perform a timeline with the tools of Excel It can certainly be one of the easiest ways. The reason is that This program has different tools that will help you represent the activities of your project in different ways. In addition, you can incorporate visual elements to highlight different sections.
The ones built into Excel are very useful, since they act in the same way as the , but providing a wide advance. They can be customized to your liking, which will help you to maintain good coordination and operation of all with a unique design.
Taking all of the above into account, we will explain below how to make a schedule using tools . You can do it through templates available, or manually. Keep reading to know the step by step!
Steps to make an activity schedule in Microsoft Excel like an expert
A schedule of activities is very effective to be able to organize your daily tasks in order of importance, type of tasks and much more. In this way, you avoid overlooking commitments or jobs that you must fulfill.
Therefore, we will give you the step by step of how to create yours in a personalized way like an expert:
with a template
The essential before proceeding is have in mind and already defined a draft detailed schedule of the schedule to be carried out, where each activity or task to be executed is presented taking consider each one with its tentative dates.
Having that in hand we get to it:
- The first thing we will do is open the excel program and go where the bar appears “Search” at the top right.
- By clicking there, we will place the name of the template to search for. In this case we will use the template “Gantt Project Planner”.
- Select the template that is displayed with that name to start working on it.
- To start adding the tasks go to the column Name of the homework either Exercise. There, she begins to write the things to do.
- Under the project planner titlethere is an option called highlighted periodin which you are going to enter the complete period that your project will have. For example, if it will take 6 months, select the number 6.
- then you can customize the diagram according to your needs. For example, in the column Start of the plan write the periods in which the tasks are established.
- Do the same in the other rows as Plan Duration, Actual Start, and Actual Duration. It is recommended that the column times Actual Home Match Plan Home. Likewise, the Plan Duration should be the same as Actual Duration.
- In case you want to delete a right click on the cell and press the option Remove. Then select on The whole row.
- If you want it to only be displayed as a graph, selects the numeric data columns (in the case of the template it is from row C to G). Right click and tap on Disguise.
manually
With the help of Gantt diagram, you can graphically represent all the planning of activities that you have in relation to a project or pending tasks. fits emphasize that it is applicable to any sectorso it fits your needs perfectly.
Next, we will explain the step by step on how to make a schedule of activities in Excel manually:
- First, previously make a in which you specify the name of the activities to be executed, their start date, duration and end date.
- locate yourself anywhere box outside of previously made table. Go to the tab Insert in Excel, specifically within the group Graphics. Tap on the button columns and then select 2D Bar/ Stacked Bar.
- A blank box will be displayed because the data where the graph will be located later has not yet been selected. Within the chart tools, click on the option select data.
- you can appreciate the window Select the data source. With it, you can begin to include the data you want to appear within the chart. First, go to the button Add displayed on the left side of the window (Series). You also get it by touching the symbol +.
- Automatically, the first series appears with the name of “Series1”. On the right hand side, enter the series values or also identified as Y values. There, tap on the icon that is right next to that option and select the start dates of your project. When you’ve done that, click To accept.
- Then, click again select data to redisplay the Select Data Source window. Click again on the symbol + or Add to create series 2.
- It is time to add a new series, for another aspect such as the duration in days of your project. go to series values oh Y values and apply the same procedure to add a new series to your chart. That is, touch the column of data and press To accept.
- to series 2, the labels of the horizontal axis will be modified. To do this, go to select data and when the pop-up window is displayed, locate yourself in Series2. Then in Horizontal axis labels tap the icon at the end of that line and choose the names of the activities. Tap on To accept.
- Now you have to give it a gantt chart look. To achieve this, you have to right click on any of the blue bars on the graph and select on Format data series.
- In the right bar that will open, you have to go to Fill and Line (has a paint bucket icon). Tap on Unfilled.
- Where the names of the activities appear, right click and go back to Format axis. In the options, enter the axis options and at the bottom touch on Categories in reverse order.
- Now you must set the start and end of the chart bars. To do this, copy the start date of the first activity to a different cell and place the last date at the end of the project. select both cells and change its format to number by going to Startin the number options press Number and ready.
- Then go to the graph, stand on the horizontal axis right click and go to Format axis. There, write in the limit options the start and end date of your project. In minimum you put the start date, and in maximum you write the end.
Finally, you can modify different options such as the name of the chart, the colors, the appearance and much more.
List of the best timeline templates that you can use in Excel
The templates They are perfect to make life easier for all those users who are not completely experts in the Excel management. Plus, most of them can be customized to give you the colors, shapes, and type of text you want.
Here we share the best templates and their download links:
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