Gantt Chart Basics

When identifying project management tools, one would be remiss to leave out the Gantt chart. These useful charts help project managers everywhere to create clear images of the projects they have in mind. Using a Gantt chart can help a manager convey concept and track the progress of a project. Flow is clearly documented from start to finish, and this provides managers with a handy tool for creating schedules and implementing plans.

A Gantt chart is created from a basic template that displays tasks in a vertical orientation. The tasks are usually listed on the left-hand-side of the chart. Every task will have its own bar running horizontally. The charts are usually oriented in such a way that they can be read left-to-right, as is standard. Each horizontal bar represents the time allowed or taken to accomplish each specific task. Bar length varies according to the amount of time allocated or taken to accomplish the task. Where the bar is placed would depend upon the scheduled starting date of the task, was well as its projected ending date.

Many other details can be shown using a Gantt chart. It all depends upon the complexity of the tasks and the type of data recorded. If a project is very long, the tasks may be divided into smaller objectives with “milestone indicators” included to show the completion date of each objective leading up the final goal at project’s end. On this sort of complex chart, it is often handy to use color coding and arrows to help sort out all the variables in the data.

This technique for charting the progress of a project was invented by an American manager and engineer who also worked as a consultant. His name was Henry Gantt, and he developed his very popular charting technique in the early part of the 20th Century (circa 1910). His main purpose in creating it was to keep track of construction projects and ship building projects. The technique became very popular and quickly spread to all sorts of project management, including business, construction, civil engineering, and more.

While Henry Gantt usually gets the credit for this type of chart, it has been rumored that a very similar method of charting project progress was developed and used by another engineer toward the end of the 19th Century (circa 1890). Polish born Karol Adamiecki was an engineer in a steelworks where he apparently implemented a similar chart for project management.

Today, computer software such as Microsoft Project and Microsoft Visio make it easy for project managers to create and utilize the Gantt chart technique to plan and follow project progress. These programs, as well as many others, include ready-made templates that make this popular simple charting technique readily available for use on every project, regardless of size.

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