Microsoft Project Reviews

It's my day-to-day software.

I use it for my projects. I handle the portfolio. I have multiple projects and I need to monitor those projects and generate reports and consolidate everything.

The functionality is great. 

Microsoft Project is good overall. However, I especially like the reporting tools, which are visual tools and offer visual reports. The visual reports is what I like about Microsoft Projects.

The initial setup is straightforward. 

The Gantt set needs to be improved. The grid lines needs to be more interactive.

The Cloud version has far more advanced features in it. I haven't hands on it yet, however, I have seen the product, and it has all the enhancements that are required.

I've been using the solution for 15 years now. 

It is a stable, reliable solution. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. 

We have about 100 people on the solution. 

The company is now starting to use the cloud version. They stopped implementing any other versions. Once we migrate to the Cloud version, then we have to see how it's going to compliment us in terms of scaling.

I've not contacted the call center or the support center for any support. I go on the community website and try to find it to see if I can find any kind of troubleshooting steps there, and I manage issues on my own.

I used Primavera previously. 

Primavera is not user friendly, and has no support on the database types. It requires certain a format to be implemented. There are many differences between these two solutions. For a billing or for operational use, Primavera definitely doesn't really suffice.

The setup was straightforward and not as complex as Primavera or any other project management tool.

When it comes to the on-prem deployment of the older versions, you don't usually get the results, you don't find it online. They are not readily available. We need to get into the third party applications and download the third party results. From there on, it's a marathon to install. The cloud version is easier. 

There's not really any maintenance needed. 

I used my administrator during the implementation. I asked him to assist me.

I don't have very much information in terms of pricing. However, it is a necessary tool for us and therefore whether it's cheap or expensive for us.

I'm not sure as to if we need to pay for any extras or deal with ancillary fees. 

We are partners with Microsoft. 

I'm working with the 2019 version at this point. 

I'd advise users to go for the cloud version. It's easier to deploy and share. 

I would rate the solution seven out of ten. 

It is easy to define timelines with Microsoft Project. You can get a clear picture of the model, you want to create.  You can create inside an agile or waterfall model. Microsoft Project is easy to delegate tasks to different members where you want to put the task and who you want to work on it so that you have a clear path.

Right now you can create a timeline with the major up tasks, but there's no real way to mark it. When you are planning, you usually have resources on board for a single task.  Microsoft Project has no way to mark it because it is based more on agile methodology. Many times you want to take it by the resource count and that is where it becomes tricky. 

 I would like to see an entire baseline, like in JIRA. It is like project planning in JIRA, but there's a whole story building that you can do. Microsoft Project needs to incorporate some points of story-building and epic building, which are currently missing. 

I have been working with Microsoft Project for the past month.

Microsoft Project is a stable solution.

There is no problem with Microsoft Project's scalability.

I do not use Microsoft technical support because our company has its own technical support team.

I only use a login feature for Microsoft Project. 

I would rate Microsoft Project an eight and a half out of ten.

Whenever we have a client with a complicated situation, we create a project plan. And we use Microsoft Project (MS Project) for administrating, monitoring, and tracking the project.  For most small projects, MS Project is satisfactory.

We can input information and then share it with the project team and stakeholders. That helps a little, but if somebody changes their mind, it could change how we manage the project. There are some new features in MS Project 2024. However, more features aren't necessarily useful because now you must train people to use them. They may say, "Why do I need this new feature?" Newer versions of MS Project display a warning when a task runs behind schedule. However, it is necessary to input a date change for that warning manually, and administrative action takes precious time.

It's possible to get input from other programs, such as Outlook, but we don't use Outlook for anything other than email, even though it could do other things. Time is a critical resource. We don't have time to learn about these features and use them productively, so they are of no value to us.

MS Project's resource leveling capability is beneficial. We like this feature. We want to be able to expand tasks and look at different resources and task usage. It is good at assigning tasks to teams.

It's generally compliant with the Project Management Institute approach to project management, which means MS Project helps us be more uniform and consistent in conducting each project.

MS Project can insert objects, like a drawing or an Excel worksheet, but cannot handle business rules. Also, I would like to see better integration with graphics applications such as MS Visio. The graphics are primitive and need some major work. I would like to have the ability to insert some small macros within the project for Monte Carlo risk analysis. For example, if you're unsure how much time a task may require, you can generate a reasonable guess.

MS Project is very time and labor-intensive to keep current. You need to update it continually. You may find that you are spending more time maintaining the MS Project file than working on your project. I don't want to devote a person to do that.

