This article will walk you through how to create dependencies between tasks by using Predecessors. Start with the video below:
Predecessors specify the relationships between project tasks and indicate when a task should begin or end in relation to other tasks.
The first step would be for you to create your project plan which includes project tasks, milestones, and duration. Once you have an outline, you can start defining predecessors.
Inspire Planner supports the four (4) common types of dependencies:
Finish-to-Start predecessors are the most commonly used type of dependency. When a Finish-to-Start predecessor is used to connect two tasks, this means that Task B cannot start before Task A is finished. The image below shows an example of a Finish-to-Start type of predecessor.
When a Start-to-Start predecessor is used to connect two tasks, this means that Task B cannot start until task A starts. The image below shows an example of a Start-to-Start type of predecessor.
When a Finish-to-Finish predecessor is used to connect two tasks, this means that Task B cannot be completed until Task A is complete. The image below shows an example of a Finish-to-Finish type of predecessor.
Start-to-Finish relationships are the least commonly used in project planning. When a Start-to-Finish predecessor is used to connect two tasks, this means that Task A cannot finish until Task B starts. The image below shows an example of a Start-to-Finish type of predecessor. The image below shows an example of a Start-to-Finish type of predecessor.
Now that you understand the different types of predecessors, you are ready to define the dependencies that exist between your project tasks.
Predecessors can be defined either by:
You can define dependencies between tasks using the Predecessors column for each of your project tasks. The Predecessors column can be populated by either
This is done simply by entering a value in the empty cell for each project task under the Predecessors column.
To define a Finish-to-Start type of predecessor, simply double click on the empty cell for the project task under the Predecessors column and enter the row number of the previous task it relates to.
The Gantt Chart will automatically connect the two tasks together based on the predecessor you specified.
To define a Start-to-Start type of predecessor, simply double click on the empty cell for the project task under the Predecessors column and enter the row number of the previous task it relates to with "SS" (see example below).
To define a Finish-to-Finish type of predecessor, simply double click on the empty cell for the project task under the Predecessors column and enter the row number of the previous task it relates to with "FF" (see example below).
To define a Start-to-Finish type of predecessor, simply double click on the empty cell for the project task under the Predecessors column and enter the row number of the previous task it relates to with "SF" (see example below).
If a task has more than one predecessor, you simply enter each predecessor separated by a semi-colon. In the example below, Task 10 is dependent on the three tasks preceding it (Task 7, 8, and 9). The Gantt Chart will automatically connect the tasks according to the predecessors you specified.
This is done by double clicking on the empty cell for a project task under the Predecessors column and clicking on the Edit icon.
This will open the Task Information window with the Predecessors Tab open by default.
Click on the Add button. Thenfrom the Task Name dropdown, select the task (Task A) you want this task (Task B) to be linked to. In the example below, if we wanted to create a dependency between the task "Prepare kick-off presentation" (Task B) and "Build high-level project schedule" (Task A), then we would click on the Edit icon beside "Prepare kick-off presentation"
Then from the Task Information window, click on Add and select "Build high-level project schedule" from the Task Name dropdown. You can also enter the task name to search for it in the dropdown.
Next, select the type of predecessor from the dropdown list.
If there is a lag between the tasks, you can enter the Lag time in days.
Click on Apply when finished. You'll notice that the Predecessor column now contains a value.
The Gantt Chart has also updated to display the dependency between the two tasks.
Predecessors can also be defined within the Gantt Chart by drawing a line between tasks. For more information on how, see Managing Predecessors in the Gantt Chart.
When you create a Project Task in Inspire Planner, it defaults the task duration to "1 Day" with a start time of 9:00 AM and an end time of 5:00 PM. This means that the Start and Finish Date of the task falls within the same day.
Suppose you have two tasks - "Task A" and "Task B"- with a Finish-to-Start relationship. This means that "Task B" follows "Task A". You will notice in the example below that since Task A has a duration of 1 Day, the Start and Finish Dates fall on the same day and since Task B follows Task A, you will notice that Task B starts on the following working day.
