Project management template in Excel

Project managers face the difficult duty of coordinating budgets and projects while overseeing employees and presenting reports to their superiors. Reaching multiple deadlines whilst staying organized is an almost impossible task. This is only made worse if you have to manage an online team. As this is a common problem for a lot of businesses, a lot of software companies have created tools to ease some of the workload. Sadly, most of these tools are extremely expensive, and actually complicate matters further thanks to the need for extra training to use the features effectively. Not only do you waste money, but you also waste precious time. That’s why Sheetgo has a project management template in Excel.

If you’ve used Microsoft Excel before, you’re aware of its large array of capabilities, including real-time data syncing, comprehensive sharing capabilities. As a result, it’s the perfect spreadsheet program for project management and collaboration with colleagues. The high level of cloud computing Microsoft Excel uses takes teamwork to a new level. The Project management template by Sheetgo is therefore the best way to create an entirely automated system using your Excel files. Let’s explore how the template works and how you can implement it into your operations in a matter of minutes.

Why use Microsoft Excel to manage expenses?

  • Flexible: You can tailor Excel spreadsheets to your business’s specific demands and expectations. And best of all, you do not need any coding or software knowledge to adapt the Project management template in Excel to your needs.
  • Accessible: All your data is accessible from anywhere in the world. You can share it with your colleagues so they can easily collaborate with you. This makes the Project management template in Excel completely accessible as long as you have an internet connection.
  • Compatible: Microsoft Excel is easily compatible with any software you or a colleague might be using. Because of this, different departments of your company can import data into the Project management template in Excel with ease.
  • Ease of use: Most of your staff are likely familiar with the use of spreadsheets which makes onboarding easier. As a result, an Excel-based project management template is perfect for both beginners and advanced users.

What is a spreadsheet-based workflow template?

A Sheetgo workflow template is a whole system, whereas a conventional spreadsheet template is a single file including styles, graphs, tables, and formulas. The system comprises a collection of Excel spreadsheets that are all linked together. Consequently, you can easily transfer and share data between files, so that your team members have the latest data insights whilst working on their own sheets.

A spreadsheet-based workflow template provides additional benefits to help optimize your operations. Here are just a few:

  • Organization and data privacy: Each document is assigned to a certain activity, ensuring that information is kept safe and isolated. Every member of the team has their own spreadsheet within the Project management template in Excel. They can see what tasks they need to complete and track their progress within their file. The manager’s primary spreadsheet and dashboard get data from these files. Without having to contact team members, the supervisor can monitor the status of tasks in the automated Gannt chart.
  • Scalability: Although you can easily share Excel files, this becomes more difficult as you store more data. On the other hand, the Excel template system will continue to run smoothly as data remains in distinct but connected spreadsheets. When you want to add a new member of the team to the process, you simply duplicate and share one of the collaborator spreadsheets with them.
  • Integration: A spreadsheet-based workflow template enables managers to integrate and aggregate data from across the entire department, as well as import data from other tools. This data then comes together in the master sheet. You may combine your project management workflow with your accounting workflow (or a workflow from any other department) to produce a high-level report for supervisors.

What you get with this template

The Project management template in Excel is made up of the following:
  • 3 collaborator spreadsheets: Each spreadsheet is shared with a single team member. Here, they can view the personal task they have to complete. They input their progress status, which is then sent to the master sheet. You can duplicate this spreadsheet for as many members of your team.
  • 1 project management sheet: Owned by the project manager. They assign tasks to other team members, and the task automatically transfers to the spreadsheet of the person responsible. Once the person responsible completes a task or changes the task status, this information automatically flows back to the master sheet. The manager then has an overview of real-time progress updates, thanks to the automatic Gantt chart dashboard.
project management templateexcel

How to get the Project management template for Excel

To begin, click the blue button below and install the Project management template by Sheetgo:
Project management

Google Sheets workflow template to allocate tasks, get status updates and track progress.

