Working on Tasks in Project Web App

Table of Contents 1

Working on tasks inProject Web App:

A guide for team members

My Project Web App administrator is:[name]
[contact info line 1]
[contact info line 2]
My Project Web App address is: [URL][A1]

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Table of Contents 1

Table of Contents

Introduction

Hold on, what’s Project Web App?

Is this guide for Project Online or Project Server?

I need help!

Get your bearings

Quick Launch

Ribbon

Main display area

Just want to see a list of projects?

Turning in timesheets

Why are timesheets important?

Okay, I’m convinced. Now how does it work?

Let’s fill out your timesheet!

Ready to enter your hours?

Don’t see the task you worked on?

What about hours that aren’t part of a project?

How do I get a task off of my timesheet?

Need to enter hours for a different timesheet period?

And…SUBMIT!

Peek at what’s going on behind the scenes

More than just hours: Updating task progress

Time vs. task progress: What’s the difference?

Let’s look at an example…

Okay, but remind me, why are we doing this?

Where do I enter my task progress?

How do I know which way my organization is set up?

My organization is using separate views

Report the percent of work you’ve completed

Update how much work you have left to do

My organization is using one view

Report the percent of work you’ve completed

Update how much work you have left to do

Add comments about your work

In the Tasks view…

In the Timesheet view…

Capture issues and risks

Add an issue

Add a risk

I need to look at a project document…where is it?

Hand off work to someone else

Vacation, sick leave, and other non-project hours

Ahead of time

Let your project manager know

Assign someone to enter your time and task progress

While you’re out

After you’re back

Uh oh, I didn’t mean to submit that!

Take back a timesheet that you sent for approval

Delete a timesheet and start over

Rejected! Now what?

How do I know if my updates were rejected?

Why were my updates rejected?

What do I do now?

Okay, but how?

When in doubt, add comments…

Appendix

In Project Web App, how do I…

Introduction 1

Introduction

If you have been assigned a task in a project, this guide can help you learn how to stay plugged into the project and keep your project manager up to date on how your task is progressing, usingProject Web App.

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Hold on, what’sProject Web App?

Project Web Appis a project management application that you access in a web browser. It is connected to a database, behind the scenes, that stores information about the projects going on in your organization, including:

/ The tasks that are part of each project.
/ All of the people who are available to work on those tasks.
/ The materials needed to complete tasks for each project.
/ The costs associated with the people, materials, projects, and tasks in your organization.

Is this guide for Project Online or Project Server?

Project Web Appis a part of Project Server 2013 (on premises), or Project Online (in the cloud). From a team member perspective, it really doesn’t matter whether you’re using Project Web App as part of Project Server 2013 or Project Online. The functionality is mostly identical, and the steps in this guide apply regardless of which option your organization has chosen.

For more information about Project Online and Project Server 2013, go to:

I need help!

If this guide doesn’t answer your questions, you can try a few different things:

Ask your peers! The people you work with are often the best source of information about working in Project Web App. They’re familiar with how your organization has customized things, and what processes are in place. If you need help, don’t be shy! Your coworkers may be just as confused as you are, and working together may make things easier.
Search on Office.com. Articles on Office.com are designed to help you learn how to use Project Web App, but may not cover specific details about how your organization has set things up. Try searching for “Find information about Project Server 2013” or “Find information about Project Online.”
Ask on the Project forums! The Project discussion forums on TechNet tend to be very active, with subject matter experts and Microsoft MVPs responding to posts, as well as some folks from Microsoft Support and Engineering. This makes them a great resource for finding others who may have worked through similar issues, or who have encountered the same situation. Take a look at:

And if none of that works, ask your administrator! When you simply can’t find the answer you’re looking for, try asking your Project Web App administrator. / My Project Web App administrator is:
[name]
[contact info line 1]
[contact info line 2][A2]

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Get your bearings

Ready to dive in and start usingProject Web App? This chapter will help you figure out what you’re looking at when you log in, so you know which pieces do what.

