gantt Chart Example for Excel

Download the Sample Product Launch Gantt Chart Template for Excel Download the Blank Product Launch Gantt Chart Template for Excel

This Gantt chart design for Excel allows you to track tasks and phases of a product launch. Copy and paste statuses from the color-coded key on the right-hand side of the template to ensure that anyone can take a quick look at your Gantt chart and understand the status of your product launch. Download the version with sample text to use as a guide to get started or the blank version to enter your own details.

Gantt Chart Example for the Manufacturing Process

Download a Sample Manufacturing Process Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Download a Blank Manufacturing Process Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Try this simple Gantt chart template to keep track of every phase in the manufacturing process. In this example, see how the manufacturing process moves from planning and product development to inspection, shipment, and delivery. Enter start and end dates for each task, and watch the Gantt chart populate with color-coded bars.

Gantt Chart Examples for Human Resources 

Human resources (HR) departments can use Gantt charts for varying projects. Download a sample template to help get you started on your HR Gantt chart, or use a basic Gantt chart template to plan your project schedule from scratch. 

“Gantt charts can be used for a variety of HR-related projects, such as onboarding new employees, planning company-wide training events, and tracking employee performance goals,” says Linda Shaffer, Chief People and Operations Officer at Checkr . “They are particularly useful for projects that involve multiple teams or individuals, as they provide a clear way to track progress and identify potential risks and issues.

“For example,” Shaffer continues, “if you're planning a company-wide training event, you can use a Gantt chart to track the progress of each team as they complete their training. This way, you can see at a glance which teams are on track and which ones are behind schedule.”

Gantt Chart Example for Interview Process

Download a Sample Interview Process Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Download a Blank Interview Process Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Hiring a new employee takes time, resources, and careful consideration. Stay organized throughout the process, from pre-interviewing to hiring, with a comprehensive and visually dynamic Gantt chart. Complete each section of the pre- and candidate-interview phases, candidate selection, and hiring. This interview process Gantt chart example sets a timeline that ensures everyone who needs to talk to a potential new hire does before you send the offer.

Employee Onboarding Gantt Chart Example

Download a Sample Employee Onboarding Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Download a Blank Employee Onboarding Gantt Chart Template for Excel | Google Sheets

Well-organized employee onboarding processes help improve an employee’s long-term experience at a company and decrease overall employee turnover. This Gantt chart illustrates the path to preparing for a perfect first day on the job. 

Download these onboarding templates and checklists for more HR tools and advice.

Gantt Chart Example for Human Resources Planning

Download the Sample Human Resources Planning Template for Excel Download the Blank Human Resources Planning Template for Excel

Use this Gantt chart to ensure that your organization has all the required team members available to complete your next project. Follow the sample template for an Agile software development projec t, or enter your own data to manage human resources for any upcoming project or initiative.

Easily Track and Manage Your Projects with Gantt Charts in Smartsheet

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The Ultimate Guide to Gantt Charts: Everything about the Tool You Can’t Ignore for Project Planning

Audio version:

A Gantt chart is a great tool for task management, project planning, scheduling, and progress tracking.

In case you have questions about these diagrams, here is the complete guide to Gantt charts that covers most of them.

• What is a Gantt chart?
• The history of a Gantt chart.

What is a Gantt chart used for?

What information is included in a gantt chart.

• Example of a Gantt chart .

How to create a Gantt chart?

• Advantages and disadvantages of a Gantt chart.

Where to use a Gantt chart?

• What is a Gantt chart template?

What is a Gantt chart and why is it important?

A Gantt chart is a bar chart with two axes – a horizontal one and a vertical one. The first one is used to define start and end dates while the latter is used to present tasks.

This diagram shows all your assignments and their dates along a timeline. In other words, it is a clear visually appealing schedule of your and your team tasks and dates that can be connected to each other.

As you see, with a Gantt chart, you will know what work has to be done, current work as well as what has already been accomplished. It also helps keep track of the progress of your plan or project and be aware of all the deadlines in advance.

By the way, Forbes named a Gantt chart among the seven most important project management techniques in 2024.

The history of a Gantt chart

The “Gantt” in this expression stands for the last name of its creator – Henry Gantt, an American mechanical engineer , and management consultant. He designed a diagram and further published articles about his invention in 1910 and 1915. At that time, those charts were completely novel.

Surprisingly, but a diagram itself was introduced even earlier, in 1896, by Karol Adamiecki, a Polish economist , engineer, and management researcher. However, he only managed to publish his first work in 1909. Later on, in 1931, he published a more widely known article where he described the harmonogram – he called the chart like this.

The reason why the Gantt chart is named after the American engineer and not the Polish one is quite obvious. Henry Gantt spoke and wrote in English, while Karol Adamiecki published his articles in Polish and Russian.

The history of a Gantt chart in a few dates:

• 1896: Karol Adamiecki designs a means of displaying interdependent processes. He calls it a harmonogram.
• 1903: Henry Gantt defines a chart to increase the visibility of production schedules.
• 1903: Adamiecki’s invention causes a stir in technical circles in Russia.
• 1909: Adamiecki publishes some articles in Polish describing the diagram.
• 1910-1915: Henry Gantt further develops the diagram, publishes articles describing them, and popularizes them.
• 1931: Adamiecki publishes his more known article about the harmonogram in Polish and Russian.
• Today: a Gantt chart is one of the most popular tools in project management.

A Gantt chart is used to cover several project management issues. However, one of them is fundamental.

The purpose of a Gantt chart is scheduling.

With its help, you can easily schedule every phase of a plan regardless of its duration with clearly defined start and end dates.

In addition, a Gantt chart helps identify milestones – significant events in your projects with no duration – and deadlines. Don’t want to miss a date? The Gantt diagram is your solution!

With the advance of online Gantt chart tool, the chart becomes a handler in other situations. In particular, it helps manage resources, cost, and collaborate between team members.

Put it shortly, a Gantt chart is used for :

• Task scheduling.
• Identifying milestones.
• Keeping track of deadlines.
• Keeping track of progress.
• Connecting tasks with dependencies.
• Collaboration.
• Resource management.
• Cost management.

A typical Gantt chart should include the following information:

• Tasks, their duration, status, and priority.
• Start and end dates.
• Timeline with the time scale.
• Milestones.
• Dependencies between tasks.
• Critical path.

A robust Gantt chart tool that is able to cover most of the needs of project managers will also include:

• Estimations.
• Resource workload: who works on what tasks, who is overloaded, who can be given more tasks.
• Options that allow customizing plans.
• Comments, attachments, notifications for teamwork.
• Auto scheduling.

So,  if you need an answer to the question “ What are the main features of a Gantt chart? ”, just look above – these features help build solid projects and organize all the teamwork.

Example of a Gantt chart

Here is how GanttPRO  online Gantt chart maker  – one of the most robust and intuitive tools in the market and a perfect example of the diagram – looks like.

In GanttPRO as well as in some other tools you will find lots of Gantt chart examples for different spheres.

Here is what Adam Hirsk, the head of product and R&D at Pacvac, a manufacturer of backpack vacuum cleaners (Australia) thinks about the software:

Fortunately, this is not even a point to consider when you build a project because modern solutions make this process easy and enjoyable.

Of course, applications differ and range from hard-to-manage solutions to intuitive software with easy-to-understand UX/UI design.

Creating a Gantt chart is simple.

It is simple unless you take not designed for Gantt chart building solutions. Like Excel. Or powerful but not modern like MS Project.

In general, you need to follow four simple steps in order to create a Gantt chart:

• Define dates for tasks and the whole calendar.
• Connect tasks with dependencies.
• Assign tasks.

Can I make a Gantt chart in Excel?

Unfortunately, you can. Why unfortunately? Because Excel was not designed for creating Gantt charts, especially dynamic ones.

In case you have time and desire to do it, here is a guide on how to make a Gantt chart in Excel .

How to create a Gantt chart in MS Project

MS Project allows working with Gantt charts and offers hundreds of features. However, this tool is too complicated and requires too much time to learn it.

From this MS Project tutorial , you can learn basic instructions, particularly, on how to make a Gantt chart in MS Project .

How to create a Gantt chart in PowerPoint

Moreover, you can make a diagram even in some unexpected tools. One more Microsoft product can do that too.

So, if you are up to it, you can discover how to create a Gantt chart in PowerPoint .

How to use a Gantt chart?

It is very easy to use a Gantt chart as a diagram itself is simple to read yet it is very powerful. Do not be surprised but:

You will be able to create and manage your chart with no specific knowledge.

In case you decided to create one in online software (it is 21-st century and I won’t expect anyone to make it in any other way), it largely depends on a tool you’ve chosen. Anyway, it is as simple as ABC.

Why is it simple to use a Gantt chart?

This bar chart is the perfect way to visualize tasks, milestones, and dates, as well as connect tasks with dependencies. Also, it easily allows following deadlines of your project . 

You see: a Gantt chart shows the most crucial elements of a project. And it is very easy to use it in project management.

When to use a Gantt chart

Use it when you need to plan any event both personal and team: preparation for an exam, apartment renovation, wedding preparation, house building, in marketing campaign and software development, and much more. If you have tasks with certain timeframes and goals to achieve – meet a Gantt chart.

Advantages and disadvantages of a Gantt chart

It is highly likely that now you think something like “Wow, what a great tool it is! Aren’t there any disadvantages?”

As anything in our world, a Gantt chart is reviewed from different perspectives.

What are the advantages of a Gantt chart?

It is transparent, clear, and structured.

Imagine that you need to promote your brand to increase sales volume. You will probably be scared from the very beginning as it is difficult to define where to start and how to measure deliverables.

A Gantt chart allows breaking down projects into smaller pieces that can take from a few hours to a few days. The more you chunk, the higher the chances are to complete a project as each task is clearly defined. This is a critical advantage of a Gantt chart in project management .

It allows connecting tasks

You hardly find a project where tasks exist separately from each other. Usually, they are presented in certain orders. For example, a finish date of one task gives a start to the other.

In a Gantt chart tool, you can easily connect tasks with dependencies to show the relationship between them.

Let’s take an example.

You need to plant a tree. With the help of the diagram, you will be able to connect interdependent phases.

Dig a hole → place a tree → straighten it if needed → fill the hole → carefully handle it if needed.

This consequence of events shows that you can’t start with the last action as it is dependent on the previous ones.

Here’s the  feedback  from Anika Albrecht, a project manager and consultant at design for human nature GmbH:

It can be shared for presentation

Robust Gantt chart solutions provide with the Sharing and Export features as one of the benefits. They allow showcasing plans, current or any other states of a project to anyone outside your team: stakeholders, clients, customers, etc.

It keeps motivation and focus

Once a project plan is ready, this becomes a point of reference for you and your team in case you manage a team project. This is like the single source of truth that helps to avoid a project scope creep .

Also, some people work more efficiently when they have everything structured in one place and where the progress, goals, and results are shown with a clear focus and no ambiguity. And remember about resource allocation: it will keep project participants motivated as the tasks assigned to them are clearly defined.

It is good for collaboration

Team projects can’t exist without collaboration. Forget about success if there is no collaboration in your schedule.

A cutting-edge Gantt chart generator is no longer a place for tasks and dates. It is far more than that. Tasks always need to be commented and attached with necessary documents as well as project participants need to be constantly notified about assignments, deadlines, and other updates.

A Gantt diagram can become a hub for all project-related information and communication.

It allows allocating resources properly

Without resources, one can hardly imagine a project. Those resources can be real or virtual and they need to be properly managed.

The resource workload feature helps managers avoid situations when some resources are overloaded and some are free for performing tasks.

Proper allocation leads to proper budget management.

It shows a critical path

A critical path is a feature that shows the connection of the most important tasks needed for a project to be timely completed. If one task from the critical path on a Gantt chart is delayed, the whole project will be delayed too.

Disadvantages of using Gantt charts

No place for uncertainty.

One of the core limitations of a Gantt chart is that it perfectly serves for projects where all the tasks, milestones, deliverables, and dates are known from the start – all in all, this is how the Work Breakdown structure works.

However, this is not the dead end. Efficient Gantt chart creators allow making adjustments at any moment of project development. The Auto scheduling function will change the dates of interdependent tasks automatically.

May not be suitable for too large projects

This is an arguable point. However, some managers find it challenging to work on long-term projects of two and more years with the help of a Gantt chart. They say that adding new tasks and resources to a plan will force you to constantly scroll up and down your chart to find the item you are looking for.

However, breaking down a large project into smaller ones can turn this disadvantage into a benefit. Also, search options are at your service.

It needs to be constantly updated (doubtful)

Yes, projects will require time on management and updates. But what does not require it to do work?

All the work you do will take your time. However, you can make these processes shorter turning yourself into a rockstar of a certain application where you are like a duck to water.

Thanks to timeline and tasks oriented nature, Gantt charts find their application in dozens of spheres with few limitations.

Gantt chart for IT development :

• Website development.
• Software development.
• Game development.
• Program development.
• Agile software development.
• App development.
• Android application development.
• Mobile app development, etc.

Gantt chart for construction :

• Construction project schedule.
• House construction, renovation, remodeling, etc.
• New home construction.
• Construction management, etc.

Gantt chart for event planning :

• Performance planning.
• Conference planning.
• Fundraising event planning.
• Exhibition planning.
• Workshop planning, etc.

Gantt chart for marketing campaigns :

• Product marketing.
• Content marketing.
• Digital or online marketing.
• Offline marketing, etc.

Gantt chart for design :

• Architectural design.
• Web design, etc.

And many more!

To conclude this thought, let’s see what Elizabeth Harrin, a project manager and mentor, admits :

If you manage projects, you will have come across a Gantt chart. Even if you don’t manage projects but are involved in project teams – Gantt charts are everywhere. I’ve spent many hours working with project managers and helping them build better Gantt charts. This is the document you will use most of all. Poor planning really can kill your project.

What is a Gantt chart template? 

A  Gantt chart template  is the ready-made chart with typical tasks and dates that you can use in a certain industry.

Powerful solutions offer Gantt chart templates for a variety of industries:

• Construction.
• Marketing and marketing project management .
• Professional services or maintenance.
• Manufacturing .
• Event planning.
• Consulting, etc.

Advanced project management with a Gantt chart

Plan and manage projects effectively. All in one place.

Gantt diagrams are tools for robust task management, project planning and scheduling, resource and cost management as well as for communication and collaboration on a project.

What’s your attitude to Gantt charts? Do you use any software? Please share your experience with us in the comments below.

Frequently asked questions about Gantt charts

What does gantt stand for.

The term “Gantt” in a Gantt chart refers to Henry Gantt who designed this type of diagram around 1910-1915. A Gantt chart is a popular project management tool used to illustrate project timelines and demonstrate start and finish dates of project activities. It also helps in scheduling and monitoring tasks against time constraints.

Why is it called a Gantt chart?

A Gantt chart is named after Henry Gantt, an American mechanical engineer and management consultant. He designed this tool to visualize scheduled and completed work as well as track all planned tasks and their progress.

What does a Gantt chart look like?

A Gantt chart is a horizontal bar chart used in project management to visually represent a project schedule. It includes a timeline and tasks displayed as bars that show the duration of each activity. Dependencies between tasks, progress completion, and key milestones are also typically indicated on this chart.

What does a Gantt chart show?

A Gantt chart demonstrates a project schedule, representing start and finish dates of project tasks. It helps project managers and teams understand and visualize task durations, dependencies, and progress for effective planning and time management.

What four items are shown on a Gantt chart?

A Gantt chart typically shows tasks, timeframes, dependencies, and progress. These elements help track all schedules and control project advancement.

How does a Gantt chart work?

A Gantt chart visually represents the timeline and duration of project tasks on a horizontal time axis. Each task is listed vertically with a corresponding horizontal bar that indicates the start and end dates. This setup allows project managers to see overlaps, dependencies between tasks, and the overall progress of their project at a glance.

What are the 3 main benefits of using a Gantt chart?

A Gantt chart benefits project managers in the following ways: provides a clear visualization of all projects, tasks, and resources, facilitates team collaboration, and ensures smart progress tracking.

What type of chart can you create to communicate the project schedule to your team effectively?

A Gantt chart is a great option. This type of online diagram communicates a project schedule to your team, as it visually outlines tasks, timelines, and dependencies, allowing for clear understanding and efficient project management.

How does a Gantt chart help you track a project?

A Gantt chart helps in tracking a project by providing a visual timeline of tasks, showing dependencies between activities, highlighting resource allocation, and enabling easy tracking of progress. This visual tool enhances communication among stakeholders and helps identify critical paths to prioritize resources and efforts effectively.

Does Microsoft Office have a Gantt chart?

Yes, Microsoft Office allows for creating a Gantt chart, which can be particularly useful for project management and tracking tasks over time. You can make such a diagram in Microsoft Excel using the built-in bar chart feature. Excel doesn’t have a predefined Gantt chart type, but you can simulate one by customizing the stacked bar chart to show the start dates, durations, and completion status of various tasks.

Andrew Stepanov

Andrew fell in love with the Gantt chart from the moment he discovered this great project management tool. Implementing his experience in marketing, he does his best to promote it to professionals from different spheres.

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Gantt charts  are useful for planning and scheduling projects. They  help  you assess how long a project should take, determine the resources needed, and plan the order in which you’ll complete tasks.

Awesome guide to Gantt charts! This is so informative and comprehensive! Thanks for sharing this!

Great article!

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Creating a Gantt Chart for Marketing Projects: A Comprehensive Guide

July 29, 2023 - 7 min read

In the fast-paced world of marketing, staying organized and efficient is essential for successfully managing projects. One effective tool for project management is the Gantt chart . If you're unfamiliar with Gantt charts or need a refresher, this comprehensive guide will walk you through the basics, explain why they're particularly useful in marketing projects, and provide step-by-step instructions on how to create one for your own marketing endeavors.

Understanding the Basics of a Gantt Chart

A Gantt chart is more than just a visual representation of a project 's timeline. It is a powerful project management tool that has been widely used across various industries for decades. By breaking down a project into individual tasks and displaying them in a timeline format, a Gantt chart helps project teams plan, schedule, and track their progress efficiently.

Each task in a Gantt chart is represented by a horizontal bar, with its length indicating the duration of the task. The bars are positioned along a timeline, allowing team members to see when each task starts and ends. Also, dependencies between tasks are shown through arrows, indicating which tasks need to be completed before others can begin.

The History of Gantt Charts

Gantt charts are not a new concept. In fact, they were first developed by American mechanical engineer and management consultant Henry Gantt in the early 20th century, as a visual tool to improve project planning and communication.

Initially, Gantt charts were hand-drawn on paper, with each task represented by a horizontal bar and the timeline drawn below. Over time, with advancements in technology, Gantt charts have become digital and more sophisticated. Today, there are numerous software applications available that allow project managers to create, update, and share Gantt charts with ease. 

Why Use a Gantt Chart for Marketing Projects?

The usefulness of Gantt charts quickly spread beyond manufacturing and found applications in various industries, including marketing. Marketing projects often involve multiple tasks, tight deadlines, and interdependencies between different activities. A Gantt chart allows marketing teams to visualize these complexities and plan their projects in a way that minimizes risks and maximizes efficiency. Marketers can manage their resources effectively and address any potential issues, in order to streamline their projects and achieve success.

Essential Elements of a Gantt Chart

Now that you understand the purpose and benefits of using a Gantt chart, let's explore the key elements that make up a Gantt chart for marketing projects.

Tasks are the building blocks of any project. If you are running a social media campaign, your tasks might include creating content, scheduling posts, engaging with followers, and analyzing campaign performance. Each of these tasks can be represented as a separate bar on the Gantt chart, allowing you to visualize the sequence and duration of each activity.

Every task in a Gantt chart has a specific duration, which represents the amount of time it will take to complete. Estimating task durations requires careful consideration of various factors, such as the complexity of the task, available resources, and potential dependencies. By accurately estimating durations, you can ensure that your Gantt chart reflects the actual time required for each task, helping you manage expectations and allocate resources effectively.

Dependencies

Tasks within a marketing project often have dependencies, meaning the completion of one task is reliant on the completion of another. In a Gantt chart, dependencies are depicted using arrows that connect the bars representing the dependent tasks. For instance, if you are launching a new product, you may need to complete tasks such as product design, manufacturing, and marketing. The manufacturing task cannot begin until the product design is finished, and the marketing task cannot start until the manufacturing is complete.

Marketing projects are typically time-sensitive, with specific deadlines that must be met. Including deadlines in your Gantt chart makes sure that everyone involved is aware of the project's timeline and can prioritize tasks accordingly. It also becomes easier to identify critical tasks that need immediate attention and allocate resources accordingly. For example, if you have a product launch scheduled for a specific date, you can set the deadline for the marketing campaign to guarantee that all necessary tasks, such as content creation, social media planning, and advertisement production, are completed in a timely manner.

Steps to Create a Gantt Chart for Marketing Projects

Now that you're familiar with the essential elements of a Gantt chart, let's dive into the step-by-step process of creating one for your marketing project.

Define Your Project Goals

Setting clear goals helps you identify the tasks required to achieve those goals so that your Gantt chart accurately reflects the project's objectives. For example, if your marketing project is to launch a new product, your goals might include increasing brand awareness, generating leads, and driving sales. By clearly defining these goals, you can align your tasks and timelines accordingly.

Additionally, it's important to consider the specific metrics you will use to measure the success of your marketing project. Will you be tracking website traffic, social media engagement, or conversion rates? Defining these metrics will help you determine the tasks needed to achieve your objectives.

List Down All the Tasks

Once you have a clear understanding of your project goals, make a comprehensive list of all the tasks that need to be completed to accomplish those goals. Continuing with the example of launching a new product, your tasks might include market research, competitor analysis, creating marketing materials, developing a website, running advertising campaigns, and analyzing campaign performance. By listing down all these tasks, nothing will be overlooked during the planning and execution phases. Additionally, try to prioritize your tasks based on their importance and urgency. This will help you allocate resources effectively so that critical tasks are completed on time.

Determine Task Relationships

In marketing projects, some tasks can only be started once certain other tasks have been completed. Determine the dependencies between tasks and mark them in your Gantt chart using arrows. For example, before you can start running advertising campaigns, you may need to complete the task of creating marketing materials. Also, consider any parallel tasks that can be worked on simultaneously. This can help optimize your project timeline so that tasks are completed efficiently.

Assign Resources to Each Task

For each task in your Gantt chart, determine the resources that will be required. Resources can include team members, equipment, software, or any other item necessary for completing the task. Assigning resources to tasks helps you allocate resources effectively and ensure that each task has the necessary support to be completed successfully.

When assigning resources, take a look at the availability and expertise of your team members. Verify that you have the right people with the right skills assigned to each task. This will help prevent any bottlenecks or delays caused by resource constraints . In addition to human resources, consider any external resources or vendors that may be needed for specific tasks. For example, if you need to create a video for your marketing campaign, you may need to hire a videographer or a production company.

Set Your Timeline

The final step in creating your Gantt chart is to set the timeline for your marketing project. Use the durations of the tasks, their dependencies, and the available resources to create a realistic timeline that accounts for potential delays and allows for efficient resource allocation . Consider any external factors that may impact your timeline, such as holidays, industry events, or product launch dates. Be flexible and allow for contingencies in case of unforeseen circumstances. What's more, don't forget to regularly monitor and update your Gantt chart as the project progresses to keep your team and stakeholders informed and on track.

