forProject™ Tutorial Guide

forProject Technology, Inc.

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Version: 1.0.0: 19 July 2007

Copyright 2007 by forProject Technology, Inc.

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© 2007forProject Technology, Inc. All rights reserved.

forProject™ Tutorial Guide

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1: Preparation and Planning

Exercise 1: Importing BCWS from an External Source

Creating a New Import Map

Mapping Fields and Values

Mapping Time-Scaled Values

Validating and Previewing Mapped Data

Using the What-If Project to Analyze Imported Data

Importing the Data into Your Project

Exercise 2: Developing the Project Baseline

Exercise 3: Populate WBS

Exercise 4: Assign Earned Value Types

Exercise 5: Setting Field Names

Exercise 6: Assigning CAMs to Tasks

Exercise 7: Configuring E-Mail Notifications

Configuring the Data Upload Notification

Configuring the Update Complete Notification

Configuring the Retrieve Data Notification

Chapter 2: Performance Phase

Exercise 6: Uploading Current Project Data

Exercise 7: Viewing and Updating Task Status

Exercise 8: Retrieving Status Updates

Exercise 9: Performing Critical Path Analysis

Exercise 10: Performing Earned Value Analysis

Chapter 3: Integration Phase

Exercise 11: Importing Cost Data into MS Project

Exercise 12: Exporting Data to Other LOB Systems

1© 2007forProject Technology, Inc. All rights reserved

forProject™ Tutorial Guide

Introduction

TBD. . .

1© 2007forProject Technology, Inc. All rights reserved

forProject™ Tutorial Guide

Chapter 1: Preparation and Planning

In the initial planning phase of a project, the scheduler is typically given a high-level project plan and budget. Project activities and resource assignments are represented at a very general summary level. The Scheduler must take this general project information and develop a detailed project baseline.

Once the detailed project plan is in place, the Scheduler must complete a number of preparation tasks before work on the project can begin. This includes assigning status updaters to their respective tasks, setting any custom field names in MS Project, and defining the procedures for communicating project status between team members.

The exercises in this section of the tutorial illustrate how the forProject tools facilitate the tasks associated with the preparation and planning phases of the project. . .

In this chapter you will learn to:

Use Import forProject to Populate your MS Project file with external data.

Use Utilities forProject to create a detailed project baseline from high-level data.

Set custom MS Project field names using Utilities forProject.

Assign updaters (CAMs) to specific tasks using Update forProject.

Configure E-mail notifications in Update forProject to automatically notify team members of status reporting activities.

Exercise 1: Importing BCWS from an External Source

In the initial planning of a project, the tasks and resource assignments are projected at a high level. This project plan is often generated from data that has been entered and stored in other applications. One of the first tasks of the Scheduler is to bring this external project data into MS Project to form a basis for more detailed development of the project plan . . .

Import forProject allows you to import project data from other systems directly into MS Project.

As we begin the planning phase of our project, the accounting department has delivered a file containing the BCWS data for the project. The file was created in a proprietary accounting application, and saved into a comma-separated value (.csv) file. The information in this file comprises the high-level task and resource assignments for your project plan. . .

In this exercise, you will use Import forProject to map and import the BCWS data in the provided file to the corresponding fields in MS Project.

First we need to create a new project.

  1. Start MS Project and select FileNew from the menu bar.
  2. In the New Project panel, select Blank Project.
  3. Select FileSave As to save the new project.
  4. Specify a name and a directory for the project and click Save.

Creating a New Import Map

Now that we have our empty project, we will begin creating a map that we can use to populate the BCWS data in the project.

  1. In the forProject toolbar, click the Import forProject icon.

The Import Definitions screen is displayed.

  1. Click the New to create a new import map.

The New Map dialog is displayed. In this dialog you sill specify the name of the new map file, and the name and location of the source file which contains the data that you want to import.

  1. In the Import Map Name field, enter BCWS_Import.
  2. In the Import File Name field, browse to the C:\<tutorial_files> directory, and select the <BCWS data file>.csv file.
  3. Make sure that the Include Column Headers checkbox is selected.

Tip:In almost all cases, you will want to select Include Column Headers when importing data from a file. The headers typically describe the data in each field and make the mapping process more intuitive.

