Project Schedules: How To Make Your Own

Even the most straightforward of projects can be difficult to deal with.

All the way from a short administrative project, to a more complicated one where you might be revamping a firm’s IT systems — taking care of your project’s schedule is a crucial component of ensuring a successful outcome.

You simply must have a plan and know what you’re doing every step of the way. Not doing so can prove nightmarish for the team, and can lead to a very confusing time for everyone.

Project schedules are one way to solve this problem.

In this article, we will discuss project schedules in further detail, guide you through the process of how you can make your own, and also consider a few top tips to keep in mind when doing so.

Let’s get started!

What is a Project Schedule?

To break it down into one sentence: a project schedule is a list of tasks that need to be completed in order for the project to be considered finished.

It is a tool that project managers use to plan, track, and execute the project from start to finish.

The schedule will list out all the tasks that need to be completed, who is responsible for each task, when the task needs to be completed by, and any other important details.

5 Benefits of Implementing a Project Schedule

There are several benefits that come with implementing a project schedule.

1. Everyone Understands Their Role

Firstly, it ensures that everyone is aware of their roles and what needs to be done. This can help to avoid any confusion or frustration within the team.

When responsibilities are vague, there is a high likelihood of work being duplicated by multiple members of the team.

Not only is this a waste of time for both employees, but it means the firm loses money as they are getting two sets of the same work done.

A project schedule can help to mitigate this by ensuring that everyone knows what needs to be done and when.

2. Keeps the Project on Track

By having a list of tasks that need to be completed and setting deadlines for each task, you will have a clear idea of what needs to be done and when.

This can help to avoid any delays in the project and ensures that it is completed on time.

3. Helps to Improve Communication Within the Team

When everyone is aware of the tasks that need to be completed and the deadlines for each task, they can easily communicate with each other to ensure that the work is completed on time.

4. Improves Work Quality

By having a clear plan of what needs to be done, you can avoid any mistakes that might be made if the work was not planned out properly.

This can save both time and money in the long run, as the quality of the work remains high.

5. Increases Customer Satisfaction

By ensuring that the project is completed on time and to a high standard, you will be able to increase customer satisfaction as they will be happy with the end result.

How to Create a Project Schedule?

If you want to create your own project schedule, there are a few key steps you need to take. We’ve listed them out below for your convenience:

1. Define The Scope Of The Project

What exactly needs to be done? This is probably the most important question you need to answer before anything else. You need to have a very clear understanding of what the project entails.

The best way to do this is to gather all the necessary information about the project however possible. Ask project managers, project sponsors and all the top dogs to get an accurate picture of what tasks project will include.

Once you know what tasks need to be done, you can start breaking them down into smaller, more manageable pieces.

2. Create A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

The WBS is essentially a list of all the tasks that need to be completed in order for the project to be considered finished.

It’s important to note that the WBS should not include any non-essential tasks — only those that are absolutely necessary for completion.

3. Determine Who Will Be Responsible For Each Task

Once you have a list of all the tasks that need to be completed, it’s time to start assigning them to team members.

It’s important to consider each team member’s skills and experience when making these assignments.

4. Determine When Each Task Needs To Be Completed By

This step is crucial in ensuring that the project stays on track. For each task, you need to determine a due date. This will help keep everyone accountable and ensure that the project stays on schedule.

5. Input the Information Into A Project Scheduling Tool

Once you have all the information regarding the tasks to be done, who is responsible and the relevant deadlines — you can put all this information into a project scheduling tool.

The timesheet feature offered by day.io allows companies to calculate the cost of their project, as well as ensuring that building schedules and calculating costs become an easy task to accomplish.

This is a hugely beneficial for project managers who are trying to keep track of the project’s progress, while also making sure the information relayed to the team remains digestible.

Consider using software such as this to mitigate any potential hiccups when maintaining a project schedule.

6. Stay On Track

The final step is to simply make sure that the project stays on track. This means regularly checking in with team members, making sure that tasks are being completed on time, and adjusting the schedule as needed.

5 Ways to Manage a Project Schedule

There are various ways that you can go about managing a project schedule. Here are 5 popular methods in order to do so effectively:

Gantt Charts

These charts are one of the most commonly used tools for managing project schedules.

They provide a clear visual representation of the tasks that need to be completed, who is responsible for each task, and when the task needs to be completed by.

PERT Charts

Program Evaluation Review Technique (PERT) charts are similar to Gantt charts in that they provide a visual aid for your employees.

However, PERT charts also take into account the dependencies between tasks (i.e. which tasks need to be completed before other tasks can begin).

Critical Path Method (CPM)

The Critical Path Method is a technique used to determine the order in which tasks need to be completed in order for the project to finish on time.

It takes into account the dependencies between tasks and calculates the longest path of dependent activities.

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

As mentioned previously, a Work Breakdown Structure is a tool that breaks down the project into smaller, more manageable tasks.

It is a hierarchical representation of the tasks that need to be completed, and can be used in conjunction with other tools such as Gantt charts and PERT charts.

Task List

A task list is a simple list of all the tasks that need to be completed for the project. It does not provide any information on who is responsible for each task.

However, it can be used in conjunction with other tools such as Gantt charts and PERT charts to provide this information.

Tips for Creating an Effective Project Schedule

Now that we’ve gone over how you can make your own project schedule, let’s take a look at a few quick tips you should keep in mind to ensure it is effective:

Keep it Simple

One of the most important things to remember when creating a project schedule is to keep it simple. That is, don’t try to include too much information or make it too complicated.

Be Realistic

Another important tip is to be realistic when creating the schedule.

That is, don’t underestimate the time required for each task or assign too many tasks to one person. Doing so will only lead to problems later on.

Update Regularly

Finally, remember to update the schedule regularly. As the project progresses, tasks will be completed and new ones might be added.

Keeping the schedule up-to-date will help ensure that everyone is on the same page and knows what needs to be done.

people working in a common table in an office

The Bottom Line

Project schedules are an important tool for project managers and can help ensure a successful outcome. In this article, we discussed what a project schedule is, how you can make your own, and some tips to keep in mind when doing so.