WHAT IS MICROSOFT PROJECT?

Microsoft Project: you may have encountered the name of this application while viewing Office packages. The program may even be on your computer or laptop, but you have never used the application. Microsoft Project is not a “standard” program used by computer users. Wondering what the application exactly is and what tasks you can perform with it? Discover it in this blog!

What is Microsoft Project?

Microsoft Project is a management software package that is used during planning and project tracking. The program has been specially developed for Windows and is not available for Mac OS X users. With the help of Microsoft Project, it becomes easy to manage projects and to deploy resources within organisations.

The application has multiple versions (Standard and Professional), but both versions are used for the same purpose. Microsoft Project makes it easier to get a grip on projects, to communicate progress, to report and to deploy the right resources and/or people at the right time.

Who uses Microsoft Project?

Microsoft Project is mainly used within a business setting. Functions that make extensive use of this management software package are portfolio managers, project managers and project staff. These functions are primarily found in large and medium-sized organizations within sectors such as IT, government, civil engineering and construction. You will find many terms within the software package that are mainly used within such organizations.

Which versions of Project are there?

As indicated, it is possible to purchase a Standard version and a Professional version. Microsoft Project Standard contains all the basic functionalities of the package. Think of creating a (project) timeline, assigning tasks, assigning a task to specific people and keeping track of tasks.

If you choose Microsoft Professional you will receive the package including all extensions and features. This includes the ability to collaborate via Skype Business and the option to synchronize data with Project Online and Project Server. To work together carefully and efficiently within a (medium) large organization, it is always recommended to opt for the Professional version of Microsoft Project.

Furthermore, a new release of Microsoft Project is released approximately every 3 years. Every version contains major improvements and new features that Microsoft has introduced:

Microsoft Project 2019 Professional

Microsoft Project 2019 is the most recent version of this management software package. When you choose this package you will receive the useful familiar features of earlier versions, including the newest functionalities.

A major point for improvement, for example, is how the progress of the project can be reported and communicated. For example, labels can be placed on the timeline and the project progress is immediately displayed within a described task. Furthermore, it has become easier to link tasks to people thanks to a handy drop-down menu. Simply scroll through all specified tasks, select the correct task and check a checkbox to assign the task definitively. Moreover, it is possible to add a summary to specific task lists. This makes it easier to determine and communicate the structure of a project.

Microsoft Project 2016 Professional

Microsoft Project 2016 was released on September 22, 2015 and is the predecessor of Project 2019. At the time, Microsoft Project 2016 was packed with new functionalities that made the application much more user-friendly and professional. For example, it was possible to use the new Resource Engagement function. This makes it easy for project managers to assign the right people and resources to a specific project or project task.

Another point of improvement is the added “heat map” to demonstrate the capacity of resources. If resources are not used correctly or there are too few resources, this can have major consequences for the progress of a project. Thanks to the heat maps it becomes possible to make this immediately clear and it is shown real-time.

Microsoft Project 2013 Professional

Although Microsoft Project 2013 was very modern during the introduction, this application has since become fairly outdated. New within this version was the Reports section. As the name suggests, this feature can be used to report and communicate the results of a project in a professional manner. This is because within the Report section there are standard templates so that the progress can be shown graphically.

Get started with Microsoft Project?

How you use Microsoft Project is of course completely dependent on the goal you want to achieve. In any case, one thing is certain: Microsoft Project helps everyone within (medium) large organizations who want to manage projects efficiently and professionally, to complete them and to report the progress correctly.

Do you want to get started with this most used project planning package in the world? Then quickly view the temporary offers from SoftwareLicense4U. Here you will find Microsoft Project 2019 licenses with high discounts (up to 80%). You will also receive the 100 percent original Project license via e-mail within 5 minutes!