Posted: November 19th, 2022

Management (ITEC 640)

The use of Gantt Charts in Project Management
This paper did not addressed the research question – Are projects that incorporate Gantt charts more successful than those that don’t?” – This question is what the research should answer.

This paper was prepared for Information Technology Project Management (ITEC 640)
Submitted to Dr. Watkins, Charles

Abstract
This paper is a study on how projects that use Gantt charts are more successful than those that do not use them. Most researches show the various reasons why many companies and organizations prefer to use Gantt charts in managing their projects. The activities entailed in any project take several months before or some period before completion and have various tasks. Tasks in a project are basically dependent upon others and, therefore, a successor activity may delay or come on time depending on the predecessor activity. Some tasks cannot start unless others are finished. The above information about the nature of projects can be documented by writing it down but it may be difficult to interpret. Therefore, the technique of using Gantt charts deals with the challenges of word document interpretation by simply having a graphical overview of the process of management.
Sometimes the management team can make Gantt charts quite complex and sophisticated. This complexity must be avoided in small organizations and projects. Essentially, Gantt charts are meant to make processes clear and simple for stakeholders to easily grasp. People are likely to feel overwhelmed with complex produces due to information overload. Various researchers have discussed several reasons and how the use of Gantt charts help companies do better in project management. Here are various studies pinpointing a number of research aspects and how different authors view Gantt charts and their usefulness.

