Introduction to Gantt Chart

What is a Gantt Chart

A Gantt chart, commonly used in project management, is one of the most popular and useful ways of showing activities (tasks or, in terms of Work-Relay, steps) displayed against time.

On the left of the chart (1) is a list of the steps and along the top (2) is a suitable time scale. Each step is represented by a bar (3) or several bars, depending on mode; the position and length of the bar reflects the duration (4), start dates (5) and end dates (6) of the step. This allows you to see at a glance:

  • What the various steps are
  • When each step is planned to begin and end
  • When it actually begins and ends
  • How long each step is scheduled to last
  • Where steps overlap with other steps, and by how much
  • Start and end dates of the whole process

To summarize, a Gantt chart shows you what has to be done (the steps) and when (the schedule).

Gantt Chart Usages

In the Work-Relay Gantt Chart has two main usages:

  • Planning dashboard Gantt (7) - simple chart without any interactivity. It just illustrates Planning dashboard with a picture of all planned, active and completed steps together.
  • Process Gantt (shown at picture above) - shows steps belonging to some process with it's subprocesses. If offers a lot of useful tools and functions and is the main Gantt user works with. All the following Gantt Chart mentions mean Process Gantt.
Gantt Chart Modes

Process Gantt Chart can be shown in different modes:

Template mode

Template mode (8) is used to show processes itself. This mode allows to see how steps will be arranged on the Gantt chart and how their dates will be recalculated when changed, but it does not allow to save changes in dates (the particular dates can be changed only for process instances).
User can get to this mode through these ways:

Planning mode

Planning mode (9) is used to show planned records (process instances). In difference on Template mode, this mode allows to save changes in dates.
User will get to this mode:

  • Automatically when creating Planned Record at the Process Details page.
  • If click "Open Gantt" button in the menu of planned (and not started) process instance (10).

Getting into Gantt in Planning mode and saving dates is required to make particular process instance have planned dates (re)calculated and durations evaluated correctly and stored.

View mode

Preview mode (11) is used to show active (started) instances. This mode shows steps lines corresponding as planned, as actual/completed/forecasted dates and durations. This mode does not allow any changes.
To see Gantt chart in this mode user can:

  • Click "View Gantt" menu item of process instance Progress bar (12).
Edit mode

Edit mode (13) is used to show active (started) instances. This mode shows steps lines corresponding as planned, as actual/completed/forecasted dates and durations. This mode allow change dates, durations, etc.

To see Gantt chart in this mode user can:

  • Click "Edit" button (14) in Gantt shown in Preview mode.
  • Click "Open Gantt" item in the menu of started process instance (15).

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