Microsoft Project Review
Our company has a business that invests in land and then builds and sells houses on these plots. We use Microsoft Project for resource …
Starting at $10 per user/per month
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What is Microsoft Project?
Microsoft Project is a project management software. It provides core PM functionality, including agile workflow support and resource management. Project can be deployed in the cloud or on-premise.
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Popular Features
- Gantt Charts (103)10.0100%
- Scheduling (105)9.999%
- Task Management (106)9.090%
- Resource Management (103)6.969%
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Project Plan 1
$10
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per user/per month
Project Plan 3
$30
On Premise
per user/per month
Project Plan 5
$55
On Premise
per user/per month
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- No setup fee
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- Premium Consulting/Integration Services
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What is Microsoft Project?
Microsoft Project is a project management software. It provides core project management and planning functionality, including agile workflow tools like Gantt charts. The software provides prebuilt workflow and report templates for rapid deployment. Project also enables resource management and planning and integrates with BI tools and other 3rd party programs. It can be deployed in the cloud or on-premise.
Microsoft Project Integrations
Microsoft Project Competitors
Microsoft Project Technical Details
| Deployment Types | On-premise |
|---|---|
| Operating Systems | Windows |
| Mobile Application | No |
Frequently Asked Questions
Microsoft Project is a project management software. It provides core PM functionality, including agile workflow support and resource management. Project can be deployed in the cloud or on-premise.
Earliz and Cerri Work are common alternatives for Microsoft Project.
Reviewers rate Gantt Charts highest, with a score of 10.
The most common users of Microsoft Project are from Mid-sized Companies (51-1,000 employees).
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MS Project is primarily used by project management and managers in research and development. It is used to plan development and other multi-task projects. Individual employees typically do not use MS Project.
- Adding dependencies between tasks. MS Project allows 4 types of relationships to be built (SS, FS, SF, FF) and adding lag between tasks, so you have the ultimate flexibility to define how tasks are related.
- Once relationships are defined, MS Project does a good job to highlight/identify the critical path.
- If you put in the details (resource allocation, task priority), then resource leveling works well.
- Ability to select specific tasks or summary tasks for the timeline is good to give an overview of the project.
- Linking tasks between different MS Project files. It can be done, but it's hard to manage and easy to completely break the project plan. We've learned to save multiple versions of the plan in case an external link breaks the project catastrophically.
- Inability to look at resource loading over multiple projects or multiple project files. This has led us to link multiple files together as a mitigation, which has shortcomings (see above).
- Network diagram has improved in recent versions, but still limiting. I often use VISIO to create network diagrams instead of MS Project & end up duplicating information.
MS Project is used by most of our project managers, in order to organize and keep track of our business [and] strategic projects, regardless of which department they belong to.
After an experience with MS Project server that wasn't very successful, "traditional" MS Project helped PMs to manage plannings and shared resources.
After an experience with MS Project server that wasn't very successful, "traditional" MS Project helped PMs to manage plannings and shared resources.
- Gantt chart and tasks planning
- Tasks dependencies and delay impacts
- Shared resources management
- Project timeline visualisation
- Hidden costs can rise very quickly (licencing, training...)
- Not available inline and not included in Office 365
- Old fashioned and not intuitive to use
We are using this software in my department. It does have a learning curve and those that are a little older are having a little trouble getting around but we, as a whole, are making it work. It's doing a good job of allowing us to assign tasks and keep up with what's going on with our projects. It is cutting down on the number of meetings we are having to have due to the amount of information we can transmit through the software.
- Scheduling
- Assigning of tasks
- Communication
- Learning curve is steep
- Integration of other software would be nice.
- Must have Office 365.
We use Microsoft Project to estimate construction project critical path schedules and utilize this schedule through to completion.
- Fairly simple in function and does not overwhelm you with too many details--as simple or as detailed as you wish to use it
- It might be the most common scheduling tool in construction and, therefore, does not require much of a learning curve for employees to be trained
- The appearance of the exported deliverables can be finely tuned to your needs or your clients' needs
- The user interface is a bit outdated but still perfectly functional
- Printing schedules--can be tricky to get the view that you want and often requires a creative workaround to get the look you want
- Editing your schedule from the gantt chart activities is not as easy, as Microsoft Project is more geared toward the edits from the table view, which can be challenging for visual learners
January 10, 2020
Projects Can be a Project
Currently, at our company, Microsoft Projects is used during the estimating phase while
planning timeline and phasing of a project, and by Project Management when
needed to create and revise schedules and manpower to see where and when
resources will be used. The program allows us to plan accordingly and see where
along with our schedule, we have a hole or time to make up if issues present themselves.
- Planning
- Scheduling
- Not easy to learn
November 14, 2019
Expensive in a good-way
We use Microsoft Project to schedule and manage our company's ongoing projects. Its builtin templates makes our work easier. The Gantt charts and project health tracker allow us to track and understand the project.
Our whole organization uses the same project management but in a different set of groups, depends on their departments and project groups. It allows us to understand the project and cause the collision of various projects.
Due to this, our teams can track their projects and follow the deadline. It has increased the project success.
