Gantt charts are an essential tool in project management. They offer a visual timeline to track tasks and milestones throughout the project life cycle. They give an overview of a project and ensure timely task completion. Gantt charts help you see the big picture, identify potential bottlenecks, and make necessary changes to meet deadlines.
Whether you're managing sprints or long-term projects, this comprehensive guide explores what Gantt charts are, their practical applications, and their numerous benefits. It also provides a step-by-step look at creating an effective Gantt chart format and shares best practices to ensure your project runs smoothly.
What is a Gantt chart?
A Gantt chart is a visual bar chart used to plan and track a project's progress. It acts as a timeline that shows the list of tasks involved, their start and end dates, milestones, dependencies between tasks, and assignees. Gantt Charts typically include two sections, the left side outlines a list of tasks, while the right side shows a project timeline with schedule bars that visualize work.
Gantt chart tools are examples of roadmap tools. To keep up with modern software development, roadmap tools such as Jira include features such as a collapsible task structure and resource management panels. This helps teams maintain a coherent project strategy despite the iterative nature of the software development process.
Jira includes two roadmap tools to create Gantt charts for your projects. Timelines create plans around Jira issues assigned to a team, while Plans do the same thing across teams and companies.
What are Gantt charts used for?
Project managers use Gantt charts for three main reasons.
Build and manage a comprehensive project
Gantt charts visualize the building blocks of a project and organize it into smaller, more manageable tasks. The resulting tasks are on the Gantt chart’s timeline, along with dependencies between tasks, assignees, and milestones.
Determine logistics and task dependencies
Use Gantt charts to monitor a project’s logistics. Task dependencies ensure that a new task can only start once another task has finished. Delayed tasks result in automatic rescheduling. This can be especially useful when planning in a multi-team environment.
Monitor progress of a project
As teams log time toward issues in your plan, you can monitor the health of your projects and adjust as necessary. Your Gantt chart can include release dates, milestones, or other important metrics to track your project’s progress.
The benefits of using Gantt charts
Gantt charts have two primary benefits. They make it easier to create complex plans, particularly those involving multiple teams and shifting deadlines. They also help teams schedule tasks around deadlines and allocate resources efficiently.
Project planners rely on Gantt charts for a high-level overview, showing key details like task start and end dates, milestones, and dependencies. Modern Gantt chart programs like Jira Timelines and Plans synthesize information and illustrate how choices impact deadlines.
How to create a Gantt chart
With the benefits of Gantt charts in mind, let's explore how to translate your project plans into a clear and actionable chart. We'll cover the essential steps, from defining your project scope to tracking progress, to ensure your Gantt chart becomes a valuable tool for successful project execution.
Define the project scope
The first step in creating a Gantt chart is to define the project scope. Start by identifying the project's main objectives. Clear objectives will guide the project and ensure that all tasks align with these goals throughout the project life cycle.
Once you have your objectives, outline the key deliverables. These are the tangible outcomes that you need to produce throughout the project.
List all tasks and subtasks
Next, list every task necessary to complete each deliverable. Break large tasks into smaller subtasks to clearly show what your team needs to do. Identify each task, the team member responsible, and the required resources.
Estimate task duration
Determine how long each task will take to complete. Be realistic, and consider any potential delays. Include buffer time in your schedule to accommodate unexpected delays and ensure the project remains on track.
Determine task dependencies
Identify the task sequence. Some tasks can only start once others finish. Use dependency types such as finish-to-start or start-to-start to define relationships between tasks.
Choose a Gantt chart tool
When choosing a Gantt chart tool, assess several factors to ensure the tool meets your project’s needs.
Jira is an excellent option for creating Gantt charts, particularly for software development teams. Tools such as Timelines and Plans help you create advanced roadmaps. These features support detailed task management, dependency tracking, and resource allocation. You can even use a Gantt chart template to streamline the process.
Input data
Once you have all your information, input the data into your chosen tool. Enter all tasks and their corresponding durations into the Gantt chart. Set up dependencies between tasks to ensure the sequence is clear. Include key milestones to highlight significant points in the project timeline.
Best practices for creating effective Gantt charts
Creating an effective Gantt chart involves more than just inputting data. Here are some best practices to follow.
- Keep it simple and clear. Avoid cluttering your Gantt chart with too much information. Use colors and labels sparingly, and include only the most essential tasks and dependencies.
- Use color coding. Color coding helps visualize different task types or stages better. It enhances the timeline view and makes tracking progress at a glance easier.
- Communicate clearly. Ensure all team members understand the Gantt chart by using clear task descriptions, milestone markers, and dependency types. This will help avoid confusion and prevent mistakes.
- Share with team members and stakeholders. Share your Gantt chart with all relevant stakeholders to ensure alignment across the team. Keep everyone updated on any changes or revisions to the Gantt chart.
- Update the chart regularly. A Gantt chart should be a living, regularly updated document throughout the project. Make corresponding changes to keep the timeline accurate with each completed or delayed task.
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Incorporate feedback. Seek feedback from your team regularly and incorporate it into your Gantt chart to improve accuracy and effectiveness.
How to use Gantt charts in Jira
Jira has two road mapping features, each with a slightly different focus. Jira’s Timelines tracks work assigned to a single team, while Plans specializes in larger, cross-company project planning.
Project-specific charts: Jira Timelines
The screenshot below, taken from Timelines, shows a project-specific Gantt chart commonly used at the team level or within a single group. The chart shows how the team is tracking toward its goals, and the collapsible work breakdown structure allows project managers to get a bird’s-eye view of the project’s crucial stories. Jira has a free project management template that includes Gantt charts.
High-level organization chart: Plans
Jira’s Plans offer quick and easy planning that helps teams better manage their dependencies and track real-time progress on the big picture. These project- or team-level roadmaps are useful for team-level planning of large pieces of work.
For planning, managing, and tracking work across multiple teams or even your entire company, Plans empowers teams at scale.
Programs designed with cross-team workflows offer more advanced tools, such as capacity management and automatic scheduling features, to help create more complex plans. They also offer a variety of view settings, which allow you to customize your Gantt chart to highlight a certain aspect of your plan when presenting.
Create effective Gantt charts with Jira
Creating a Gantt chart can transform how you manage projects, ensuring you complete tasks and achieve objectives. By following the previous steps and best practices, using tools such as Jira, you can create efficient, effective Gantt charts that will lead your projects to success.
Using Jira to create your Gantt charts can enhance your project management process. It integrates seamlessly with various Gantt chart tools, offering a comprehensive solution for tracking and managing your projects.
To manage your Gantt charts effectively, use Jira’s powerful features, such as real-time updates, customizable dashboards, and advanced reporting.
Ready to take your project management to the next level?
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