By following these steps and utilizing the power of a Gantt chart, you can effectively plan, manage, and execute your marketing projects with confidence. The visual representation of tasks, durations, dependencies, and deadlines will keep your team aligned, and the ability to monitor progress at a glance will allow you to make any necessary adjustments along the way. Remember, a well-designed Gantt chart is an essential tool for any marketing professional looking to conquer the challenges of project management.

Design an effective Gantt chart for your marketing projects with Wrike's comprehensive guide. Register for a free trial and elevate your marketing workflow to new productivity heights.

Note: This article was created with the assistance of an AI engine. It has been reviewed and revised by our team of experts to ensure accuracy and quality.

Occasionally we write blog posts where multiple people contribute. Since our idea of having a gladiator arena where contributors would fight to the death to win total authorship wasn’t approved by HR, this was the compromise.

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How Enterprise Consulting Professionals Use Project Management Software To Succeed

As an enterprise consultant, your main goal is to help your clients increase efficiency, reduce costs, and improve their bottom line by delivering high-quality results. One of the most powerful tools at your disposal is project management software. In this article, we will explore how you can use project management software to succeed.   Try Wrike for free   Key Features of Project Management Software for Consultants There are a few key features of project management software to be aware of, like: Task management and assignment: Break down a project into smaller, manageable tasks and assign them to team members based on their skills and availability. Resource allocation and scheduling: Allocate resources such as personnel, equipment, and materials to each task in the project and create a schedule that takes into account the availability of resources and the deadlines for each task. Progress tracking and reporting: Monitor the progress of each task in real time, identify any issues that may arise, and generate reports that provide a detailed overview of the project's status, including its progress, budget, and timeline. Team communication and collaboration: Communicate with each other in real time, share files and information, and collaborate on tasks.  Document management and version control: Store and manage project-related documents, such as contracts, proposals, and reports, in a centralized location.  Benefits of Implementing Project Management Software By implementing project management software, enterprise consulting professionals can enjoy a range of benefits.  For example, it can help them increase efficiency and productivity by streamlining their workflows and automating repetitive tasks. It can also help them manage their time and resources more effectively, ensuring that projects are delivered on time and within budget. Improved communication and collaboration are also key benefits of project management software. By providing a centralized platform for team members to communicate and collaborate, teams can reduce misunderstandings and verify that everyone is working towards the same goals. It also promotes greater transparency and accountability, as team members can easily see what others are working on and how their contributions fit into the overall project. Project management software can also help enterprise consulting professionals deliver higher-quality results and increase client satisfaction. By providing a structured approach to project management, it ensures that projects are delivered to a high standard and that client expectations are met or exceeded. This can help to build long-term relationships with clients and establish a reputation for excellence in the industry. Selecting the Right Project Management Software for Your Consulting Business Choosing the right project management software for your consulting business can be a daunting task. However, by following these key steps, you can make an informed decision. Assessing Your Business Needs and Goals Assess your business needs and goals by identifying the key features and functionality that you need in a project management software solution. Consider the following questions:  What types of projects do we typically work on? What are our most common challenges and pain points? What specific features and functionality do we need? What is our budget, and what’s our timeline? Comparing Top Project Management Software Solutions Once you've identified your business needs and goals, it's time to compare top project management software solutions. Some of the most popular options include Wrike, Trello, Basecamp, Asana, and Monday.com. Each of these software solutions has its own strengths and weaknesses, so it's important to evaluate them based on your specific needs and goals. For example, Wrike is known for its power, versatility, and scalability, while Trello is popular for its visual boards and collaboration tools. Evaluating Pricing and Scalability Make sure to consider pricing and scalability. Some software can be free or low-cost, while others are much more expensive. Also, some software can be better suited for smaller teams, while others accommodate larger organizations. Choose a software solution that fits within your budget and can scale with your business as it grows. This will ensure that you get the most value out of your investment and can continue to use the software for years to come.   Try Wrike for free Best Practices for Implementing Project Management Software Once you've selected the right software for your needs, it's important to consider the following best practices for implementation: Establishing Clear Processes and Workflows Establish clear processes and workflows by defining how tasks will be assigned, how progress will be tracked, and how team members will communicate with one another and with clients. Doing so keeps everyone on the same page so that projects are completed efficiently and effectively. Also, it’s important to involve all relevant stakeholders in this process, including project managers, team members, and clients. This will help ensure that everyone's needs and expectations are taken into account and that the software is configured to meet the specific needs of your consulting business. Training and Onboarding Team Members Train and onboard all team members who will be using the software. This includes not only project managers but also employees who will be responsible for completing tasks and updating project status. Training should be comprehensive and cover all aspects of the software, including its features, functionality, and interface. Remember to provide ongoing support and resources to team members to ensure that they feel comfortable and confident using the software. Integrating with Existing Tools and Systems Project management software should integrate seamlessly with any existing tools and systems your consulting business uses. This can lead to greater efficiency and productivity, as well as reduced errors and duplication of effort. Before implementing project management software, it's important to evaluate your existing tools and systems to identify any potential integration issues. The goal is to have the software configured correctly so that all data is transferred accurately between systems. Measuring the Success of Project Management Software Implementation Simply implementing project management software is not enough. It's important to measure the success of the implementation process and continuously improve your processes in order to maximize the benefits of the software. Identifying Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) Key performance indicators (KPIs) are measurable metrics that help you track progress and assess success. Some examples of KPIs for project management software include on-time project completion, client satisfaction, and team productivity. By identifying these KPIs, you can set specific goals and track your progress toward achieving them. If your goal is to improve on-time project completion, track the percentage of projects that are completed on or before their deadline. If your goal is to improve client satisfaction, survey clients after each project and track their responses over time. Monitoring and Analyzing Data Remember to monitor and analyze your data regularly in order to identify trends and patterns, as well as areas for improvement. By tracking your KPIs over time, you can see whether your efforts to improve are having an impact. If you notice that your on-time project completion rate has improved since implementing project management software, analyze the data to determine what specific changes led to this improvement. Did you assign tasks more effectively? Did team members communicate more frequently? By understanding what is driving success, you can replicate these processes in the future. Continuously Improving Processes and Utilization Finally, continuously improving your processes and utilization of project management software is critical to long-term success. This involves regularly reviewing and optimizing your workflows and implementing new features and functionality as needed. If you notice that team members are struggling to use a particular feature of the software, provide additional training or make adjustments to the feature to improve usability. You can also regularly review your workflows to identify areas where you can streamline processes and eliminate inefficiencies. Conclusion As an enterprise consulting professional, project management software is a powerful tool that can help you succeed and take things to the next level. By selecting the right software, following best practices for implementation, and continuously measuring and improving your processes, you can deliver exceptional results for your clients and help your consulting business thrive. Boost your consulting success by leveraging Wrike's expertly crafted project management software for enterprise professionals. Begin your free trial now to improve client engagement, collaboration, and project delivery. Note: This article was created with the assistance of an AI engine. It has been reviewed and revised by our team of experts to ensure accuracy and quality.

How to Create Effective Intake Forms for Enterprise Teams

Efficient data collection and management are crucial for the success of enterprise teams, and one effective tool that businesses can utilize to streamline their data collection process is an intake form. In this article, we will delve into the importance of intake forms in enterprise teams and discuss key elements and steps to create effective intake forms. Furthermore, we will explore how to implement and optimize intake forms within the context of the enterprise team environment.  Understanding the Importance of Intake Forms in Enterprise Teams Intake forms play a vital role in the smooth functioning of enterprise teams and are an integral part of business operations. These forms serve as a gateway for data collection and allow companies to gather essential information efficiently. They also function as a bridge between the customer and the organization, enabling businesses to capture relevant data and insights about customers, projects, or processes. Benefits Capture client preferences and requirements and tailor products and services accordingly. Gather project specifications whether it's a marketing campaign or software development project. Save time and resources by eliminating the need for manual data entry and speeding up the data collection process. Uphold data accuracy and consistency via predefined fields and validation checks. Improve collaboration and communication among team members. Key Elements of an Effective Intake Form A well-designed intake form incorporates several key elements that contribute to its effectiveness in capturing accurate and relevant data. The Essentials Include fields to collect all essential information related to the specific purpose of the form. This may include customer details, project specifications, or specific questions tailored to the nature of the data being collected. Remember to strike a balance between collecting enough information and avoiding overwhelming the user with unnecessary fields. For instance, if you are creating an intake form for a customer support ticket, include fields for the customer's name, contact information, and a brief description of the issue. Designing for User-Friendliness Consider organizing the form into sections or steps, making it easier for users to navigate and understand the information they need to provide. Use appropriate field types such as dropdowns, checkboxes, and radio buttons to simplify data entry. If you are collecting the user's country, using a dropdown menu with a list of countries can make the form more user-friendly. Additionally, consider implementing conditional logic to show or hide fields based on user input, making the form more interactive and personalized. If you are collecting information about a user's dietary preferences, show additional fields for allergies or restrictions only if the user selects specific options. Ensuring Data Security and Privacy Implement measures such as encryption, secure data storage, and access controls to protect the data from unauthorized access or breaches. Even if it is intercepted, the information remains unreadable to unauthorized individuals. Secure data storage practices, such as storing data in encrypted databases or using secure cloud storage solutions, can further enhance data protection. Access controls, such as multi-factor authentication and role-based permissions, can limit access to the data to only authorized personnel.  Steps to Create an Effective Intake Form Here are several steps to take to create your organization's intake form. Identifying Your Needs When identifying your needs, consider the different types of information that may be relevant to your intake form. This could include personal details such as name, contact information, and demographic information. Additionally, you may need to collect specific information related to the purpose of the form, such as medical history, preferences, or project requirements. Gathering input from various stakeholders is essential to verify that the intake form covers all necessary aspects. This may involve collaborating with team members from different departments or consulting with clients or customers. By involving all relevant parties, you can create a comprehensive intake form that meets everyone's needs. Choosing the Right Format Selecting the appropriate format for your intake form depends on several factors, including the nature of the data, user preferences, and the device on which the form will be accessed. Consider using online form builders or specialized software to create digital forms that can be easily accessed, completed, and submitted by users. Alternatively, you may opt for printed forms if physical signatures or attachments are required. When deciding on the format, consider the user experience. Online forms offer convenience and accessibility, allowing users to fill them out at their own pace and from any location. They also provide the advantage of automatically capturing and storing data. On the other hand, printed forms may be necessary in certain situations where physical documentation is required. This could include legal documents, medical forms, or forms that need to be physically signed. Printed forms can also be useful in situations where internet access is limited or unreliable. Testing and Refining Your Form During the testing phase, take into account various scenarios and user perspectives. This can involve simulating different user profiles, such as individuals with different levels of technical proficiency or individuals with disabilities who may require additional accommodations. Also, conduct usability testing through various methods, such as in-person sessions, remote testing, or surveys. By observing how users interact with the form and collecting their feedback, you can identify any areas of confusion, inefficiency, or potential errors. This feedback can then be used to refine the form and make it more user-friendly. Remember that the testing and refinement process is iterative. It is important to continuously gather feedback and make improvements until the form meets the desired standards of accuracy, completeness, and user satisfaction. By investing time and effort into testing and refining your intake form, you can make sure that it effectively serves its purpose and provides a positive user experience. Implementing Your Intake Form in the Enterprise Team The implementation of an intake form within your enterprise team can greatly streamline your processes and improve overall efficiency. However, rolling out this new tool requires more than just technical implementation. It also demands effective training and communication to ensure successful adoption and utilization by your team members. Training Your Team Consider organizing training sessions or workshops to provide step-by-step instructions on how to use the intake form effectively. These sessions should not only focus on the technical aspects of filling out the form but also emphasize the importance of accurate and thorough data entry. Additionally, offering ongoing support is crucial so that every team member understands and embraces the use of the form. Establish a system where team members can ask questions, seek clarification, or report any issues they encounter while using the form. This support system will help to address any concerns or challenges that may arise during the initial stages of implementation. Monitoring and Updating Your Form Regularly analyze the collected data to identify areas for improvement. Look for patterns or trends that may indicate bottlenecks or areas where the form can be optimized. This data-driven approach will help you make informed decisions on how to refine the form and enhance its effectiveness. Furthermore, keep an open line of communication with your team members and encourage them to provide feedback on their experience with the intake form. Their insights and suggestions can be invaluable in identifying pain points or uncovering opportunities for improvement. Based on the feedback received, periodically update and refine the form to address any identified issues and enhance its usability. By keeping the form up-to-date and relevant, you can ensure that it continues to serve its purpose within the enterprise team environment. Overall, creating effective intake forms for enterprise teams is a critical aspect of efficient data collection and management. By understanding the importance of intake forms, incorporating key elements, following the necessary steps, and implementing them effectively within the enterprise team environment, businesses can optimize their data collection processes and enhance decision-making. So, start harnessing the power of intake forms and propel your enterprise team towards success! Create effective intake forms for enterprise teams with Wrike. Take advantage of the free trial and streamline your work intake process for superior project management. Note: This article was created with the assistance of an AI engine. It has been reviewed and revised by our team of experts to ensure accuracy and quality.

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What Is a Gantt Chart? How to Use Gantt Charts in Project Management (with Examples)

Whether you’re a project management rookie or veteran, you’ve probably heard of a gantt chart. While gantt charts might seem intimidating, they’re not as mystifying as you might think.

In this guide, you’ll learn everything you need to know about the gantt chart—from its definition and parts to how to create one quickly and easily. Find out how gantt charts work and why so many project teams use them in project management.

Watch this video for a quick breakdown of the basics.

What is a gantt chart?: Definition & overview

A gantt chart is a horizontal bar chart used in project management to visually represent a project plan over time. Gantt charts typically show you the timeline and status—as well as who’s responsible—for each task in the project.

Here’s a quick look at the details a gantt chart enables you to capture at a glance:

• How a project breaks down into tasks
• When each task will begin and end
• How long each task will take
• Who’s assigned to each task
• How tasks relate to and depend on each other
• When important meetings, approvals, or deadlines need to happen
• How work is progressing in a project
• The full project schedule from start to finish

In other words, a gantt chart is a super-simple way to communicate what it will take to deliver a project on time and budget. That means it’s a whole lot easier to keep your project team and stakeholders on the same page from the get-go.

Who invented the gantt chart?

The first project management chart was invented by Karol Adamiecki in 1896. So why isn’t it called an Adamiecki chart? Good question!

Although Adamiecki created his precursor to the gantt chart—called the harmonogram—in the late 19th century, he didn’t publish it until 1931. It got limited exposure at the time because it was only published in Polish.

Meanwhile, Henry Gantt published his own project management system in the 1910s to a much wider audience.

Here’s a quick history of gantt charts:

• 1896 : Karol Adamiecki creates the first project management chart: the Harmonogram, a precursor to the modern gantt chart.
• 1931 : Adamiecki publishes the harmonogram (but in Polish with limited exposure).
• 1910-1915 : Henry Gantt publishes his own project management system, the gantt chart.
• Today : Gantt charts are the preferred tool for managing projects of all sizes and types.

Basic components of a gantt chart

Gantt charts may seem complicated at first. But once you learn how to read them, you’ll be able to tell exactly where your projects are and what needs to happen to guide them to success.

Reading a gantt chart really comes down to understanding how the different elements come together to make a gantt chart work. Here’s a simple gantt chart example with explanations of the core components:

Let’s break down the basic parts of a gantt chart so you understand how they function in a project plan.

• Task list : Runs vertically down the left of the gantt chart to describe project work and may be organized into groups and subgroups
• Timeline : Runs horizontally across the top of the gantt chart and shows months, weeks, days, and years
• Dateline : A vertical line that highlights the current date on the gantt chart
• Bars : Horizontal markers on the right side of the gantt chart that represent tasks and show progress, duration, and start and end dates
• Milestones : Yellow diamonds that call out major events, dates, decisions, and deliverables
• Dependencies : Light gray lines that connect tasks that need to happen in a certain order
• Progress : Shows how far along work is and may be indicated by percent complete and/or bar shading
• Resource assigned : Indicates the person or team responsible for completing a task

What is a gantt chart used for in project management?

In project management, gantt charts are used for planning and scheduling projects. A gantt chart is incredibly useful because it allows you to simplify complex projects into an easy-to-follow plan and track the status of tasks as work progresses.

Gantt charts also help you keep track of project deadlines, milestones, and hours worked so you can spot and address delays or overages before they wreak havoc on your project.

Who uses gantt charts?

Gantt charts are used by project managers, business owners, team leaders, and executives in many different industries across various departments. Here are just a few types of companies and teams that use gantt charts to plan, schedule, and execute their projects:

• Construction
• Consulting agencies
• Engineering firms
• Event planning
• Human resources
• Marketing teams
• Manufacturing
• Software development

When should you use a gantt chart?

A gantt chart comes in handy when your project requires more planning than a basic to-do list. Here are a few sure signs you’re going to need a gantt chart to get the job done:

• Your project has a hard deadline.
• Multiple people or teams are involved in the project and need to be coordinated.
• A boss, client, or team member wants to see a visual timeline of the project from beginning to end.
• Your project involves even just a little complexity, such as tasks that need to be done in a specific order.
• Team members work on multiple projects at a time, and you need to manage their workloads.
• You have a good idea of roughly how long each task should or can take.

If ANY of the conditions above apply to your project, use a gantt chart!

Gantt chart examples

Now let’s look at 7 examples of gantt charts you could use for different project types. Use these ideas as an easy starting point for making a gantt chart for your projects.

Software project gantt chart

Taking a hybrid approach to an upcoming software project? This software development plan shows you how to use a gantt chart for an Agile project . Tasks have been organized into groups based on sprints, with milestones for sprint planning and deployment.

Try this template for free!

Design project gantt chart

This sample gantt chart is perfect for planning a website build or redesign. It breaks activities down into basic phases from discovery, content, and design to development, launch, and maintenance. Feel free to keep your website development plan simple or build it out to cover all your project bases.

Media production gantt chart

Want to get one step closer to lights, camera, action? We designed this video production schedule to help you hit your release dates right on time. In this gantt chart example, tasks are organized and color-coded by the 3 phases of a media project: pre-production, production, and post-production.

Marketing gantt charts

Writing your first marketing plan can feel daunting. This digital marketing plan makes it easy to outline key strategies for meeting your objectives. Use this gantt chart to track goal progress and keep your team and stakeholders informed. In this example, we grouped quarterly initiatives by project type.

Need to plan an integrated digital marketing campaign ? The gantt chart sample below shows you how to build a tactical plan across all your digital media. It’s got tasks for foundational planning, content, and design work, plus subgroups for different marketing channels so you can outline a strategy for each one.

Event planning gantt chart

This event plan checklist breaks your event plan down into all the granular details. You can group tasks by planning phase and even vendor. In this example, we’ve used milestones to track important meetings, decisions, and deadlines and added dependencies between tasks that must get done before the next one can start.

Construction gantt chart

Construction project managers rely on gantt charts to manage moving parts across large projects. In this sample construction schedule , each phase of the construction process has been broken down into its own group of tasks. Important contract sign-off and inspections are represented by milestones.

How to make a gantt chart

Now that you’ve got the gantt chart basics down, you’re ready to roll up your sleeves and create a gantt chart of your own! Let’s walk through the process of how to build a gantt chart for your next project.

In this section, we’ll go over:

What you need to create a gantt chart

How to build a basic gantt chart in minutes, best practices for creating an effective gantt chart.

You can’t build a gantt chart without knowing some basic project information. That’s why it’s important to answer a few simple questions first.

These questions can help you gather all the right details so you can sketch out a project plan before you sit down to create your gantt chart. Get a more detailed look at how to write a good project plan.

What to consider when making a gantt chart

• What are the major deliverables?
• How will we get to those deliverables and the deadline ?
• What are the milestones we need to hit?
• Are there dependencies that could impact the timeline ?
• Who is on the project team, and what role will they play in those deliverables?

There are lots of different ways to make a gantt chart. Some people use traditional desktop apps to create a gantt chart, while others use collaborative project management software .

In this tutorial, we’ll show you how it’s done in TeamGantt. If you’d rather use a spreadsheet to build your gantt chart, we’ve got guides for that too.

• How to make a gantt chart in Excel
• How to make a gantt chart in Google Sheets

Just be sure to choose a gantt chart builder that gives you the features you need.

Follow the steps and examples below to learn how to build a gantt chart in TeamGantt in minutes. Sign up for a free account to follow along and create a gantt chart of your own.

Step 1: Set up your project details

Before you start mapping out tasks on a timeline, you need to gather a few basic project details.

To create a new gantt chart in TeamGantt, click the New Project button in the upper right corner of the My Projects screen.

Give your project a name and start date, and select the days of the week you want to include in your project.

Tip : You have 2 options for fast-tracking your build if you don’t want to create a gantt chart from scratch: create a project from a template or import a project via CSV. ‍

Once you’ve completed these basics, click Create New Project to move on to adding tasks.

Step 2: Add tasks to your project

Adding tasks to your gantt chart is the first step in creating your project timeline. To create tasks, click on the Add Task link ( +Task ), and type the name of your first task.

Hit enter to add another task. Repeat this process until you have all (or most) of your tasks added to the task list.

Step 3: Schedule your tasks

Now that you’ve got a full list of work to be done, it’s time to schedule all those tasks. TeamGantt makes scheduling tasks super-simple because you can drag and drop each task on your timeline.

To place the taskbar on your gantt chart, simply click on the timeline below the date you'd like to schedule your task. Then drag either side of the taskbar to shorten or extend the task's duration.

Step 4: Add important project milestones

Adding milestones to your gantt chart makes it easy to track project deadlines, approvals, meetings, and other key deliverables or events. In TeamGantt, a milestone appears as a yellow diamond on your gantt chart.

To add a milestone to your gantt chart, simply click on the Milestone link, give your new milestone a name, and drag the milestone icon across the gantt chart to schedule it on the timeline.

Repeat this process until you have all your milestones added to the list.

Step 5: Add dependencies to the tasks that need them

Now that your tasks and milestones are entered and scheduled, hover over a task, and click the gray dot that appears.

Click and drag the dependency line to the task you want to link it to.

Step 6: Invite people to your project and assign tasks to those responsible

Click the Invite People button at the upper right corner of your project to go to your project’s People page. From there, click the blue Invite People link, located just below the list of people who are already part of your project.

If the user already exists in your account:

Simply select the checkbox next to the person you want to add to your project, then click the blue Add to Project button that appears. This person will automatically receive an invitation to log into TeamGantt and access the project.

If the user does not exist in your account yet:

Click the Add New Person link. Then enter the person’s name and email address, select their company-level permission , and click the Add User to Company button. (Note: Guest users and Basic users are automatically added with View Only project permission, while Advanced users are added with Edit Chart project permission.)

Feel free to add your own custom notification message, then click Add to Project to finalize the invite. This person will automatically receive an invitation to get set up in TeamGantt and access the project.

Learn more about inviting people to your project in TeamGantt.

Step 7: Apply task colors to enhance visualization on your gantt chart

Color is a great way to make your gantt chart easy to understand at a quick glance.

