Frequently, managing the company’s different projects involves too many data to analyze, to ponder and to take care of, in order to transit successfully through the decision-making process; that is why no detail should escape our sight, but this could be difficult when the project list is huge and the projects are complicated or with many people or resources involved.
There are several programs on the market to help you with these responsibilities, from Microsoft Project to several readers, but Ganttsoft Project manager is completely free, enabling you to do this professionally without spending a single dime on a larger solution.
The interface is simple and its operations the same as that of the more expensive products. You are prompted to input some basic data regarding your projects, such as their name, and starting and completion dates.
Setting the options is also very simple and intuitive, because you can customize the program to adapt it to your own requirements such as the working time for each day, adding a nonworking day, the working days of the week and the currency used. Then you can start adding the tasks for this project by clicking the first cell of the tasks column, and then typing their name directly. By double-clicking on the new name or pressing the right mouse button you can access the properties of each element, change the common parameters, add notes, convert the tasks to milestones and see the progress percentage if there’s already an advance in the new task. In the next tab of the window, you can assign the resources needed for this task. To do this, you have to set up the Resources in the menu bar, switching from the tasks list to the resources list. You can name your resources and classify them in Human or Material, and specify the cost for each one per usage or per hour or add some notes if you want. On the right panel in a timeline scheme you’ll be able to see the Gantt diagram changing as you modify the details for each task.
Then you can fine-tune it by changing dates, assigning more resources to each task and establishing milestones to get to the finish line in time. The software lets you modify any task by dragging the end of the bar in the diagram to the desired date, create subtasks by indenting the new task into the main one, establish dependant tasks by clicking the end of the bar and dragging it to the beginning of the bar of the dependant task. You can also estimate the hours each task will need to be completed, and modify every detail you need.
If you need to share the programmed tasks with your staff or communicate your planning for this project, you can print it or export it to a PDF, Word or Exel document.
Tracking your progress is as easy as it was to create the project in the program. This is a very useful tool to learn more about your organization in terms of reaction speed and capacity, and helps you in making decisions such as when it's time to increase your installed capacity or hire more staff.
By using this program, you will keep sharpening your estimations for the company's assets with each new project.
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