MS Project should have the capability to link it to other applications to make the program dynamic when a real-time resource or schedule changes, but it is not dynamic. It would be helpful to insert real-time input data for each project, subproject, or task. If something is going on, I want to see the impact in real-time, if possible.

I want to be able to specify globally what weekend we want or what we want to call a weekend. Also, we might have a project underway seven days a week.

External data sources, like third-party manufacturing processes, impact some tasks. Embedding external processes within MS Project is almost impossible because we don't have programming resources here in a practical sense. Also, the interface of Microsoft Project is proprietary. We want to link different tasks to external sources of inputs and outputs and integrate them automatically with our master project plan, e.g., specific third-party CNC machine data. The supplier's system does not interface with ours'. We have to get the outputs from their system serially and manually update the MS Project file to determine the schedule impact. That takes time. There is a risk of data entry errors at both ends. On tight projects, every minute counts.

I would like to see a control system interface with Microsoft Project. Real-time system data helps predict cost and schedule variances. For example, if you had to finish a day ahead of schedule, you could "talk" to the systems' software and determine if a given machine works for another four hours, then you could meet the accelerated schedule. MS Project requires manual data entry with a risk of mistakes. Presently, there is no automated data entry capability in MS Project. It just doesn't exist. That's why I say it is only suitable for small-sized to medium-sized companies and small projects. Most companies don't have the same problems we have with MS Project.

When you're working on a project that has to get done, you will spend most of the time wrestling with Microsoft Project, whereas you should be using these hours to manage the project.

Thinking on a slightly bigger scale, I would like better integration with Office, Visio, and Access. If you make a change in one application, it should cascade to others and vice versa. It doesn't do that, at least not easily. It is not a dynamic program. I would like to see an active program or at least the capability to be dynamic, even if it is close to real-time where it outputs to a module, and the module then talks to real-time systems. The real-time data goes back into the module, and the module updates the project plan. Such dynamic capability would be superior to what exists now. It may not be genuinely real-time, but it is at least closer to it.

I want to link directly to the data in an Excel spreadsheet so that I don't have to keep going back and forth updating it. I don't want to have to create a dynamic link library or write a macro. Whenever I change the data in an Excel file for a given project or task, it should update the corresponding Visio or PowerPoint file. If I'm doing a pie chart or any graphic, I don't want to manually update my graphics. I want to link them together, and I want them updated automatically. I know it is a wishful thing. Microsoft doesn't make significant changes every time they come out with a new version. However, they don't appear to fix the issue. Instead, they add a few features.

I have been using Microsoft Project since it was released in the mid-1980s. Although MS Project can be helpful, it does not teach project management.

It's relatively stable. I've never had a crash. I can't remember it ever crashing. If I  entered some information that it can't resolve, it usually comes up with an error message.

I think it is limited to around 400,000 tasks. I am not sure. I never had to go that far. We have five consultants who are remote users.

I've never really needed any support. When Microsoft has a seminar or a meeting locally, I might go to it and give my feedback.

Neutral

Installation is automatic and simple, we had no issues.

The implementation was done in-house.

MS Project pays for itself by helping me keep my thinking straight.  The purchase price of the application is insignificant when compared with the time involved in trying to do project management manually on paper attached to large poster boards. We did it that way before the advent of PCs.  There is some benefit to seeing an entire project plan on paper to provide a visual idea of project scope and progress, but intelligent use of MS Project can generate the same information.  It takes a lot of time to become so proficient with MS Project that these key bits of information are generated automatically through accurate and complete task definitions, WBS, and project schedule updates.

Make sure you have a good business reason for purchasing MS Project. It isn't cheap and there are free alternatives, with simple capabilities, available.

MS Project was sufficient for our requirements, so we did not evaluate any other options.

Make sure you understand what MS Project can do and what it cannot do. It cannot read your mind. Just like any other program, it only does what you tell it to do. If you give it the wrong information, it will provide you with incorrect output. It is very labor-intensive. There are minimal capabilities to help you write routines. So, you have to change dates and task names. If you don't understand project management concepts well, you're just going to delude yourself into thinking MS Project helps you. You have to understand the process of project management to use the application effectively. Otherwise, you are wasting your time. It will not teach you how to do project management.