Hover over a taskbar, and click on the colored square. Choose a new color, and you’re all done!

Tip : You can set a default color for each person on your team in TeamGantt. Simply select the People tab at the top of your project, then click none next to each user to assign a default task color. Now, each task you assign to that person will automatically be the color you selected.

If you want to build a gantt chart everyone can use and navigate, there are a few simple rules you should keep in mind. Follow these simple tips and best practices to make a good gantt chart that’s easy to update and manage.

Do get granular with tasks.

The more detail you can spell out when it comes to tasks, the better you’ll be able to track progress and steps leading up to a deliverable. Refer back to your work breakdown structure , and list the steps you used to create that.

Do organize tasks into groups or phases.

Creating groups of tasks will make your plan easier to scan and understand. It’ll also allow your team and stakeholders to see what tasks are part of a deliverable or a phase.

Here’s a quick look at how subgroups work in TeamGantt.

Do add important details and documents to tasks.

Sometimes your team and clients may forget what they committed to. Or maybe they don’t fully understand the intent of a task or group.

Use the notes section of your plan (most gantt chart software should provide this) to spell things out. While you’re at it, be sure to upload key files directly to the task so everything’s ready and waiting for work to begin.

In the project sample below, we added notes about the scope of the task and uploaded a copy of the creative brief for more detail.

Do label tasks by responsible party.

This tip comes in handy for any project, but it’s especially useful for client projects. Identifying which team or company is responsible for each task makes your gantt chart super-easy to scan.

When creating a task, you can assign labels you've set up on the People tab or simply put the company name (or an acronym) in front of the task. Here’s how we tagged tasks in the following gantt chart example:

• PT = Product Team
• GM = Gantt Museum

Of course, you’ll also want to take that a step further and assign each task to the person responsible. This will help you with resource allocation and accountability.

Do display start and end dates for each task

Seems like a silly tip, but it’s easy to hide this info in some apps! If you’re using TeamGantt, you’ll see the dates in the gantt view.

Regardless of what tool you’re using, you want to make it clear not only when a task ends, but when it starts. Again, this will help to keep your team and clients accountable.

Don’t skip dependencies.

If you’re not going to move forward on the project without an approval—or one task must be done before another—now’s your chance to note it.

Not every planning tool offers dependency functionality, and it can be a huge help. As your plan shifts, the flow of the work will stay intact.

Don't assign work without checking team availability.

If you’re lucky enough to use a product that shows you overall team availability, use it! Knowing how booked your team is and what projects they’re part of will play a huge role in delivering work on time and maintaining team morale.

Having an overall view of your team’s availability and conflicting work will help you adjust your plan to either meet the needs of existing project work or shift the milestones you’ve put in your plan.

Here's how to view team availability directly from your gantt chart in TeamGantt.

Don’t overlook holidays and time off.

Now is your chance to block time off in your plan. This is important now because as soon as your timeline shifts (you know it will, don’t fight it), you’ll open yourself up to making an error and dropping a deadline on a date that should be blocked. If you note them in your plan, that won’t happen.

Don’t forget to ask for feedback.

If you deliver a plan that has a mistake, misinterprets a task, or even misses a date, it can create confusion and delays. So grab a teammate and ask them to review your gantt chart before you post it for review.

Of course, you’ll also want to be ready to get some feedback on your plan. Formalizing a plan means you’re taking a set of ideas and expanding on them. That also means you might interpret something differently than a teammate. That’s okay!

Don’t set it and forget it.

A gantt chart is a living, breathing document that should keep up with project changes—not a fixed plan that’s set in stone. Invite your team to collaborate on work and track progress in real time so your gantt chart’s always up-to-date.

How to use gantt charts to manage projects

Now you know how to make a gantt chart to plan and schedule project tasks. But that’s not all they’re designed to do! 

Let’s explore some easy ways you can use a gantt chart to manage and track your projects in TeamGantt.

Collaborate with your team and stakeholders

Successful projects run on communication and collaboration. When project files and updates are scattered across different email threads and other platforms, it’s hard to get a good sense of what needs to get done and how close you are to the finish line.

With an online gantt chart , you can streamline communication through a single channel that centers around your project plan.

Here’s how to use a gantt chart to boost collaboration with your team and stakeholders.

Use comments to discuss tasks and share project files

Got a mockup that’s ready for design review? Or need more info to get started on your task? Add a comment to the task, and be sure to tag the person you’re updating so they’ll get automatically notified.

You can also upload documents directly to a task, group, or project. TeamGantt supports version control, so it's easy to find the latest version of any document.

And if you need to share important details up front, that’s what sticky notes are for. For instance, you might want to document how many hours have been scoped for a task or outline specs for a design project.

Watch this video to see team collaboration in action in TeamGantt.

Share your gantt chart with external stakeholders

Need to share project updates with contractors, clients, or other stakeholders? In TeamGantt, you have several options for sharing your gantt chart with external users :

• Invite someone as a guest to your project : Inviting someone as a guest enables them to see and comment on tasks in a single project without making edits to the gantt chart itself.
• Send a view-only link to your gantt chart : This option is great if you want to enable a client or stakeholder to monitor project progress without inviting them to become a user on your account.
• ‍ Export your gantt chart as a PDF : This option enables you to filter a gantt chart down to only the information you want to share so clients and stakeholders can get a quick snapshot of the project.

Integrate your gantt chart with other collaboration apps

If your team uses multiple apps to collaborate on projects, why not integrate them with your gantt chart so everything connects back to the plan? Here are a few popular integrations you can use to keep your people and projects in sync:

• Trello : See your cards in a project timeline, create dependencies between cards, and view workloads—all without ever leaving Trello.
• Slack : Create tasks from chats, check your daily task list, and get notified about new comments and assignments right from Slack.
• Dropbox : Share important documents more easily by uploading Dropbox files directly to your tasks and projects.
• Zapier : Automate work and streamline collaboration by connecting TeamGantt to your other favorite apps.
• ‍ TeamGantt API : Got a developer on hand? Build custom integrations with your TeamGantt data using our public API!

Manage resources and team workloads

It’s hard to finish any project on time and budget when your team is overloaded and overwhelmed. A gantt chart plots everyone’s work on a visual timeline so you can see how tasks stack up across your projects.

In TeamGantt, you can check and adjust workloads right from your gantt chart to avoid overbooking your team as you schedule new tasks.

Take a closer look at how to use gantt charts for project resource management.

Estimate project time and effort

Assigning hourly estimates to tasks in your gantt chart makes it easier to assess project scope , balance team workloads, and monitor project budget once work gets underway.

TeamGantt’s Advanced plan comes with hourly estimation and time tracking. You can use these features to track and compare estimated vs. actual hours directly from your gantt chart. With that kind of visibility, you can keep a close eye on potential overages and get ahead of issues before they throw your whole project off course.

Estimating hours at the task level also gives you a more granular view of availability when assigning and scheduling work for your team. That way you can feel more confident your team can get the work done without missing deadlines.

Learn more about hourly estimation in TeamGantt.

Track progress against deadlines and estimates

One of the best things about using a gantt chart is the ability to see where a project stands at any given moment. After all, clients, bosses and other project stakeholders expect you to stick to your promises (aka: budgets and deadlines).

That’s why it’s important to monitor tasks to ensure you’re on track to deliver work on time and budget. If things start to go sideways, you can adjust the gantt chart to get things back on track and reset expectations along the way.

Here’s how to track progress and spot issues early in TeamGantt.

Update and monitor progress

Checking things off a list is a pretty satisfying thing to do. What’s even more satisfying is updating the % Complete of a big task and watching the taskbar fill in until it’s 100% done.

Seeing the status of your teammates’ and coworkers’ tasks can be a healthy motivating force too. When you know the up-to-the-minute status of other tasks—especially those tasks that may rely on your tasks—it keeps everyone moving in the right direction.

How to request a progress update in TeamGantt

Need to know where someone stands on a particular task? TeamGantt makes it easy to do a quick status check and remind team members to update their progress.

Here's how it works:

• Click the chat bubble to the left of the task to open the comment window.
• Click Request a progress update at the top of the comment window.
• TeamGantt will send anyone who's assigned to that task an email asking them to update their progress.

Hourly estimate vs. actual progress

TeamGantt’s Advanced plan enables you to compare hourly estimates with actual progress so you can easily spot tasks that are taking longer than expected. Simply look for the thin striped line in the middle of each taskbar on your gantt chart, and pay attention to its color and length.

These indicators signal task trouble:

• The striped line is red : This task (or group) is over-budget. More hours have been tracked than were originally estimated for the task.
• ‍ The striped line is longer than the progress indicated for a task : The hours tracked are outpacing actual progress. That means this task (or group) is at risk for going over budget or missing a deadline.

Remember how I said no matter how much planning you do, it’s likely something will come up that requires you to move your timeline? It’s handy to know how much you’ve had to move things over the course of a project. Enter: baselines.

What is a baseline in a gantt chart?

A baseline is a “snapshot” of your project in time. When you create a baseline set, you’re grabbing a picture of your whole project so you have something to compare to when things inevitably shift for one reason or another.

Baselines are extremely important because they give you the “real” picture of shifts that have occurred. It’s easy to think things are looking pretty good, when in reality you’re 3 weeks behind and $10,000 over budget. Things can creep slowly, and without a set of baselines to compare to, it can be easy to get behind and not even fully realize it.

Learn how baselines work in TeamGantt.

Using multiple baseline sets in your gantt chart

A single baseline is great, but a single point doesn’t show trends. Stringing multiple baseline sets together will give you a much clearer picture of when and why your project slipped. Was it due to consistently dragging manufacturing estimates? Or was it that the client was consistently slow in approving designs and signing contracts? Baselines can tell you exactly what you need to know so you can improve your estimating practices.

Baselines aren’t just for showing you the negatives of your project. They’re equally useful for seeing where things have gone better than expected. Just like you have to shift things around when tasks are delayed, you may have to make adjustments when things run ahead of schedule.

As you get better at tracking your project’s slippage, you’ll get better at making realistic estimates on timelines. Once you’ve mastered that skill, you’ll have customers lining up because they know that when you plan a project, they have a timeline they can count on.

How does a gantt chart compare to other alternatives?

Project managers use a variety of tools—from gantt charts and kanban boards to spreadsheets and task lists—to keep up with project details, deadlines, and to-dos.

So what separates gantt charts from the rest of the pack when it comes to time-sensitive or complex projects? Spreadsheets, kanban boards, and task lists fall short when it comes to important project management tasks, like building a timeline, outlining dependencies, and managing workloads.

Without these 3 gantt chart features , you’ll have a tough time communicating the plan to your team, clients, and stakeholders. Here are just a few examples of questions a gantt chart can help you answer:

• Can we take on more work?
• How will we get from point A to point B?
• What needs to happen first?
• Can we meet a requested deadline?
• Who has the bandwidth to tackle these tasks?
• Are we on track to finish on time?
• How are we performing?

The good news is, you can use a gantt chart without foregoing other alternatives. Your team may prefer kanban boards for managing daily tasks or using a spreadsheet to create a RACI chart , and that’s okay.

With TeamGantt, you’ve got choices. View and manage projects as a gantt chart, task list, calendar, or kanban board, and upload important spreadsheets to the project documents. No matter how you look at things, everything ties back to your plan.

Let’s take a closer look at how a gantt chart can help you manage projects better.

Gantt chart pros and cons

What’s to love about gantt charts? And what should you be aware of before diving in? Here’s a quick snapshot of the pros and cons so you can decide if a gantt chart is right for your projects.

What are the pros of using a gantt chart?

A gantt chart is like a front-row seat to the project action. All the tiny details you never noticed from the nosebleed section suddenly come to life in full color right before your very eyes. It’s nearly impossible to miss a game-changing move!

Let’s explore some of the biggest gantt chart pros in project management .

Visualize your entire project

A project plan is one thing. How it plays out is another. A gantt chart gives you a start-to-finish view of your entire project timeline so you can see how tasks are progressing in real time. That means you can provide up-to-the-minute status reports to managers and stakeholders in a flash.

See how tasks are connected

Let’s face it: Things change. Lucky for you, modern gantt charts make it easy to shift tasks around without breaking your stride. With dependencies —a star feature of any gantt chart—you can keep tasks connected even when your timeline gives you the ol’ switcheroo.

Keep everyone on the same page and on time

Clear communication is a must-have in any project. Without it, you risk project delays and cost overruns. Web-based gantt charts, like TeamGantt, ensure no one’s left in the dark. That’s because all your project info and discussion threads live in one central hub that everyone can access, making team collaboration a breeze.

Know who’s busy and who isn’t

If you want to make smart business decisions, you’ve got to have a good grasp on your resources. With gantt charts, resource management is no longer a guessing game. You can see who’s got bandwidth to take on new tasks at a glance.

See a full list of gantt chart benefits.

Do gantt charts have limitations?

Some folks think gantt charts are too complicated to build, read, and update. While traditional desktop apps have their limitations, most of the cons people associate with gantt charts don’t apply to the online gantt chart software you’ll find today.

That’s because modern gantt charts ushered in a whole new era of project management. Now gantt charts offer clean and simple design with drag and drop scheduling so you can build and adjust project plans in an instant. And because everything happens online, it’s easy to share plans, collaborate on work, update tasks, and track progress in real time.

Let's look at how modern gantt charts compare to traditional desktop apps.

Modern gantt charts vs. desktop apps

Gantt charts come in many forms—from good old-fashioned paper to desktop apps and even web-based software.

Bringing gantt charts online transforms them from a static document that quickly becomes obsolete to a living, collaborative representation of a project’s current state. Team members can update their progress in real time, and stakeholders can check in on project status without having to go through you. Plus, it's easy to stay in sync and push projects across the finish line more quickly.

See how TeamGantt’s modern gantt chart tool compares to 2 popular desktop apps:

• TeamGantt vs. Microsoft Excel
• TeamGantt vs. Microsoft Project

Advanced features to look for in a modern gantt chart

A good modern gantt chart should be a part of a complete project management solution. Look for these advanced gantt chart software features to ensure your team and projects stay on track:

• Team collaboration
• Multiple project views, including kanban boards, task lists, and calendar views
• Time tracking and hourly estimation
• Workload management
• Mobile access
• Integrations

TeamGantt has all of this! Try it for free.

Continue learning about gantt charts

Now that you know how to make a gantt chart, you’re ready to move on to the next step! Keep reading to learn how to use your gantt chart to manage your team's time and availability more easily.

NEXT CHAPTER: Managing Resources with Your Gantt Chart

Plan your next project in minutes

When you’re a project manager, every minute counts. So why waste time building out a bunch of complicated spreadsheets just to keep tabs on a project?

At TeamGantt, you don’t have to. Our free online gantt chart software enables you to stay focused on the tasks that move the needle. Whip up a project plan in minutes, and watch your team cross the finish line faster. It really is that simple.

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How to Use a Marketing Gantt Chart

There’s nothing simple about marketing in today’s digital landscape. Marketing teams have to manage multiple campaigns as they’re carried out simultaneously over numerous channels, and customer expectations are higher than ever. While it’s common to measure campaign success after the fact , there’s a better way. Savvy marketers need ways to manage campaigns and maximize their efficacy while they’re in progress. One classic, proven tool for keeping projects on track and delivering results is the Gantt chart .

Having the right project management tools is critical. When projects fail, lack of planning is a factor nearly 40% of the time. Time management issues can have a considerable impact: according to a study by Big Four accounting firm KPMG , 60% of projects that fail have a deadline of less than one year. Gantt charts address these issues by providing an easy, visually-oriented way to schedule , organize, and track the many interrelated tasks that make up a large-scale project.

What is a Gantt chart?

A Gantt chart is a method for displaying the various tasks, events, and other activities that make up a larger project . Gantt charts list these activities along with their start and end dates, duration, and the interdependencies between tasks.

This information is used to create bar charts that make it possible to see:

• What activities need to be done to complete the project
• How long each activity should take
• Which activities need to be completed before dependent activities can begin

Project managers can use Gantt charts to ensure their projects are proceeding according to schedule – and that no necessary tasks are overlooked.

Henry Gantt ( Wikipedia )

The earliest forms of the Gantt chart date back to the 1890s. They received wider implementation, and a name that stuck, when American mechanical engineer and management consultant Henry Gantt designed his signature version of the chart in the 1910s. Gantt charts were used to plan military operations during World War I and large-scale infrastructure projects like the construction of the Hoover Dam.

Today, digital technology makes it possible to create sophisticated Gantt charts that can handle countless tasks and sub-tasks, presenting information in a concise format that anyone can quickly understand.

What should a Gantt chart include?

One of the main strengths of a Gantt chart is how it visually conveys information about scheduled activities :

• When they started
• When they’re expected to be finished
• Which in-progress tasks need to be completed before work can begin on subsequent tasks

While there is a fair amount of flexibility in setting up a Gantt chart and what information you can include, certain elements are required if you want to get the maximum benefits from using them.

The essential inclusions in a Gantt chart are a list of tasks specific to the project and a timeline (a start date and a planned end date) for completing each of those tasks.

This data is used to create the Gantt chart’s signature bar graphs, allowing for immediate visualization of the tasks at hand and their place within the overall project schedule.

Gantt chart team helios IszKoC Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0

It is also important to note the dependencies between tasks . For example, in a Gantt chart for a content marketing campaign, the task “Submit guest post to industry publications” would depend on the “Write guest post copy” task being completed first.

A Gantt chart can be enriched with other pieces of critical information, including:

• The actual deadlines for each task
• The names of the individuals leading each task
• The task’s relative priority
• A list of the resources required to complete a task

The earliest Gantt charts were composed with pencil and paper. Today, Gantt charts can be created with a wide variety of platforms and software applications, and you can always customize them to meet a project’s unique needs.

How do you make a Gantt chart?

The hardest part of putting a Gantt chart together is figuring out how to break down the project into separate tasks that accurately represent the work required to deliver the objective results. The goal should be for the Gantt chart to capture 100% of the project scope.

This six-step process will show you examples of Gantt charts and will provide a framework for ensuring the tasks and schedule, in your Gantt chart, are complete and accurate:

1. Review Your Project Goals

Gantt charts are built around specific projects. Each task on the chart should directly relate to meeting the goals of that project. For a marketing example, the project could be to launch a new employee advocacy campaign , but the goal might be to acquire a certain number of new high-quality leads.

2. Define Your Activities

The Gantt chart should include every activity contained within the scope of the project. It’s wise to solicit the input of the entire project team in order to identify all of the relevant activities and their associated tasks.

3. Sequence Your Activities

Once you’ve got a comprehensive list of activities, broken down into discrete tasks that are neither too general nor too granular, arrange them in a logical sequence. Identify tasks that will need to be started or completed before other tasks can begin.

(Source: https://www.wikihow.com/Create-a-Gantt-Chart)

4. Assign Resources and Task Leaders

Itemize the resources required to complete each task and decide which team members will be in charge of which tasks.

5. Assign Durations

Estimate the time it will take to complete each task, along with any constraints or dependencies that might be applicable.

6. Create Your Schedule

Once you know which tasks need to be tracked and have gathered all of the necessary information, you can create the schedule for your project and start entering data into the Gantt chart.

It’s not hard to find project management software that can create Gantt charts for you, but you can also create a functional Gantt chart in programs like Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.

Why Your Marketing Team Should Use a Gantt Chart

Even a tightly focused marketing campaign has a lot of moving parts. As campaigns grow in scope and scale, Gantt charts can be invaluable in spotting workflow issues and keeping everything running on schedule.

When your team can refer to a Gantt chart to see how each task progresses and which tasks hold up other tasks, they can communicate more effectively, schedule more efficiently, and engage in smarter planning.

Consider the example mentioned in #1 in the previous section – an employee advocacy campaign. To successfully launch such a campaign means executing many interdependent tasks. There’s market research, content creation, and advocates to be selected, provisioned, and trained. While some of these things can be done concurrently, there’s still a significant amount of preparatory work to do before the campaign can go live.

A Gantt chart can make it easy to see and understand how all of these activities are connected. It helps you visualize the allocation of your time and resources in the most efficient way possible.

Gantt Charts Keep You on Schedule

Staying on top of a complex digital marketing campaign and keeping it on schedule can test even the most experienced marketing manager’s abilities. Having the right management tools can make all the difference. Gantt charts have been helping project managers meet their goals (and maintain their sanity) for over a century.

If you’re ready to optimize your next marketing campaign with some Gantt charting, don’t forget to download the free template we’ve created. If your plans include social media marketing , remember that Oktopost has high-quality, effective, and customizable tools to manage your campaign and measure its impact.

Simplify your social publishing activities

Learn how Oktopost will help your savvy team, plan, prioritize, and grow a solid social media marketing strategy with the most intuitive tools.

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Top 10 Marketing Gantt Chart Templates with Samples and Examples

Deepika Dhaka

In this highly competitive business world, you, as a marketer, must keep up with the market trends to make your brand visible. This requires planning a new marketing campaign every now and then, something that can be challenging, especially when you don't have the slightest idea of how to monitor it.

Without effective scheduling and monitoring, your projects will run foul of deadlines, and everything will turn into chaos.

One of the most popular ways for marketing teams to make their projects more manageable is by creating and maintaining Gantt Charts (Designed around 1912 by Henry Gantt). This scheduling tool has been and still is a standard project management planning and scheduling tool over a century later.

Gantt Charts help marketers visualize project timelines, progress, and deliverables. It includes graphical lines or bars that display tasks, progress, and status, allowing managers to allocate time and responsibility. The chart is beneficial for marketers who need to maintain team momentum on campaigns with activities like product launches or marketing events.

If you want to improve your marketing processes, you must be able to build a Gantt Chart in minutes, with a timeline to stay on schedule and hit your deadlines. SlideTeam presents the most popular Marketing Gantt Chart Templates collection with samples and examples to assist you.

Marketing Gantt Chart Templates

All these templates are customizable, and you can modify these per your business needs. With these PPT Slides, you can map out an effective plan and share it with your team to get everyone on the same page.

Template 1: Marketing Project Gantt PowerPoint Presentation

If you are looking for a collection of Gantt Charts where you can plan your entire project, this PPT Presentation is an ideal pick. It includes charts for all project functions, such as digital marketing, website development, marketing promotion tasks, etc. With this PPT Template, you can streamline the process of scheduling your activities and can deliver your project on time. Get it today!

Download this template

Template 2: Gantt Chart Template with Marketing Phases

Presenting a Gantt Chart with vibrant colors to help you schedule activities for phases of marketing. It will help you plan campaigns, such as direct selling, public relations, affinity marketing, and paid media marketing. This PPT Template divides marketing initiatives into four phases; each is three-week long. This layout allows you to finish your campaign in twelve weeks to ease your workload. Download now!

Template 3: Marketing Plan Gantt Chart Template

Using this marketing plan Gantt chart template can help you organize and track the progress of your marketing efforts, identify any delays or roadblocks, and ensure that tasks and activities are completed on time. It can also help you communicate your plan to stakeholders, such as team members or executives, by providing a clear and visual overview of the plan. The dark theme used in this slide gives it a more professional look. Download it today!

