I have used Microsoft Project previously, but not in any great depth. I have oversight for a number of projects and have created a master project file that includes the top level work items for each project along with the resources responsible for that work.
Each project is represented by a parent task with a number of indented sub tasks for the work involved in that project.
The difficultly I have is maintenance - resources are shared between projects, so in order to effectively level the project file there is a large amount of shuffling backwards and forwards to get everything appropriately positioned.
Then reality hits...
Work is delayed due to unforeseen issues or an entire project is moved back by a few months, due to changing client priorities.
At the moment it feels as if I will be constantly having to build the master project file from scratch in order to properly assess it's validity, as moving a project out / extending the tasks within that project will cause over-allocation in other areas.
What am I doing wrong? Presumably Microsoft Project is designed to solve these very issues. Are there any hints and tips for creating a robust schedule that can be easily manipulated in line with day to day changes in priority.