Working with Waterfall Plan Tasks

This how to article will help Project Managers and Project Team Members to add, configure, edit and update waterfall plan tasks using the Projects application in TDNext. The user must have the appropriate permissions to create, edit and update tasks in the Task section of their assigned security role in TDAdmin.

Overview

The sections below provide step-by-step guidance for using all of the features available with waterfall plan tasks.

Adding a New Task

To add a new task to a waterfall plan:

1. Navigate to TDNext > Applications > Projects.
2. Click on the project name in the left navigation to expand it.
3. Click Plans in the sub navigation.
4. In the plan list, click the Title of the waterfall plan.
5. On the right side of the plan toolbar, click Check Out.

This will lock the plan, preventing others from trying to use it while you make modifications.

6. In the Title column, click in a cell and add a title for the task.
7. Enter a Start Date if you know when you will begin the task. Or enter an End Date if you know when you need to finish by.
8. Enter the Duration as an estimated number of days or weeks the task will take.
9. In the Predecessor column, enter the row number for any task that must be completed before this one can begin.

You can establish dependencies between tasks which would require task A to be finished before task B can start. Altering the start or end date on the predecessor will automatically adjust the dates of the dependent.
These relationships are visually represented on the Gantt chart by a connecting line.

10. Set a Priority and enter Estimated Hours.
11. Double-click the empty Resources field to open a dropdown list of the project’s resources.
12. Select one or more resources to be assigned to the task.
13. Click Check In to stop editing and make the plan available to others.

Creating Parent and Child Tasks

You can create a hierarchy on your plan by indenting tasks. When you indent a task, it becomes a child of the task above it- the parent task. Parent tasks reflect a summary of the start date, end date, duration, and % complete values entered for the indented child tasks.

Many changes you make to a parent task will also change the associated child tasks. If you move a parent row up or down, the child tasks will move with it. Copying and pasting parent tasks will also copy and paste the child tasks. If you delete a parent, the children will also be deleted. To delete the parent without deleting the child tasks, unindent the children to remove the parent-child relationship first.

To add child tasks to a parent:

1. Create the parent task first.
2. Enter the child tasks below the parent.
3. Select all of the child rows, then click the Indent button in the toolbar.

Adding Resources to Tasks

Resources that have already been added to a project can be assigned to the project tasks. Multiple resources can be added to each task, and the percentage of work will automatically be split across the assigned resources. Resources cannot be added to a parent task.

To add resources to a task:

1. Navigate to TDNext > Projects > [Project Name] > Plans.
2. Click the Title of the desired plan.
3. Check Out the plan.
4. In the task row, double-click or use the F2 key in the Resources field.
5. In the dropdown, click the checkboxes for the resources you wish to add.
6. When finished, Check In the plan.

Learn more about working with project resources.

Adding Task Dependencies

Tasks can be marked as dependent on other tasks. This means that the dependent task cannot be started/completed before its predecessor (task it is dependent on) is complete. It is possible to have more than one predecessor. 

Basic predecessor rules:

• A child task cannot be dependent on its parent task.
• The first task added to a plan will not have options for dependency until a second task is added.
• A circular dependency of task dependencies is not allowed (ex: Task 3 depends on Task 2 which depends on Task 1 which depends on Task 3).

To add a task dependency:

1. Navigate to TDNext > Projects > [Project Name] > Plans.
2. Click the Title of the desired plan.
3. Check Out the plan.
4. In the task row, double-click in the Predecessors field.
5. Enter the row number of the predecessor task.

   If there is more than one predecessor for a task, enter each row number, separated by commas.

6. Press the Enter key.
7. Check In your plan.

Types of Task Dependencies

There are four types of relationships a task can have with its predecessor(s). These reference the overall row number (not the WBS number) are entered in dependent task row, in the Predecessors column, behind the predecessor row value. By default, all predecessors are End to Start with a one day delay (ES +1).

• End to Start (ES): Predecessor task should end (+ or - the specified lag time) before the dependent task starts.
• End to End (EE): Predecessor task should end (+ or - the specified lag time) before the dependent task ends.
• Start to Start (SS): Predecessor task should start (+ or - the specified lag time) before the dependent task starts.
• Start to End (SE): Predecessor task should start (+ or - the specified lag time) before the dependent task ends.

Task Dependency Examples

For the examples below the dependent task will be in row 4, and the predecessor task is in row 3.  The values here are what you would enter in the dependent task row.

• 3 ES +2 (the predecessor task in row 3 will end, and the dependent task in row 4 will start 2 days later)
• 3 EE 

Impact of Delays on Task Dependencies

Tasks with these relationships will be considered delayed under the following circumstances for each respective relationship:

• ES: The dependent task will be considered delayed if the dependent task should have started, but the predecessor is not yet complete.
• EE: The dependent task will be considered delayed if the dependent task should have ended today or before, but the predecessor is not yet complete.
• SS: The dependent task will be considered delayed if the dependent task should have started, but the predecessor is delayed.
• SE: the dependent task will be considered delayed if the dependent task should have ended, but the predecessor is delayed.

Removing Task Dependencies

1. In the task row, double-click in the Predecessors field.
2. Delete the values in the field.
3. Once complete, press the Enter key.

Adding External Task Dependencies

Waterfall tasks can also identify task predecessors external to the plan.  This means predecessors can be identified in other waterfall plans in the same project or a different project.   The user must be a manager/alternate manager on both plans.

