Overview of Microsoft Project

Summary

Heather Heide and George Bullock from the Microsoft Project and Planner Team introduce an overview of Microsoft Project, highlighting updates and the vision for Project for the web. They discuss subscription options, integration with Office 365, and the benefits of using Project for modern project management. The presentation includes a demo showcasing task creation, assignment, and collaboration features, emphasizing Project's flexibility and customization capabilities. The session aims to empower teams to manage projects effectively while providing enterprises with the necessary results and insights.

Takeaways

• 🌟 Microsoft Project and Planner Team is offering an update on Project applications and an overview of Microsoft Project for the web.
• 💻 There are two options for Project Desktop Client: a subscription model with Project Online Desktop Client, Plan 3, and Plan 5, or a one-time purchase through perpetual licensing.
• 🔄 Project will follow the Office LTSE (Long Term Servicing Channel) schedule, with a new version expected later in the year.
• 🔧 Project Server will also receive a new version, aligning with the SharePoint Server release schedule.
• 🌐 Project Online aims to provide a modern, extensible project management solution integrated with Teams, with a commitment to support customers through any transition to Project for the web.
• 🛠 The 'work management gap' is a key challenge Microsoft addresses, aiming to improve collaboration and work management across teams.
• 🔗 Project for the web is built on Office Groups and integrates with Office 365 services like Teams, Planner, Outlook, and SharePoint.
• 📊 Power Platform underpins Project for the web, enabling customization and integration with Power BI for reporting, and Power Apps and Automate for custom solutions.
• 🗺️ Roadmap capability in Project allows managers to visualize and track progress across multiple projects and work streams.
• 📝 Project for the web stores data in Microsoft Dataverse, facilitating customization and easy integration with other systems.
• 🔑 The vision for work management is to empower teams to work flexibly while ensuring enterprises achieve their desired outcomes, with a focus on connecting work from strategy to execution.

Q & A

What is the role of Heather Heide at Microsoft?

Heather Heide is a Program Manager on the Microsoft Project and Planner Team.

What are the two options for the Project Desktop Client?

The two options for the Project Desktop Client are a subscription, which includes Project Online Desktop Client, Project Plan 3, and Project Plan 5, and a perpetual license, which is a one-time purchase.

What does the Long Term Servicing Channel (LTSE) refer to in the context of Project Server?

LTSE refers to the Long Term Servicing Channel, which means the next version of the Project Client that follows the same schedule as Office LTSE.

What is Microsoft's goal for Project Online?

Microsoft's goal for Project Online is to deliver a modern, world-class, extensible project management solution that is seamlessly integrated with Teams.

How does Project for the web integrate with other Microsoft services?

Project for the web is built on Office Groups and is natively integrated with Office 365 services like Teams, Planner, Outlook, and SharePoint. It also integrates with the Power Platform, using Power BI as the native reporting engine, and supports customization through Power Apps and Power Automate.

What is the purpose of the roadmap capability in Project?

The roadmap capability allows project, program, and portfolio managers to bring projects together from various sources like Project for the web, Project Online, and Azure DevOps to build visual roadmaps that track progress across multiple work streams.

How does Project for the web help with task assignment and team collaboration?

Project for the web allows users to easily assign tasks to anyone in the Active Directory, share projects with existing Office 365 groups, and provides a collaborative space where team members can access and update project information.

What is the significance of storing Project for the web data in the Microsoft Dataverse?

Storing data in the Microsoft Dataverse allows for customization of tables, addition of custom fields, and integration with other systems easily and straightforwardly, meeting various business needs.

How does Microsoft Teams play a role in work management as described in the script?

Microsoft Teams serves as the hub for collaboration, visibility, and work management, allowing executives to communicate strategy, project teams to manage projects and communicate status, and individuals to collaborate on work and manage its execution.

What is the Project Accelerator Solution, and how does it help enterprises?

The Project Accelerator Solution is an example of how enterprises can harness the Power Platform and combine it with Project for the web to meet important project and program management needs, providing a set of customizations and processes to manage project requests, programs, issues, risks, and change management.

How can Power BI be utilized for reporting in Project for the web?

Power BI is used as the native reporting engine for Project for the web, allowing users to create and customize reports that provide high-level views of project statuses, resource allocations, and other critical data points.