If you were to set the duration of "Task A" so that it is less than 1 day, let's say 2 hours, then the Inspire Planner scheduling engine will set the start time as 9:00 AM and the end time at 11:00 AM. Now since "Task B" follows "Task A" (per the Finish-to-Start relationship you defined), then the Inspire Planner scheduling engine will set the Start Date for "Task B" to the same day as "Task A" with a start time of 11:00 AM. Since "Task B" has a duration of 1 day, it will then calculate the end date and time for "Task B" from 11:00 AM to the following working day. Therefore, you will notice that although Task B has a duration of 1 day, the Start and Finish Dates span 2 days.
This has a cascading effect to the rest of the tasks within your project depending on the predecessor relationships defined. Unless you need to track tasks at a very granular level where you need to specifically track start and end times within a day, we recommend keeping duration unit in days at the minimum and using Planned Effort to specify the estimated effort involved in completing the task.
There may be instances where you have a pre-defined End Date for a Project and need to work backwards to determine when to start the Project.
To accomplish this, you will need to connect the Tasks using a Start-to-Finish dependency from the last task and then moving upwards.
In the example below, let's imagine we have a hard GO Live Date and we are working backwards from it to determine Project Start Date. What you will need to do is create a Start-to-Finish dependency starting from the "Client GO Live" Task.
Using the Gantt, simply draw a line from the start of "Client GO Live" to the end of it's predecessor; which in the example below is "Client Onboarding Sign-off". You will notice that it will also automatically populate the Predecessor column in the Task List with the row number (33) for "Client GO Live" followed by SF (Start-to-Finish). This means that the task "Client GO Live" drives the Task before. So when you populate or adjust the Client GO Live date, it will automatically adjust the dates for "Client Onboarding Sign-off" backwards.
Another way is to just populate the Predecessor column with the row number followed by SF. So again, using the example below, if we want to connect "Client Onboarding Sign-off" (row number 32) to "Configure Help Center Access", we would populate 32SF in Predecessor for "Configure Help Center".
You would need to simply repeat this process all the way to the first task within your Project. You will notice that the dates of the Tasks automatically adjust backwards based on the date of the the last task in the Project.Please Note: The Ready-to-Start Indicator for Tasks are set to "True" based on the status of the Predecessor since the Predecessor Task is the controlling task. This means that the Predecessor Task determines when the Successor Task should start or finish. With Start-to-Finish dependencies, you are working backwards from the a defined end date which means that this will have an impact on when Ready-to-Start is set to "True". If all the tasks in your project are linked with start-to-finish dependencies from the last task in the project, then this means that the last task is the controlling task.
There may be instances where you may need to schedule a task to start later or earlier than it's predecessor's start or finish date. Inspire Planner supports adding lag or lead time between Tasks. Lag time is defined as the amount of time whereby a successor task is required to be delayed with respect to its predecessor. Lead time is defined as the amount of time whereby a successor task can be advanced or started ahead with respect to its predecessor.
To add Lag Time, you simply append a plus sign (+) and the lag in days to the Predecessor. For example, if you have a Finish-to-Start dependency between Task A (Row 3) and Task B (Row 4), then you would define the value for Predecessor in Task B as "3". If you need to delay Task B by 3 days, then you will enter the value in Predecessor as "3+3" where "3" is the row number of it's Predecessor followed by "+3" to denote that Task B is to start 3 days after in relation to it's predecessor.
To add Lead Time, you would append a minus (-) and the lead in days to the Predecessor.
Please Note:
Although Task Duration can be in hours, days, weeks and months, Lag and Lead time can only be entered in "Days". Even if you enter 4W for Lag, when you save and refresh, it changes it to 4 days.
For first-time project planners, please see Getting Started with Inspire Planner,or log a Help Ticket and someone from our Inspire Support Team will get back to you.