It integrates with all other Microsoft tools, which helps us to save time and money.
- Gantt chart tracker
- It integrates with other Microsoft tools.
- Project health tracking
- Templates
- Little expensive
- Required depth learning
August 30, 2019
Microsoft Project is a time saver.
It is being used by various individuals. It is nice to collaborate on schedules with each other. I also use it to figure manpower and durations based on manpower. I still feel like I'm very new at using Project and don't get to use it as often as I'd like. I'm always learning new tricks and things to make it easier to use.
- Being able to tie tasks together so when something changes it makes it easier to track.
- Being able to create categories for tasks and tie them all together.
- It's nice to set holidays and not have to remember them when scheduling farther into the future.
- I've been using it for a while but I don't get to use it as much as I'd like. The is a lot of information and help out there to learn how to use it better.
- Linking tasks together and the whole SS-1D or FS+4D is very confusing. It usually takes me a few tries to get it where I want. There is always information to help figure this out, just need to be willing to look and ask.
- Sorting by date and task can be confusing. At least there's always the undo button.
- I'm always learning something new that makes using project easier and more beneficial for me. I wish I was able to use or more.
December 10, 2018
MS Project Wasn't for Us
We are not actively utilizing MS Project. We found the application to be too cumbersome for associates not familiar with Project Management methodologies or technics, nor familiar with technology. All in all, we felt MS Project did not provide an easy or positive user experience, which would not have allowed for high user adoption.
- Ability to track resource capacity.
- Ability to plot tasks & timelines.
- Steep learning curve.
- Not user friendly due to learning curve.
October 09, 2018
Microsoft Project: To Use Or Not To Use?
I was introduced to Microsoft Project the first time in about 2003, while working as a Project Manager for L-3 Communication Systems. The training was left mostly to the latitude of each Project Manager. Microsoft Excel was considered an acceptable safety net, being used extensively in the past. Personally, I used 'Microsoft Project 2000 Step-by-Step'. The learning curve was average for Sciex as an independent contractor, tasked to oversee all steps required to complete the upgrading of two legacy projects and turning them into being RoHS-compliant (RoHS - Restrictions of Hazardous Substances). Sciex is specialized in the design and manufacturing of medical instrumentation. The two projects I was involved with were mass spectrometers. Project was used widely across the company for all projects having a start day and estimated completion day, as recommended by Project Management techniques. The first task that I took upon myself was to estimate the best way to ensure a completion of the project in time since a rather artificial due date was already in place. I proceeded to create a task list followed by a work breakdown structure and as a result, I requested the addition of two additional members to the team, since while the budget was relatively generous, the time constraints were not. Also, I requested from the management to intervene with another company, operating as a sub-contractor to Sciex, to make an effort and beef-up their team. We finished within the budget and schedule.
- Microsoft Project allows users to input a large and varied amount of detail pertinent to a specific project and then creates numerous varied out reports, as per the specific needs of a certain user working on that project.
- Microsoft Project is very flexible in relation to the familiarity of a specific user with the Project. Someone with very little knowledge of Project can still input some data and receive some useful reports, without using the whole capability of the package.
- Project allows a varied types of data to be inputted, such as definition of various subtasks related to the project, time information about the original estimates for tasks and the actual figures, monetary information about the cost of all items required to complete a project (such as rate per hour of specific participants working of a project, cost of equipment to be bought or rented, cost of materials required for project execution, etc).
- A Project Manager very conversant with Project can get a very large number of reports, each one for a specific need.
- The Project software package, while being very powerful, it also has a rather lengthy learning curve. A fresh Project Manager which didn't use Project before (due to being in a different role, or using until now a different project management tool) and put in charge of a project having as a requirement the utilization of Microsoft Project for a new project starting very soon, will have a hard time to assimilate all aspects of the package, if he wants to take advantage of Project's full capabilities.
- While not being exaggerated, the cost of the software package is relatively high (around $650.00) This is maybe not a lot for a company needing one or two packages, but is relevant to a company needing to procure 20 packages.
- I would like to see more specialty books pertinent to Project. 'Leaning Microsoft Project Step-by-Step' issued by Microsoft themselves and used by me when I started learning Project is a bit cumbersome, unlike other books in their series for Word, Excel, Powerpoint, etc.
Microsoft Project is currently used to track the pace of the project and set up the guidelines of the PM structure. Since we have several projects on the go at same time, we decided to start using MS Project as a company standard app to collaborate and store the advancement stages of each project and how they line up with the company goals.
- It's a great tool to manage resources, costs, people involved, assignments, and many other things.
- It allows the integration with other MS Tools like Power BI, Excel and PowerPoint to strengthen & enhance project collaboration
- The Office 365 version is such a great option to run into major collaborative scales, using Skype for Business conference or GoToMeeting hands-on.
- Advanced features will require a moderate effort to conquer the complex learning curve.
- Reports and Dashboards insights can turn your goals into unsatisfactory results, and this can make it hard to truly stay on top of projects.
- You must have a standard version in all your company computers, or you may experience lack of visuals and features.
