Unless you've been living under a rock for the past few months, you may not have known that Microsoft has finally taken the wraps of its forthcoming Project 2010 release. Announced at the recent Worldwide Project Conference in Phoenix Arizona, Project 2010 is probably the most hotly-awaited release of MS Project in a very long time.
Chris Capossela, a senior VP at Microsoft is quoted as announcing: “Microsoft Project 2010 is the most significant release of Microsoft Project in over a decade. The fresh, simple and intuitive features of Microsoft Project 2010 will enable teams and organizations of all sizes to select and deliver the right projects on time and on budget.” Chris is well-qualified to state this, as he led the Project team at Microsoft several years ago.
Having been held under non-disclosure for the last few months, I can now share information and observations of what's on offer. So what are the new features that will have experienced users beating their way to an upgrade path, or ones that will entice people away from Excel into using Project 2010 to plan their projects?
First (and probably foremost) is the 'Fluent User Interface', commonly known as the Ribbon Bar. I've been using Office 2007 since its release and, although the ribbon took some getting used to, it does streamline heaps of day-to-day operations. Having put the Tech Preview of Project 2010 through its paces, I can confirm that ribbon-based navigation is slicker than its menu-based predecessor; especially for really useful features that in previous versions would have been hard to find (especially for less-familiar users).
Secondly, a whole host of new options are available that allow much more user control over how tasks and resources are scheduled. Some planning purists may see this as heresy, as critical path analysis is not always in charge. My take on this is that if Project 2010 can get more people planning tasks and work, this must be a good thing. What's more, planning resource utilisation (which in previous versions could be tricky to say the least) is now seen as a fundamental part of the planning process. Another good thing. As these users become more familiar with planning techniques, they will start to use the more traditional planning methods that the product still supports. Plus, they will want to tell their friends about what they've accomplished. Another big plus.
Thirdly, collaboration is now much easier. For organisations that have invested in Project Server, getting information to and from a project team is now much more seamless. Plus, the ability to edit a plan (and even plan simple projects) on the web is a big leap into getting organisations planning and managing more effectively. For organisations not yet ready for Project Server, but wanting to have two-way communication between project owners and team members, SharePoint-based collaboration provides the ability to schedule work to those performing it and catch actuals and work estimates at source.
Finally, managing portfolio-wide obectives has also taken a big leap forward. With the 2007 release, Portfolio Server and Project Server were two distinct applications, necessitating migration of data between the two systems. Now, with everything integrated, making decisions about which projects to invest in, or how many team members need hiring to make projects and programmes a reality will be a much more effective and rewarding process.
Rather than bore you with static screenshots, why not click on the link below. Here are three demos from Microsoft that introduce the new features and explain how these new features will work:
http://www.microsoft.com/project/2010/en/us/default.aspx
For the official word on Project 2010, here's the Microsoft press release:
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2009/sep09/09-16Project2010PR.mspx
For the thoughts of the Microsoft team that developed Project 2010, take a look at this YouTube video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3JGvaJqYBo&feature=related
Lastly, this video shows how users and partners are Project 2010 ready:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oDiZ94LlD4
I can add my voice to this. We are.
Posted by: Andy Jessop
