Tuesday Brief: The schedules that look most organized are often the most vulnerable to corruption. While summary tasks in Microsoft Project appear to create clean hierarchies, they violate every major industry standard and introduce hidden risks that can destroy your project's data integrity. This week, we explore why the pros build flat structures instead.
Featured Article: Why You Should Avoid Using Summary Tasks in Microsoft Project
The most professional-looking Microsoft Project schedules often hide the most dangerous structural flaws. While summary tasks create appealing visual hierarchies, they introduce four critical risks that violate industry standards and compromise data integrity.
In this revealing analysis by Eric Christoph, you'll discover:
How summary tasks create data duplication that leads to calculation errors and file corruption
Why the GAO, DCMA, NASA, and PASEG all explicitly discourage summary task logic
The hidden dangers of resource assignments on summary tasks that inflate workloads
Professional alternatives using custom outline codes that maintain visual structure without instability
Industries ranging from defense contracting to corporate project management have adopted these flat-structure approaches for a reason: they create schedules that are more reliable, auditable, and maintainable over time.
Video Tutorial: What Every Project Manager Should Understand About Earned Value Estimating Tools!
Earned value management isn't just for large defense contracts—it's one of the most powerful forecasting techniques available to any project manager. This comprehensive tutorial by Bill Dow breaks down the essential concepts every PM should master.
Learn how to:
Calculate estimate at completion (EAC) based on current performance trends
Use earned value metrics to predict future project costs and timeline risks
Apply these techniques during initiation and planning phases for better estimates
Make data-driven decisions about resource allocation and budget adjustments
This foundational knowledge transforms how you approach project forecasting, moving beyond gut feelings to mathematical predictions based on actual performance data.
Live Event (6/4): Stop Using Summary Tasks! Building Stable and Auditable Project Schedules in Microsoft Project
Join earned value expert Eric Christoph for a deep dive into why summary tasks undermine schedule integrity and what industry leaders use instead. Drawing from his experience as a Corporate EVM Subject Matter Expert and contributor to PMI and GAO standards, Eric will demonstrate practical alternatives that maintain visual appeal while eliminating structural risks.
What You'll Learn:
How to implement custom outline codes for clean hierarchical organization
View configuration techniques that preserve visual structure in flat schedules
Resource assignment strategies that eliminate phantom work hours
Industry-standard practices aligned with GAO, DCMA, and NASA guidance
This session transforms how you approach Microsoft Project scheduling, providing techniques used by defense contractors and Fortune 500 companies to maintain schedule integrity at scale.
🗓️ Wednesday, June 4
🕛 12:00pm - 1:00pm EDT
📍 Live on Zoom
🏅 1 PMI PDU: 0.75 Ways of Working, 0.25 Power Skills
MPUG host live events with leading experts on Wednesdays from 12:00pm - 1:00pm ET! MPUG members get access to live events where you get direct access to industry leaders, actionable insights, hands-on training, and opportunities to earn PDU's.
Learn more and register for upcoming events:
6/4: Stop Using Summary Tasks! Building Stable and Auditable Project Schedules in Microsoft Project | Learn More / Register Here
6/11: Turning on the Power: Supercharge Your Project Online Experience with Power BI | Learn More / Register Here
Instead of using summary tasks for project structure, create custom outline codes that categorize tasks by phase, discipline, or WBS without nesting. Combined with Group By views, this approach gives you visual organization while maintaining the flat task structure that industry standards require. Your schedules become more reliable and your critical path analysis stays accurate.
