Benefits of having a Gnatt Chart in the project charter.

A Project Manager best friend

Zachary Standridge

February, 2019

Report to Professor Spangler, Middle Georgia State University

School of Information Technology,

 How can using Gantt charts in a project charter be an effective method in project management?

Project managers use Gnatt charts for planning and scheduling events in a project. They can help you

see easily how long a project should take, the order of which smaller projects are going to be done to

complete the larger project, as well as determining the resources needed. But there are other ways in

which they are helpful.

Gantt charts are the map, the visual representation, of the time line, what is needed, and where

resources are going to be needed for an entire project which makes scheduling and disseminating

information. (a, 2018) The who is going to complete the task, when are they going to complete it by,

and how does that specific task correspond to the project as a whole is all laid out in front of the

stakeholders for inspection.(a, 2018) If you look at a Gantt chart, tasks are identified as horizontal lines

going across sections of the timeline. They are color coded by an employee or the group which they are

assigned. When someone knows exactly what is needed to be done, the turn around time is shortened.

Giving task assignments through a Gantt chart in a program charter allows for information and

assignments to be publicly displayed, thus giving every one of the teams knowledge of what needs to

be done by their team as well as the others. This common knowledge allows for team members to keep

on top of the other teams when they are falling behind. (White, 2010)

When managing a project, resource planning is one of the more crucial aspects. A Gantt chart will

allow for the manager to distribute the work load more efficiently since they can see the present, and

future project schedules. The chart will have all the schedules mapped out and available for cross

referencing. This benefit allows the manager to staff projects more evenly and understand the capacity

of the teams which they are collaborating with while not over tasking special employees with higher

needed skill sets in one area. (White, 2010)

Since some projects may have a larger scope and scale for one specific regional leader, having a

Gnatt chart will allow for different groups to have the knowledge for staying on the same page of what
is needed in the time period. (White, 2010)Centralizing project information in a Gnatt chart in the

program charter allows for the stakeholders to come into alignment with what is happening at that

moment without being surprised by project changes.

Lastly, when working with a Gantt chart in the program charter, the project and team

requirements are listed and able to be marked out as utilized. A Gantt chart allows for the employees to

have a better understanding of what their responsibilities are and how this relates to the whole project

since their daily tasks can simply displayed on the calendar. This feature determines when project

milestones have been reached. Gantt charts serve as the “Bigger Picture” map. (White, 2010)They help

everyone attached to the project to visualize how the project is going to go from the start to the end.

This mapping helps managers and stakeholders measure how much is being put into the project from

each individual employee and project team as well as accurately see how the projects scope and time

line are changing.

A Gantt chart is not the one use tool of the project managers tool box. There is no such thing as

one tool which will do the entire job. A Gantt chart is however a multi-tool with many uses that can

make both the project management, the employees, and stakeholders life so much easier. The chart will

show you where every one is supposed to be at a specific time and what is needed for that evolution in

the project. It is also a living document which is able to change with the never ending reasons to

reschedule. That ability is beneficial to the stakeholders as well as administration. The chart is a much

needed document for a successful project and would be so much harder without it available.
References and Citations
White, L. (2010). Remember the People. Professional Case Management, 15(1), 3-4.
doi:10.1097/ncm.0b013e3181c8fa95
Using Gantt and PERT to Improve Efficiency. (2018, December 06). Retrieved from
https://onlinedegrees.nec.edu/blog/using-gantt-and-pert-to-improve-efficiency/