Template 4: Marketing Gantt Chart Activities Template

Presenting a simple yet helpful PPT Template to define your marketing activities and their timeline. This Gantt Chart format shows the start and end dates of tasks or activities, as well as their dependencies and resources required to complete them. It also includes a list of associated tasks with the marketing plan. Download it now to streamline the implementation of your marketing activities.

Template 5: Marketing Gantt Chart PPT Example

Use this comprehensive Gantt Chart Template to resolve the confusion in your team related to campaigns, their duration, and their due dates. It allows you to do annual planning for twelve releases with their start and end dates. You can add or remove the number of campaigns as per your business need. It also has a separate column to record the status of the campaigns. Get it today!

Template 6: Marketing Gantt Chart PPT Sample

In this Marketing Gantt chart, you can include the completion of key tasks or activities, the launch of a marketing campaign, or the achievement of specific marketing goals. As the phases and milestones of a marketing Gantt Chart vary depending on the organization's needs and goals, you can customize this chart to reflect the unique needs and goals of the marketing plan. It is a simple framework that includes the type of campaign and its timeline. If you need a layout with clutter-free design and clarity, this template is an ideal pick. Get it now!

Template 7: Quarterly Gantt Chart Template

If you want to plan your marketing campaigns quarterly, here’s a perfect PPT Template to assist you. This template helps you streamline your marketing implementation by dividing your annual plan into quarters. It includes four marketing campaigns: Social Media, Online, Content Marketing, and Public Relations. And further divides them into different channels and activities. Grab it today to schedule and track your marketing efforts across verticals. Get it today!

Template 8: New Product Go to Market Gantt Chart

Are you planning to launch a new product? If you want it to be successful, consider using this new product go-to-market Gantt Chart to plan and schedule effective marketing strategies. It includes four crucial stages of launching a new product. These are Development, Closed Beta, Open Beta, and General Release. The best part about this PPT Slide is that it lets you mention the name of the people responsible for each activity. It also allocates colors to the status of each campaign, such as Blue is for complete, Red means in progress, and Pink means the task is in waiting. Download it today!

Template 9: 30-60-90 Days Sales and Marketing Plan Gantt Chart

If you struggling to plan activities for your new sales and marketing employees, you must explore these 30-60-90 days sales and marketing plan Gantt Chart. This PPT Sample will help you schedule a plan for market assessment, research, strategy implementation, and more. This marketing and sales plan allows a 30-day plan to establish initial requirements. The next 30 days determine the target market for the sales. The 90 days plan shows the end goal of the sales plan and how to achieve it. Grab it now!

Template 10: Digital Marketing Gantt Chart Template

This PPT Template is meant only for digital marketing professionals. The six-month Gantt Chart includes timelines for digital marketing techniques, such as content, paid programming, email marketing, social media, and organic search. The light shades of pink and purple give this template a more subtle appearance. Download it now!

Download the template

Know what success looks like

A Gantt chart is a visual description of a project’s timeline and shows the start and end dates of a project’s components, such as resources and planning. If you are involved in a marketing project and want to create your Gantt Chart, refer to our examples on the list. Download these PPT Templates now to get started.

PS If you are looking for marketing plan PPT Templates, here’s a handy guide with some amazing samples and examples.

FAQs on Marketing Gantt Chart

What are the benefits of using gantt charts in marketing.

A Gantt Chart is a type of project management tool that helps marketers visualize and plan tasks, resources, and timelines for marketing campaigns and projects. Some benefits of using a marketing Gantt chart include:

Improved organization: A marketing Gantt Chart helps marketers organize tasks and resources in a clear, visual way, making it easier to see what needs to be done and when.

Enhanced communication: A marketing Gantt Chart can be shared with team members and stakeholders, helping everyone stay on the same page and understand their roles and responsibilities.

Better project management: A marketing Gantt Chart allows marketers to track progress, identify and address any issues or delays, and make necessary adjustments to the project plan.

Increased efficiency: A marketing Gantt Chart helps marketers work more efficiently and effectively by identifying and scheduling tasks and resources in advance.

Better collaboration: A marketing Gantt chart helps team members collaborate and coordinate their efforts, leading to a more cohesive and successful marketing campaign.

Who invented the Gantt Chart?

The Gantt Chart was invented by Henry Gantt, an American mechanical engineer and management consultant, in the early 1900s. Gantt developed the chart as a visual tool to help managers plan and track the progress of complex projects, and it quickly became a popular method for project management in various industries. Gantt Charts are named after him in recognition of his contributions to the field of project management.

What are the components of a Gantt Chart?

A Gantt Chart comprises:

A task list : This is the list of tasks that need to be completed as part of the project. Each task is listed in a row, with the task name and a description of the work to be done.

Timeline: This is a horizontal axis that represents the project duration. The timeline is divided into equal intervals, such as days, weeks, or months, depending on the length of the project.

Taskbars: Each task is represented by a bar on the chart, with the start and end dates of the task indicated by the left and right edges of the bar, respectively. The length of the bar represents the duration of the task.

Milestones : These are significant events or achievements in the project that are marked on the chart with a diamond or other symbol.

Dependencies: These are the relationships between tasks, such as one task that must be completed before another can begin. Dependencies are often indicated on the chart with a line connecting the two tasks.

Resource allocation: This is the allocation or mapping of people, equipment, or materials, to tasks on the chart. Varying colors or symbols may be used to represent resources on the chart.

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What is a Gantt chart? A guide to mapping your project timelines

A Gantt chart is a horizontal bar chart used to illustrate a project’s schedule and related tasks or events during the project lifecycle. Find out how this type of chart can help you map tasks and keep deliverables on track.

While these charts can get quite complex, the basics aren’t hard to nail. In our guide, you’ll get a clear breakdown of what Gantt charts are, when to use them, tips for creating one, and more.

What is a Gantt chart?

A Gantt chart is a horizontal bar chart used to illustrate the timeline of a project and its tasks. This gives your team a visual overview of project information like your project schedule, upcoming milestones, and overall project timeline.

Each horizontal bar within the chart represents a task, and the length of each bar represents the amount of time that step or task will take. When you zoom out to look at the full picture, these charts give project managers and project teams an overview of what work needs to get done, who’s doing it, and when.

Gantt charts typically include the following components:

Task start date

Task duration

Task end date

Most Gantt charts also offer additional context about how project tasks connect to each other, who they’re assigned to, and what important deadlines and milestones are coming up. With a dynamic timeline, team members have at-a-glance insight into what they’re responsible for and how their work impacts the project as a whole.

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History of the Gantt chart

Polish engineer Karol Adamiecki created the first iteration of a Gantt chart in 1896, which he called the harmonogram. Adamiecki published his findings in Russian and Poli

sh, which made them difficult to access in English-speaking countries. In 1910, American mechanical engineer Henry Gantt independently popularized a similar chart in the United States, which he devised in order to represent how long factory workers spent on a given task. These two systems have since been merged to create what we know today as the modern-day Gantt chart.

After tracking factory employees’ tasks, these charts became a popular way to track project schedules . Originally, these charts were drawn on paper, which meant that whenever the schedule changed, the charts had to be redrawn. Later, project managers used pieces of paper or blocks to represent the task bars, so they could move them around as needed.

Gantt chart example

Studying this example of a Gantt chart is helpful for understanding how to map out a project lifecycle effectively. 

Initial steps: The project starts with the "Identify key stakeholders" activity, which lays the groundwork for all other tasks that follow.

Planning phase and project launch: Tasks like "Map out dependencies" are scheduled alongside "Define project goals," due by December 15 to indicate tasks that can occur simultaneously. While the "Kick off project" action establishes a key milestone and planning deadline.

Task management: Tasks such as "Measure performance against goals" and "Assign action items" suggest a cycle of continuous evaluation and task distribution.

Finalizing and reporting: Activities that help team members and stakeholders recognize the steps needed as the project culminates to a conclusion include "Prepare presentation" and "Present to leadership." While the final phases of the project are represented by tasks like "Communicate results" and "Complete project," which concentrate on project wrap-up and outcome communication.

While every chart will look different, this example will help you grasp the fundamentals of task sequencing and time management critical for any successful project.

What is a Gantt chart used for?

While you can use a timeline view for a variety of projects and programs, it’s helpful to understand what these charts are commonly used for and why:

Build and manage complex projects: The bigger the project, the more tasks there are to manage. Gantt charts can help project managers when scheduling projects by allowing them to easily visualize a project and break it down into smaller tasks.

Monitor task dependencies: Project delays happen. Visualizing work in a timeline helps project managers automate task dependencies, which ensures that the next phase or task doesn’t start until the previous one has finished.

Keep track of project progress: Track progress and milestones, so you can quickly adjust your project plan if needed.

1. Mapping out a marketing campaign

Larger marketing campaigns require a lot of team collaboration and coordination—and it’s easy to lose track of all the moving pieces. That's why it's so important to visualize all of your work as a sequence of tasks with assignees and details about how long each initiative will take. This way, teams don’t just know who’s responsible for what, but also how their work impacts others or the larger goal.

2. Outlining deliverables for a client

When you show clients a timeline of all of your deliverables , you can clearly set expectations around how long each will take. By outlining plans this way, you can give stakeholders and clients a clear idea of the scope of your deliverables, and how long each one will take to accomplish—so they won’t just know when you’re delivering an item, but also the timeframe in which you’ll be working on it.

3. Planning a product launch

For product launches, you might use a timeline to map out the entire plan, from ideation to launch and beyond. By visualizing this in a timeline, you’re then able to more easily spot conflicts before you begin, see dependencies between steps, and get a clear overview of everything that’s happening leading up to the launch and when.

Parts of a gantt chart

Have you ever wondered what makes up a Gantt chart and how each component contributes to effective project management? Understanding the anatomy of a Gantt chart can help you leverage its full potential in organizing and visualizing your project timelines. Here are the essential components of a Gantt chart, each with an example:

Task list: A vertical list of project tasks on the left side of the chart, serving as the foundation for plotting the project timeline. For example, a project to develop a new website might include tasks like "design homepage," "write content," and "code website."

Task bars: Horizontal bars that represent the duration of each task, showing the start and end dates. For instance, the task bar for "design homepage" might span two weeks in April, visually indicating its planned duration.

Milestones: Markers that signify key dates or achievements within the project timeline. An example is marking the completion of the website prototype as a milestone, which indicates a significant achievement in the project's progress.

Dependencies: Lines or arrows that connect tasks to indicate the sequence in which tasks must occur. If "write content" cannot start until "design homepage" is complete, a dependency arrow would connect these tasks.

Critical path: Highlights the longest sequence of dependent tasks that determine the project's duration. In our website project, the critical path might include tasks such as "code website," directly impacting the project's end date.

Resource allocation: Information on which resources are assigned to specific tasks is often included alongside the task bars. An example would be assigning a specific web designer to the "design homepage" task.

Dates and time scale: The top of the chart features a calendar or time scale that tasks and milestones are plotted against to provide a temporal context. For example, the entire project might be set against a six-month time scale from April to September. This helps stakeholders visualize the project timeline at a glance.

Each of these components plays an important role in providing a comprehensive overview of the project's scope, duration, and dependencies.

How to make a Gantt chart

While no two Gantt charts look exactly alike, there are some basic steps you’ll need to take to get you off the ground, no matter what project management software you use. 

1. Define the time range

Your Gantt chart should be a project with a start and end date. Think of this chart as a way to represent your project over a timeline—your timeline needs a beginning and end point.

Tip: While all projects should have a clear end point, it’s likely that you’ll have some additional follow-up tasks with your client after crossing the finish line, so you may need to add in some dates after the fact for these items.

2. Add tasks with start and end dates

In order to effectively visualize your to-dos, make sure each individual task has a specified beginning and end date—this way they can be easily visualized on a bar chart. If you don’t add task start dates, then your tasks will show up as moments in time, which might be harder to visualize within the bigger picture.

Tip: Clear start and end dates also make it easy for your team to understand when they should begin working on a task. By doing this, they won't be unprepared for a big project that is due tomorrow.

3. Clarify dependencies

With large projects, it’s natural to have some tasks that can’t get started until other tasks are complete. To keep the project running smoothly and every team on the same page, you can visualize dependencies between tasks in your Gantt chart.

In the example below, the ability to publish the product blog post is dependent on reviewing the blog post, which in itself is dependent on drafting the blog post. Similarly, the team can’t launch the email campaign until it’s been drafted. Drawing dependencies between these tasks will help the next team stay up-to-date on what they’re able to start working on in their phase of the project.

4. Pinpoint milestones

Unlike most tasks in a Gantt chart, milestones are fixed points in time. Think of them as checkpoints to signify that large pieces of work are complete. They help your team know what to prioritize and can be great moments of celebration when they’re completed.

Tip: Milestones often take place at the end of project phases, but there’s no one single way to create milestones for your team, especially since every team and project looks different. Examples of milestones might look like:

Project approvals

Task starting points

Mid-phase check ins

Phase completion points

5. Modify work as plans change

Plans will inevitably change, which is why your Gantt chart software should be able to adapt to your needs. Look for a tool that allows you to easily drag and drop tasks, and that automatically updates dependencies in real time. That way, you can always keep your project on track, even as plans shift.

Gantt chart best practices

When teams first start using Gantt charts, they often encounter a few common hurdles. These challenges can lead to miscommunication, resource misallocation, and ultimately, project delays.

However, with the right best practices in place, Gantt charts become powerful tools for improving project visibility and team coordination. The following Gantt chart best practices are designed not just as tips but as solutions to these common initial stumbling blocks.

Determine the critical path

Establishing the critical path of a project timeline is key to understanding the sequence of tasks that directly affect the project's completion date. This practice involves identifying which tasks are critical (i.e., any delay in these tasks will delay the project) and which tasks have float (i.e., can be delayed without affecting the project timeline).

By focusing on the critical path, project managers can allocate resources more effectively and prioritize tasks that are essential for on-time project completion.

In a software development project, tasks such as requirement gathering, design, coding, testing, and deployment are mapped on a Gantt chart to identify the critical path. It reveals that delays in the coding phase directly affect testing and deployment timelines. However, tasks like documentation might have some float and can be adjusted if coding needs more time. This insight enables project managers to prioritize coding and allocate extra resources if necessary, ensuring the project remains on schedule despite potential bottlenecks.

Use a work breakdown structure

A work breakdown structure (WBS) is a fundamental step in project planning that involves dividing a project into manageable tasks and subtasks. When applied to a Gantt chart, a WBS helps organize tasks visually, making it easier to monitor progress and allocate resources efficiently.

Consider a project to develop a new website. By using a WBS, you would break down the project into smaller tasks such as design, content creation, and coding. Each task would then be represented on the Gantt chart timeline, giving team members a clear overview of the project scope that helps them understand their responsibilities and deadlines.

Identify task dependencies

Understanding task dependencies is crucial for creating an accurate Gantt chart. Task dependencies indicate the relationship between tasks and subtasks, showing which tasks must be completed before others can begin. This ensures that the project flows logically and resources are allocated appropriately.

For a construction project involving the building of a structure, it's essential to complete foundational subtasks before advancing to subsequent phases, such as erecting walls. The Gantt chart efficiently maps out these work dependencies to ensure contractors realize the importance of completing the foundation to avoid scheduling conflicts and inefficient resource use.

Allocate resources wisely

Resource allocation involves assigning the appropriate resources, including team members, equipment, and budget, to specific tasks. A Gantt chart with integrated resource allocation allows project managers to see not only when tasks are scheduled but also how resources are distributed across the project.

For an event planning project, a Gantt chart can show that while one team works on venue setup, another is arranging catering. Task visualization ensures that resources are not overstretched and that tasks are adequately staffed. This helps prevent burnout and ensures that all project aspects are covered.

Monitor progress regularly

A Gantt chart is not a set-and-forget tool; it requires regular updates to reflect the project's current status. Incorporating dashboards into this practice provides a centralized, real-time view of project progress, task completion, and resource allocation. Dashboards complement Gantt charts by offering an at-a-glance summary of key project metrics, enabling project managers and team members to quickly assess project health and make informed decisions.

During a software development sprint in an agile project , if a sprint is behind, a dashboard updated alongside the Gantt chart quickly highlights delays and resource issues. This allows for immediate adjustments to make certain the project stays on track without extensive meetings or email updates. This streamlined approach keeps everyone aligned and responsive to changes.

Pros and cons of Gantt charts

While these charts can be helpful, they aren’t always the best for every project. To better understand if this type of project chart is right for you and your project vs. a timeline, here are a few considerations before you leap into creating one.

Get a bird’s-eye view of your project timeline: A Gantt chart is a roadmap of your project . This tool helps you track when you should reach each milestone—and whether or not you’re on track to do so. This type of timeline view offers a bird’s-eye perspective on your work, making it a particularly useful tool to present to senior management or clients for a quick overview.

See how tasks relate to each other: By adding start and finish dates to each task and drawing dependencies, you can visualize how each piece of work affects another. This helps you identify problems and fix dependency conflicts before you start.

Improve team resource management : Adding an owner to each piece of work can help you see who’s doing what and when to better manage individual workloads. Since everything is plotted out sequentially, you’ll be able to see if an individual teammate or team has too much to do at one time, then reassign or reschedule tasks as needed.

More time consuming to set up: Setting up a Gantt chart can be time consuming, especially if you’re using a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. Even if you use a template, you might still have to make adjustments to customize it to your team’s specific needs.

Difficult to manage the project in the same place you planned it: Traditional Gantt charts are most useful in the planning phase of a project. Once you’ve mapped out your work, you’ll likely need to use a different tool or platform to manage day-to-day activities, making it hard to know where your team’s single source of truth is.

Adding more details gets messy: Adding context around deadlines and collaborators to your project plan on a Gantt chart can turn it from easy-to-view map to overwhelming sheet of chaos.

Alternatives to traditional Gantt charts

Fortunately, there are alternatives to clunky charts that still give you a bird’s-eye view of how all your work fits together—without the typical limitations of a traditional, spreadsheet-based chart.

A work project management tool like Asana can help you manage, coordinate, and add details to your work in the same place you plan it—while also spending less time setting everything up.

For example, you could set up your project plan using Asana’s Timeline , a view that lets you map out how all the pieces of your project fit together. Like a Gantt chart, Timeline shows you when each step will happen, how long it will take, and who’s responsible. Unlike a Gantt chart, Timeline is easy to set up and maintain and lets your team collaborate on work in the same place you planned it.

Other types of visual project management

Depending on the type of work you’re managing, a calendar or a Kanban board could work as a more lightweight and quicker-to-setup alternative to visualizing your project plan in a timeline . With Asana, you can also switch between project views. View any project in either Timeline, List, Boards, or Calendar View, so your team can see their work in the way they prefer. You can test out all of these views with a free Premium trial .

Plan projects like a pro with Asana

Whether you end up using a Gantt chart or a similar alternative, visualizing your project plan is a key step for every team—whether you’re a project manager or not. It allows you to show how all the pieces of your project fit together, share it with your team, and adapt your plan as work progresses to keep everything on track.

Map out your project plan and watch the pieces come together with Asana.

Gantt Chart FAQ

What types of teams commonly use Gantt charts? Any team that needs to keep track of task progress can use Gantt charts. Typically, Gantt charts are used by project managers and team leads, but they’re also useful for business owners and C-level executives. Common industries that employ Gantt charts include marketing, software engineering, construction, graphic design, and event planning.

What are the typical components of a Gantt chart? At its most basic, a simple Gantt chart is composed of a vertical axis, which contains a list of tasks, and a horizontal axis, which maps out the project’s timeline. By visually displaying your project plan in a constrained timeframe, Gantt charts help you see at a glance the step-by-step actions you need to take to ensure project success.

What should I look for in a Gantt chart tool? When setting up an online Gantt chart, you should look for a tool with a user-friendly interface and features that make planning and coordinating your work easy, like start and end dates, dependencies, and milestones. Additionally, tools that utilize integrations to connect the chart with apps, like Google Sheets and OneDrive , help streamline workflows.

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What Is a Gantt Chart? (Examples & Templates)

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What Is a Gantt Chart? Definition & History

What is the purpose of a gantt chart, what is included in a gantt chart, what is a gantt chart used for, how are gantt charts used in project management, gantt chart examples.

• Free Gantt Chart Templates

How to Use a Gantt Chart

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Who Uses a Gantt Chart?

Gantt chart video for beginners, gantt chart faqs.

A Gantt chart is a project management chart that allows project managers to create a project schedule. It shows the order in which project tasks will be completed, when they’re due, their duration among other details. Every Gantt chart has two main parts, a grid or task list on the left side and a project timeline on the right.

The Gantt chart was created by Henry Gantt in the early 20th century to improve project planning, scheduling and tracking by illustrating completed work compared to planned work. Today, project managers and team members use Gantt charts to plan projects, create a project schedule, allocate resources and track progress with just one project management tool.

However, there’s so much more to know about Gantt charts beyond a simple Gantt chart definition. In this guide, we’ll explore some of the main aspects that you need to know about Gantt charts including what they’re used for and the different methods and tools you can use to make one, such as Gantt chart software .

This guide also has examples and free Gantt chart templates you can use to get started quickly. We’ve even created industry-specific Gantt chart templates so you can create project schedules for your business in minutes.

At a basic level, a Gantt chart allows project, program and portfolio managers to easily map out project plans by organizing project tasks on a visual timeline. However, Gantt charts are used for many other purposes in project planning, project scheduling, project tracking and resource management.

With ProjectManager’s Gantt chart, you can assign tasks to your team members, set due dates, estimate costs and monitor progress in real time. The best part is that it can be used along with other project management tools such as kanban boards, real-time project dashboards, timesheets and team collaboration tools.

There are two halves to most Gantt chart tools you see online today. On the left is a grid that lists project tasks and important information about them and on the right, there’s the Gantt chart timeline, a visual representation of the project schedule.

Gantt Chart Grid

The grid of a Gantt chart is where you list project tasks and project scheduling details about them. The Gantt chart grid is the most important component of your Gantt chart because the data you enter here will be used to populate the Gantt chart timeline.

The more details about your project tasks you can add to a Gantt chart grid, the more aspects of your project plan you’ll be able to track.

Basic Gantt chart software only allows you to assign tasks to your team members and create project timelines based on the due dates and duration of your project tasks. However, more advanced Gantt chart software like ProjectManager enables you to track other areas of your project.

Here are some of the key aspects of your project you can track with ProjectManager’s Gantt chart grid.

• Task name: Briefly describe your task. You can also add more task details using other project views such as kanban boards and task lists.
• Task owner: Assign tasks to team members.
• Task priority: Set a priority level for all your project tasks so you can better allocate your resources.
• Project phases: In most projects, there’s a set of well-defined phases that are made up of related tasks.
• Work breakdown structure level: The work breakdown structure level is a number that allows you to understand the order in which project tasks must be completed and what project phase they’re in.
• Project milestones: Track project milestones, which are major events, accomplishments or deliverables in your project timeline.
• Resource requirements: Indicate what resources are needed to complete each project task, including labor and non-labor resources such as raw materials, equipment or machinery.
• Estimated & actual costs: Estimate costs for each project task, create a project budget and then log the actual costs as tasks are executed so you can determine whether your project is on, over or under budget.

Now, let’s go over the other half of any Gantt diagram, the Gantt chart timeline.

