So you've been handed a project, but the only requirement is the due date? A workback schedule can help you flesh out the details.
What do project managers do when they have a fixed project deadline, and don't know where to start? Create a workback schedule!
But what is a workback schedule? Why is it important? Let's take a look!
In contrast to traditional project scheduling techniques, a workback schedule is a tool that maps out a project's timeline in reverse order - that is, from the delivery date to the start date. You should reverse engineer a project's schedule if the only thing you've been given as a requirement is the project's due date.
In simple terms, a workback schedule is calendar that clearly outlines all the tasks required to meet a project deadline by identifying task completion from end to beginning rather than from beginning to end. This is why a workback schedule is also known as a reverse timeline.
A workback schedule helps you find answers to questions such as:
Project managers use a workback schedule by dividing time into specific blocks. Each block has been built on the blocks that have preceded it. This approach is especially helpful for projects in large organizations, where the ability to accurately estimate project completion times is vital in order to meet project targets.
It also clearly communicates to everyone how much time is remaining before the due date.
New to project scheduling? Find the answers here ➡️
Imagine your marketing agency is responsible for creating a brochure or prospectus for a college. There is an immovable deadline of February – the date when the finished product needs to be at the mailing house, ready to be sent to college recruitment fairs around the country.
Before that, you need to complete a number of project phases, all involving different teams and resources.
A workback schedule lets you work backwards from the delivery date to the research phase, and work out how much time you’ll need for each stage in order to meet your deadline.
As well as how long each stage takes, you’ll need to consider any dependencies. For example, your team can’t write anything before you’ve completed your research, so they have to run sequentially – one after the other. But you could have separate teams working on the writing and photography concurrently – at the same time.
You’ll need to factor in some buffer time too. If one phase overruns, you need to know it won’t derail the rest of the project. Remember, your deadline is immovable. If you don’t have buffer time and one phase runs on too long, it will mean stealing time back from other stages, which could impact quality.
Here’s how your workback schedule will begin to shape up…
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By working backwards from your final deadline, you now have a provisional project schedule. While a workback schedule is worked out backwards, now you have your phases planned, you’ll actually present the schedule forward, like a traditional project timeline.
The workback schedule is especially useful for complex projects with many moving parts where you want to ensure that each task gets the appropriate attention at the right time.
Here’s how a workback schedule can benefit your next project.
Workback schedules force you to work out every phase and task required to complete a project. You end up with a clearer overview of the project’s timeline, milestones, and dependencies. This makes it easier to identify potential problems and make adjustments as needed.
It also helps you determine whether a project deadline is actually achievable before you start working on it – meaning less risk of project failure.
A workback schedule makes it easier to plan, allocate, and optimize resources during a project. You have a clear view of what resources are needed when – whether that’s people with specific skills, equipment like design tools, or materials like paper. This helps you allocate resources at just the right time to keep your project schedule on track. It also boosts resource utilization – see best practices!
In the example above, the workback schedule highlighted likely resource shortages over the summer and winter holiday seasons and recommended ways to mitigate that resource risk. This advance knowledge helps your project dodge potential icebergs in the water.
Large, complex projects can be overwhelming. A workback schedule breaks projects down into smaller, more manageable milestones. This helps prioritize tasks and effort, and keeps team members focused.
It also helps the project manager monitor progress and take corrective action before it’s too late.
With a workback schedule, team members can see who is responsible for what – improving accountability and communication – while reducing the risk of missed deadlines or project overruns. There will also be better communication between team members as you can see who is doing what task when.
Workback schedules keep everyone accountable as there will be no time for slip-ups that lead to overrun. Everyone can see the immovable deadline looming – and how their individual deadlines impact delivery.
Detailed workback schedules bring reassurance that nothing has been overlooked. It provides a framework to plan out all of your tasks in advance, so you know exactly what needs to be done and when. It also helps you communicate with stakeholders and manage their expectations, which means less stress all round.
You are more likely to use a workback schedule if you have a project that has a fixed end date regardless of the resources needed. This means that you will start with the last task on the last day. You will allocate your resources in reverse which will help you determine which dates you will need specific resources.
Reverse resource allocation also means that you will schedule specific experts for your project. For example, if you are creating a technical product and you know that only one person in your company has the specific expertise, you will schedule this person to work on this task on a specific date. You will also have to assign projects from this date backward to ensure everything is in place so that you can use this resource at the correct time.
The biggest challenge PMs face when using a workback schedule is the fact that the deadline cannot be extended by any circumstances. You can either start the project earlier or bring in more resources.
