Showing a Gantt Chart History

How to create versioned Gantt charts of an MS Project plan

OnePager Pro, an add-in to Microsoft Project, provides an excellent tool to use to create and maintain a Gantt chart history. The purpose of this article is to show you how to create and maintain a Gantt chart history of your project and how to use them as part of your analysis or in project presentations to project sponsors, team members, and customers.

To start, you need to create a Microsoft Project file representing your project that will be used throughout the project’s lifecycle to maintain an up-to-date status. If you don’t already have OnePager Pro, you can download a 15-day free trial to see how it works.

Just follow these steps and we will show you how to create the initial project view in OnePager Pro and how to create periodic snapshots over the course of your project:

1. After you’ve created your Microsoft Project file, make sure that you’ve inserted a flag field which will control what OnePager Pro brings in to make your project view and periodic snapshots. The figure below shows the Microsoft Project file with “Flag20” used for this purpose:
   
   
   
   The “Flag20” rows with a “Yes” tell OnePager Pro to import the Microsoft Project data and to represent that data in the Gantt chart.
   
   
2. Now just click on the OnePager Pro button on the Microsoft Project toolbar or add-ins tab, and OnePager Pro will do the rest. Give your Gantt chart a name, and specify a status/snapshot date as shown below:
   
   
   
   
3. Now, click the Create new project view button, and OnePager will create the project view shown below:
   
   
   
   Note the dashed red line on the Gantt chart that corresponds to the snapshot date. This is an easy way to illustrate the current status date of your project plan.
   
   
4. Down the line, after you’ve updated your Microsoft Project file with the latest status of your project, you are ready to create the next snapshot of the project with OnePager. To do this, simply click the OnePager Pro button on the Microsoft Project toolbar again and update your previous project view with a new snapshot:
   
   
   
   The snapshot below was taken about two months into the project:
   
   
   
   Note how the project has changed over time. The red time cursor has moved, the percent complete (yellow bars) have been updated, and several start and finish dates have been repositioned as well. These changes have been refreshed on the Gantt chart based on modifications made to the underlying Microsoft Project plan.
   
   Assuming that you’ve been making snapshots with OnePager Pro throughout the project periodically, OnePager Pro will store the snapshots in its database so you will have a complete Gantt chart history of your project from start to finish.
   
   
5. Now, let’s say that you want to build a presentation. On the OnePager toolbar are two buttons that allow you to go back to a previous snapshot or forward to a more current snapshot. These buttons are shown on the OnePager toolbar below:
   
   
   
   
6. When you’ve accessed the snapshots you want to use, it is a simple matter to copy and paste the snapshots into a Microsoft PowerPoint or Word document or even to send the snapshots in an email. For subsequent presentations requiring multiple snapshots, it is a simple matter to repeat the steps above to produce your subsequent schedule conversation presentation materials.

This article was directed at showing you how to create, maintain, and access historical Gantt charts during the term of your project. OnePager Pro’s unique database allows you to keep consistently-formatted and useful information for project sponsors, team members and customers. You can easily customize the look and feel of your presentation.

OnePager Pro is extremely useful in conducting schedule conversations during a project’s lifecycle. Also, OnePager Pro's ability to take snapshots during the course of a project enables project managers to monitor actual schedule against baseline and prepare clear and accurate schedule visualizations for project status presentations. Finally, OnePager Pro allows you to create dynamic, informative project presentations with the click of a button, and it eliminates the need to rebuild your presentation by hand every time your project schedule changes.

Get started today by downloading a free trial or attending one of our demonstration webinars.