Excel Project Management Template

What Is Excel Project Management Template?

The Excel Project Management Template is a highly efficient tool designed to
streamline project management processes and facilitate effective planning, tracking,
and reporting for various types of projects. It provides a comprehensive system to
organize tasks, allocate resources, set deadlines, and monitor progress.

Key Takeaways
  • Excel project management template can benefit individuals and organizations by providing a structured and efficient approach.
  • Different Excel project management templates are available to cater to various project needs.
  • Charts may be automatically updated if we modify the columns for manual entry.
  • A Gantt chart can be generated to visualize sequentially executed activities.
  • When dealing with various project management templates, it is essential to identify the tasks and the sequence of activities involved in the project.

How To Use Excel To Prepare Project Management Templates In Excel?

Excel is a powerful tool that we can use for project management by creating well-designed templates.

  1. First, identify the key elements required in project management, such as task lists, timelines, and resource allocation.

  2. Open Excel and create a new workbook once the requirements are determined.

  3. Next, organize the data into separate sheets or tabs to maintain clarity and ease of access.

  4. Use built-in Excel functions to calculate project durations automatically and monitor progress through interactive charts or graphs.

  5. Additionally, conditional formatting can highlight critical tasks or impending deadlines for better visual representation.

  6. It is essential to name and format each sheet appropriately to ensure easy navigation and comprehension for team members involved in the project.

  7. Lastly, thoroughly test the template using sample data before deploying it to ensure accurate calculations and minimize errors in real-world applications.

Examples

Example #1 – Excel Project Management Template By Using Gantt Chart

Consider a dataset containing information about employee’s quiz reports. To begin, select cells A1 to D5 and proceed to insert a column or bar chart.

Step 1: Select the table range A1:D5, then choose the Insert Column or Bar Chart option.

1.-Excel-Project-Management-Template

Step 2: Opt for the Stacked Bar chart to create the Project Management Gantt chart in Excel.

Stacked-bar-graph

Step 3: Select columns A and B and generate the chart as shown below. Modify the color of the bars by selecting them.

step-3-stacked-bar-graph

Step 4: Right-click on the chart and choose the Select Data option from the pop-up list.

Step-4-Select-Data-Option

Step 5: The Select Data Source window appears. Click on the Add button in the Legend Entries section.

Step 5 - Add button in the Legend Entries

Step 6: The Edit Series box will open. Enter the cell address for the Series names: and the data range for the Series values:, then click OK. The chart will display an added Duration series, as shown in the image below.

Step 6 - Edit Series

Step 7: Click OK on the Select Data Source window.

Step 7 - Select Data Source

Step 8: Right-click on the first data bars, then select the Format Data Series option from the list that appears.

Step 8- Format Data Series

Step 9: Choose No Fill under the Fill option and No Line under the Border option for the Data Series.

Step 9 - No Fill No Line

Step 10: The Project Management Gantt chart duration can be seen, as shown in the image below.

Step 10 - Project Management Gantt chart

Example #2 – Sales Cycle Tracker Example

We will explore creating a sales cycle tracker using Excel. To illustrate the process, we will refer to the following dataset: Sales Starting Date, Sales Ending Date, Target, No. of Days Available at the start, Current Sales, Variance, and other relevant information.

Step 1: Identify the Target and Current Sales figures. Calculate the variance between these two values.

Example 2- Step 1- variance between two values

Step 2: Proceed to determine the Project Completion % metric.

Example 2- Step 2 - Project Completion

Step 3: Record the Sales Starting Date and Sales Ending Date.

Example 2- Step 3 - Sales Starting Date and Ending Date

Step 4: Calculate the working days between the start and end dates.

Example 2- Step 4 - working days

Step 5: Now, let’s calculate the Target Per Day at the Start by dividing the Target by the No. Of Days Available at the start.

Example 2- Step 5 - Target Per Day at the Start

Step 6: Utilize the TODAY formula in Excel to determine the current date.

Example 2- Step 6 - TODAY formula in Excel

Step 7: Calculate the days completed from the start to the current date.

Example 2- Step 7 - Days completed

Step 8: Determine the current revenue based on the daily target.

Example 2- Step 8 -current revenue

Step 9: Calculate the Current Average Per Day Now.

Example 2- Step 9 -Current Average Per Day Now

Step 10: Project the end revenue if the average sales trend continues for the remaining project.

Example 2- Step 10 -if the average sales trend continues

Step 11: Analyze the Achieved % at the same trend and If the same trend continues metrics.

Example 2- Step 10 - Achieved % at the same trend

Steps To Create Charts In Excel

We will create visually appealing Excel charts to track our project’s progress at a glance. Let’s follow these steps to create the charts:

Step 1: Begin by creating a simple column chart. Select cell B5 and create the chart.

Simple column chart step 1

Step 2: Right-click on the chart and choose Select Data.

Step 2 - Select Data

Step 3: Next, click on Add.

step 3 - Select Data source

Step 4: In the window that appears, do not select anything. Press the OK button.

Step 4 - Select Data source apply

Step 5: Now, we have a chart that looks like this.

Step 5- Chart

Step 6: Select the bar and click Format Data Series. This action will open the Format Data Series dialog box on the right-hand side.

Step 6-Format Data Series

Step 7: Adjust the Series Overlap to 100%.

Step 8: As a result, both columns will overlap, giving the chart this appearance.

Step 9: To enhance the chart, change the color of the red bar to No Fill.

Step 10: Now, the chart will look like this.

step-10-No-Fill-2

Step 11: Draw a round shape below the chart and adjust its position.

1-Round-shape-below-chart-2

Step 12: Lastly, add a chart title. Complete the other chart with Achieved %; two charts are ready.

Step 12- chart title

Important Things To Note

  • The template offers a wide range of features such as Gantt charts, task lists, milestone tracking, team collaboration tools, and customizable dashboards.
  • It enables project managers to establish clear project goals, define deliverables and dependencies, assign responsibilities to team members, and monitor each task’s status in real time.
  • The template allows users to analyze project data through integrated analytics tools that generate visual reports and graphs showcasing key performance indicators.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. How can an Excel project management template benefit me or my organization?

• With this template, users can access pre-designed worksheets encompassing various aspects of project management, such as budgeting, scheduling, task tracking, and resource allocation.
• By utilizing these templates, individuals can save significant time and effort as they don’t need to start from scratch or create their formats.
• Additionally, these templates enable standardization across the organization, ensuring uniformity and consistency in project management practices.

2. Are there any limitations or drawbacks to using an Excel project management template?

• Firstly, these templates can be time-consuming to set up initially, especially for users who are not familiar with the software.
• Additionally, the lack of real-time collaboration features in Excel can hinder team communication and efficiency, as team members cannot simultaneously work on the same document.
• Furthermore, complex projects with multiple dependencies may require more advanced project management tools that offer Gantt charts or critical path analysis, which are not readily available in Excel templates.

3. Are there different types of Excel project management templates available?

• These templates are pre-designed spreadsheets that provide a structure for efficient management of projects.
• The templates are typically categorized based on the nature of projects, such as software development, construction, marketing campaigns, or event planning.
• Each template offers specific features and functionalities that align with its intended purpose, ensuring users can easily input and track essential project details like tasks, timelines, resource allocation, budgeting, and progress status.

Download Template

This article must help understand Project Management Templates in Excel formulas and examples. We can download the template here to use it instantly.

Guide to Excel Project Management Template. Here we learn how to use Excel to prepare project management templates with step-by-step examples and template. You can learn more from the following articles –

Calculating Investment Return In Excel

Enable Macros In Excel

Contour Plots In Excel

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *