We’re not going to say that Excel always trumps regular project management solutions. Project managers looking for a simple, all-in-one platform can use Excel for projects of any size, in any function. You can make your spreadsheets as detailed as you like, and with conditional formatting, you can generate powerful data insights in seconds. The thing that continues to set Microsoft Excel apart is just how adaptable it is. Compare that to project management tools, which can often cost hundreds of dollars a month. You can use Microsoft Excel for free, so long as you have a Microsoft account. Microsoft products aren’t just for businesses with enterprise-sized budgets anymore. That means you’re in for a steep learning curve, whether you’re learning your first tool or your fifth. Dedicated project management tools, on the other hand, can get incredibly complex - and no two are the same. While Microsoft Excel spreadsheets can get complicated, grasping their basic logic isn’t. And even if you’re moving from job to job every few years, learning to manage projects in Excel is a skill you’ll use everywhere. That’s enough to bet that most of the external collaborators you’ll work with - from other companies to freelancers - are at least familiar with the tool. Over 750 million people use Microsoft Excel. The benefits of using Microsoft Excel for project managementĭespite the prevalence of specialized project management tools on the market, there are notable advantages that come with using Microsoft Excel for your project management needs. Because Excel is so flexible, you can use it to manage all sorts of projects, with teams of any size. Like Microsoft Excel.īy putting Microsoft Excel together with these disciplines, you get Microsoft Excel project management, which just means using spreadsheets as the core of your project management strategy. They usually use dedicated project management tools, like Asana, Trello, or ClickUp.īut a great project manager can make any tool work. Project managers are specialists at managing resources, hammering out a work breakdown structure, and making sure everyone knows what’s going on with a particular project. And if they also get done on time and on budget, all the better. The term “project management” covers a number of methodologies, techniques, and strategies all aimed at one thing: getting projects done. What is Microsoft Excel project management? Turns out it’s not just possible, but sometimes preferable to using a dedicated project management tool. But what about getting projects done? Can you use Microsoft Excel for project management too? Are there templates out there for this sort of thing? Getting feedback from the whole organization? Spreadsheet. Need to write up a budget for a project? Spreadsheet.

Ī spreadsheet is a powerhouse of a platform that can do just about anything. Published in Project management on, last updated.

Ms excel project planner