What are the different types of dependencies?<\/h2>\n
Before we start, a quick note on constraints<\/strong>. A constraint is a limit within which a task has to be completed. The classic constraints\u00a0in project management are scope, time, and budget.<\/p>\n Constraints can give rise to dependencies and dependencies might result in constraints, but they\u2019re not the same thing.<\/p>\n For example, say I need to build a house and, to meet the client\u2019s expectations, I have to complete it within 7 days.<\/p>\n Roofing the house is dependent<\/strong>\u00a0on first building the walls. If it takes 5 days to build the walls, then roofing the house must be completed within 2 days. This is a constraint <\/strong>that\u2019s come about because of the duration of the task on which it is dependent.<\/p>\n There are 3 main types of dependencies:<\/p>\n Resource-based dependencies may be an area in the project where the constraint changes during the project.<\/p>\n For example, if, initially, resource was constrained by budget but it\u2019s critical the project finishes on time and is currently behind schedule, investing in extra resource\u00a0may mean tasks can be completed in parallel, hence shortening the overall timeline.<\/p>\n Note:<\/u>\u00a0Causal dependencies<\/strong>\u00a0are part of a wider group of dependencies called task dependencies<\/a>. Tasks that cannot start before the preceding tasks have been completed are the most common type. This type of task dependency is called \u2018Finish to Start\u2019.<\/p>\n However, you can also have \u2018Finish to Finish\u2019, \u2018Start to Start\u2019 and \u2018Start to Finish\u2019 task dependencies. For more on these, check out our article on task dependencies.<\/p>\n It\u2019s important to note that you\u2019ll likely have some dependencies that are within your control \u2014 for example, the sequencing of tasks within the project. An internal dependency is a task that is dependent on other tasks within the same project<\/strong>.<\/p>\n External dependencies, however, are project dependencies outside the control of the project team. These could include project inputs being completed by another department or project team within the company or even activities being completed externally to the company.<\/p>\n In our house-building example, this might be gaining approval from building regulators that the foundations are sound before the walls can be built.<\/p>\n In a nutshell, managing your dependencies is all about managing project risk. 71%<\/a>\u00a0of organizations fail to \u2018always or mostly\u2019 complete their projects on time.<\/p>\n Identifying your project\u2019s dependencies is key to accurately estimating your project\u2019s duration.<\/p>\n Using the critical path method<\/a>\u00a0you can identify the string of dependent tasks that takes the longest time to complete. This is the expected overall duration of the project.<\/p>\n Accurately estimating the overall project duration is important so you can manage the expectations of stakeholders who want the job done yesterday when, in reality, you know it\u2019ll be done in a month of Sundays.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Knowing your project\u2019s timeline and the expected start and finish of individual tasks is crucial for effective resource management<\/a>.<\/p>\n Even if resource availability isn\u2019t a constraint having people sitting around twiddling their thumbs while they wait for another task to complete isn\u2019t a particularly good use of time or money.<\/p>\n And there\u2019s nothing more frustrating than working hard at a dependent task only to find there isn\u2019t the resource available to move it on to the next stage.<\/p>\n Being able to report to stakeholders that the project is on track to deliver on time builds confidence. This is crucial if release of funding for the next project stage is dependent on the successful completion of the previous stage.<\/p>\nIdentifying and effectively managing dependencies ultimately lowers project risk. Accurate estimation of task duration and logical scheduling increases the likelihood of delivering on time.<\/span><\/a>\n Identifying preferential dependencies can result in higher quality deliverables which is important if there are strict acceptance criteria.<\/p>\n Finally, it\u2019s worth considering that your project might be a dependency in someone else\u2019s. Failing to complete your project on time could have a knock-on effect on projects downstream, further compounding the problem.<\/p>\n Get started<\/a><\/p>\n The first step in identifying dependencies is to break large tasks into smaller ones. As this gets more complex, using a work breakdown structure<\/a>\u00a0(WBS) template, like this one from monday.com, can help keep everything organized.<\/p>\n Once you\u2019ve outlined your WBS, it\u2019s easier to see how tasks should be ordered. At this stage, holding a dependencies workshop with business stakeholders is critical for understanding how tasks relate to each other.<\/p>\n Using a visual tool, such as a Kanban board or Gantt chart<\/a>, can really help people understand the parts of the project and more easily identify how they rely on each other.