The Project Web App window is made up of three main areas: the Quick Launch, the ribbon, and the main display area.

Quick Launch

The Quick Launch lists the main views and pages that you are able to access. You can click these links to navigate to different areas ofProject Web App.

Some pages in Project Web App do not include the Quick Launch. For example, when you fill out a form, you must complete and save the form, or cancel out of it, in order to see the Quick Launch.

Ribbon

The ribbon is the toolbar that you use to perform actions on what's currently in the main display area.

Main display area

The main display area contains information about your projects and tasks. This is the main focus of each page, and is where you will enter and review data.

That’s it!You’ve got the basics of how to get around withinProject Web App.

Just want to see a list of projects?

Most of the time, you’ll probably be entering time and task progress for tasks that you’re assigned to. Occasionally, though, you might want to look at a list of all the projects you’re working on. The Project Center shows a list of of your projects.

Click Projects on the Quick Launch.

Click the name of a project in the list to view that project’s tasks and schedule.

Click through the links below the project name on the Quick Launch to view information about the project.

Scroll through the list of tasks, and view them on the Gantt chart on the right, to see the work planned for this project.

/
? / TIP Slide the splitter in the middle over to see more of either side of the view. /
Also, what’s a Gantt chart? A Gantt chart is a fancy timeline. It shows time going across the top, with bars for each row. Progress is shown within each bar, and arrows show how one task or project relates to another.

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Turning in timesheets

Timesheets are the core of what you, as a team member, will do inProject Web App. This chapter covers why timesheets are important, how timesheets work overall inProject Web App, and how you can get yours filled out and turned in.

Why are timesheets important?

Nobody loves filling out timesheets. If you’re working on a lot of different tasks at the same time, it can be hard to figure out how much of your day was spent on each task. It’s also sometimes tough to commit to having worked a set number of hours. Maybe you feel like you should be working more hours, or maybe you feel like you’re working too much. In either case, you might not feel inclined to draw attention to your work hours.

When it comes to managing projects, the focus really isn’t on your work ethic, although of course that’s still important. The focus is about making sure the right things get done on time and within budget. It’s about making sure there are enough people to get the work done without burning anyone out, or costing the organization more money than planned. / The focus is about making sure the right things get done on time and within budget.

Project managers use timesheet data to help them figure out how many people need to be assigned to similar tasks in future projects. Your HR department might use this data to make sure they have appropriate headcount allocated to certain roles. And yes, timesheets can translate to dollars in your pocket if you’re paid hourly. But it’s important to remember that’s not all your timesheet data is…there are bigger-picture benefits for your organization, that result in better planning and efficiency going forward.

And you’ll see the benefit of that better planning and efficiency too, because you won’t end up having to put in a ton of overtime trying to get your work done on time. Your project manager will have a realistic expectation of how long things take to get done, or how many people are actually needed on a given task, and you might end up getting your weekend back. 

Okay, I’m convinced. Now how does it work?

Behind the scenes, an administrator sets up the timesheet periods for your organization (for example, each week might be a separate timesheet). /
/ When your project manager assigns you to a task, that task shows up on your timesheet during the period when it is scheduled in the project plan.
/ You fill out the actual hours you spend on each task during the timesheet period, and then you submit it.
Every person in Project Web App is assigned a timesheet manager (sometimes more than one). Your timesheet manager might be the project manager, or it might be someone else, like a resource manager that is responsible for people across your entire organization.
Your timesheet manager receives the timesheet that you turned in, and reviews it. If everything looks good, your timesheet is approved. If things look different than expected, your timesheet manager might reject it and add some comments about why it’s being rejected. /
If your timesheet is approved, the time you submitted counts toward the total amount of work done on the task, and the amount of work remaining on the task is reduced. This is recorded in the overall project plan, so that the project manager can accurately account for whether the project is progressing as planned.

Let’s fill out your timesheet!