Gantt Chart Timeline

The Gantt chart timeline is a stacked bar chart where each project task is represented by a bar that runs on the horizontal axis. The task bars start on the date that the work is scheduled to start and end on the date when it’s expected to finish. The longer the bar, the longer the task will take.

But that’s not everything a Gantt chart timeline shows. Based on the data from the Gantt chart grid, ProjectManager’s robust Gantt chart timeline lets you zoom in on the following details of your project schedule .

• Due dates & task duration: Add planned start and planned finish dates and adjust them at any time by dragging and dropping tasks on the Gantt timeline. You can also compare planned vs. actual task duration.
• Task dependencies: You can also show the task dependencies in number form. Choose the “Linked From” column in the column settings. Task dependencies are represented as arrows that link tasks in the Gantt chart timeline.
• Percent complete: A figure, mostly always based on an educated guess by the project team, of how much work they have done and how much is still to do.
• Critical path activities: ProjectManager’s Gantt chart maker automatically identifies the critical path based on your project task list, dependencies and due dates.

Free Gantt Chart Template

Need help building a Gantt chart? Try ProjectManager’s free Gantt chart template and practice adding tasks, dependencies, phases, milestones and more on a dynamic Gantt chart.

On the left-hand side is the data grid, where the various phases of the project are outlined. Under each color-coded phase are the tasks associated with it, including WBS, assignees, due dates and other resources needed to execute the scheduled tasks.

The visual timeline on the right is where things get interesting. You can see the entire project in one place, dependent tasks can be linked and milestones added to indicate important dates. Put your Gantt chart knowledge to the test and build one today. Get started for free.

Because the Gantt chart is such a diverse project management tool for identifying timelines and task dependencies, it can be used in any industry or field. Here are some examples.

• Gantt charts in project management : Gantt charts compile the information project managers need to create a visual timeline that shows all the elements of a project plan in one place. With Gantt charts, project managers can schedule projects, allocate resources, set cost and scope baselines, and identify the critical path.
• Gantt charts in construction: Construction Gantt charts are used by project owners, general contractors and construction project managers to plan the different phases of a construction project, such as initiation, pre-construction and procurement. However, Gantt charts can also be used on a smaller scale to manage everyday tasks.
• Gantt charts in software engineering: Software engineering teams use Gantt charts to create project roadmaps , which are essential for task management when developing new products. This is done by simply mapping software development tasks on a timeline, just as if it was a project plan.
• Gantt charts in manufacturing: Gantt charts can be used to plan, schedule and track multiple aspects of the manufacturing process. For example, you can use Gantt charts to create product roadmaps, production schedules and map the product development cycle.
• Gantt charts in project portfolio management: Gantt charts can be also used to create a portfolio roadmap, which is a timeline that allows project portfolio managers and project management offices (PMOs) to track the progress of multiple projects.

These are only some of the most common use cases for Gantt charts, but they can be used for managing projects across industries. Now, let’s take a closer look at how Gantt charts are used in project management.

Gantt charts can be used to plan, schedule and track projects of all sizes and industries, mainly because they’re compatible with most project management methodologies , such as waterfall and agile.

Gantt Charts in Waterfall Planning

Waterfall project management consists in planning a project in sequential phases. These project phases are planned in advance and then executed in order from beginning to end without making many changes to the original project plan. Gantt charts are ideal to map out such projects as they allow project managers to visualize task dependencies and establish task sequences on a project timeline.

Gantt Charts in Agile Planning

Unlike waterfall, agile planning consists in planning short iterations of work of one to two weeks known as agile sprints , where teams plan and execute their work. They then have short meetings where they review their performance and plan the next sprint. While Gantt charts aren’t commonly used to plan sprints, they help agile teams to map out their project plan or product development roadmap at large, which lets them see the bigger picture of their projects.

These two project management approaches are used to manage most projects, even though there are other methodologies that can be used for specific industries or scenarios. However, the best way to understand how Gantt charts are used in project management is to look at some Gantt chart examples.

We’ve created two Gantt chart examples using ProjectManager to see how Gantt charts can be used for managing different types of projects. These Gantt chart examples show a schedule for a construction and a manufacturing project, which are two of the industries where Gantt charts are used the most.

In these Gantt chart examples, you can easily see:

• The Gantt chart timeline
• What the project tasks are
• Which team member is working on each task
• When project activities start and finish
• The percent complete for each activity and work package
• How tasks group together, overlap and link with each other
• Task dependencies such as finish-to-start, start-to-start, finish-to-finish and start-to-finish
• Milestones and project phases on the schedule

Construction Gantt Chart Example

This Gantt chart example shows a construction schedule that’s divided into six project phases: contracts, design, procurement, construction, post-construction and closing.

Defining project phases is the first step when using a Gantt chart for planning a project. It helps break down the project plan into smaller steps that are easier to manage. Once you’ve defined project phases, you can proceed to identify the individual tasks for each of them, as shown in the image.

Once you’ve identified your project tasks, you’ll need to add as much information as possible about them, such as their planned due dates, duration, dependencies, resource requirements, estimated costs and other relevant details.

Once you’ve added all these details to each project task column, the Gantt chart timeline will show your project tasks, their dependencies, assignee and percent complete.

The best part of using ProjectManager’s Gantt charts to create a project schedule is that you can simply drag and drop these bars in the Gantt chart timeline to adjust the project tasks’ due dates or their duration. You can easily add or remove dependencies and identify project milestones.

Our construction schedule Gantt chart template also allows you to use other advanced Gantt chart features such as creating project baselines, finding the critical path and tracking the resource utilization and costs for each of your tasks.

Manufacturing Gantt Chart Example

While managing the production process is completely different from managing a construction project , the steps for creating a schedule using a Gantt chart are the same. You’ll also need to define project phases, break down your project scope into tasks, identify dependencies and add project task details to the Gantt chart.

This Gantt chart example shows a manufacturing project that consists of creating a product from scratch and then creating a production schedule for manufacturing it. The phases for this manufacturing project are product ideation, design, prototyping, pre-production and production.

Our Gantt chart production schedule template allows you to track each step in the product development process, such as ideating your product, establishing its feasibility, creating a proof of concept, making a prototype, testing its quality and more.

Then, once you have a working prototype that’s ready to be launched into the market, you can use the Gantt chart to schedule the production process and estimate the time it’ll take to manufacture it, the needed resources and your production costs.

Using Gantt chart software for tracking the production process is ideal for manufacturing businesses that execute multiple projects simultaneously .

However, creating a Gantt chart from scratch can be an overwhelming process, especially for those who are just getting started with this project management tool. If you’re not ready to use Gantt chart software yet, you can try using a Gantt chart template for Excel, PowerPoint, Google Sheets or Word.

Free Gantt Chart Templates for Excel, PowerPoint & More

We’ve created several Gantt chart templates that can facilitate the process of creating and using a Gantt chart to manage your projects. Simply enter your project information and follow the instructions to create a Gantt chart for projects in minutes.

Free Gantt Chart Template for Excel

This free Gantt chart Excel template helps you build a Gantt chart and a project timeline in minutes. It gives you a visual overview of your entire project from start to finish.

Simply add all of the tasks needed to reach your final deliverable and manually update any changes during the execution of the project. It’s a great example of a Gantt chart in Microsoft Excel .

Free Gantt Chart Template for Google Sheets

This free Gantt chart template for Google Sheets is similar to an Excel Gantt chart, but it can be accessed by your team members online, instead of having to download a file and store it in their computers. This also means you can collaborate with your team online so any file changes can be seen by anyone with access to it.

Free Gantt Chart Template for PowerPoint

This free Gantt chart template for PowerPoint allows you to create a simple Gantt chart based on your project task names, duration and due dates. You can attach them to any PowerPoint presentation, which helps communicate the progress of your project in a visual format that can be easily understood by most people.

Free Gantt Chart Template for Word

While Microsoft Word might not be the first software you think of when looking for a tool to make a Gantt chart, it can be used to make Gantt charts. In fact, this free Gantt chart template for Word is as good as the Excel or PowerPoint Gantt chart. The key difference is that this Gantt chart template for Word is designed for adding a Gantt chart to project documents.

However, these free Gantt chart templates are best suited for creating simple Gantt charts , as they lack advanced project management features that are needed for larger projects such as resource management and cost tracking.

Now that we have more context about Gantt charts, let’s explore how to use a Gantt chart for planning, scheduling and tracking your projects . Below, we’ll explain some of the most common uses for Gantt charts in project management.

Create a Work Breakdown Structure

Before you can use a Gantt chart to create a project schedule , you’ll need to first identify all the individual tasks that make up the total amount of work that’s needed for your project. A work breakdown structure (WBS) is a tool that can help you with this process. It’s important that you do this during the project planning phase so you don’t miss any project tasks.

Create a Task List and a Gantt Chart Timeline

Now create a Gantt table by listing down your project tasks, their due dates, duration and any other details you’d like to track about them such has resource requirements or costs. Then Use this information to create Gantt chart timeline, which at a basic level should show the dates and duration of project tasks.

Identify Task Dependencies

One of the key aspects that differentiate Gantt charts from other project planning tools is that they allow project managers to identify and visualize task dependencies . A task dependency is simply the relationship project tasks have among each other that dictates the order in which they must be completed. While Gantt charts let you represent task dependencies, these can’t be automatically determined. It’s your responsibility as a project manager to define them, otherwise, the project schedule won’t be accurate.

Find the Critical Path of Your Project

The critical path of a project is the longest sequence of tasks that need to be executed. It’s important to determine what your critical path is because if those tasks are delayed the whole project completion will be delayed. Luckily some Gantt chart software alternatives will automatically do this for you.

Track Gantt Chart Milestones

Gantt charts allow you to track project milestones, which are important events that occur at some point in your project timeline. Project milestones can be used to create a milestone chart, which is a simplified version of your project timeline that summarizes major activities, project deliverables and accomplishments so that you can track how a project is progressing from a high-level view.

Allocate, Schedule and Track Resources

Gantt charts can be more than just a project scheduling tool, they can also be used to estimate what resources are needed to complete your project, allocate resources for the execution of work and track resource utilization throughout the project life cycle. ProjectManager’s Gantt chart, for example, syncs with real-time dashboards that allow you to monitor the utilization of project resources in real time and workload charts that let you balance your team’s workload.

Create Project Baselines and Compare Planned vs. Actual Results

Gantt charts should be used to map your project plan, but also record the actual results of your project. ProjectManager’s Gantt chart allows you to compare the estimated costs and due dates of your tasks against the actual values so you can determine whether your project is being executed within the boundaries of your project budget or schedule.

The Gantt chart is one, if not the most important project management tool to plan, schedule and track projects. Here are some of the main pros and cons of using Gantt charts to manage projects from any industry.

• Gantt charts allow project managers to turn complex project plans into a visual project timeline that’s easy to understand.
• Gantt charts are the perfect tool to compare the actual performance of your project team against the original project plan, schedule and cost baselines to determine whether a project is being completed on time and under budget .
• Gantt charts allow project managers to understand both the scope of a project and its schedule from start to end, including task dependencies.
• Gantt charts are also considered a resource management tool because they allow project managers to understand how they’re allocating their resources .

Even though Gantt charts are one of the most important project management tools, there are some cases in which they might not be the ideal solution.

• Gantt charts can be hard to understand for some team members and stakeholders who aren’t used to them.
• Not all Gantt chart software available in the market offers the same features, which is something to look out for as some lack important features.
• Other project tools such as task lists or kanban boards can be an easier method to keep track of tasks, such as when managing small teams, or short-term projects.
• Gantt charts operate in a linear fashion and aren’t very dynamic for agile projects.

Gantt charts are not the only project management chart you can use to create a project schedule or manage project tasks. There are other tools you can use such as PERT charts, kanban boards or network diagrams . Here’s how Gantt charts compare to these tools.

Gantt Chart vs. Network Diagram

Network diagrams are a project planning chart that can help you visualize the order in which tasks must be completed, so everyone on your team has a clear idea of how work will be executed. Additionally, project network diagrams can help identify task dependencies that might be in your project plan, which is an important factor to consider when creating a project schedule.

In project management, network diagrams are used as part of the program evaluation and review technique (PERT) and the critical path method (CPM), which are two important project scheduling methods.

However, network diagrams can only help you during the project scheduling process, but can’t be used for tracking the progress of your project, as they lack task, resource or cost-tracking features.

Gantt Chart vs. PERT Chart

PERT charts are a network diagram that allows you to map the task sequences that make up your project, estimate its total duration and identify critical path activities.

To do so, you’ll need to use the PERT chart formula, which factors in the start and finish dates of your project tasks, dependencies between them and estimated duration.

However, PERT charts aren’t as versatile as Gantt charts as they won’t allow you to assign tasks to your team members, create a project timeline or monitor the percentage of completion of tasks.

Gantt Chart vs. Kanban Board

Kanban boards are a popular task management tool that can be used for managing projects across industries. A kanban board consists of a set of columns and cards. The columns indicate the status of a project task, such as “to do” or “completed” while kanban cards represent project tasks.

Kanban boards are a great task management tool for managing the everyday tasks and workflows of your team but they won’t allow you to create a project timeline or get a high-level view of your project plan like a Gantt chart would. This makes Gantt charts a better tool than kanban boards for project planning and scheduling.

This doesn’t mean you can’t use Gantt charts and kanban boards for managing your projects. In fact, this is greatly advised, as each of these project management tools can help you manage your projects from different perspectives.

Once computers introduced new ways of working, project managers found they could save time in creating and updating their Gantt charts. Gantt chart software, also called project planning, project management, or even project scheduling software, was created to automate the process to support more advanced Gantt requirements like creating task dependencies, adding milestones or identifying the critical path of a project plan.

Watch the video below for a quick introduction to ProjectManager’s online Gantt chart maker and its benefits.

Many project managers traditionally used local desktop programs like Microsoft Project —and many still do. But today, most Gantt chart makers and project management software have moved online, enabling anyone to create shareable and collaborative Gantt charts and project plans.

Choosing the right project management tool for your team is an essential task, so we’ve reviewed the best free and paid Gantt chart software and ranked them based on their key features, pros and cons. It’ll help you better understand what to look for when comparing Gantt chart software.

Must-Have Gantt Chart Software Features

While no two Gantt chart tools are the same, there are key features that you'll need to get the most out of your Gantt chart tool:

Milestones are represented by a diamond symbol on the Gantt diagram and have no duration. A milestone marks the end of a piece of work, task sequence or project management phase. They’re often fixed dates or important dates on your project schedule that you need to be aware of. Read more: Learn how to use milestones in your scheduling.

Task Dependencies

These show which tasks are linked together. Links are shown with lines on the Gantt chart, and the arrow points to the task that comes next. Task dependencies can be set up as start-to-finish, start-to-start, finish-to-finish or finish-to-start. Read more: Learn how to manage task dependencies.

Summary Tasks

A summary task is a skinny ‘umbrella’ task above various individual tasks. It’s a good way of using a Gantt diagram to group activities together, especially as part of a project stage or phase. You can ‘roll up’ your tasks (in other words, hide them from view) so that only the summary task is shown. The summary task also displays the task progress with shading, so you can view the progress of all tasks underneath in that one bar.

Collaboration

A Gantt chart without collaboration is just a static plan. It’s nice to have, but it isn’t helping you advance the work your team is doing. Be sure that you can chat or comment around tasks to keep the workflow documented. Your team will then get alerts every time a task has been updated, so they know when new activity has occurred.

File Sharing

It’s important as you collaborate to also be able to attach files, images, videos or other notes to document the task progress and keep all the task information together. That way, you always know where to look to find the files related to the tasks you’re scheduling on your Gantt diagram.

Planned vs. Actual Progress

This is represented in a couple different ways on the Gantt diagram. Shading on the bar indicates how complete the planned work is. When the bar is shaded, the task is finished. You can also see just a view of the actual progress anytime in the settings. Don’t forget to set a baseline for the best tracking experience.

How to Make a Gantt Chart Online With Gantt Chart Software

Onboarding your team members with ProjectManager’s Gantt chart maker allows you to better plan, schedule and track all types of projects . Once you’ve invited your team members to the new Gantt chart tool, you can start improving the way you manage tasks, resources and timelines. But before we get to the benefits of using online Gantt chart software, let’s go through a step-by-step guide to making a Gantt chart in ProjectManager.

It’s easy for anyone to create a Gantt chart online in ProjectManager. You can import a task list from a CSV file, an Excel Gantt chart template, or a Microsoft Project file or create one from scratch. Unlike Gantt chart Excel templates, our Gantt chart maker does the heavy lifting so you can focus on what’s important.

Simply add project tasks to the tool, fill in the information and a fully-fledged Gantt chart will generate automatically. Our Gantt chart has advanced project management features that’ll let you set task dependencies, identify the critical path and use timesheets for resource tracking, just to name a few.

Also, since it’s an online Gantt chart maker, you and your team members can build the Gantt chart together in real time while you share files and documents with unlimited storage.

Now, without further ado, here’s a step-by-step guide to creating a Gantt chart with ProjectManager , one of the best Gantt chart software available in the market.

1. Create a New Project

When you first log in, you simply enter a project name and select “Create.” You’ll be directed to the Gantt chart view.

2. Add Project Tasks to Your Gantt Chart

As you add tasks, the default date will be today. Since you haven’t added a longer due date than today, the tasks appear in the Gantt chart tool to the right as circles, representing that they start and end today. The dotted line represents today’s date.

3. Assign Tasks to Team Members

You can easily assign or re-assign tasks to team members based on their availability in real time, which is ideal for workload management . When people are assigned tasks, their name appears above the taskbar on the Gantt chart. The Gantt chart maker lets you know whether your team members are available, or if they’re already scheduled for other tasks.

4. Add Due Dates to Your Gantt Chart

As you extend the start and end dates, the task bars on the Gantt chart view extend too, showing you how long each task will take. Add those dates under the planned start and planned finish columns.

5. Prioritize Your Project Tasks

The Gantt chart maker has a task prioritization feature that allows you to establish a priority level for each task so you and your team can focus your efforts on the most important activities. Best of all, this priority tag can also be used in other project views, like task lists and kanban boards for better task tracking.

6. Estimate Task Costs

Add the estimated costs for each task. Our Gantt chart maker helps you estimate labor costs for each project task based on how many team members are working on it and their hourly rate. On top of that, these labor costs are also updated on timesheets you can easily share with your team members.

7. Link Task Dependencies Using the Gantt Chart Timeline

Linking task dependencies is an advanced project planning feature that lets you create a realistic project schedule. There are four types of task dependencies that allow you to understand how your projects’ task sequences are interrelated. In the picture below, you can see how Gantt chart bars are connected by arrows, which indicates there’s a dependency between tasks.

8. Identify Critical Path Activities & Project Milestones

The Gantt chart maker automatically identifies the critical path of your project, which helps you focus on the critical tasks or the tasks that must be completed on time so that your project is completed on time. In addition, you can mark any project task as a milestone, which lets you pinpoint an important achievement, deliverable or the end of a project stage for detailed project tracking .

9. Customize Your Gantt Chart

You can customize your Gantt charts in whatever way suits your team. Here, you can see that different people are represented by different colors on the Gantt taskbars so it’s easy to see at a glance who is responsible for which tasks. Others might use colors on the stacked bar chart to represent different phases of a project or different teams responsible for a group of tasks.

10. Attach Files, Comments or Notes

When your team works collaboratively on an online Gantt chart maker, you can do so much more than just plan tasks. You can add images, videos, links, notes or comments right at the task level, so all the relevant task work is captured and easily accessible in one place.

11. Track Your Team’s Progress

All the updates on the Gantt diagram can be seen in one view. You can see what the team is working on and when tasks have been updated. Team collaboration is easy with online Gantt charts.

It used to be that Gantt charts were the exclusive tool of formally trained project managers. These were people planning complex projects of all different types: construction , engineering, military, manufacturing, infrastructure, IT and more. Creating long task lists and complex project schedules with lots of moving parts, required training in the art and science of task management, critical path analysis, baselining and so on.

Today, nearly everyone can use a Gantt chart to help them visualize their tasks. Because all the difficult work is now done by project management software, anyone can just create a simple task list , add start and end dates, and the software does the work instantly by displaying your tasks over a project timeline.

Gantt charts can be used by all kinds of teams, such as:

• IT & software development teams
• Project management teams
• Marketing teams
• Professional services teams
• Engineering & architectural teams
• Construction teams
• Manufacturing teams
• Product development teams

Here are some examples of potential users of Gantt charts:

• Project managers
• General managers
• Team leaders
• Operations managers
• Scheduling managers
• Marketing managers
• Executives such as CEOs & CTOs
• Anyone who wants an instant view of a project timeline

If you still need help setting up and understanding your Gantt chart, watch this video by Jennifer Bridges, PMP.

If you still have questions about Gantt charts, they should be answered in the following frequently asked questions.

Can You Make a Gantt Chart Online?

Yes, there are online Gantt chart tools such as ProjectManager that allow you to create a Gantt chart online without having to install any software on your Mac or PC.

Can You Make a Gantt Chart in Excel?

Microsoft Excel doesn’t have a Gantt chart feature but you can create one by customizing the stacked bar chart or using one of the free Gantt chart templates available online.

We’ve created a how-to guide with detailed instructions on how to make a Gantt chart in Excel from scratch. Learning to do so allows you to better understand how an Excel Gantt chart works as well as its key features and limitations.

Can You Make a Gantt Chart In Word?

Making a Gantt chart in Word can be very useful as most project teams use Word for creating their project documents. You can create a Gantt chart in Word by inserting a stacked bar chart into a document, adding your project schedule information (such as start, end dates and duration) and customizing the Gantt diagram for greater readability.

Then, once you’ve created your Gantt diagram in Word , you can copy and paste it into any project document you’d like such as a project plan or project proposal.

Can You Make a Gantt Chart in PowerPoint?

Like Word or Excel, PowerPoint allows you to insert stacked bar charts which can be transformed into a Gantt chart. We’ve created a how-to guide with detailed instructions you can follow along if you’d like to make a Gantt chart in PowerPoint.

The best part is that once you create a PowerPoint Gantt chart , you can use it for all your project presentations. Simply copy and paste the PowerPoint Gantt chart into a new presentation and edit its data.

Can You Make a Gantt Chart in Microsoft Project?

Yes, Microsoft Project is project management software equipped with a Gantt chart tool. Some of the key features of Microsoft Project’s Gantt chart are its cost and resource monitoring, critical path analysis, task dependency mapping and milestone tracking.

If you’d like to try Microsoft Project’s Gantt diagram, but need help to get started with this tool, check out our blog on how to make a Gantt chart in Microsoft Project . This blog also goes over the key features, pros and cons of a Microsoft Project Gantt chart.

Can You Make a Gantt Chart in Google Sheets?

To make a Gantt chart in Google Sheets, open a new blank spreadsheet, add the tasks data for your project (including duration, start and end dates), insert a stacked bar graph and then transform the bar graph into a Gantt chart. There are Gantt chart templates for Google Sheets too.

We also have a blog that explains how to make a Gantt chart in Google Sheets , with easy-to-understand steps and images, which makes it ideal for sharing with your team members.

What Does Gantt Stand For?

The Gantt chart was named after Henry Gantt , and many think he was the one who first had the idea of project planning on bar charts. This isn’t entirely true.