<\/p>\n A digital Kanban board<\/a>\u00a0makes it simple to compile and reorder tasks and means you\u2019re not frantically trying to juggle a million Post-it notes.<\/p>\n With this information you can start to build your project schedule showing tasks, key milestones, dependencies and the expected date of the task start and finish.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s how it might look in monday.com:<\/p>\n The project schedule is critical for monitoring progress against the overall duration allowing early warning of any potential delays.<\/p>\n Information from resource allocation<\/a>\u00a0planning can be integrated to ensure you always have a resource available when you need it.<\/p>\n Finally, it\u2019s crucial to capture dependencies that are out of the control of the project team in the project risk register.<\/p>\n It can be frustrating if an external dependency creates delays and making sure that the possibility is flagged to stakeholders is important.<\/p>\n It means they can take decisions on building flexibility into the project schedule and gives them confidence that the project team is doing its best to manage all the variables.<\/p>\n In this article we\u2019ve explained what dependencies are and why effectively managing them is critical for delivering your project on time and on budget.<\/p>\n Dependencies, by their nature, bring additional risk to your project so it\u2019s important to identify and control them where possible.<\/p>\n After all, out of control dependencies \u2014 still looking at you Cherry Garcia \u2014 are so 2020.<\/p>\n If dependencies are<\/em>\u00a0outside the control of the project, make sure they\u2019re flagged on the risk register and monitor them closely. We\u2019ve got a great project risk register<\/a>\u00a0to get you started.<\/p>\n Get started<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false,"raw":"2020 was the year of dependencies. Some healthy \u2014 weekly Zoom calls with loved ones \u2014 and some less so. I\u2019m talking to you, pint of Ben and Jerry\u2019s.\r\n\r\nIn a project, dependency management is crucial to success.\r\n\r\nConsider a cake making factory.\r\n\r\nIf you don\u2019t get a grip on your dependencies, your cake will be ready for decorating and you\u2019ll realize you\u2019ve forgotten to make the icing. Having to wait while the icing is made takes time, slows down production, and, ultimately, costs money.\r\n\r\nIn this article, we\u2019ll explain what dependencies management is and share a few tips and tools to keep everything on track.\r\n [cta-button url=\"https:\/\/auth.monday.com\/users\/sign_up_new\" target=\"_blank\"]Get started with monday.com[\/cta-button]<\/p>\r\n\r\n Resource-based dependencies may be an area in the project where the constraint changes during the project.<\/p>\r\n For example, if, initially, resource was constrained by budget but it\u2019s critical the project finishes on time and is currently behind schedule, investing in extra resource\u00a0may mean tasks can be completed in parallel, hence shortening the overall timeline.<\/p>\r\n\r\n [cta-button url=\"https:\/\/auth.monday.com\/users\/sign_up_new\" target=\"_blank\"]Get started[\/cta-button]<\/p>\r\n\r\n [cta-button url=\"https:\/\/auth.monday.com\/users\/sign_up_new\" target=\"_blank\"]Get started[\/cta-button]<\/p>"},"excerpt":{"rendered":" 2020 was the year of dependencies. Some healthy \u2014 weekly Zoom calls with loved ones \u2014 and some less so. I\u2019m talking to you, pint of Ben and Jerry\u2019s. In a project, dependency management is crucial to success. Consider a cake making factory. If you don\u2019t get a grip on …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":41220,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"monday_item_id":18042643422,"monday_board_id":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[13904],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38084","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-project-management"],"acf":{"lobby_image":"","post_thumbnail_title":"","hide_post_info":"0","hide_bottom_cta":"0","hide_from_blog":"1","cluster":"","banner_url":"","main_text_banner":"","sub_title_banner":"","sub_title_banner_second":"","banner_button_text":"","below_banner_line":"","landing_page_layout":"0","display_dates":"default","featured_image_link":"","use_customized_cta":"0","display_subscribe_widget":"0","custom_schema_code":"\n
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Why do dependencies need managing?<\/h2>\n
![\"screenshot](\"https:\/\/www.monday.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Resource-tracker.png\" "\\"Resource"){kind=tracking}
<\/p>\nHow tools can help manage dependencies<\/h2>\n
![\"Project](\"https:\/\/www.monday.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/pasted-image-0-101.png\" "\\"project")
<\/p>\n![\"screenshot](\"https:\/\/www.monday.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Dependency-Plan.png\" "\\"Project")
<\/p>\nHow managing dependencies lowers project risk<\/h2>\n
