Hello Class,

I found several templates at smartsheet.com.  They have Gantt chart template, a Project Tracker template and an Agile Project Plan template. They all provide a way to record and track various aspects of a project.  They allow you to visually see how far along the project is.  I would assume that templates like these would also make it clear who was responsible for which aspects of a project.

I am not surprised that Excel can be used in this way.   It has so many uses and although I don't use it to track individual projects, I do use it to track monthly checks/audit that I perform.  The workbook I use allows me to keep track of a lot of different types of information and to have it all in one place. I have a template of this workbook so at the start of each calendar year, I start a new one.

If I had a project to complete, I would have to assess whether I thought Excel would be useful or not.  It depends on the project and the time frame.  I would have to weigh how much time would it take me to enter in the information and how frequently would I have to update it.  Sometime it is easy to get bogged down in planning and not concentrate on the doing.  

Nadina