Left: Henry Gantt | Right: Karol Adamiecki

Karol Adamiecki devised the first Gantt diagram back in 1896. He was a Polish engineer turned management professor who came up with the idea of displaying processes visually so that he could make it easier to see production schedules. (He did most of his work in the steel industry.) He called it the harmonogram (a much better word) but Adamiecki published his articles on it in Polish and Russian, so the English-speaking world didn’t know much about it.

Henry Gantt had the same idea as Karol Adamiecki, but about 15 years later. In 1910, Gantt started planning visually with bar charts to allow supervisors in the steelworks to see if production was on track or behind schedule. It was Gantt’s name that got attached to this way of project planning, but today it’s generally recognized that Adamiecki had the idea first.

Gantt Chart Resources

• Gantt Chart Software
• Project Scheduling Software
• Project Planning Software
• Project Management Templates
• Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) Template
• Gantt Chart Template for Excel
• Gantt Chart Template for PowerPoint
• Project Plan Template
• Best Gantt Chart Software: Paid & Free Options Ranked
• Gantt Chart Task Dependencies
• Easy Ways to Make a Gantt Chart with Google Sheets
• How to Make a Gantt Chart on Mac
• How to Make a Gantt Chart In PowerPoint
• How to Make a Project Schedule
• How to Make a Project Plan
• The Ultimate Guide to the Critical Path Method
• The Ultimate Guide to Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

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What is a Gantt Chart?

Use Gantt charts to streamline any marketing project. Plan your next successful marketing campaign today for free.

If you’re a project manager, you understand how critical your marketing department is to your success. Your team must launch influential branded campaigns to persuade your customers to buy your products.

Your team’s job involves careful research, planning, and employees working in concert. For instance, it might require creating well-timed social media campaigns, thoughtful product designs, and engaging blog posts.

All these steps work together to boost your business website traffic and increase potential leads. But marketing isn’t always as simple as it sounds; marshaling your human capital and other resources takes strategy and finesse.

Gantt charts are an artful way for your team to map every step of the planning process from start to finish. In this article, you’ll learn how Gantt charts can take your marketing plan to the next level.

Gantt charts are visual bar charts that marketing teams can use to map their goals.

This project management tool provides an elegant, organized way to display your team’s daily activities and assigned tasks. These charts help your workers stay focused and on schedule when you’re completing a critical project with strict deadlines.

Although these charts have gained popularity in modern times, they aren’t new at all. Polish engineer Karol Adamiecki designed the earliest version of the Gantt chart in the mid-1890s as a tool to ensure the team at his steelworks company ran smoothly.

However, these charts didn’t gain a wider following until 15 years later when an American engineer, Henry Gantt, developed his own version of a chart similar to Adamiecki’s. The popularity of Gantt’s chart exploded and his name became forever associated with it.

Today, business managers and marketing teams use Gantt charts to track the progress of projects, ensuring they stay on schedule. Modern Gantt charts show additional data about every phase of an advertising campaign, and also how tasks interconnect and depend on different employees.

The Structure of a Gantt Chart

The Gantt chart has a specific structure that makes managing projects easy and visual. It follows this format:

• Horizontal Axis — This area represents time. It should cover the entire lifespan of the project and can be broken into increments of days, weeks, or months.
• Vertical Axis —These represent the different tasks that your team needs to complete for the project.
• Horizontal Bars  — These represent the time span of each task. For example, if you are building a landing page, the first task would be to conduct competitor research or sketch a design.

Who Can Use a Gantt Chart?

Anyone can use Gantt Charts to visualize their resources, workflow, projects, and due dates. These charts are effective for the following people in your marketing department or company:

• CEOs and CTOs
• General Managers
• Marketing and Operations Managers
• Project Managers
• Scheduling Managers
• Team Leaders
• Social Media Managers

What Should You Include in a Gantt Chart?

Gantt charts offer marketing departments a stable way to track and manage the progress of your project, making them perfect for marketing project management.

They can also help you build a  marketing campaign roadmap to execute your marketing plan or track your timelines and deliverables. They use bars (or vertical lines) as visual representations of different tasks.

Critically, each chart should include your resources, task dependencies, and milestones:

• Resources — Your project managers should have an idea of the resources required to complete an overview of tasks represented in your Gantt chart. A chart will help to streamline your resources and distribution to complete your tasks on time.
• Milestones — Your marketing team will establish targets at the beginning of any project. Including them in your Gantt chart will help you identify steps to complete your project successfully.
• Tasks — Every marketing department has large, complex projects that include a set of smaller, separate tasks. Gantt Charts allow you to visualize simpler tasks that must be completed in order to finish larger projects.
• Dependencies — Your tasks may be related to one another. For instance, a social media manager may not be able to share a post on their channel unless your writer meets their milestone by a specified date or deadline. You should flag all dependencies in your Gantt chart.

Marketing teams use Gantt charts and Gantt chart templates to plan any sized projects. They can also help you track team workload, deadlines, and timelines in a chart form.

Using a Gantt Chart to Boost Your Marketing Project Management

Now that you know how Gantt charts work and how they can be used to effectively manage any marketing project, let’s look at how to build one.

On the chart’s left side, enter a task and the start date of your project. The left side will include an activities list, and the timeline will have a time scale (you choose the increments).

Each bar on your chart represents a different activity. The position and length of this bar indicate the project’s start date, end date, and duration.

Once your chart is built, it should include the following:

• Your project’s start date
• The tasks your team is currently working on and tasks they’ll need to complete the project
• The start and finish dates of each project and task
• The length of time it will take to complete each task
• How your tasks group together, link, and overlap
• Your project timeline and deadline

Gantt charts can provide your marketing department with other real-time information to help manage your project plan. They include:

• Sub-tasks each team member is responsible for
• Tasks that are dependent on one another
• The progress your team has made on each task

Most people use Excel to design their Gantt diagrams. You can also use tools like a project management platform, which the industry refers to as Gantt chart software, to create your charts.

When used correctly, your Gantt chart will help you manage projects of all sizes. You can use them to predict upcoming risks regarding your deadlines and milestones and also display the percentages of performed tasks.

Using a Gantt chart, you’ll understand the timeline of your marketing campaign and the next steps you should take to ensure it’s successful. It will also help you remember critical tasks, deadlines, and your crew’s assignments.

The Advantages Gantt Charts Provide to Marketing Departments

In this section, we’ll take a look at some advantages that Gantt charts lend to the marketing project management process.

When marketing departments promote an event or business, most marketers run several campaigns at once to promote them successfully. These campaigns include:

• Content marketing
• Digital and online marketing campaigns
• Door-to-door marketing
• Email marketing
• Event marketing
• Offline marketing
• Outbound and inbound marketing
• Mobile marketing
• Social media marketing

According to a PwC study , 97 percent of organizations believe project management is essential to their organization’s performance and company’s success. Most marketers believe that project management is key to helping them complete a project successfully.

According to Hive , almost 77 percent of the highest-performing projects use project management software. Electronic Gantt charts help marketers track their progress to ensure they’re meeting their objectives. Even if you adjust your project’s priorities or goals, these charts will help your team stay on task.

 When used properly, Gantt charts can help your organization:

• Spot incomplete tasks
• Identify tasks that are near completion
• Predict risks and assign resources to address these challenges
• Enable you to reassign human resources to handle problems and bottlenecks
• Chart your progress against time s you can reach your goals on schedule

Manage Your Human Resources with Gantt Charts

Do you know how many team members you can spare for an inbound marketing campaign? Which writers can you assign to each project?

Can your designer create the right templates for your campaign? Does your IT department have time to create a landing page for your clients to visit?

These concerns are probably familiar if you’re a team leader. Gantt charts can solve these issues by helping marketing teams to martial human capital and other resources to complete each project.

Tasks that are taking too long may benefit from a few extra bodies or perhaps some work needs to be farmed out to contractors. These charts help you track how your project progresses, and how each team uses its resources so that you can identify unused resources and allocate them to other tasks or projects.

Generate Tasks and Track Dependencies with Gantt Charts

If you run a marketing department, you understand how your marketing plan will help you complete your campaign goal. Your Gantt chart will help your marketing team to organize and streamline critical tasks and projects by creating a visual marketing plan.

They can help you identify your available resources and the assignments your team must finish for each job. For instance, you can assign the following tasks to a content management strategist, social media manager, and graphic designer, laid out in a Gantt chart for clear communication and collaboration:

• Create branded blog posts for your website.
• Generate branded blog posts for your website.
• Provide digital flyers, pictures, and other assets for social media posts.
• Identify backlinks to your main website.
• Build a landing page for your latest campaign.
• Write product descriptions

Once you’ve identified necessary tasks, you can assign start dates and deadlines. Additionally, you can track the progress that each employee has made to finish these tasks all on your Gantt chart.

Communicate Better with your Team Members

A Gantt chart offers an effective way to communicate effectively with your team. These charts help your staff understand the milestones you’ve set. It will allow every team member to identify unfinished tasks and how far they must go to complete assignments.

Gantt charts engage the entire staff throughout the process of your project. They can create a sense of teamwork as everyone works on individual tasks to a common goal.

They show how much progress teammates have made on their tasks and what they need to complete to finish their project.

It eliminates confusion about deadlines. It will allow your workers to know when projects start and finish, and when dependent tasks are ready to move on to the next stage. Your employees will also know how long each task should last.

Generate Accurate Marketing Reports Using Gantt Charts

Your charts can also help your teams generate accurate and timely reports. You won’t have to remember what’s been assigned to whom or whether tasks have been completed because your Gantt chart displays and organizes that information for you.

When your team can easily access project goals, it helps them to communicate better with other team members about your marketing department’s milestones. It prevents confusion with upcoming deadlines, dependencies, and the time allotted for each task.

Communicate Better with Your Stakeholders

Gantt charts allow your team to provide a clear presentation to your clients about the steps you took to complete their project. The visual format makes this marketing tool easy to understand the different facets of the campaign and the resources it required.

Your client, C-Suite, or stakeholders will see the process from start to finish, which team members worked on their project, and what other tools or campaigns you used to meet their goals.

Software Platforms for Gantt Chart Creation

One of the best tools you can use to create a Gantt chart for your department is a premium software platform. Content Marketing Platform ‘s Marketing Project Management Software can streamline your team’s Gantt Chart creation. Your marketing department can track tasks using tools such as:

• Shared Campaign Briefs
• Project Workspaces
• Collaborative Content Editors

We also want to ensure that you have the tools that your team needs to collaborate and ensure your branded message succeeds. Your team can conduct:

• Agency Collaborations
• Content Templates
• Brand and Legal Compliance Reviews

Content Marketing Platform has earned 4.6 stars out of five by marketing professionals. In addition to our premium tools, there are additional platforms you can use:

• Google Charts — If you need to share and collaborate with your colleagues, you can create your chart in Google Documents and save it to your drive. Google also offers the option of “Stacked chart” options in their chart editors.
• Microsoft Project — Microsoft has the option of using a stacked bar feature. It’s a great option to create an easy Gantt Chart. If you need to make constant updates to your Gantt Chart, consider using PowerPoint or Excel.

Use Gantt Charts to Organize Your Marketing Projects

Still unsure of how or when to use Gantt charts? Your marketing team can use them to track and complete a variety of projects. These include:

Project Planning and Designs

Marketing teams use product designs to address the early phases of a project . They include campaign and product features, success criteria, and major deliverables.

Your project designers can use a Gantt chart to help plan your campaign launches. Each plan should achieve your company’s desired goals. Additionally, they can brainstorm and share prototypes of posters, pamphlets, and other assets.

Product Launches

Marketing teams use product launches to help promote a new product and bring it to market. These include planning ads, packaging, and the design of your products.

Your marketing team can use Gantt charts to manage your product launch. They will include budget tracking, project schedule, research, roles, and risks. Your team can even examine the dependencies of each product and give projects to specific people or teams.

Editorial Calendar

Publishers, bloggers, and businesses use editorial calendars to control the content across their media platforms. You can use your content due dates and publication dates as your milestones.

Additionally, your marketing department can use different subgroups to track different phases of your content creation, tasks, and charts.

Event Planning

Marketers use this strategy to create programs that communicate the message that your client wants to project. Gantt charts allow your team to track the planning for upcoming events from start to finish.

It also allows your employees to identify which jobs they need to finish before, during, and after an event or event campaign.

Social Media Campaigns

You can use a Gantt chart to organize which post you’ll share on each of your different channels. This strategy also can help you map out concurrent campaigns and resources you’ll need for each.

You can track the engagement you’ve generated for previously published posts. Additionally, your team can use your Gantt chart’s information to learn which times of day and post had the highest interaction.

Gantt charts are a tried and true tool used across all sorts of industries, especially in marketing. Find out how Content Marketing Platform ‘s marketing orchestration platform can streamline your workflow from a single dashboard. Sign up for a free account to get started today.

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• Agile project management
• Gantt chart examples

5 Gantt chart examples for better project management

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Gantt charts are indispensable tools in project management that visually represent project timelines, tasks, and dependencies. Gantt charts simplify task management, foster team collaboration, and enhance project visibility.  We'll explore several Gantt chart examples and their diverse applications across various project types, from dependency mapping to date shifting and resource allocation. You'll discover how Gantt charts streamline every project phase, from project planning to execution, and adaptation, making them invaluable for both simple and complex projects. 

Whether you're a project manager, team lead, or collaborator, understanding how to leverage Gantt charts effectively can elevate your project management capabilities.

What is a Gantt chart?

A Gantt chart is a visual project management tool that illustrates tasks and their timelines within a project workflow . It has three parts: a list of tasks on the left and a timeline on the right, with schedule bars representing the duration of each task. 

A Gantt chart example can include additional details, such as task start and end dates, milestones, task dependencies, and the individuals or teams responsible for each task. It offers a comprehensive view of a project's tasks and their sequencing, making it a valuable resource for effective project management.

5 examples of Gantt charts for project management

Gantt charts aid in planning, scheduling, and tracking projects. While versatile, their core purpose is consistent: enhancing project visibility and aiding decision-making. 

Let's explore several Gantt chart examples and how they aid in managing simple and complex projects.

1. Dependency mapping

Dependency mapping is a cornerstone in project management, not only for identifying, analyzing, and documenting task interdependencies but also for prioritizing them effectively. 

Gantt charts are often the go-to visual tool for this purpose, with horizontal bars indicating the duration of each task and connecting lines specifying the dependencies among them. They offer dynamic benefits like enhancing sequencing and scheduling, particularly in projects with multifaceted dependencies.

Modern Gantt chart software further elevates the practice by providing real-time updates, allowing for Agile adaptability. These charts foster team collaboration by presenting a centralized, coherent view of the project, thereby minimizing misunderstandings and closing knowledge gaps.

Example : Imagine orchestrating a large-scale cybersecurity update across multiple teams. You need to complete some tasks, such as coding the software before rolling out the update. But other tasks, like employee training, can occur in parallel. Gantt charts illustrate these complex interdependencies, empowering project managers to allocate resources optimally and proceed with a well-timed execution.

2. Task management

Gantt charts offer a structured and visual approach to planning, scheduling, and resource allocation, making them invaluable in project management. 

Here are some reasons why Gantt charts excel in task management:

• Task planning provides a clear project task overview regardless of complexity.
• Task allocation allows effortless assignment to team members, promoting collaboration.
• Timelines offer precise scheduling with defined start and end dates, preventing overwork.
• Task dependencies highlight interdependencies for correct task sequencing.

Progress tracking helps every stakeholder keep a tab on a project’s lifecycle through a chart.

Gantt charts streamline complex task information, facilitating decision-making, promoting organization, clarifying roles, and ensuring smoother project execution.

Example : A software development sprint includes coding, testing, and debugging. Gantt charts allow developers to assign tasks precisely, setting clear timelines for each sprint. Maintaining alignment, reducing overwork risks, and tracking progress visually helps teams meet release deadlines.

3. Project planning

Gantt charts provide an all-encompassing perspective on project scope, going beyond task enumeration to deliver strategic insight. These charts act as strategic roadmaps, meticulously aligning with overarching objectives. 

They serve the dual purpose of guiding immediate action and facilitating long-term planning. Their high-level timelines are tailored for diverse project scales, from short-term bursts of activity to long-term strategic initiatives, offering stakeholders a robust framework for decision-making and resource allocation.

Beyond this, Gantt charts break down tasks into manageable steps, assigning ownership and establishing logical sequences. This task breakdown enhances resource optimization and accountability, while identifying dependencies ensures smooth project progress. 

Gantt charts empower project planners to plan, visualize, and execute projects, making them invaluable for comprehensive project views, roadmap creation, and efficient task management.

Example : Marketing campaigns require the project team to juggle multiple tasks, such as market research, content creation, and campaign execution. Gantt charts serve as a visual roadmap for breaking down these tasks, assigning them to team members, and setting clear deadlines.

4. Date shifting

Gantt charts are versatile tools for managing project timelines and adapting to dynamic situations. They excel in date shifting, allowing you to add specific due dates for task alignment and clarity. 

When adjustments are necessary, Gantt charts simplify the process with a user-friendly drag-and-drop feature, ensuring task flexibility. They also help manage scheduling delays by visualizing their impacts and enabling resource reallocation and schedule modifications. 

During resource conflicts or unexpected emergencies, Gantt charts facilitate swift responses, providing the tools for task reassignment or deadline extensions. These capabilities make Gantt charts a reliable compass for navigating unexpected changes while keeping your project on course.

Example : Supply chain issues may delay a product launch. Using a Gantt chart, project managers can easily adjust the dates for dependent tasks, such as marketing and distribution. Adaptability minimizes the impact of delays and keeps the project on schedule.

5. Resource allocation

Resource allocation is a cornerstone of effective project management, and Gantt charts are instrumental in this process. Here's how to use Gantt charts for resource allocation:

• Identifying resource needs : Gantt charts document resource requirements, associating them with tasks or milestones for clarity.
• Checking availability : Gantt charts align resource timelines with project schedules, identifying conflicts and enabling adjustments.
• Managing constraints : Gantt charts accommodate limitations, such as working hours, allowing parameter definition for adherence.
• Optimizing usage : The visual representation of Gantt charts helps identify underutilization or overallocation, enabling task adjustments.

Example : Academic research projects use various resources, such as research assistants, lab equipment, and computing power. Gantt charts can determine when a project needs each resource, identify their availability, and optimize resource usage by avoiding bottlenecks.

A good Gantt chart example serves as a professional framework for resource allocation, ensuring judicious resource deployment, reducing bottlenecks, enhancing productivity, and achieving project goals within set timelines and budgets. Try out our Gantt Chart Template and get started managing your next project today!

Jira for software teams

Trusted by millions of high-performing agile teams, Jira is the leading project management tool for software development. It serves as a central hub throughout the development cycle, enabling effective planning, tracking, and release management. 

Jira emphasizes the product backlog , prioritizing tasks from the project roadmap. This ensures high-priority items are at the forefront, enhancing development efficiency. 

As an alternative to Gantt charts, teams can select tasks based on capacity using continuous flow ( Kanban ) or structured iterations ( Scrum ), aligning work with capabilities and improving responsiveness. While Gantt charts provide a visual representation of a project timeline with dependencies, Jira’s backlogs and timelines offer dynamic adaptability, accommodating change swiftly.

Jira for business teams

Jira is a valuable solution for diverse business teams, promoting seamless collaboration and efficient project delivery. Tailored for business teams such as marketing, operations, sales, and HR, Jira offers a user-friendly interface. For project planning, Jira uses dynamic calendars instead of traditional Gantt charts. Gantt charts show tasks in a fixed line, making it difficult to change plans. Dynamic calendars make it easy to move tasks around, so teams can adapt more quickly.

With integrations such as Slack, HubSpot, and Google Workspace, Jira is highly customizable, giving business teams flexibility and control in managing their work efficiently.

Plans, available in the Premium edition of Jira , is a powerful tool for planning, tracking, and gaining insights into complex projects, especially for distributed teams. 

Unlike traditional Gantt charts, it handles intricate scenarios with multiple teams, projects, and dependencies, offering a high-level view of work across teams. 

Custom fields and labels categorize work, enhancing visibility and tracking. It simplifies dynamic planning, adapting to reorganizations or shifting priorities without manual adjustments. Integration with multiple Jira boards, projects, and filters allows customized planning. 

It's a versatile and more robust alternative to Gantt charts, providing teams with efficient project management tools and clear progress visibility.

Create Gantt charts with Jira

Jira has a robust selection of agile project management features that support the needs of any team, such as dealing with complex timelines. More dynamic and robust than a Gantt chart, Jira makes it easy for teams to organize work, stay aligned, and build better products.  Jira Plans , available in the Premium edition of Jira, enhances your planning with data-driven outcome forecasts. For teams seeking further diversification, Jira offers tailored solutions to meet specialized project management needs of business and product teams.

Gantt chart examples: Frequently asked questions

What types of projects are suitable for gantt charts.

Gantt charts are well-suited for various projects, including business plans, product management, and design projects. They offer a visual and organized way to outline tasks, allocate resources, and establish timelines, making them valuable tools for managing various project types effectively. 

Can you use Gantt charts for team collaboration?

Yes, Gantt charts are a valuable tool for team collaboration. They provide a clear visual representation of project timelines, tasks, and dependencies, making it easier for team members and stakeholders to coordinate efforts, track progress, and communicate effectively throughout the project's lifecycle.

What software can I use to create Gantt charts?

If you're aiming to create Gantt charts, consider using Jira as your go-to platform. Jira excels in offering features for dependency mapping, team collaboration, and real-time project tracking, making it ideal for handling complex projects.  Get started for free with Jira and explore Gantt chart functionalities as well as other planning tools.

Gantt Charts

A Gantt chart is a project management tool that illustrates a project plan. Learn how they can help and see an example of Gantt charts

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Agile process flows help bring structure to scale your software development process. Learn more about workflow management to support your agile program.

Marketing campaign - Gantt chart example

The Marketing campaign unfolds with initial research and strategy development, leading into active phases of content creation, design, and production. Subsequently, critical testing and optimization phases drive the campaign towards an active launch, followed by performance analysis and optimization. The project concludes with the milestone of Campaign Conclusion set for December 29, 2023, post the optimization phase.

Edit this diagram in Gleek

Marketing campaign diagram code in gleek.

/g Marketing Campaign

     Market Research

        Done

        2023-09-01

     Strategy Development

        => Market Research

     Creative Content Creation

        Active

        => Strategy Development

     Design and Production

     Campaign Testing

        Crit

        => Creative Content Creation

     Finalizing Campaign Materials

        => Design and Production

     Launch

        => Campaign Testing

     Performance Analysis

        => Launch

     Campaign Optimization

        => Performance Analysis

     Campaign Conclusion

        Milestone

        => Campaign Optimization

        2023-12-29

About Gantt charts

Gantt charts, named after Henry Gantt, aid in project organization and monitoring, showcasing task timelines, durations, and overlaps. They're versatile tools used across industries, offering an overview of project lifecycles, beneficial for planning, resource allocation, and stakeholder communication. These charts assist in scheduling, dependency identification, and progress visualization, enhancing task management and resource allocation for effective project execution.

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What Is a Gantt Chart?