  1. Click OK.

Mapping Fields and Values

Next you will use the Import forProject mapping tool to define the relationship between the data in the CSV file, and the fields in MS Project. For each data element that you want to import from the source file you must specify two parameters:

  • Field – That is the name of the MS Project field to which you are importing the data element.
  • Value – That is the name of the column or field in the source file where the data resides.

In addition, when mapping data to records where multiple entities of the same type exist - such as task, resource, or assignment records - you must specify a Locator (key) Field/Value pair, to indicate which unique record the data is associated with. For example, if you are mapping a task duration value from the source file, you must also map a unique task ID or task name value so that Import forProject can associate the duration value with the correct task in MS Project.

A Locator value is not required for unique records, such as Project.

  1. In the Import Definitions window, click the name of your import map, BCWS_Import, to highlight it.
  2. Click the Map button. The Define Import Map window is displayed. The mapping schema tree in this window lists the mapped fields by project, task, assignment, resource, and TSV (time-scaled value).

The Define Import Map window is where you will specify the Field/Value relationships that we described earlier. We will begin by mapping the tasks described in the source file to create task records in our new MS Project file.

  1. .In the mapping schema tree, locate the TaskImportField node.

  1. Right-click on TaskImportField, and select Map To form the pop-up menu.

The Show Data dialog is displayed.

This dialog is context sensitive. When mapping to a task Field, the Show Data window displays the available task fields in the MS Project file. If a field has already been mapped, it will not display in the Task Fields list.

  1. Scroll down in the Task Fields list and select the TaskName field.
  2. Click OK.

Note that the TaskImportField node now indicates that it is mapped to the TaskName field in MS Project. The M icon beside the node indicates that it has been mapped.

Now that you have specified the target field in MS Project, you must specify the value in the source file that you want to populate the field with.

  1. In the mapping schema tree, right-click on TaskImportValue, and select Map To form the pop-up menu. The Show Data dialog is displayed.
  2. Click on the drop-down arrow in the upper field of the dialog.

The drop-down list displays the names of fields in the source data file that have not yet been mapped.

  1. Click on Tasks_TaskName in the drop-down list.

The CSV Column Datalist displays the data in the Tasks_TaskName column of the source data file. This allows you to verify that the source field contains the data that you want to map to the target field. This is particularly useful when working with source files that have cryptic field names, or that do not include field names.

In this case, you can see that the column contains the names of the project tasks. This is the correct source field.

  1. Click OK to accept the field selection.

Note that the TaskImportValue node now indicates that it is mapped to the Tasks_TaskName value in the source data file. The M icon beside the node indicates that it has been mapped.

Because there are multiple task records in a project, when mapping values to task records, you must also map a unique identifying record, or Locator, so that Import forProject can populate each ask record with the correct mapped value.

While task names help to identify a task, they are not always unique within a project. For example, in several places within a project, there may be tasks named ‘Unit Testing’. The task ID, however, is unique to each task within a project, so you will use Task ID as the Locator value when mapping task fields.

  1. .In the mapping schema tree locate and right-click on theTaskLocatorField node, and select Map To from the pop-up menu. The Show Data dialog is displayed.
  2. Scroll down in the Task Fields list and select the TaskID field.
  3. Click OK.
  4. In the mapping schema tree locate and right-click on the TaskLocatorValue nodeand select Map To from the pop-up menu. The Show Data dialog is displayed.
  5. Click in the drop-down and select the Tasks_TaskID field.
  6. Click OK.
  7. . . . Now that we have taken you through the steps of mapping, perform the same steps on your own to create mappings described in the following table:

Schema Tree Node / Map To
AssignmentImportField / AssignmentStart
AssignmentImportValue / Assignments_AssignmentStart
AssignmentLocatorField / ResourceAssignmentName
AssignmentLocatorValue / Resources_ResourceName
ResourceImportField . . . / . . .
. . . / . . .

. . .

Mapping Time-Scaled Values

Unlike single values associated with a Task, Resource, or Assignment values (e.g. Task Name), a time-scaled value is actually a set of parameters, which together represent a fixed period in time. Each time-scaled value includes three parameters:

  • From – The start date/time of the period.
  • To – The end date/time of the period.
  • Unit – The unit of time used to represent the period in the project (hours, days, etc.).