Equally, there is no way to account for unforeseen issues, delays, or problems. Although the workback schedule will help organize the work and can be used to track progress, it is still a manual process. As such, it is challenging to manage or deal with unexpected events.
In addition, most project managers are in charge of multiple projects simultaneously, and they need to quickly shift focus from one task to another. It can be difficult to keep up with changes, especially if a different person on the team makes those changes without prior consultation.
It’s also important to consider how long tasks will take you and your team members to do. If you’re off on your estimates, you will have to go back and edit your schedule again and again until you get it right.
Another challenge is trying to schedule all tasks and projects to be completed by a specific due date when you are facing time constraints. If you feel your team won't be able to meet the deadlines, have an honest conversation with your client to modify the project to meet the due date.
There are some ways of dealing with the downside of workback scheduling. One option is to use a project management tool like Runn that can automate some of the work so that you don't have to manually update everything all at once.
To create your own workback schedule you have to:
Here are the steps you should follow to create workback schedules:
Arrange any deliverables, due dates, and teams in order and estimate how long it will take to meet any deadlines. You will need to plan with your team members and communicate with your clients and other relevant parties to determine the appropriate due dates.
You can streamline production by coordinating milestone delivery dates to the same workday each week.
This is where you get into the specific details of the project plan. For an important project, it's a good rule to run at least two different versions of this to start with, such as a best-case and worst-case scenario.
If you are unsure about how long a particular task will take, or where it should feature in your reverse timeline, seek advice from colleagues who may be able to give you a clearer idea of the time tasks will take, and what the tasks nearer the deadline need to have in place before they can be undertaken.
When planning a workback calendar or any other project, you should know the scope and resources available at your company, to properly give tasks to team members. You also need to plan for project uncertainties by reassigning projects or shifting resources from other projects.
Consider whether you need to recruit additional resources to help meet a proposed deadline. And as you assign tasks, take into account days off such as holidays or sickness absence that might affect project deliverables. Don't forget time off for specific events like religious holidays or parental leave.
Staying aware of what is going on for your team members will help you to correctly factor in the number of days the team will actually be working.
For effective backward scheduling, you need to match resources to phases by ensuring the correct people or teams are working on a particular task. Resources such as transportation, money, and many other factors should match the milestones set.
Creating a project's start date in reverse order using project management tools will help ensure that you allocate enough time so that you can have a successful project deliverable. This will help you and your team streamline operations and coordinate plans to improve operations.
Since a workback schedule means spreading out and allocating resources, you may need to experiment with different workback schedules to see which one fits the project. Your first draft should not be your last draft - you may need a trial period to find a perfect schedule.
Modern scheduling tools make it easy for PMs to create different mock-ups. After creating a workback schedule, ask for input from team members and stakeholders and modify it as needed.
When you share the project schedule, stay organized and ask for specific feedback and ideas. Make sure everyone has a deadline for feedback, so the final schedule can be agreed upon and circulated without any hitches.
We talked about buffer time above. But this is a biggy so it’s worth mentioning twice. You’ll only realise the planning, management, and delivery benefits of a workback schedule approach IF your workback schedule is realistic.
Because workback schedules are typically employed in projects with an immovable final deadline, you need to build in flex for the unexpected. Otherwise, any unexpected delay will derail your delivery plan.
This isn’t just good practice for workback schedules, but for any project schedule. Creating a visual timeline will make it much easier for all stakeholders to understand.
Your visualization should include dates along the top axis, with all project phases and milestones mapped against them. Like this…
Gantt charts are always a popular choice but you can also use these Gantt chart alternatives.
The best people are in high demand. Avoid last-minute requests and sub-par allocations by identifying your dream team and requesting your resources well in advance.
Effective resource management allows for better utilization rates – meaning you’re not overspending on idle resources or overworking the people you do have. It also optimizes your allocations by matching the right skills and expertise to tasks, so you’re not over- or under-servicing the project.
You might start your workback schedule with a simple pen and paper - but don’t rely on that forever. As soon as your schedule is taking shape, get it into an appropriate planning platform, whether that’s a project management tool or resource management software.
With resource management software, you can quickly create project timelines, visualize schedules, and identify and allocate resources.
Use your chosen software to monitor project progress regularly. Remember the story of the plane that is just one degree off-course at takeoff but lands thousands of miles away from its destination? That’s what can happen if you’re not monitoring and course-correcting during your project.
Use metrics like forecast vs actual time, % completion, and earned value (EV) to check you’re on track.
One of the best and easy ways to create a workback schedule is using a resource management tool. Runn offers an effective project planning software that will help you create custom templates and timelines that will save you time during the initial project planning phase.