Understanding a gantt chart, the bottom line.

• Business Essentials

Gantt Chart: Definition, Benefits, and How It’s Used

Yarilet Perez is an experienced multimedia journalist and fact-checker with a Master of Science in Journalism. She has worked in multiple cities covering breaking news, politics, education, and more. Her expertise is in personal finance and investing, and real estate.

Theresa Chiechi / Investopedia

A Gantt chart is a commonly used graphical depiction of a project schedule. It’s a type of bar chart showing the start and finish dates of a project’s elements, such as resources, planning, and dependencies.

Henry Gantt (1861–1919), an American mechanical engineer, designed the Gantt chart.

Key Takeaways

• A Gantt chart is a visualization that helps in scheduling, managing, and monitoring specific tasks and resources in a project.
• It consists of a list of tasks and bars depicting each task’s progress.
• The horizontal bars of different lengths represent the project timeline, which can include task sequences, duration, and the start and end dates for each task.
• It’s the most widely used chart in project management.
• Gantt charts are used in heavy industries for projects like building dams, bridges, and highways, as well as software development and building out of other goods and services.

The Gantt chart is the most widely used chart in project management . These charts are useful in planning a project and defining the sequence of tasks that require completion. In most instances, the chart is displayed as a horizontal bar chart.

Horizontal bars of different lengths represent the project timeline, which can include task sequences, duration, and the start and end dates for each task. The horizontal bar also shows how much of a task requires completion.

The length of the bar is proportional to the time necessary for a task’s completion. The project tasks are represented on the vertical axis.

A Gantt chart helps in scheduling, managing, and monitoring specific tasks and resources in a project. The chart shows the project timeline, which includes scheduled and completed work over a period of time. The Gantt chart aids  project managers  in communicating project status and completion rate of specific tasks within a project, and helps ensure the project remains on track. By convention, it is a standard tool that makes communication unified among the engineering and project management communities.

Benefits of a Gantt Chart

The Gantt chart identifies tasks that may be executed in parallel and those that can’t be started or finished until others are complete. It can help detect potential bottlenecks and identify tasks that may have been excluded from the project timeline .

The chart depicts things like task slack time or additional time for completion of a task that shouldn’t delay the project; noncritical activities that may be delayed; and critical activities that must be executed on time.

Gantt charts can be used in managing projects of all sizes and types. These may include building infrastructures like dams, bridges, and highways. They may also include software development and other technologies. Project management tools, such as Microsoft Visio, Project, SharePoint, and  Excel , or specialized software, such as Gantto or Matchware, can help in designing Gantt charts.

Sabrina Jiang / Investopedia

Example of a Gantt Chart

Company A is taking on a project to install new software on the servers of a large investment bank . Company A decides to create a Gantt chart to help manage the project and its different components.

The project’s tasks that require completion include conducting research, selecting a software product, testing the software, and installing it. These tasks appear as vertical lines on the Gantt chart. A milestone of the project is selecting the software.

The project’s duration is 40 days, as agreed upon between Company A and the investment bank. Each task takes 10 days to complete, and each task is dependent on the previous task. A critical activity is testing the software in the development and test environments.

The task start and end dates, duration, and milestones appear as horizontal bars on the Gantt chart. The percentage of work completed for each task is also displayed on the horizontal bars. Using the Gantt chart will help Company A map out the tasks along a timeline to reach full completion in 40 days.

What Is a Gantt Chart Used for?

Gantt charts help visualize various tasks and projects that occur simultaneously within an organization, and how far along they have progressed. They are used by management to plan and schedule such projects so that resources can be allocated in an optimal way and that projects that are prioritized can finish before less important ones begin.

Who Was Henry Gantt?

Henry Gantt was a social scientist and management consultant who also held a degree in mechanical engineering. He worked in the field of scientific management, developing methods to streamline and increase the productivity of corporations and their workforce. He created the Gantt chart in the 1910s to help supervisors understand the progress of their labor force and to ensure tasks were on schedule.

What Are the Components of a Gantt Chart?

A Gantt chart can vary in complexity and depth, but will always have three key components: activities or tasks that are to be done, running along the y axis; milestones or progress stages indicated along the x axis (either on the top or bottom of the chart); and progress bars, denoted as horizontal bars, denoting how far along each task is at any given point.

A Gantt chart is a visual description of a project’s timeline. The chart shows the start and end dates of a project’s components, such as resources and planning. If you are involved in a project, it is recommended to use a Gantt chart to help organize the various tasks within the project.

GnattChart. " History ."

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Blog Graphic Design 11 Gantt Chart Examples For Project Management

11 Gantt Chart Examples For Project Management

Written by: Bronwyn Kienapple May 10, 2023

Slack pings, client emails, subcontractor texts… it’s enough to drive anyone crazy. Stop the communication madness and make a Gantt chart .

A Gantt chart lets you communicate your project timeline visually in an easy-to-understand way. Everyone’s in the loop, so you can get work done faster and easier.

Want to see Gantt chart examples, plus get tips on how to create professional Gantt charts that are professional, attractive and simple to understand?

Stick around or check out our Gantt chart templates to start customizing right away.

Click to jump ahead :

• What is a Gantt Chart?

6 Gantt chart examples 

Why is a gantt chart important, what is a gantt chart used for.

• How Gantt charts improve team communication, project tracking & time management ?

Benefits of using a Gantt chart

What are the parts of a gantt chart, how to make a gantt chart, what is a gantt chart.

A Gantt chart is a timeline of a project. The top of the chart shows the time frame and the left side of the chart lists the project activities.

Here’s a Gantt chart example:

Each activity listed on the left-hand side of a Gantt chart has a colored bar next to it.

The position and length of that bar depends on the activity’s timeline and duration: when it starts and when it ends.

• For example, in the daily project status Gantt chart above, Activity 1 (Task 1) will take place from March 3 to 7 and then from March 10 to 13. The due date is Thursday of that week. Each week is color coded.

Here’s another example:

In short, a Gantt chart shows:

• What tasks need to be done to complete the project
• When these tasks need to be done

Now that you know what a Gantt chart is, let’s look at a few examples to better understand its usability and versatility.

• Gantt charts for Project Management
• Gantt Charts for Construction
• Gantt Chart Example for Project Proposals
• Gantt Chart Example for Business Plans
• Gantt Chart Example for Consultants
• Gantt Chart Example for Manufacturing

1. Gantt charts for project management

Gantt charts can be a helpful visual to include in project management plans .

Like the previous example, this retro daily project Gantt chart example breaks down project activities day by day.

It also breaks down who’s responsible for what project activity.

• Sonya J. is responsible for it from September 3 to 14 (two weeks).
• Amir K. is responsible for it from September 17 to 21 (one week). Julia F. is in charge of Task 1/Activity 1 from September 17 to October 2. Her red bar shows that the due date is Wednesday.

The magic of a Gantt chart is that it lets you set the order in which tasks should be completed.

And since Gantt charts are in an easy-to-understand timeline format, the task order is crystal clear.

Your team and/or clients won’t need to ask you again and again when Mark is supposed to be working on link building. Phew .

Project management: simplified.

This template would work especially well for consultants , as the client can get a visual representation of the team working on their project.

Putting faces to the names creates confidence in the client and helps build your reputation.

Pro Tip : Use Venngage’s collaboration features to add team members (like your client) to your account and share your Gantt chart seamlessly. Or better yet, edit and customize your gantt charts with your team in real time with our new real-time collaboration feature!

Get feedback and approvals faster within one channel, without having to juggle Slack messages, emails, or G Suite comments.

This corporate weekly project Gantt chart example is more traditional than the previous example. The focus is on the activities and their types, not the individual people.

The types of activities, such as engineering or marketing, are color coded.

• For example, Task 3/Activity 1 is a marketing activity that will take place from the middle of week 3 to the middle of week 5. Julia K. is responsible for this activity.

This futuristic-looking Gantt chart example is perfect for teams who operate on the sprint system .

The template is divided into two-week sprints, but you can change this to a one week sprint (or longer) as needed.

The left hand side is divided by team and further divided by activity.

• For example, the engineering team will do planning from the beginning of week 3 to the end of week 5.

Pro Tip : When you’ve finished editing your Gantt chart in Venngage, click “Share” in the top right corner of the editor to email or get a link to your design.

Or click “Download” to download a PDF or PNG file to your hard drive (Premium and Business plans only).

Add your Gantt chart to your weekly team meeting presentation . Consultants can add them to their proposals or work plan templates  or integrate them into their project management tool .

2. Gantt Charts for Construction

Construction projects can suffer from “too many cooks in the kitchen” syndrome, making it really hard to meet deadlines.

Gantt charts are a great way to keep construction projects on schedule and make sure clients, crew members and subcontractors are in the loop.

This construction project Gantt chart example will make sure everyone’s on the same page. The chart’s simple format makes it easy to see what activity is due when .

You can edit the Gantt chart as the project progresses.

• For example, if an activity is taking longer than it should, extend the bar’s length and make that section red. That way, everyone is instantly aware of overtime and potential project delays.

This construction project Gantt chart example is almost the same format as the previous one, but the dots represent two day intervals.

• For example, demolition will run from Friday of week 1 to Friday of week 2 (six days).

Pro Tip : Venngage’s My Brand Kit tool lets you apply your brand colors to your Gantt chart template with one click. My Brand Kit also lets you include your logo and apply brand fonts.

For example, in the above template, using My Brand Kit would change the blue, yellow and green background color scheme to your brand’s color scheme. You can then click “shuffle” to cycle through the color combination options.

3. Gantt Chart Example for Project Proposals

New product in the works? Use this dark new product project Gantt chart example.

The far left hand column maps out the activities, while the far right column lists what department is responsible for each activity.

Product development typically involves multiple departments or teams of people. There may be no one project leader, or only multiple managers, on multiple teams.

A Gantt chart is the perfect way to manage tasks between multiple teams as all the information is in one place, in a crystal-clear format.

It eliminates confusion about dependencies i.e. who needs to finish what before another team can begin their task.

Pro Tip : You can also include the chart in your business report or presentation .  Download your finished Gantt chart as a PNG file (Premium and Business plans only). Choose a presentation template from our library. Once you’re in the editor, click the “Image Upload” tab to upload the Gantt chart and add it to your slides.

4. Gantt Chart Example for Business Plans

A business plan tends to contain a lot of information and can quickly become overwhelming to potential investors.

Visualizing schedules, research or data will help break up all the text and quickly communicate key deliverables.

Investors need to see that you have a concrete plan in place that will let you achieve your revenue goals. 

One strategy is to use a Gantt chart to visualize your business plan’s growth strategy or marketing plan .

Use the Gantt chart example above to plot your business strategy and major milestones. Edit the time frame on the bottom to plot out stages by quarter–over several years, if you like.

You can also include this Gantt chart in your project plan .

5. Gantt Chart Example for Consultants

Your client’s hired you to help them achieve their goals. But, let’s say they’re a new client and they need a little more reassurance that you, the consultant, is on top of things.

Show your client that you have a workable roadmap to success with a Gantt chart.

Edit the above Gantt chart example and divide tasks–between your team, any subcontractors and your client’s team.

Refer back to the chart during your weekly calls with the client to make sure you’re both on the same page.

If you’re overwhelmed by admin work, check out our job proposal templates , business proposal templates and consulting report templates and get important documents out the door a lot faster.

Find a hard time creating business proposals fast? Read our in-depth business proposal guide to whip up proposals quickly. 

They’ll also look plenty better than those Word documents you usually churn out!

Pro Tip : Love your Gantt chart’s layout and want to use it again for other consulting projects? Save it as a template in Venngage. That way, you can reuse it whenever you need to make a Gantt chart for another client.

6. Gantt Chart Example for Manufacturing

A Gantt chart template for manufacturing is useful for both employees and management. It clearly maps out the entire production process in a visual format, detailing each step from raw materials to the final product. This clarity allows your employees to see exactly what needs to be done and when, making it easier to coordinate efforts and maintain smooth operations.

Management teams benefit by being able to quickly identify potential delays and adjust plans accordingly to keep the project on track. A Gantt chart ensures everyone is on the same page, enhances productivity, and guarantees timely delivery of products.

Pro Tip: Customize your Gantt chart template to include color codes for different stages of the production process. This visual differentiation can help team members quickly understand the status of various tasks and prioritize their efforts more effectively.

Gantt charts are important because they make scheduling, planning and executing on projects easier. They also help a lot with general time management .

Projects often involve multiple stakeholders, activities and deadlines. Gantt charts visualize all these factors so that project managers and their teams can quickly understand who needs to do what and when .

This will help make sure each deliverable is completed on time.

Which in turn will prevent a snowball effect of missed deadlines, causing the  project price to go up and the completion date to be pushed back.

And no one wants that.

A Gantt chart is a handy visual tool that’s great for project management, helping to lay out a project schedule. Here’s how it helps:

• Plan and Schedule Projects : By outlining tasks, how long they’ll take, and how they depend on each other, Gantt charts make planning and scheduling projects of any size much easier.
• Track Progress : They give you a clear visual of project progress, showing which tasks are done, which are in progress, and which haven’t started yet.
• Visualize Dependencies : The chart highlights how tasks depend on each other, making it easy to see how a delay in one task might affect others.
• Identify Critical Path : Gantt charts help you figure out the critical path of a project—the sequence of tasks that must be completed on time for the project to stay on schedule.
• Facilitate Communication : They serve as a centralized communication tool, providing everyone with a clear overview of the project timeline and who’s responsible for what.

Gantt charts are super useful for keeping projects organized, on track, and ensuring everyone on the team is on the same page.

How Gantt charts improve team communication, project tracking & time management?

Gantt charts are useful tools that can boost team communication, project tracking, and time management. Here’s how:

Improved Team Communication:

• Clear Visualization: Gantt charts give you a visual overview of the entire project, showing the timeline, tasks, and milestones. This makes it easy for everyone to understand their responsibilities.
• Centralized Information: All the details about the project, like who is doing what and when it’s due, are in one place. This cuts down on unnecessary back-and-forth communication.
• Status Updates: Everyone can see the status of each task at a glance, which helps in identifying any delays and facilitates timely discussions.
• Collaborative Planning: These charts make it easy to plan tasks together and adjust them as needed, ensuring that everyone is aligned.

Enhanced Project Tracking:

• Real-Time Monitoring: You can track the progress of the project in real-time, making sure everything is on schedule.
• Milestones and Deadlines: Key dates are clearly marked, helping to keep the project on track.
• Dependency Management: Gantt charts show how tasks depend on each other, so you can see how delays in one task might affect the overall timeline.
• Progress Updates: Regular updates give you a clear picture of which tasks are completed and which are still pending.

Better Time Management:

• Task Allocation: These charts help in assigning tasks efficiently, making it clear who is responsible for what and when.
• Prioritization: They help in prioritizing tasks based on their importance and deadlines.
• Resource Management: Gantt charts highlight resource bottlenecks, ensuring optimal use of resources.
• Forecasting: Teams can predict future workload and adjust plans to prevent team members from being overburdened.

Practical Example: Imagine you’re running a marketing campaign. A Gantt chart can help you:

• Schedule Tasks: Plan out content creation, design, social media posts, and ad placements.
• Assign Responsibilities: Clearly assign tasks and set deadlines for each team member.
• Track Progress: Visually update the status of each task to see what’s completed and what’s still in progress.
• Manage Dependencies: Make sure that content is ready before starting the design phase.
• Adjust Plans: Modify tasks as needed to stay on track for the campaign launch date.

Gantt charts provide a clear and visual way to manage projects. They improve team communication, project tracking, and time management, leading to more successful project outcomes.

The benefits of a Gantt chart include:

• Scheduling and planning projects and tasks
• Plan work in sprints
• Visualizing how projects and tasks evolve over time
• Collaborate with your team
• Comparing planned versus actual timelines

Gantt charts are incredibly versatile — they’re useful for multiple roles, such as:

• Project managers
• Marketing managers
• Team leaders
• Operations managers
• Consultants

Gantt charts aren’t industry-specific, either. They’re a critical tool for anyone managing a long-term project that has lots of tasks and a complex schedule and that requires collaboration.

• For example, the Gantt chart example below can be adapted for any project simply by changing the tasks and milestones:

Industries that can benefit from Gantt charts include:

• Construction
• Manufacturing
• Product development
• Engineering
• Infrastructure
• Oil and gas
• Telecommunications
• Professional services and consultants

Telecommuting has risen 140 percent since 2005, according to Globa l Workplace Analytics .

As this number continues to skyrocket, a Gantt chart becomes even more critical for team management and to effectively plan and track work as a team.

When you first look at a Gantt chart, it might seem overwhelming.

What do the bars or lines mean? How do they relate to the x and y axes?

But, on second glance you’ll see that the beauty of a Gantt chart is actually in its simplicity.

A Gantt chart only has three main parts:

• Activities and/or tasks (left axis)
• Milestones (top or bottom axis)
• Activity and/or task bars

Take a look at this simple Gantt chart example:

Not intimidating at all.

• Tasks on the left axis
• Milestones on the bottom axis
• And bars that show when each task should begin and end

Of course, more complex projects, such as the construction of large urban infrastructures or complex software engineering services, require more complex Gantt charts.

The Gantt chart example below takes things a step further by dividing activities into smaller tasks.

• For example, “Planning” is divided into: needs assessment, project agreement and site map.

This Gantt chart also lists (on the right) who’s responsible for each task.

The good news is that you can now create a Gantt chart with Venngage in five steps:

1. Choose a Template

Choices, choices. Open our Gantt chart templates gallery .

Then, select the template for you by:

• Ex. Dark Home Construction Project Gantt Chart Template
• Ex. Dark New Product Project Gantt Chart Template
• Corporate Weekly Project Gantt Chart
• Ex. Detailed Project Gantt Chart

Hover over the template you like and click “Create.”

2. Lay Out Your Timeline From Left to Right

Start by laying out the timeline of your from left to right, creating divisions by day, week, month, or quarter.

In this Gantt chart template, click the text box you want to edit and start typing.

Or delete the days of the week and add months or quarters, instead.

Made a mistake? You can click “undo” in the top toolbar at any time.

To add a new column to the right, click “Resize” and increase the width of the custom page size. Try adding 200 more pixels and readjust as needed.

Then, drag and select all the orange icons to move them to the right at the same time.

Drag to select the entire dates section and click “copy” and move into place. Edit the dates.

Now, drag to extend the beige bars. Use the “snap to guide” feature to help you align everything perfectly.

3. Add Tasks From Top to Bottom

Click the tasks and activities to edit the text. Use the top navigation bar to change the font style, size, color etc.

If you need to add a new row, follow the same steps for adding a new column as above. Just adjust the height of the page size instead of the width. Then, copy the last row by dragging to select and pressing “copy.”

4. Adjust Each Bar Accordingly

Adjust each bar so it begins at the task’s start date and extend it to the end of the expected task deadline.

Click each bar to move it or drag it. The snap-to-guide feature will help you align the bar with the specific day of the week above.

Copy other bars with the right color and move them into place to extend the timeline of a task.

You can also click the orange circles to assign each task to a different person–in the above Gantt chart template they’re indicated by initials.

5. Brand Your Gantt Chart

Brand your Gantt chart with one click by opening the My Brand Kit tab. Drag your logo into place.

Then, click a “My Brand Colors” palette to apply these colors to the entire template. Click “Shuffle” to scroll through different color combinations. Very cool.

Want a different type of design? Discover even more Gantt chart templates .

Pro Tip : Struggling to customize your Gantt chart just the way you want it? Venngage offers priority support via email, chat and phone and 1-on-1 consultations to Business plan members. Ask our designers for tips on how to present your idea visually — whether in a Gantt chart or a presentation, report, white paper etc.

What’s your number one struggle with managing projects right now? Let us know in the comments below!

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Gantt Chart Research Proposal

Proposal maker.

The #YouOnlyLiveOnce mindset thrives in the spirit of spontaneity and adventure. Although it can be fun, #YOLO will spell disaster outside the party scene. It is a terrible career and life advice that is equivalent to flushing your time and resources down the toilet. Smart and strategic project planning is the spine of every successful academic or business undertaking. Whether you are a student or a professional, you will benefit from mapping out your projects with Gantt charts and other progress-tracking illustrations. We have prepared the following pointers that will help you on your next big move.

21+ Gantt Chart Research Proposal Templates

Gantt charts are a useful productivity apparatus for project management. They are a bar chart derivative for task scheduling and progress tracking. The user plots the activity progress along the y-axis, with respect to the indicated time on the x-axis. The leftmost column contains the list of tasks while the top row displays project dates in uniform intervals. This chart is useful in visualizing the schedule of activities for your research proposals . When you use Gantt charts, you can monitor if your project goals are in sync with the actual work timeline.

1. Restaurant Gantt Chart Template

• Google Docs
• Google Sheets

Size: A4 & US Letter Sizes

You see the potential of a trend in increasing the revenue for your restaurant. How do you convince the management that your plan will work? Other than persuasive and well-researched content, your market research plan should contain a feasible work timetable. A realistic schedule of activities ensures that your proposed project is not just theoretical and that investing in it would not be a waste of resources. A Gantt chart works best for project timelines because it makes the project’s progress easy to monitor and relay. Add this template to your market research proposal!

2. Free Excel Gantt Chart Template

Size: A4 & US Sizes

The early Gantt charts were successful even before computers became mainstream in offices. Back then, you had to draw the charts manually. This means that when there would be revisions to the project proposals , you are required to recreate the entire diagram. The success of Gantt charts would not have survived the rigors of modern workspaces if there was no computer program for them. Fortunately, we have programs like Microsoft Excel and Apple Numbers where we can amend details without scrapping the entire chart. Get this free Gantt chart template now!

3. Free Progress Gantt chart with Events Template

There would be times that our project advisers would need a quick update on the progress of our research study. Give them a fast rundown of the development with this Gantt chart template! It gives a quick overview of the pace of the activities through percentage. It has a simple interface simple and is easy to navigate. You can also use this template when you’re presenting the progress of a specific task and its subtasks. Are you worried that adding a new activity might overlap with your previous assignments? Avoid that with this downloadable template!

4. Free Yearly Project Management Gantt Chart Template

Research, especially when it is an individual project, will challenge a person’s organization and project management competence. You will need to complete one task before you can proceed to another in your methodology . If you lag on one of your tasks, there will be a domino effect, and you will fall behind schedule. Even though some research studies can take a whole year or more, people usually find themselves short of time. Do not fall prey to this by being committing to a realistic schedule. Get started with this yearly Gantt chart template!

5. Free Sales Activity Gantt Chart Template

Instead of just plotting your research activity progress with respect to project dates, you can also monitor how much of the work is done! Although this is a sales activity template, you can use the same format for your research proposal . Each task is listed in the first column, while the percentage measures the amount of work done. With this monitoring format, you can picture the development of your research and the momentum of the activities. Boost your productivity with this free Gantt chart template now!

6. Free Marketing Plan Chart Template

With this Gantt chart template, make sure that you don’t fall behind your target deadlines again! The layout is specific down to the weeks of the month. You will be able to indicate at which week your research team started and completed the task. Did you hit the time allotted for each activity? The expected duration is placed next to the activity column for reference. You can use this template to present the schedule of events in your research proposal. The best part is that unlike other charts, you can keep updating this timeline during the entire project!

