PPM Project Tasks

Individual Resources are assigned at a PPM Project Task level.

This functionality is only available after you apply the mApp Solution.

You can import Project information from Microsoft Project or Excel to create or update Project Task plans.

Cherwell PPM does not support a bi-directional relationship and associated date updates to Project Tasks like MS Project can. For example, if you update a Project Task date or effort, CSM does not modify the associated successor tasks with new information based on the Project Task update.

If Project Tasks (example: change assignment, effort, start/end dates) are updated in CSM, these updates will only reside in CSM and will be overlaid if there is an update activity initiated from MS Project.

We recommend you use one of the two following methods for creating and maintaining your Project Tasks:

  • Use MS Project/Excel for new and update activities for CSM Project Tasks.
  • Use MS Project/Excel to create the new CSM Project Tasks and then all updates are done in CSM.

To manually create a PPM Project Task:

  1. In the Project Tasks tab, select New Project Task.
  2. Enter a Title.
  3. Project automatically populates.
  4. Select an owner (Assigned To).
    The Role Field automatically populates based on the Assigned To Field.
  5. (Optional) Select a Task Type and add a Description.
    Use the Rich Text editor if necessary.
  6. The Duration automatically calculates after entering the Scheduled Start and End Dates.
  7. Enter an Outline Number.

    Remember: There must be a "0" Outline Task. The information from this task will populate the Project start date, end date, and effort Fields in the Project. For other Project Tasks, provide an Outline number that is unique, sequential, and represents the relationship to other tasks (example: Task 1 is a parent task and it can have child tasks with outline numbers such as 1.1, 1.2, 1.3)

    If you are manually creating Project Tasks, we recommend they be at a high level (not many levels deep with predecessors), because CSM will not modify the downstream impacted fields based on changed parent information.

  8. (Optional) Enter the Effort hours and a Resource Percentage (this is informational only and does not impact the Effort Field).
  9. Select Scheduled Start and End Dates.
  10. (Optional) Select Actual Start and End Dates.
  11. Hours Worked is automatically populated from the Time Entry process.
    The Hours Worked Field populates up to parent tasks.
  12. % Complete automatically populates from the Time Entry process, but can be changed.
  13. Planned Remaining Effort automatically populates by calculated Effort minus Hours Worked.
    The Planned Remaining Effort Field populates to parent tasks.
  14. Est. Remaining Effort automatically populates from the Time Entry process (this is the resource's estimate of what effort is remaining, regardless of the planned effort or hours worked).
    The Est. Remaining Effort Field populates to parent tasks.
  15. Total Effort automatically populates by calculating Hours Worked plus Estimated Remaining Effort.
  16. You can set up three Predecessors Tasks, if necessary. Enter information for the following:
    1. Predecessor Task name and Task Type.
    2. Predecessor Name automatically populates. The Predecessor tab shows the Predecessor Tasks.