What are the different types of dependencies?<\/h2>\r\nBefore we start, a quick note on constraints<\/strong>. A constraint is a limit within which a task has to be completed. The classic constraints\u00a0in project management are scope, time, and budget.\r\n\r\nConstraints can give rise to dependencies and dependencies might result in constraints, but they\u2019re not the same thing.\r\n\r\nFor example, say I need to build a house and, to meet the client\u2019s expectations, I have to complete it within 7 days.\r\n\r\nRoofing the house is dependent<\/strong>\u00a0on first building the walls. If it takes 5 days to build the walls, then roofing the house must be completed within 2 days. This is a constraint <\/strong>that\u2019s come about because of the duration of the task on which it is dependent.\r\n\r\nThere are 3 main types of dependencies:\r\n
\r\n \t
\r\n \t
\r\n \t
Why do dependencies need managing?<\/h2>\r\nIn a nutshell, managing your dependencies is all about managing project risk. 71%<\/a>\u00a0of organizations fail to \u2018always or mostly\u2019 complete their projects on time.\r\n\r\nIdentifying your project\u2019s dependencies is key to accurately estimating your project\u2019s duration.\r\n\r\nUsing the critical path method<\/a>\u00a0you can identify the string of dependent tasks that takes the longest time to complete. This is the expected overall duration of the project.\r\n
Accurately estimating the overall project duration is important so you can manage the expectations of stakeholders who want the job done yesterday when, in reality, you know it\u2019ll be done in a month of Sundays.<\/blockquote>\r\nKnowing your project\u2019s timeline and the expected start and finish of individual tasks is crucial for effective resource management<\/a>.\r\n\r\n
\r\n\r\nEven if resource availability isn\u2019t a constraint having people sitting around twiddling their thumbs while they wait for another task to complete isn\u2019t a particularly good use of time or money.\r\n\r\nAnd there\u2019s nothing more frustrating than working hard at a dependent task only to find there isn\u2019t the resource available to move it on to the next stage.\r\n\r\nBeing able to report to stakeholders that the project is on track to deliver on time builds confidence. This is crucial if release of funding for the next project stage is dependent on the successful completion of the previous stage.\r\n\r\n[twitter]Identifying and effectively managing dependencies ultimately lowers project risk. Accurate estimation of task duration and logical scheduling increases the likelihood of delivering on time.[\/twitter]\r\n\r\nIdentifying preferential dependencies can result in higher quality deliverables which is important if there are strict acceptance criteria.\r\n\r\nFinally, it\u2019s worth considering that your project might be a dependency in someone else\u2019s. Failing to complete your project on time could have a knock-on effect on projects downstream, further compounding the problem.\r\nHow tools can help manage dependencies<\/h2>\r\nThe first step in identifying dependencies is to break large tasks into smaller ones. As this gets more complex, using a work breakdown structure<\/a>\u00a0(WBS) template, like this one from monday.com, can help keep everything organized.\r\n\r\n
\r\n\r\nOnce you\u2019ve outlined your WBS, it\u2019s easier to see how tasks should be ordered. At this stage, holding a dependencies workshop with business stakeholders is critical for understanding how tasks relate to each other.\r\n\r\nUsing a visual tool, such as a Kanban board or Gantt chart<\/a>, can really help people understand the parts of the project and more easily identify how they rely on each other.\r\n\r\nA digital Kanban board<\/a>\u00a0makes it simple to compile and reorder tasks and means you\u2019re not frantically trying to juggle a million Post-it notes.\r\n\r\nWith this information you can start to build your project schedule showing tasks, key milestones, dependencies and the expected date of the task start and finish.\r\n\r\nHere\u2019s how it might look in monday.com:\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nThe project schedule is critical for monitoring progress against the overall duration allowing early warning of any potential delays.\r\n\r\nInformation from resource allocation<\/a>\u00a0planning can be integrated to ensure you always have a resource available when you need it.\r\n\r\nFinally, it\u2019s crucial to capture dependencies that are out of the control of the project team in the project risk register.\r\n\r\nIt can be frustrating if an external dependency creates delays and making sure that the possibility is flagged to stakeholders is important.\r\n\r\nIt means they can take decisions on building flexibility into the project schedule and gives them confidence that the project team is doing its best to manage all the variables.\r\nHow managing dependencies lowers project risk<\/h2>\r\nIn this article we\u2019ve explained what dependencies are and why effectively managing them is critical for delivering your project on time and on budget.\r\n\r\nDependencies, by their nature, bring additional risk to your project so it\u2019s important to identify and control them where possible.\r\n\r\nAfter all, out of control dependencies \u2014 still looking at you Cherry Garcia \u2014 are so 2020.\r\n\r\nIf dependencies are<\/em>\u00a0outside the control of the project, make sure they\u2019re flagged on the risk register and monitor them closely. We\u2019ve got a great project risk register<\/a>\u00a0to get you started.\r\n