7. Free Basic Gantt Chart Template

The construction of the  Hoover Dam  started in 1931 and finished ahead of schedule. During the planning and construction, engineers referred to Gantt charts to keep track of the progress. Today, the charts are useful in different fields that need progress-tracking and project forecasts. It is helpful in your research proposals because you can define the timeline of your research as well as continually update the document for revisions. It is a reliable organization tool that you shouldn’t be sleeping on. Make use of such convenience in your research proposal with this template!

8. Free Monthly Gantt Chart Template

Gantt charts are an indispensable tool for project management. It gives you a birds-eye view of the entire research progress. Are you running out of time? Which of the following tasks can you adjust the schedule for? You can refer to it when you need to add or modify the activities. Monitor your progress better from start to end with this editable template! The design looks professional, and it won’t clash with the formality of your document. The landscape orientation lets you include more details into your timetable.

9. Research Proposal Gantt Chart Template

Size: 35 KB

10. Qualitative Research Proposal Gantt Chart Template

Size: 42 KB

11. Research Proposal Timeline Gantt Chart Template

Size: 38 KB

12. Nursing Research Gantt Chart Template

Size: 34 KB

13. Marketing Research Gantt Chart Template

14. Thesis Proposal Gantt Chart Template

Size: 30 KB

15. Sample Proposal Gantt Chart Template

Size: 37 KB

16. Medical Research Gantt Chart Template

17. Dissertation Research Gantt Chart Template

Size: 43 KB

18. Dissertation Proposal Gantt Chart Template

19. Business Research Gantt Chart Template

Size: 33 KB

20. Ph.D. Plan Gantt Chart

Size: 630 KB

Gantt charts are being used in doctoral dissertations as well. The attached PDF file is an example of a research timeline of a Ph.D. candidate. Most Gantt charts are in a landscape format to accommodate more content. The proponent structured his semestral schedule of activities in a monthly-basis. The designation of each main goal with different colors is smart. The chart shows that the proponent performed various activities under different goals per semester. Without a physical map, it is hard to picture the progress of his tasks. Like this Ph.D. candidate, organize your research endeavors with a Gantt chart!

21. Survey Planning Gantt Chart Sample

Size: 262 KB

Surveys are one of the effective methods of obtaining relevant information to answer queries. Despite its practicality and capacity to provide reliable data, the method isn’t a one-step process. You wouldn’t want to spend your resources on information that isn’t worth its price. You have to make sure that you get the right answers. You have to test the survey design first to a few people. Then there is still data analysis and report of findings. Is this method suitable for your research given the time available? Gain a reliable foresight by including a Gantt chart for your research proposal! Refer to this sample chart for guidance!

22. Task Gantt Chart Template

Size: 286 KB

A crammed research paper is not a good research paper . In the academe, students are given due dates to fulfill parts or sections of their thesis. Manage your deadlines well by tabulate your tasks and progress. By doing so, you can budget your time and adjust your working pace. Supplement your school hustle with a Gantt chart! It can be as straightforward as this sample, but its rewards on your scholastic performance are priceless!

Text prompt

• Instructive
• Professional

Generate a proposal for a new school recycling program

Compose a proposal for a school field trip to a science museum.

Gantt Chart in Project Management: What Is It and How to Use It

Table of Contents

If you’re having trouble making accurate time estimates and scheduling your projects, this is your sign to look into Gantt charts.

A Gantt chart is one of the most useful tools you can have that will help you improve estimates, create a project timeline, manage team workload, and organize the project schedule on small to medium-sized projects.

This blog post will go over Gantt charts in more detail and explain exactly how to use them to maximum effectiveness. 

What is a Gantt chart?

A Gantt chart in project management is a horizontal bar chart that visually breaks down the duration of tasks on the project timeline . 

A Gantt chart shows: 

• The name and length of each task, 
• Their start and end dates, 
• How they relate to other project tasks,
• Who is responsible for each task, and other relevant information as shown in the Gantt chart example below.

Gantt charts offer many benefits for both project managers and their teams by:

• Providing a bird’s eye view of the project,
• Allowing them to identify connections between tasks,
• Letting teams understand how their responsibilities relate to and affect other tasks in the pipeline, and
• Simplifying resource planning and allocation.

That said, Gantt charts can sometimes get pretty convoluted and difficult to manage in overly large and complex projects.

The Gantt chart as we know it today was created by Henry Gantt in the early 20th century, and it was initially drawn manually, on paper.

Today, the simplest and most effective way to build and update a Gantt chart is by using project management software .

What is a Gantt chart used for?

The main purpose of using a Gantt chart in project management is to lay out your tasks in the order in which they need to be completed and get a clear overview of the project.

The clean visual layout of the project timeline in Gantt view helps project managers determine exactly:

• How far along the project is, 
• What tasks are ahead or behind schedule, and 
• Whether the schedule needs adjustment.

How to use a Gantt chart for project management

Project managers can use cloud-based Gantt charts in various ways — from determining the critical path and scheduling tasks to allocating resources.

For a great example of the capabilities of a Gantt chart and how you can use it, check out this Gantt chart tutorial for Plaky — our user-friendly project management software.

1. Create a project timeline

The easiest way to improve your project scheduling and task management is to create a project timeline — and Gantt charts are perfect for this.

In the timeline, you can see your entire project laid out in front of you with all the major start and end dates. 

Gantt charts made in PM tools normally let you toggle between weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly views, or they can showcase the entire project from beginning to end. 

Having these options lets you plan, schedule, and shuffle around tasks within those time frames for the purpose of meeting deadlines or hitting certain project goals.

Timelines are an amazing tool to have, but they can get convoluted when there’s too much information floating around. Therefore, the best Gantt charts let you adjust the amount of information you can see for a less cluttered overview.

But don’t worry — if you want to see all the details for a specific task shown on the chart, you can still click on a task and open its item card with all the details (e.g., description, links, assignees, reviewers, statuses, labels, etc.).

2. Manage resources

Gantt charts are also a great tool for tracking and allocating resources to tasks. 

For example, you can easily check the availability of your team members by grouping tasks in the Gantt chart by the person they’re assigned to.

Having insight into team members’ availability lets you see when an employee is overbooked and reshuffle the tasks accordingly. This helps prevent burnout in your team and can even speed up the project by helping you make better use of your team resources.

Similarly, you can even track the availability of material resources and manage their distribution throughout the Gantt chart filtering system.

3. Identify the critical path

When you have the Gantt chart in front of you, it’s much easier to find the critical path .

The critical path determines the shortest possible time frame in which you can theoretically complete the project. This means that any delays on the critical path automatically extend the duration of the entire project.

Luckily, certain project management software will automatically calculate the duration of all tasks within an item group. From here, you can identify the groups on the critical path and see how long they’ll take to complete.

This information will help you make more informed decisions and aid in planning and scheduling your project going forward.

For instance, knowing the critical path will help you understand how you can stretch the deadlines for the tasks outside the critical path. 

Furthermore, you might find a way to shorten the critical path — thus effectively shortening the overall project duration. 

4. Collaborate with team members and stakeholders

One of the most prominent benefits of using cloud-based Gantt chart software is the ability to seamlessly communicate with your team members while collaborating on a project.

Thanks to the intuitive layout of Gantt charts, all team members will be able to understand how their tasks affect other related tasks. 

Team members can also leave comments and @mention their colleagues in the comments section of each task, or share related files.

Similarly, you can invite your stakeholders to view the Gantt chart and keep in touch with changes or export the information in CSV format and share it along with project status reports .

5. Monitor progress

Finally, keep in mind that making the best project schedule in the world won’t matter if you don’t monitor the project’s progress and adjust the schedule as needed. So, customize your Gantt chart to better fit your particular project criteria and show only the information you need for easier monitoring.

This will involve tinkering with your preferred tool’s Gantt chart settings. For instance, you may be able to categorize the Gantt tasks only by:

• Status — to keep an eye on individual task progress, or
• Assignee — to monitor how many tasks your team members have to deal with in the upcoming period.

Based on this information alone, you can then promptly react and adjust the Gantt chart to accommodate faster progress and/or higher-quality project delivery.

How to make a Gantt chart for project management

Now you know how to use a Gantt chart — great! But how exactly do you make one?

Creating a Gantt chart these days is much easier and time-efficient than it used to be. But, it still requires a good deal of prep work. 

Here’s how to create a Gantt chart from scratch using project management software.

1. Create a work breakdown structure (WBS)

Break down the scope of the project into smaller tasks. This will help you determine the order and length of each task more accurately. 

It’s only when you have the start and end dates for each task, their hierarchy, and task dependencies figured out that you can create a Gantt chart and start working on your project schedule.

💡 PLAKY PRO TIP

Learn how to create a work breakdown structure the right way:

• Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) in Project Management

2. Add details to project tasks

Project management tools allow you to add more details to each of your project tasks. This is a good opportunity to make sure all your information is stored in one safe space and that you can refer to it whenever you need it later on.

Add custom fields to keep track of your project resources, assignees, reviewers, budget, status, relevant task information, and more.

3. Create the Gantt chart

You can create a Gantt chart in several different ways, but the easiest way to visualize it is in specialized project management or Gantt chart software . 

When you’ve created and populated each of your project tasks, simply add a new view in which you’d like to see them — in this case, a Gantt view . You can usually do the same in any project management software of your choosing as long as it supports Gantt charts.

All the information you previously added to your project tasks (assignees, budget, resources, etc.) should still be available to you in Gantt view. You can also toggle between different views.

Alternatively, it’s possible to create Gantt charts using tools such as Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets. 

However, the process of creating a Gantt chart with these tools from scratch is complicated and highly time-consuming. Moreover, these tools don’t offer much in terms of privacy, security, customization, or collaborative features, unlike dedicated project management and Gantt chart tools.

If you’d still like to learn how to create Gantt charts in Google Sheets and Excel, or snag a few free Gantt chart templates, check out these blog posts:

• How to Make a Gantt Chart in Excel (Free Template Included)
• Gantt Chart in Google Sheets: How to Create It + Free Templates
• Top 16 Automated Project Management Excel Templates

Gantt chart examples

One cool thing about Gantt charts is that they can be used across many industries. Here are some Gantt chart examples for software engineering and construction projects.

Software engineering Gantt chart example

Software engineering projects are mostly Agile , with the work done in Sprints and frequent changes happening throughout the project. 

But even so, Gantt charts can be used to map out the software development plan and give an overview of the planned project timeline to help with further Sprint planning and scheduling.

Unlike some of the more detailed Gantt charts, this software engineering Gantt chart focuses on project milestones .

In other words, it timeboxes the major deliverables, offering an overview of the planned time frames and their due dates, while still leaving room for flexibility within the timeboxed periods.

Website redesign Gantt chart example

Unlike software engineering, some projects are much more linear and require a more granular action plan. So, a website redesign Gantt chart would display a much more detailed breakdown of tasks as shown in the example below.

Schedule and manage projects with Plaky’s Gantt charts

A Gantt chart is an advanced project management tool that often comes at a premium price — but not always! 

As a budget-friendly tool, Plaky is the perfect choice for any project manager or small business owner on a budget who’s looking to improve their scheduling with Gantt charts.

We’ve already demonstrated how effortless it is to make a functional Gantt chart in Plaky. But Gantt charts aren’t the only thing to get excited about here. 

Plaky is extremely user-friendly (even for non-techies), highly versatile, and customizable — and comes with a host of other features that make PM a breeze, including an extensive library of project management templates you can use for free.

You can use Plaky’s existing templates to kickstart your project. Use them as is, or customize them to your needs by adding custom fields (columns), color formatting, different board views, etc.

Alternatively, you can create your own board and item templates in just a few clicks by building a custom board or item and converting them into a template for later use.

And once you start working on your project, you can easily check progress for both boards and individual items using Plaky’s Activity Log feature.

So what are you waiting for? Start creating detailed Gantt charts in Plaky — sign up for a free account today.

For an across-the-board productivity boost, check out the CAKE.com Productivity Bundle , which includes Enterprise plans for Clockify (time-tracking software), Pumble (team communication software), and Plaky, for a fraction of the cost.

Jelena Samolovac is a project management author and researcher with 2+ years of experience in tackling project management topics. After work, she likes to relax with a casual anime or fantasy book. Her latest interests include drawing and improving her content marketing and copywriting skills.

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How to effectively track the progress of your project.

August 8, 2024

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When you’re busy managing multiple projects, the last thing you need is the added stress of falling behind on your schedule.

Setbacks like improper resource allocation, scope creep, and other unexpected disruptions can delay your project, sometimes indefinitely.

This is precisely why you must learn how to track project progress.

Tracking your project’s progress throughout its lifecycle helps you make informed decisions at every stage and adjust project activities to stay on course.

In this blog, we discuss some best practices and strategies you can use to track project progress.

Challenges in Tracking Project Progress

1. set clear goals and milestones, 2. assign clear responsibilities, 3. maintain detailed documentation, 4. schedule regular status meetings, 5. implement proper progress-tracking methods, 6. use agile methodologies, 7. use gantt charts to visualize timelines, 8. use consistent reporting, 9. compile effective project reports, 10. use a project management tool, the first step toward effective project progress tracking.

As a project manager or team leader, you may have faced several challenges when tracking projects and recording the status of tasks from inception to successful project completion. Some of the most common ones we’ve observed include: 

• Lack of clear objectives : Projects may not have clearly defined objectives and outcomes—leading to scope creep , which in turn makes it challenging to keep up with the project schedule
• Improper communication : Poor communication among stakeholders and team members can create confusion around project deliverables , objectives, timelines, and responsibilities
• Inconsistent data collection : Lack of a structured data collection process results in incomplete progress reports, which makes it difficult to assess the project’s status
• Lack of real-time updates: Without regular real-time updates, you may find it difficult to identify and address issues proactively 

10 Ways to Track Project Progress

If you’re looking to track and measure project progress, here are the 10 steps to follow. 

Sit with team members and stakeholders to discuss project goals in detail. Break down these goals into key milestones so that your team knows exactly what needs to be achieved at each project stage .

For instance, if your goal is to launch an e-commerce website within six months, key project milestones will look like:

• Month 1 : Finalize project scope and assemble the project team
• Month 2 : Complete market research and document requirements for the website
• Month 3: Finalize website design and develop a UX strategy

In this process, milestones act as checkpoints throughout the project, enabling you to measure the actual progress of the project against the schedule.

Use ClickUp Goals to define clear, trackable goals for your project. Add timelines and targets for each goal so that you know exactly how your project is progressing.

Read more: 10 Best Goal Tracking Apps for 2024

If you don’t want team members using the phrase ‘I wasn’t aware of that,’ you need to establish clear accountability for every task on your project’s to-do list .

Start by dividing your project into stages. Add tasks under each stage and review them with stakeholders before finalizing your task list.

• Use ClickUp’s Kanban Board to create different columns to represent each stage of the project 
• Group corresponding tasks under each column along with deadlines and priority levels. You can move each task across the board using the drag-and-drop function
• Assign these tasks to appropriate team members. They will receive a notification once a task has been assigned, meaning there is no misplaced accountability

💡Pro Tip: Measure the estimated time of completion by considering the different tasks, activities, and probable delays. Use this as a benchmark to set realistic timelines and prioritize necessary tasks to streamline the project and improve efficiency.

If you’ve spent time preparing and updating project management documentation—project plans, change logs, risk registers, and project status reports —you know how these details are usually scattered across email threads, notes, chats, and endless spreadsheets. 

When critical documents are not centralized in a shared space, accessing them can be difficult and time-consuming. You’d have to ask multiple stakeholders for access and sift through multiple tools (Word, PowerPoint, MS Teams, Google Docs, etc.), and you may still not be able to find the latest versions of these documents. 

What if we told you that you can consolidate all project-related documents and information in a centralized repository using ClickUp Docs ?

Use its inbuilt formatting options to help you neatly structure the document, add sections, upload images, and embed videos so that it is easy for everyone to grasp. Plus, collaboration detection allows stakeholders to edit the document in real time, ensuring the information is always updated.

Think of Docs as a single source of truth that helps everyone work from the same information, minimizing oversight and reducing delays.

💡 Pro Tip : Consider using project progress tracker templates as a pre-defined blueprint to oversee progress, organize important information centrally, and save valuable time without sacrificing the integrity of your project.

Regular team meetings allow everyone to discuss their progress and provide updates on the status of their tasks. It is a way for your team members to know what has been accomplished, what’s pending, and how much time is left.

As a manager, this is when you identify smoke signals before they become full-blown issues and prevent schedule delays. Regular check-ins help everyone in the team coordinate better and encourage collective problem-solving . 

You could have a daily standup meeting lasting 15-20 minutes, during which everyone shares updates about what went well, what went wrong, and what they plan to achieve today.

On the other hand, weekly meetings of 30-60 minutes include discussing the long-term goals, project challenges, and status reports. 

💡Pro Tip : Leverage project status report templates to monitor your project’s health and progress. These templates can be tailored to the type of project and the details you want to track so you can start managing your project schedule quickly.

Tracking project progress without deciding what tracking methods to use is like navigating a road trip without a GPS.

Use a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods to track the progress of your tasks and activities efficiently:

• Quantitative methods include monitoring numerical data such as task completion rates, time tracking, budget variance, and throughput data
• Qualitative methods include stakeholder feedback, client observations, meeting notes, feedback, and project documentation

If you want a pre-defined framework for tracking project progress, use the ClickUp Project Tracker Template .

It offers a comprehensive structure with multiple custom views to help you track the various tasks in a project and visualize timelines. It also lets you get a quick overview of your progress and view tasks by category, assignee, and due date.

💡 Pro Tip: Use the ClickUp Project Time Tracking to track the time team members spend on individual tasks and activities. Consolidate these insights into a timesheet to identify which tasks are eating into your team’s bandwidth and how they can be optimized.

Project managers use Agile methodologies to divide complex projects into smaller iterations called sprints.

Rather than delivering results at the end of the project, Agile methods focus on delivering incremental value at the end of each project phase or sprint .  Shorter delivery cycles make tracking progress and making timely adjustments much easier.

The top three benefits of using Agile project management techniques include:

• The ability to handle changing priorities 
• Enhanced visibility for stakeholders 
• Improved business alignment

Two of the most commonly used Agile frameworks are Scrum and Kanban.

Work is divided into time-boxed iterations , which are regular checkpoints to measure progress. Each box is approximately 1-4 weeks long, and a specific set of activities must be completed within this time frame. 

The ClickUp Agile Scrum Management Template offers a customizable workflow to manage your Agile Scrum development process. You can use custom statuses to create different project stages and understand how a task is progressing along these stages.

Work is visualized as different stages in a workflow . The stages could be ‘To-Do,’ ‘In-Progress,’ and ‘Under Review.’ Limit the number of tasks under each stage to maintain a steady workflow. 

Use the ClickUp Kanban Template to represent your project’s workflow. Custom fields allow you to categorize tasks according to their stage and add details about the task to improve visibility into what’s completed and what’s pending.

Read more: ClickUp’s guide to agile methodologies for software development teams

Gantt charts are used to visualize the start and end of a project across a timeline . 

When your project timeline has multiple milestones in between to mark the project’s progress along with tasks, deliverables, and timelines—Gantt charts provide a clear view of the project schedule, showing everyone when a task needs to start and when it needs to be completed.

• Use the ClickUp Gantt Chart View to organize your tasks along a timeline and set priorities for each task
• Create tasks along the timeline and add dependencies so that you know exactly what subtasks need to be completed and how long it will take 
• Share the timeline with your team so that everyone receives real-time updates when a task is completed or when the project schedule is modified

💡 Pro Tip: Use project monitoring to anticipate potential risks, delays, and budget overruns and take quick action to correct them. It ensures the project stays on track, increasing the chances of successful, high-quality outcomes.

Team members may often compile reports with inconsistent or inaccurate data, which could lead to misinformed decision-making and make it difficult to identify problems in the project delivery timelines .

Avoid this by:

• Establishing clear guidelines for reporting 
• Emphasizing what project metrics and key performance indicators need to be tracked, as well as formats, frequency, and sources of information 
• Ensuring the same criteria are consistently used to measure progress so that there is no ambiguity or confusion

Solution? Create and use standardized templates for all reports. Educate your team members on the importance of standardized reporting for better progress tracking.

For instance, ClickUp’s Project Progress Report Template includes everything you need to keep stakeholders and team members updated about the project’s progress.

The template offers multiple views to visualize your work differently. Custom views allow you to add important details to manage and track tasks with ease. You can even set real-time notifications to get timely updates every time an action or task is completed.

A comprehensive report can give a clear view of the project’s status and deliverables. It highlights how different resources are utilized and provides data on critical project KPIs (key performance indicators). These metrics measure a project’s performance and track each team member’s responsibilities.

The ClickUp Dashboard allows you to create detailed reports on project progress, view data on various tasks and activities in a single place, and track important project metrics . 

ClickUp’s Dashboard is fully customizable, and you can beautifully present critical data using charts, graphs, or other visualization tools. Add interactive buttons, such as buttons and dropdowns, to make it easier to filter data and gain actionable insights into project progress.

When figuring out how to track project progress effectively, your best bet is to use a project management software.

A project management tool provides a centralized source to store all project-related information and multiple features to improve collaboration, automate tasks, track projects, and manage tasks.

For instance, the ClickUp Project Management Software offers multiple robust features that make planning and prioritizing your work easier. 

Chelsea Benett, Brand Engagement Manager at Lulu Press , raves about how ClickUp has streamlined their team’s efficiency:

A project management platform is essential for a marketing team, and we love that it helps us stay connected to other departments. We use ClickUp literally every day, for everything. It has been very helpful for our creative team and has made their workflow better and more efficient.

Here’s how project managers can use ClickUp to improve their project workflow.

• Create and assign tasks to team members along with due dates using ClickUp Tasks
• Collaborate with your team members and provide real-time updates in a blink with the ClickUp Chat View
• Brainstorm with teams virtually on a digital canvas using ClickUp Whiteboards
• Create efficient workflows for your team and automate repetitive tasks by choosing from over 100+ automations using ClickUp Automations
• Use ClickUp Dashboards to prepare detailed project reports at every stage
• Generate project updates, compile meeting notes, and summarize documents in no time using ClickUp’s very own AI – ClickUp Brain

💡Pro Tip: Use project management templates to save time and expedite your project to completion. Simply plug in the relevant information in the pre-built structures so your teams can manage their tasks quickly.

Effective project tracking is far from micromanaging. It is a systematic blend of clear communication, detailed documentation, streamlined workflows, and effective reporting.

As a project manager, you must adopt the right practices to maintain a clear overview of your project’s progress and swiftly identify issues.

However, it can be challenging to go from zero to one in no time when implementing the best practices we’ve mentioned above. Instead, ease into it by taking it one step at a time.

For instance, the most practical step would be implementing a flexible project management tool like ClickUp that can be customized to fit your team’s needs. You can start by experimenting with basic features like ClickUp’s Dashboards, views, pre-built templates, and tasks and gradually move on to more advanced features as you get used to the tool.

Sign up on ClickUp today and discover how the platform’s powerful functionalities make progress tracking a breeze.

Questions? Comments? Visit our Help Center for support.

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