What is a Gantt Chart, and how do you create one?

The Gantt Chart is the most widely disseminated and widespread project management tool. It is hard to imagine a large, complex project without one. Project managers and teams are keen on using the Gantt Chart because it clearly shows the entire project’s progress. Undoubtedly, this chart is an excellent project planning and control tool.

What will you learn from this article?

What a Gantt chart is and how it helps in managing large projects
What task dependencies can be displayed on a Gantt chart
How to create a Gantt chart starting from the WBS structure
The benefits of using software to create Gantt charts, e.g., FlexiProject
How a Gantt chart helps optimize resources and track project progress

What is a Gantt chart?

A Gantt chart is a graphical representation of the tasks and milestones to be achieved in a project. On a Gantt chart, in addition to showing how all project tasks and milestones are distributed over time, it is precious to build logical relation between them. Henry Gantt developed the Gantt chart as a project management tool in the early twentieth century. It is estimated that the Gantt chart’s first use occurred during the First World War.

Today, the vast majority of project teams use the Gantt chart to plan and track the progress of projects. Of course, we are talking more about larger or very large projects. Small and not very complex projects are now often implemented using agile methods and convenient Kanban charts. In a Gantt chart, project tasks can be linked by four types of interrelations. The most common relation is the end-start relation. In practice, using such a realization means that the next task can be started only when the preceding task is completed. Quite often, the chart shows the critical path of the project. The critical path shows successive, interrelated functions that show the fastest route of the project. Extension of any of these tasks results in the extension of the entire project. It is easier to imagine a large infrastructure project being implemented with a Gantt chart.

Application of the Gantt chart

The Gantt chart has several practical applications in project management. As mentioned, it is a tool used when implementing rather large and complex projects. In such projects, logical relations between tasks and milestones are essential. In-depth consideration and design of logical relations between project tasks is labor-intensive and valuable. Assuming that we have a good project management software program at our disposal, once built, relations are maintained by such a system all the time. The advantage is that if one of the tasks on this chart is extended, the subsequent related tasks’ deadlines will be updated automatically. Such automatic maintenance of relations between tasks is an excellent convenience for the project team in terms of work organization. A good program will send an e-mail notification to the task owner that he can start his task because the previous task has been completed. When you have staggered project tasks, planning the resources required to complete the project effectively is relatively easy. Again, in a good project management program, you can see the Gantt chart and the planned load of project resources on one screen. Manufacturing, trading, and pharmaceutical companies use the Gantt chart when implementing investment, innovation, and R&D or optimization projects.

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How to create a Gantt chart?

The Gantt chart is a partial tool to support project planning and execution. It closely relates to the project’s Work Breakdown Structure (WBS).

The Gantt chart construction most often starts with the project’s WBS development. The WBS structure shows the project’s main phases, stages, tasks, and milestones.
After designing the WBS structure, we estimate the durations of the various tasks in the project and the critical deadlines for their completion.
Another vital project planning task is to develop logical relations between the elements of the WBS structure.

Logical relations between tasks will result in a Gantt chart showing interrelated phases, stages, project tasks, and appropriately timed milestones. You will also see the critical path of the project. A graph of the workload of project resources over time can be superimposed on the chart developed in this way. In many projects at this stage, we will see that there is too much or too little workload on project resources in specific units of time. Using the logical relations between tasks in the project, it is possible to distribute the realization of tasks in the project in such a way as to maximize the level of resource utilization. It is also worth mentioning that the Gantt chart is also used in strategic project management, where management can simultaneously observe the implementation of multiple projects on this chart.

Tools for creating Gantt charts

The practical use of the Gantt chart significantly increased with the advent of good software programs for managing projects and project portfolios. This has facilitated substantially building relations between project tasks and updating them. One project management IT program that has an advanced Gantt chart is FlexiProject. In FlexiProject, you can make all kinds of relations between tasks in a project very quickly and intuitively. Once built, the relations will always maintain the logic of the entire project schedule. In FlexiProject, the project team can simultaneously analyze the Gantt chart and the project’s resource load level.

The Gantt chart displays both the project plan and the current project status, including any deviations from the schedule. In FlexiProject, users can view the critical path, task dates and durations, as well as task owners directly on the Gantt chart. Additionally, tasks on the Gantt chart can be color-coded based on priority, organizational responsibility, and other criteria.

What’s particularly useful during project execution is the ability to easily shift entire phases or stages in time while preserving the full structure and logic of the schedule. In FlexiProject, the project schedule and plan can be viewed both on the task board and on the Gantt chart.

Example of a Gantt chart

The following illustration from project and portfolio management software FlexiProject shows an example of a Gantt. This example is for the project “Implementation of Customer Service System”.

On the left side of the chart, we see the complete WBS structure of the project. On the right side of the screen, the Gantt chart is presented. In the chart, under each task in the project, a thin black line illustrates the current project plan. The thicker bar shows the current status of the project. In this way, the project team can see where the schedule deviations from the plan are and the status of each task at any time. The chart clearly shows all relationships between schedule elements. The ability to simultaneously observe the Gantt chart and the resource load chart is beneficial for optimizing the use of project resources. The Gantt chart can also display the critical path. Users can easily filter the Gantt chart according to their criteria. You can easily see all the outstanding project tasks assigned to a specific user or department.

Unlock the power of Gantt chart-experiment in your own projects

A Gantt Chart is an efficient tool commonly used in project management. It is worthwhile to spend time developing one for each complex project, building a complete logic of relationships between tasks in the project. A chart for the main phases and stages of the project is also worth developing for projects implemented in agile methods. A Gantt chart supported by a suitable software program is a very flexible tool and gives a lot of advantages in project planning and execution.