Project Toolkitby Maxime Lab
Schedule · tool 1 of 7

Schedule · tool 1 of 7

Gantt Chart

Gantt Chart: shows the whole schedule at a glance: what happens when, in what order, and who does it.

Best for: Schedules with dependencies · Time: Half a day to set up
Domain: Schedule · Focus area: Planning

Design
Content
Build
Testing
Launch
Bars = duration. Blue bars are on the critical path; the diamond is the go-live milestone.

How it works

A bar chart with tasks as rows and time as columns. Each bar is a task’s duration; arrows link dependent tasks; diamonds mark milestones. Comparing progress against a saved baseline shows slippage immediately.

  • Built from the WBS work packages.
  • Most links are “finish-to-start”: B can’t start until A is finished.
  • The baseline is the approved plan you compare reality against.

How to apply it

  1. Import the work packages from your WBS.
  2. Estimate a duration for each and link the dependencies.
  3. Add milestones (sign-offs, go-live) and assign an owner to each bar.
  4. Save the baseline once the sponsor approves the plan.
  5. Update progress every week; bars slipping past the baseline show where to act.
In practice

Tools: MS Project, Smartsheet, monday.com, GanttProject — or a simple spreadsheet for small projects.

Pro tip

Keep the plan readable: 30–80 lines for the steering view. Detail lives in team boards, not in one giant chart.

Quick check

What is the baseline of a Gantt chart?

Sources

  • PMBOK® Guide, 8th edition, and The Standard for Project Management (PMI, 2025)

Last reviewed 2026-11-02 against the PMBOK® Guide, 8th edition · Practitioner review pending · How this guide is made