The Gantt chart is a staple of project management today.  It allows for the easy-to-communicate view of major workstreams and the interconnections of key milestones across workstreams.  When paired with a weekly project status update, the Gantt chart is a key tool to keeping projects on track.

Beware, however, with Gantt charts that you keep the functional requirements in mind– I’ve seen too many projects where project managers deliver on time with something that doesn’t meet the needed objectives.  A dead-on-arrival deliverable isn’t helpful to anyone.

How it works:

The Gantt chart is used to show timelines against major workstreams and deliverables.

• Workstreams: Workstreams are the major, bolded segments in the left column.  Each workstream will have associated deliverables and milestones
• Deliverables: These are the concrete tasks and building blocks that need to be delivered.
• Timelines: These are the times you expect the tasks to be in progress, with a marker for key milestones.  A solid line generally means a major focus, with dotted lines sometimes indicating followon work or potential for some secondary deliverables.
• Lead/ Resources: Highlights who is accountable for delivering the work.  This is most helpful when tied to a functional budget, which lays out resources involved, key people/ assets engaged, and budget allocated

The Gantt chart gets its name from Henry Gantt, who popularized its use in the 1910-1915 period, where it was seen as a major breakthrough.

Today, the Gantt chart competes with other means of tracking projects, including software like Microsoft Project, online tools like Basecamp, and alternate forms of project management including Agile development.

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Do you spend a lot of time creating powerpoint and organizing information for your company or clients?

Powerpoint can be a great tool to do so…and outsourcing production of powerpoint makes it even better!

So here’s 5 reasons why you might want to outsource Powerpoint production:

1. Save time on low-value tasks: Do you want to focus on telling the story and getting the facts you need or keying them into your computer and making the formatting and other elements right?  Outsourcing Powerpoint allows me to maximize my time by generating insights and getting organizations aligned…I get back all those hours where I’m moving lines around, keying in my notes, getting formats right, and resizing text to fit in boxes.  This allows me to get more done in the time saved, or get out of the office.
2. Expand the work-day: If you’re in the Western hemisphere, outsourcing overnight powerpoint production allows you to drop-off work at the end of the day and pick it up the next morning.  Hours of graphics support, powerpoint creation, edits to charts, re-creating slides on new templates…all can be done while you sleep to give you a great head-start on the next day’s tasks
3. Improve your presentation quality: A good graphic designer familiar with consulting formats can allow you to express your ideas in a format that enhances the way your ideas come across
4. Save money: People’s time is expensive– whether its yours, the people working with you, or the people who bill you on an hourly rate (e.g., consultants).  Why not use a service that will be more productive and charge a lower rate?
5. Capture better notes: Have a number of notes that get lost in your notebook or folder?  Have a great brainstorming session that will get erased off of a flip-chart or whiteboard?  Why not take a picture/ copy the elements and then send them over to get those notes/ pictures into your records?

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