  1. Log into Sheetgo if you already have an account. Alternatively, sign up using Microsoft, Dropbox, or a Google account.
  2. Click on the Install template button and choose the platform you like to store the template copy.
  3. Wait for Sheetgo to set up your new workflow.
project management template excel

How to use the Project management template for Excel

Step 1: Choose your settings

Open up the Project management master sheet in Excel. Click on the Instructions tab. You should see a section called Inputs on the right-hand side of the sheet.

Adjust your settings in the boxes. This includes the project start date, Gannt view format, and the day of the week of which your work week starts.

project management template excel

Step 2: Input project tasks

Go to the WBS tab within the master sheet, and enter your project data by overwriting the sample data (columns E to G).

project management template excel
Please note: the template creates a WBS ID code for every task automatically. Do not edit the gray template columns, since they contain pre-written formulas.

What is a WBS?

WBS is an abbreviation for Work Breakdown Structure. It’s a technique for breaking down a project into small, achievable chunks.

Organize the project by clicking on the WBS tap and filling out columns E to G: ‘Project’, ‘Sub-project’, and ‘Task title’. Here’s an example of breaking down a project into smaller steps:

Project: “Planning”

Sub-project: “Preliminary scope plan”

Task title: “Research”

Step 3: Enter the dependencies of the tasks

Now, input the dependency of each task in columns H and I. This lets you know whether a task can begin when another one starts (Start-to-start), or whether a task can only begin once another has been completed (Start-to-finish).

For example, in the screenshot below, you can see that task 1.5.1 can only begin once 1.1.1 has is complete.

Enter any dependencies of tasks in column H. Change the dependency relationship of your tasks by selecting an option from the dropdown menu in Column I.

project management template excel

Step 4: Select the duration of a task and the owner

Use column J to enter in how many days a task must be completed. Use column K to add the name of the task owner.

project management template excel
Please note: Do not change any content within the grey cells of columns L and M. Formulas within the columns automatically calculate the start and end date of a task.

Step 5: Give the team member spreadsheets a new name

Rename the 3 collaborator spreadsheets to the names of your team members. To do this, simply head to Workflow, click on the File tab, select More options (⋮) > Rename for each spreadsheet.

project management template excel

Step 6: Update the connections

To send the new tasks to the spreadsheets of the corresponding task owners, click the Run button located in Workflow. All your spreadsheets are now up-to-date.

project management template excel

Step 7: Share files with your colleagues

It’s time to share the collaborator spreadsheets with your colleagues. Open each collaborator sheet, and click the Share button in the top right-hand corner. 

Enter the email address of the collaborator and click Send.

project management template excel

Step 8: Enter your progress as a team member

Now the allocated task for each employee appears on their own spreadsheet, each employee can now enter their progress for each task as a percentage under column G.

project management template excel
Please note: Do not edit column A to F.

Step 9: Automation of the workflow

Now that the system is set up and your team members are entering their progress, you can automate the workflow. This will cause information to flow automatically between the spreadsheets at a single or multiple moments of the day, making sure your Gantt chart and all spreadsheets are up to date.

Simply head to Workflow, and press the Automate button. Create a custom schedule by selecting the days and hours you wish to update your workflow. Once finished, click Save.

project management template excel

Step 10: Monitor progress

From the master sheet, you can now easily track the progress of all the tasks from the Gantt tab.

project management template excel

How you expand/add more files to your workflow

Do you want to expand the Project management template in Excel and increase the number of collaborator sheets? Simply copy a collaborator sheet and use Sheetgo connections to link it to your master sheet.

If your project is more complicated, you can always arrange a call with a Sheetgo automation expert who will help you create the exact workflow your company needs.

Excel-based project management template

And there you have it! You now have a self-sufficient workflow that effectively updates and helps manage all of your project management needs. With the number of hours you save using this Sheetgo template, you can now invest this time into other important aspects of your business.

Looking for more project management templates?

Sheetgo has a vast number of templates to choose from, for almost every department. Check out our template gallery if you want to automate other parts of the project management department.

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