To add an external predecessor when working on a waterfall plan:

1. Navigate to TDNext > Projects > [Project Name] > Plans.
2. Click the Title of the desired plan.
3. Check Out the plan.
4. In the task row, right-click on the task to bring up the task menu.
5. Click Add External Predecessor.
6. Choose the Project, and Plan.
7. Click the search icon to bring up the list of tasks, and select the Task that is the Predecessor.
   1. NOTE: Users will only see tasks assigned to them if the security role permission "Add time to my tasks only" is checked.
8. Select Relationship Type and Relationship Lag.
9. Click Save to establish the relationship.

Adding Project Milestone Tasks

To create a project milestone:

1. Open the desired plan and click Check Out.
2. Add the task to the plan.
3. Click the task Title field or the entire task row so that it is highlighted.
4. Click the Milestone button in the toolbar.

Copying and Pasting Tasks

When a task is copied in a plan, all the task details will be duplicated, except the actual hours and percent complete will be set to zero.

Copying and pasting parent tasks will copy and paste the parent task and all of its child tasks.

To copy and paste a waterfall plan task:

1. Insert a blank row into the plan using the +Insert button.
2. Click the row number of the row to be copied, to highlight the entire task row.
3. Click the Copy button.
4. Select the empty <New Task> field.
5. Click the Paste button.

Adding Attachments to a Task

Attachments can be uploaded from your computer, from a briefcase, or from another cloud service such as Google Drive or Box.

To add an attachment to a task:

1. From the open waterfall plan, double-click the task name to open the task detail window.
2. Click the +Add button and select Attachment.
3. In the Add Attachment window, select the source to add the attachment from.
4. Locate and attach the file.
5. Return to the task detail window, and click the Refresh button to see the newly added attachments on the General tab.

Adding Progress Updates to a Task

To update the progress made on a task:

1. From the open waterfall plan, double-click the task name.
2. Click the Update button.
3. Update the Percent Complete value.
4. Depending on the task, you might also be able to enter actual hours by selecting a Time Type from the dropdown, enter the hours worked in the Hours field, and enter the date the hours were worked.
5. You may also enter Comments and add additional users to be notified of progress on this task.
6. Click Save and close the task details window to see the update reflected in the plan.

Viewing Hours Worked and Adding Additional Hours

To view actual hours worked on a task:

1. From the open waterfall plan, double-click the task name.
2. In the task window, a summary of the estimated hours and actual hours appear in the General tab.

To add additional hours:

3. Click the Work tab.
4. Select a time type from the Time Type dropdown list
5. Select the week using the date picker or arrows.
6. To add additional actual hours, enter them in the Hours textbox for the relevant day, and enter a description of the work performed in the Description textbox.
7. Click the Save button.

Note that tasks will auto populate your timecard for those users using the Time and Expense application based on task dates and timesheet date.

Editing a Task

To edit a waterfall task:

1. In TDNext navigate to Projects > [Project Name] > Plans > [Plan Title].
2. On the waterfall plan, double-click the task name.
3. In the task detail window, click the Edit button.
4. Make the desired changes.
5. Click the Save button.

Viewing Issues Related to a Task

Any Issues that have been added to a task can be viewed from the plan. Learn more about issues here. Issues within TeamDynamix are records that act as temporary questions or action items that arise during a Project. When creating an Issue, there is an option to select which Project task associated to the question. This is an optional field you can use.

To view all issues associated with a task:

1. Open the desired plan.
2. For tasks that have issues associated with them, a red exclamation point and number will appear in the Status column. Click the icon to open the Issues tab of the task window.
3. Click an issue Title to open the Issue Detail window.

Looking Up Who Has Viewed a Task

To view the list of project team members who have viewed a task:

1. In TDNext navigate to Projects > [Project Name] > Plans.
2. Open the desired plan.
3. Double-click the task row to open the task detail window.
4. In the General tab, the list of project members who have read the task will appear under Read By.

Setting Alerts on Waterfall Tasks

The user can set task alerts for themselves and for other project team members that will automatically send an email to the recipient when the alert is triggered.

To set an alert on a task:

1. Navigate to TDNext > Projects > [Project Name] > Plans.
2. Open the desired plan.
3. In the plan window, double-click on the task row.
4. In the task details window, click on the Alerts tab.
5. Click the Alert dropdown and select the project member that you want to set the alert for.
6. Click the When dropdown and click the checkboxes for all the alerts that you want to apply.
7. Click the Save button.

To delete an alert, click the Delete link in the row of the alert you wish to delete.

In order for project task alerts to trigger, the project must not be in an On Hold status classification.

Deleting a Project Task

To delete a project task:

1. Navigate to TDNext > Projects > [Project Name] > Plans.
2. Click the Title of the desired plan.
3. Check Out the plan.
4. Click on the task row number to highlight the row.
5. Click the Delete button in the toolbar.
6. Click OK on the confirmation popup.
7. Check In the plan when finished.

Gotchas & Pitfalls

• The permissions for adding, editing, deleting and updating tasks are be set separately from one another within the Tasks section of a security role. None are restricted to users with a Project Manager or higher license type, so they can all be assigned to Technicians/Team Members as well.
• Project tasks can only be assigned to those that are added as a resource on that projects.
• When adding external predecessor tasks, users will only see tasks assigned to them if the security role permission "Add time to my tasks only" is checked.