Literature Review
According to Horne (2014) companies that use Gantt charts find the tool to be easy to use, simple to navigate through, and have robust features with intuitive user interface (UI) that enhances the project management process. Horne recorded that contemporary companies use Gantt charts as the modern tools to plan, manage and implement the most significant aspects of a project such as resourcing, cost/budgeting, scheduling, among others. Gantt charts provide a straightforward and quick overview of the progress of a project, the approximate the duration, and also make any adjustment of either the current or future constraints as well as the alternative project paths.
Horne went on elaborating that the project managers who use Gantt charts often have easy time to manage his or her teams, hourly rates, work reallocations, and scheduled days for working. Color-coding of days in Gantt charts notifies the leader on holidays, overloaded individuals, and a person’s availability so that he or she is available to get project activities done. Gantt charts also offer an easy to view calendar which helps to view tasks and activities as well as team deadlines and the tasks allocated to each person. On the contrary, in Anantatmula (2015), companies that have not adopted the Gantt chart technology are likely to experience delayed projects, insufficient or excess resource allocations, time wastage, and poor team performance.
Sharp, Enzi, Fountoulakis, Lam & Rabbior (2015) discussed the advantages of cloud-based Gantt charts such as Google charts. In their research, it was clear that companies that use cloud Gantt charts can easily synchronize their tasks with Google calendars. The online scheduling helps in the creation of projects, calendars, task deadlines, view milestones, resources, and easily share or print the results. Moreover, online Gantt charts have real-time dashboards that help project managers to monitor the work progress. The project status shown includes task progress, project budget, resource availability, schedule status, complete project visibility, and team performance (Anantatmula, 2015). Gantt charts also allow the redistribution of the project workload and monitor the health of the entire project in a single view.
Durfee also highlighted that tasks in organizations can be very hectic for the leaders who are responsible for them within an organization. The scopes of projects frequently overwhelm and managers need to employ the use of Gantt charts to keep all activities straight, on track, and within the time constraints. Wren & Wren (2015) also stated that the Gantt chart is an easy to understand graphical framework that visually represents a large project, subdivided into activities, each of which is spread depending on start and end dates. The chart shows individual activities, the start and stop dates, any overlapping activities, and the dates the project can be completed, just at a glance (Durfee, 2012). Gantt charts are used in software prototype development, large event planning, multi-departmental report writing, engineering construction, among other applications sectors.
Horne (2014) also stated that Gantt chart software is very crucial for complex projects and big enterprises as they involve huge budgets, variant resources, and adequate time. Nevertheless, project scheduling is also useful in small enterprises. Regardless of where they are applied, they are significant in supporting smooth and efficient running of business operations and projects. In a general view, this technology has an important impact on project cost tracking, duration and the overall project performance in the companies that use it. According to Horne, scheduling Helps managers to communicate, share project’s knowledge, and augment its processes. Also, since an extensive data or information amount may pose challenging issues to the project manager, the tool helps in successful completion of any project within an organization.
Project management is crucial in any project regardless of the magnitude. According to Kerzner (2013), companies that use Gantt charts perform better in project planning regarding tasks, labor, and resources. The tool enables project managers to make critical decisions on the ongoing projects. Moreover, the program/tool eases the scheduling of the set project activities. On the same note, an input by Vance et al. (2014) suggest that a Microsoft Project software such as the Gantt charts help to run day-to-day activities/events, and, therefore, it would be hectic to manage any project without such tools.
Kerzner (2013) stated that any project needs a scheduling program/tool for easier interpretation and timely completion. Companies that use Gantt charts to properly schedule their various activities can easily identify a number of bottlenecks that require adjustments or earlier elimination of highlighted failure. According to Kerzner, having a well-designed Gantt chart ensures that the project teams concurrently complete parallel phases of a project. Companies can reduce their operation costs for project by effective use of scheduling tools like Gantt chart. Moreover, Gantt charts allow for efficient use of resources by, for example, optimizing rental days for hired resources. Gantt charts also help in improving accountability of operations managers of the participating companies because the clear records of the initially planned activities are undisputable.
At a glance, Gantt charts allow the management team to graphically see various project tasks, its duration, start and end dates, activity overlaps, threshold, and the entire project’s start- and end-date (Durfee, 2012). From the Gantt chart, the manager knows the activities that must be done and their schedules (when they have to be done), after which he or she appropriately assign teams. Durfee also recorded that Gantt chart is one of the popular and significant ways of illustrating activities (events and tasks) against time, commonly used by project managers. In a Gantt chart, the vertical axis, on the left, shows activities which are plotted against a suitable time scale (horizontal axis). According to Seymour & Hussein (2014), activities are represented by horizontal bars. The position and position of the bars indicate the duration in time, date and the completion date for the project.
Gido, Clements & Clements (2014) identified that a Gantt chart is a necessary tool in project planning that guides a set of activities that should end after a particular achievement. They maintain that a project has distinct start and finish date, resource constraints (people, money, time, and equipment), and non-routine activities. Every task accomplished must achieve a particular goal concerning the main aim of the project. The authors recognized that projects that do not employ Gantt charts can be cumbersome to manage and that are likely to delay or cause wastage of resources.
Durfee (2012) highlighted that projects that use Gantt charts can easily breakdown tasks into easier to manage subtasks. In project management using scheduling, each task has starting and ending dates, and a duration which is relatively shorter than the term of the project itself. Durfee (2012) recognized that it is often challenging to set duration for projects accurately, therefore, by doubling the best guess, Gantt charts often work well.
According to Kerzner (2013), project milestones often help to check interim goal accomplishment and work as the best checkpoints for a project. Milestones are useful for detecting scheduling problems early enough before it goes overboard and become uncontrollable. The appropriate verb phrases for describing the project milestones are, for instance, parts ordered, report due, and prototype complete among others. Kerzner noted that plans or schedules are likely to evolve. Therefore, the managers must be ready to be flexible and make frequent updates. Gantt charts in project planning helps to identify areas that are risky in the project, and therefore managers learn and devise appropriate ways to deal with them. Moreover, as Gido, Clements & Clements (2014) suggest, identifying such risks may Help in estimating the duration it may take and assign the necessary resources for a project’s accomplishment. On the same note, Durfee (2012) noted that Gantt charts are the simplest tools in project planning that enable an understanding of complex events.
In the view of Heagney (2016), complex projects are easier to manage using Gantt charts and most of the project managers tend to use it more than other available options. As a project planning tool, Gantt charts clearly represents timing each task requires to complete a project. Projects success is basically based upon the way the manager organizes tasks using Gantt chart graphical representation of activities (Heagney, 2016). In Gantt charts, tasks are outlined in the columns, dates take up the top row, indicating increments of months, weeks, or days depending on the prescribed length of the project. Horizontal bars represent the expected timings with the furthest left marking the beginning of activity while the furthest right represents the expected date of completion. Project tasks can overlap or run either in parallel or sequentially.
Durfee (2012) suggested that Gantt charts Help managers to identify any upcoming need as the project progresses. Stakeholders can easily identify the ongoing, accomplished and yet-to-begin tasks by simply viewing the chart. Therefore, Gantt charts narrow the chances for a project failure since all details are and any requirement is completely organized. According to Wren & Wren (2015), by drawing a vertical line through the current date with the Gantt chart, the already accomplished tasks are situated on the left of the drawn line, and they can be shaded. The tasks that are filled in sections to the left of the line are behind schedule whereas the filled-in sections that end to the right are ahead of schedule. Future tasks are entirely on the right side of the line.
Gantt charts are appropriate for use in task scheduling and monitoring, as well as communicating plans and project status as stated by Lanz, Kolb & Reichert (2013). They are also necessary at the moment when the sequence of a project’s processes is known. Finally, managers can use Gantt charts when it may not be necessary to highlight the tasks that rely on a completion of former tasks (Kerzner, 2013). Thousands of companies use Gantt charts as one of their productive tools that enhance communication, track results and offer an appropriate forecast on projects. Regardless of various critics that point out certain limitations of Gantt charts, there are several advantages (Lanz et al., 2013). The first advantage is that they avoid project completion confusion. It offers a timeline for particular tasks and therefore keeps users on schedule as well as the lane. The deliverables of a particular project can be traced on a time-scale and tracked on a yearly, monthly, weekly, or daily basis. Contrarily, projects that do not use Gantt charts are likely to suffer from communication failure/breakdown, confusion on completion date, and task sequential challenges.
In Horne (2014), the Gantt charts of projects keep every team member on the same page by offering a clear visual framework of tasks that must be accomplished. The tool reduces misunderstanding, more specifically when there are highly complex tasks. From the chart, the stakeholders utilize the same information, understand the set expectations, and work according to the preferred protocols. Additionally, the Gantt charts allow the teams and stakeholders to understand relationship existing between tasks (Gido, Clements & Clements, 2014). Some activities rely on the completion of others to meet the project objectives. Therefore, the timing of each task must be kept so as to ensure an excellent flow of work, productivity and the overall realization of the project goals (Lanz, Kolb & Reichert, 2013). The tool also allows enough resource allocations since users can forecast and anticipate resources need to be shared or allocated. The more discipline the team is in following the chart, the higher the chances of working within the time, cost, and budget. Finally, the Gantt chart has an advantage of ensuring that a given project helps an organization in achieving its long-term strategy.
Projects that use Gantt charts also become successful than those that do not in the following ways. First, the projects are completed on time and, therefore, millions of dollars are saved due to timely completion. Charts provide to managers projects’ visual timelines, milestones and major dates and they can keep an eye on the ways things are going on and ensure that projects are completed in time. Second, projects become successful because since with Gantt charts, managers can understand task dependencies and organize effective collaboration of teams who work to achieve the project’s common goal. Inability of a team to complete a task that the next task would rely on can lead to drastic loss in the overall progress. Gantt charts help in understanding the task interrelationship and allow managers to efficiently set interdependencies. Third, with Gantt charts, project manager get to clear know their sense of accountability. All operations managers who use the charts get to know various task requirements by simple visualization and, therefore, a delay in a single activity would give them a better logic of accountability. Moreover, project teams and individuals may not want to be responsible for a failure hence all the energy would be focused on eliminating hiccups and completing tasks on time. Fourth, projects that use Gantt charts succeed due to the better allocation of resources that they benefit from. The tasks that are predicted that would spend more time than usual or those that may end prior to the normal dates can be rescheduled. Gantt charts, therefore, would help project managers to effectively balance project’s resources such as funds, man-power, and others. Finally, Gantt charts aide to the success of projects due to the ability to use them in the long term planning and implementation of projects. It is easier to identify the direction of a project and make necessary adjustments if there is any need. Gantt charts can help to plan the future of a business in the longer run.
Conclusion
The use of Gantt charts in project management contributes in a big way to the overall success of projects. The program makes it easier to schedule the project activities, share the resources and plan the available time. As a result, very little time and resources are wasted. From the findings made from the study, it can be stated that projects that use Gantt charts are more successful as compared to those that don’t use the program.
The importance of Gantt charts in project management cannot be underestimated for both complex and simple projects. Field supervisors may find scheduling hectic; however, the project managers use it to create critical decisions in project management. Most companies make huge profits and remain relevant in the market due to the benefits they get from project management using Gantt charts (Gido et al., 2014). Gantt chart allows redistribution of workload and monitors the entire health of a project in a single view.
For complex or big enterprises, the Gantt chart software is very crucial where there are huge budgets, variant resources, and time effectiveness is required. Nevertheless, they are also beneficial in small enterprises. Regardless of where they are applied, they are significant in to support a smooth and efficient running of business operations and projects (Lanz et al, 2013). In a general view, the Gantt chart technology has an outstanding impact on project cost tracking, duration, and the overall project performance. The charts Help managers to communicate and share project knowledge and augment processes. Also, since an extensive data or information amount may pose challenging issues to the project manager, the tool helps in successful completion of any project.
Lastly, technological advancement in the contemporary world is currently changing the use of computer-aided Gantt charts towards a cloud-based system which incorporates Google calendars (Lanz et al, 2013). Online scheduling charts enhance sharing and printing of the project planning output. The market trend is tending towards using software-as-a-service and enabling mobile functionality. Firms currently rely on the cloud for remote connectivity and mobile integration for flexibility. For effective leadership, managers use Gantt charts to control schedules as well as budgets. Modern project planning technology can render tools that automate the management routine processes.