First, we need to get to the Timesheet view.
On the Quick Launch, click Timesheet. /

The Timesheet view is made up of a table with two sides, and a splitter in the middle.

? / TIP Slide the splitter in the middle over to see more of either side of the view. /

Ready to enter your hours?

Find the task that you worked on in the list on the left side, and then follow the row across to the right side of the view.

Don’t see the task you worked on?

Tasks assigned to you that are scheduled for the dates in the current timesheet period will be automatically included on your timesheet. Sometimes, however, you might start work on a task early, for example, and need to add a task to your timesheet that isn’t automatically included. You can add a task to your timesheet, and your time will be accounted for in the project.

Click the Timesheet tab on the ribbon.

Click Add Row, and then choose the kind of task you want to add.

What about hours that aren’t part of a project?

Your timesheet may also include non-project lines, to represent things like training, travel, or even sick time and vacation. These are referred to as administrative tasks, and you fill out hours in those rows the same as any other task. The difference with administrative tasks is that the hours don’t roll up to any particular project.

▶ / NOTE There’s more to read about sick leave and vacation time in Chapter 4:Vacation, sick leave, and other non-project hours.

How do I get a task off of my timesheet?

If your timesheet includes a task that you aren’t currently working on, it’s really best to just leave it there. It may look a bit cluttered, but removing it can cause issues for other time periods. However, if a task on your timesheet isn’t really yours, you can remove it from your timesheet. This submits a request to be removed from the task altogether, and your project manager can decide whether this is the right call.

Select the check box for the row.

Click the Options tab on the ribbon.

Click Remove Task.

Need to enter hours for a different timesheet period?

There may be times when you need to enter time for a different period than the current one. Maybe you forgot to fill out your time for a previous week, or you might want to put in hours ahead of time because you know you’ll be in training or on vacation when timesheets are due.

Click the Timesheet tab on the ribbon.

Click Select Period, and then choose which period you want to show.

If you don’t see the period you want listed, click Select Period to set specific dates.Older periods may be closed for editing. /

And…SUBMIT!

After you’ve entered your hours on a timesheet, the next step is to submit it to your manager for approval.

Click the Timesheet tab on the ribbon.

Click SendTurn in Final Timesheet.

/
? / TIP When you choose Turn in Final Timesheet, your timesheet is locked for editing. If you’re not ready to commit to that, click Send Progress for All Tasks or Send Progress for Selected Tasks.

Peek at what’s going on behind the scenes

After submitting your timesheet, it should theoretically go to your manager for approval. Sometimes, however, things go a little sideways and something might get stuck in the system. It’s a complicated system…these things happen.

You can check on the things you’ve submitted using the My Queued Jobs page.

Click Settings > PWA Settings.

Click My Queued Jobs.

Use the JobsView list to narrow down what’s displayed in the grid.

In the grid, you can see all of your actions inProject Web App, including the state of each action, and whether it is complete.

If something doesn’t seem to be acting the way you expect, take a look in your queued jobs to see if something is stuck. If you see anything that looks problematic, it might be worth chatting with your project manager or administrator.

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More than just hours: Updating task progress

While it’s important to turn in the hours you work on your tasks, it’s equally important to communicate with your project manager about how things are going in a more general way.

This chapter covers what the differences are between reporting time and updating task progress, why it’s important to keep your project manager up to date, and how to submit your task progress in Project Web App. We’ll also cover how you can capture issues and risks, and where you can store documents.

Time vs. task progress: What’s the difference?

Before we talk about how to report on task progress in Project Web App, it’s important to make sure we’re clear on the differences between time and task progress.

 / Time is the actual number of hours you spend working on a specific task. This is what you fill out on your timesheet (covered in Chapter 2: Turning in timesheets), to capture the number of hours you spent on different things during your work week.
◔ / Task progress is an umbrella term for things like the percent of work that is complete for a task (percent complete), and how much work is left to do before the task is finished (remaining work).

Submitting task progress is a way to capture a broader description of how you think things are going with your tasks.