Using Microsoft Project

Microsoft Project lets you schedule a project and assign resources (i.e. people) to a project.
Microsoft Project is one of Microsoft's more advanced programs. There are many advanced tools within the software; this section will only cover the basics to get users started.

To learn more about Microsoft Project's advanced features, check out the Microsoft Project Help Center.

Create a Project

Edit a Project

Manage a Project

Share a Project

Choose from the following tasks:
Create a Project from a Template
Add Tasks to a Project

Create a Project from a Template

Open Microsoft Project or select File then New if you are already working on a project plan.
Select a template or type in the Search for Online Templates box. Alternatively, you may select Blank Project to create a project from scratch.
When you select a template, select the options you want, and select Create. Be sure to change the resources, tasks, and duration in the template so they match your project.

Need additional support? Visit the Microsoft Support Page: Create a new project.

Add Tasks to a Project

Select View, Task Views, then Gantt Chart.
Type a task name in the first empty Task Name field.
Press Enter on your keyboard.
Repeat steps 2 and 3 as needed.

You may also add multiple tasks at one time if adding them individually takes too long.

Need additional support? Visit the Microsoft Support Page: Add new tasks.

Choose from the following tasks:
Outline Tasks in a Project
Link Tasks in a Project
Change your View

Outline Tasks in a Project

Indent and outdent tasks to show hierarchy. An indented task becomes a subtask of the task above it, which becomes a summary task.

Select View, then Gantt Chart in the Task Views ribbon.
Select the task or tasks in the Task Name column that you want to indent or outdent.
Select Task, Schedule, then either Indent Task or Outdent Task .

You may also use subtasks and summary tasks to show phases, easily navigate through large projects, and more.

Need additional support? Visit the Microsoft Support Page: Basic tasks in Project.

Link Tasks in a Project

You can link any two tasks in a project to show their relationship, which is called a task dependency. After you link the tasks, every change you make to one affects the other.

Select View, then Gantt Chart in the Task Views ribbon.
Hold down Ctrl on your keyboard and select the two tasks you want to link in the Task Name column.
Select Task then Link the Selected Tasks or press Ctrl+F2 on your keyboard.

Need additional support? Visit the Microsoft Support Page: How Project schedules tasks.

Change your View

Select the View tab.
Do one of the following:

Select the view that you want to use in the Task Views group or Resource Views group.
Select Gantt Chart then More Views to see all the available views, and then select from the options in the More Views dialog box.

Need additional support? Visit the Microsoft Support Page: Change your view.

Choose from the following tasks:
Add a Milestone
Assign People to Tasks
Set a Baseline
Create a Project Report

Add a Milestone

Select View, then Gantt Chart in the Task Views ribbon.
Type the milestone name in the first empty row or select a task you want to turn into a milestone.
Type 0 in the Duration field.
Press Enter on your keyboard. The milestone symbol is now part of your Gantt Chart.

Need additional support? Visit the Microsoft Support Page: Add a milestone.

Assign People to Tasks

Select View, then Gantt Chart in the Task Views ribbon.
Select the arrow in the Resource Names column for the task you want to assign.
Select the people from the list or type a new name.

Need additional support? Visit the Microsoft Support Page: Add people and assign them tasks.

Set a Baseline

Select Project, Schedule, Set Baseline, then Set Baseline.
Select the baseline you want to set from the Set baseline list.
Select Entire Project.
Select OK.

Need additional support? Visit the Microsoft Support Page: Set and save a baseline.

Create a Project Report