References
Anantatmula, V. S. (2015). The role of technology in the project manager performance model. Project Management Journal, 39(1), 34-48.
Durfee, W. (2012). Project Planning and Gantt Charts. Department of Mechanical Engineering. College of Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota. Retrieved May, 12, 2011.
Gido, J., Clements, J., & Clements, J. (2014). Successful project management. Nelson Education.
Heagney, J. (2016). Fundamentals of Project Managementw. AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn.
Horne, S. B. (2014). Identifying key success factors for the implementation of enterprise content management systems (Doctoral dissertation, UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS).
Kerzner, H. (2013). Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. John Wiley & Sons.
Lanz, A., Kolb, J., & Reichert, M. (2013, June). Enabling personalized process schedules with time-aware process views. In International Conference on Advanced Information Systems Engineering (pp. 205-216). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg.
Seymour, T., & Hussein, S. (2014). The history of project management. International Journal of Management & Information Systems (Online), 18(4), 233.
Vance, C. M., Vaiman, V., Cosic, A., Abedi, M., & Sena, R. (2014). Smart global talent management: A promising hybrid. In Global Talent Management (pp. 29-41). Springer International Publishing.
Wren, D. A., & Wren, D. A. (2015). Implementing the Gantt chart in Europe and Britain: the contributions of Wallace Clark. Journal of Management History, 21(3), 309-327.

Order | Check Discount

Tags: Management (ITEC 640)