I would rate MS Project a five out of ten because it hasn't evolved that much. Microsoft added lots of bells and whistles, but they don't add much new value. They don't save me much time. I want MS Project to be a dynamic program, but it remains a passive program after more than 30 years. I've made comments about it at some seminars hosted by Microsoft. We've told them to make it a dynamic program or at least have an option to make it active. We would be willing to pay more for this capability. It's worth it, but they don't do it. I guess they don't see enough business potential in doing it that way, and I don't have the resources to create an internal application to make it that way. I am not in that business.

Our company uses Microsoft Project primarily for project planning and milestone tracking.

The tool helps us to check milestones. After doing tasks, our team updates them. Regarding functionalities in Microsoft Project, the number one feature is reminders. With so many projects, sometimes you forget; some projects might slip up or disappear. This feature is very useful.

Additionally, we can track the tasks we can do within a particular project, which is another feature we use. Lastly, we use the tracking function to set deadlines and see what is being accomplished and what remains. The design team uses these features. 

The tool's integration was easy and seamless. We also use it to get a summary of the entire business.

I would like to see a direct integration of Microsoft Project with AutoCAD. It will make client presentations easy. 

I have been working with the product since 2015. 

I rate the tool's stability a nine out of ten. 

I rate the solution's scalability a six out of ten. It's a bit complex to ask some new users. In terms of scalability, for example, if you have two projects or departments you want to merge, you might face challenges. You might have to type them in manually and do manual merging. So, if something could be done to simplify this, it would be great. My company has around 15 users. 

The tool's deployment is easy. 

I rate the solution's pricing a three out of ten.                        

I rate the overall product a seven out of ten.

We use Microsoft Project for its timeline and task management capabilities. The primary advantage is the easy application of tasks in sequence, confirming dependencies, and establishing relationships between tasks. It simplifies handling conditions, significant dates, and dependencies between various tasks.

The tool's most valuable feature is scheduling. 

Microsoft Project's reporting is very complex and not user-friendly. 

I have been working with the product for ten years. 

I rate the tool's stability a nine out of ten. 

The tool's deployment is very straightforward. 

I rate Microsoft Project's pricing a five out of ten. 

I rate the solution a nine out of ten. 

We use Microsoft Project for application lifecycle management (ALM), use case definition, follow-up, and project management activity.

The most valuable feature of Microsoft Project is status reporting. Microsoft Project is easy to use and has a user-friendly UI.

Microsoft Project should include more visualization, queries to filter out data, and more reporting structures.

I have been using Microsoft Project for two years.

Microsoft Project is a stable solution.

I rate Microsoft Project a nine out of ten for stability.

Microsoft Project is a scalable solution. Around 50 to 60 users use the solution extensively in our organization.

We implemented the solution through an in-house team.

Microsoft Project is an expensive solution.

Microsoft Project is deployed on the cloud in our organization. I would recommend Microsoft Project to other users.

Overall, I rate Microsoft Project a nine out of ten.

I primarily use the solution for project planning. 

The product is very easy to use. It makes it easy to present projects as well. 

It's an easy solution to set up.

The solution can scale.

It is stable.

We'd like the solution to have better integration with other third-party and open-source solutions. We have trouble importing and exporting to other tools. 

I've been using the solution for two to five years. 

It's a stable solution. It's reliable. We haven't had any problems with it. There are no bugs or glitches, and it doesn't crash or freeze.

The solution scales well. It is very easy to extend it. 

We have about five to ten users on the solution. At this point, we do not have plans to increase usage. We might in the future. 

I have not used technical support. I've never needed assistance. 

I have used a different solution previously.

The initial setup is very simple and straightforward. 

It is quick to set up. It took about an hour to deploy.

We have five people that are able to handle deployment and maintenance tasks. Typically, we have two or three available. 

We handled the deployment in-house. We did not need any outside assistance. 

We pay a monthly licensing fee for the solution. I'm not sure of the exact cost of the product.

I am not sure if we are using the latest version of the solution. 

I'd recommend the solution to others. 

I would rate it eight out of ten. 

Our company has a project department that is responsible for project deployment. When a new client comes up, they will have a lot of PMPS packs which have a list of activities. We use the tool to plan projects.

The tool has a simple and excellent approach.

The solution is a basic tool that does not give you analytical insights. It does not have any AI capabilities which can also help to plan.

The solution is stable. I would rate the solution’s stability a seven out of ten.

The tool is scalable. You just need to send a requirement for more licenses. There are around five users for the solution in our company.

We do not use any paid support services from Microsoft since our requirements are not high.

The solution’s setup is very easy.

I would rate the solution a seven out of ten.