Therefore when importing time-scaled values you must map the individual From, To, and Unit parameters, in addition to the Field and Value parameters.

This will become clearer as you proceed with this section of the exercise. Your task is to map a time-scaled value that is associated with the project task data that you are importing.

  1. In the mapping schema tree, right-click on theTSVImportField node.
  2. Select on Map To from the pop-up menu.

The Show Data dialog is displayed. This dialog displays the available time-scaled value fields in MS Project for the selected category (Task, Assignment, or Resource).

  1. Select the Task radio button to display the TSV fields associated with tasks.
  1. Locate and select TaskWork from the TSV Fields list.
  2. Click OK.
  3. Right-click on the TSVImportValue node in the mapping schema tree.
  4. SelectMap To from the pop-up menu. The Show Data dialog is displayed.
  5. Click on the drop-down arrow in the upper field of the dialog to display the available fields in the source file.
  6. Select Assignments_AssignmentWork from the drop-down list.
  7. Click OK.

When mapping time scaled values you may import the From and To parameter values from the source file, or you may enter a set literal value. In this case, our source file does not contain data for populating the From parameter, so you will enter a literal value.

  1. In the mapping schema tree, right-click on the TSVFrom node.
  2. Select Literal Value from the pop-up menu. The literal value dialog is displayed.
  1. In the date field, enter the date value 08/01/2005, and click OK.
  2. In the mapping schema tree, right-click on the TSVTo node.
  3. Select Map To from the pop-up menu. The Show Data dialog is displayed.
  4. Click on the drop-down arrow in the upper field of the dialog to display the available fields in the source file.
  5. Select Tasks_TaskFinish from the drop-down list, and click OK.

Next you need to specify the Unit parameter for the time scaled value. MS Project includes a set of time unit properties. You will map the Unit parameter to one of these properties.

  1. Right-click on the TSVUnit node in the mapping schema tree.
  2. SelectMap Tofrom the pop-up menu.

When mapping the TSVUnit parameter, the Show Data dialog is displays a list of MS Project time unit constants. The time-scaled values that you are mapping are represented in days, so we will select the pjTimeScaleDays property.

  1. In the TSV Unit Constants list, select the pjTimescaleDays, and click OK.

If you have completed the steps in this section correctly, the Define Import Map window should look like the following example.

Now that you have defined the desired mapping parameters, be sure to save the map definition.

  1. Click the Save Map button to save the mapping parameters. A message box is displayed when the map definition has been saved successfully.
  2. Click OK.

Validating and Previewing Mapped Data

Import forProject provides a Transform feature which allows you to preview your map definition to ensure that the mapping parameters will produce valid results. This feature is available from the Define Import Map window.

Next you will use Transform to validate the map definition that you just created.

  1. Click the Transform button in the Define Import Map window. Import forProject processes according to your map definition and validates the source data against the MS Project field constraints. The validation results are displayed in the Import Preview window.

The Import Preview window displays the mapping results by column. The validation results are displayed in the Map (left) column. Any Invalid mapping results are indicated in red in the Map column. In the case of an invalid mapping result, the corresponding mapping parameters or source data must be corrected before you can continue with the import process.

  1. After you have previewed the data and confirmed that the mapping results are valid, Click the Validate button.

The Select Unit Options dialog is displayed. To properly interpret and import the data into MS Project, Import forProject requires that you specify what time units the source data uses to represent Work and Duration values (Days, Hours, Weeks, etc).

In this case, the source data file represents task Duration in days, and Work in hours.

  1. In the Duration is represented in field, select Days.
  2. In the Work is represented in field, select Hours.
  3. Click OK. A message box displays, indicating that the data validation is complete.
  1. Click OK in the message box.

Using the What-If Project to Analyze Imported Data

Now that you have validated the source data you have two options. You can import the data directly into your MS Project file, or you can use the Import forProject’s What-If feature to analyze the impact of the data on your project before importing it.

The What-If feature imports the source data into a copy of your existing project file. This allows you to verify that that importing the data will produce the correct results and will not create any errors. It is strongly recommended that you use the What-If feature before importing any external data into your actual project file.

  1. In the Import Preview window, click the What-If button.
  2. . . .
  3. Click the Import Log tab.

The Import Log tracksand reports the details of the import processing.