In Project Web App, your project’s schedule may be a single-level list of tasks, but, more likely, your project’s tasks have a hierarchy to them. That is, some tasks are summary-level tasks, and other tasks are subtasks of those summary tasks. Summary tasks may represent different phases in your project or higher-level portions of work, while subtasks represent more detailed work that falls under larger phases or tasks.
There are two ways to indent or outdent a task in your project:
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Click the task row that you want to indent or outdent, and then, on the Task tab, in the Editing group, click Indent or Outdent.
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Click the task row that you want to indent or outdent. To indent the task, press Alt + Shift + Right arrow. To outdent the task, press Alt + Shift + Left arrow.
Tip: Project not currently open for editing? Click Projects on the Quick Launch, click the name of your project in the list on the Project Center, and then, on the Project tab or the Task tab, click Edit.
When you are using automatic scheduling, the duration, start, and finish dates for a summary task are driven by the subtasks listed below the summary task. The summary task begins with the earliest start date from its subtasks, and ends with the latest finish date from its subtasks.
Want to see the project-level summary task? You can also choose to show the project summary task, which is the very top row in the list of your project’s tasks, and represents how all summary tasks and subtasks roll up to the project level. To show the project summary task, select the Project Summary Task check box in the Show/Hide group on the Options tab.
Here’s an example…
Let’s say you are planning to host a booth at a convention. You may have a prep phase, when you pull together the props you will have at the booth and any materials you will be handing out, transport them to the convention site, and set up the booth. Next, you may have an event phase, with people working the booth in shifts, and other people roaming the convention floor to distribute materials. Finally, you may have a follow-up phase, when you send email thanking those who dropped by your booth, and answer any questions that you may have promised answers to after the convention was over.
This example can become the following outlined list of summary tasks and subtasks:
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Phase 1: Prep for convention
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Order and pick up booth props, brochures, and flyers
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Ship booth materials to convention site
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Set up booth at convention site
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Phase 2: Convention
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Booth shifts
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Booth shift 1
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Booth shift 2
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Booth shift 3
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Floor shifts
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Floor shift 1
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Floor shift 2
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Floor shift 3
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Phase 3: Follow-up
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Send thank you notes
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Follow up on individual questions
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