April 18, 2018
Microsoft project has really made my life easier
I am the IT project manager for the company I work for and I live and breathe Microsoft Project. Before using this software, I was stuck with using Excel spreadsheets to track project statuses and milestones. As the projects got more complex, Excel just wasn't doing the job anymore. I presented Project to Exec. management and we made the purchase and tracking my projects have gotten so much easier once you get past the steep learning curve.
- Ability to track Milestones
- Ability to track Resources
- Has a really good Gantt chart
- Steep learning curve
- To get the full suite with the Project server, it is very expensive
- Printing the project plan is a bit challenging
November 02, 2017
Base Software for Advanced working
It is used across the department. Mostly comes in play to reorganise the structure of a project and its dependencies when working remotely. It addresses spontaneous changes and adjustment for validation of data. Microsoft Project can get detailed reporting but can stall at times.
- Fix dependencies in reporting
- Remote access for scheduling changes
- Spontaneous development
- Stalls with no details of missing dependencies
- Requires a learning curve
- More detailed requirements for basic reporting
September 19, 2017
Go with the gold standard on this one (Project Planning and Scheduling)
I use it to manage very large (>5M line) software projects with large teams. For me it's both an invaluable planning tool, as well as a status roll-up tool. If it were integrated into source code management, it would be even better. Nonetheless, it's without peers in project management, and I've used them all.
- It's very well integrated with other Microsoft office tools. This saves me a lot of time when I'm writing up stuff for my team. I manage a lot remotely, so we rely a lot on written communication, otherwise I'm up all night with different geographies.
- It's way too easy to get lost in the details. Microsoft Project has a great 'roll-up' view for overall projects or big parts thereof.
- We have a number of very scarce resources, like academic advisors. While we don't control their schedules, we need to 'ration' access to them, and Microsoft Project is great at handling all sorts of resources. As we've gotten into more 'borrowed lab" engagements, we've been able to schedule and manage scarce physical resources as well. Better calendar integration would make that a lot easier, though.
- Really good calendar integration, in all modalities.
- A more expert-AI advisor. Each release has come with its own learning curve. I'm remiss in reading up on each new feature, as I primarily upgrade for hopefully improved security and support.
August 04, 2017
Microsoft Project overview
Microsoft Project is a tool that is used by our company to manage the schedule on smaller projects that last less than 1 year. The simple interface and linking allows multiple user to collaborate and update the same schedule. The use of this program is limited to only those projects that deem the benefit worth the cost.
- User interface. The usability is easy for a first time user but there are plenty of tools that take years to master.
- Ease of modification. I will sit in meetings and change some criteria on the front end to develop a scenario that is more appealing to the owner/architect.
- Not a standalone tool for jobsite collaboration. This tool is specifically utilized on small projects only because it does not seamlessly integrate with our daily reporting or change management software. This issue really does not detract from the value of the software because it is not designed to completely replace the other project management tools.
- Difficult to advance beyond the basics. Once the beginning is understood, it requires patience and training to advance your scheduling skills. As with any software, there is a learning curve, but there are only a handful of people in our office that can dive deep enough to fully utilize this scheduling tool.
July 16, 2015
To use or not - Microsoft Project
Microsoft Project is the primary scheduling tool used within the Data Center Project Management team. Microsoft Project can be used to show an accurate timeline of how long it takes for projects to progress through a defined project provisioning process.
Other departments within my company are also utilizing Microsoft Project as their primary scheduling tool. Reports can also be generated within the tool. Output can further provide management with accurate visions of project status.
- Microsoft Project is used for project planning. It allows you to list all tasks needed to complete a project.
- Microsoft Project allows you to assign resources to any tasks within your plan.
- Microsoft Project allows you to set project durations for any tasks within your project.
- Microsoft has the best support when needed. As this is critical when issues arise that are unresolvable. Reliability of support is important when deadlines are due.
- Learning the tool can be somewhat cumbersome if you don't spend quality time using it. I find that the more one uses it the more comfortable it seems. The more familiarity gained, the more usage of features within the tool.
- Compatibility issues can be an problem. All users must have Microsoft Project installed in order to take full advantage of the complete project plan.
- Cost can be a disadvantage for some environments. As licensing can be expensive depending on the required features.
We use Microsoft Project to help do estimating, bidding, work planning and resource capacity forecasting for all internal and external projects.
This product has a rich Business Intelligence and an easy to use interface (with a little training) that provides us with unparalleled task and resource/workload management.
With the information we use for managing and planning projects, we are able to do not only project management, but program and portfolio selection and planning with this tool.
- Resource Management and Task/Demand Management planning, tracking and reporting.
- Pivot Table and Business Intelligence Reporting with the enterprise or local data in the Project Schedule
- Cost and Resource work forecasting for what if scenarios and active to planning workload tracking. This is done with a drag and drop Outlook/Calendar interface called the Team Planner View. The enterprise version allows us to quickly manage and track/forecast resource work across the entire company.
- There is a little training needed since this will act like a spreadsheet, but really has a full relational database behind the scenes.
- Many people think this has just a waterfall scheduling approach, but we found this to be very effective with Agile and SCRUM. Again a little knowledge on the tool's capabilities pay dividends for end user productivity