What Is a Master Schedule in Project Management?

Scheduling a project is done in the planning phase. A project schedule gets into the details, including tasks and subtasks. A master schedule provides a more broad-stroke approach to scheduling, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less important.

To understand the importance of a master schedule, we’ll define the term in project management, compare it to a project schedule and explain what it needs to include to thoroughly review the project.

What Is a Master Schedule?

A master schedule is a comprehensive high-level timeline that outlines the major phases, tasks and milestones of a project from start to finish. It serves as the central document that provides an overview of the project’s key activities, deadlines and interdependencies.

The master schedule is a crucial tool for project managers because it helps ensure that tasks are executed in the right sequence and on time. It provides clarity to the project team and stakeholders about progress and deadlines and helps identify potential bottlenecks early on, enabling proactive management and adjustments.

In complex projects, the master schedule may be broken down into more detailed schedules for individual workstreams or subprojects, but the master schedule remains the overarching framework for managing the project. That’s why most project management software has Gantt charts, which are commonly used for creating a master schedule.

ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software with robust Gantt charts and roadmaps that visualize the project timeline, all key activities and phases, including milestones for one project or multiple projects. Our Gantt chart and roadmaps link all four types of task dependencies to avoid delays and cost overruns as well as filtering for the critical path to identify essential tasks. It schedules tasks, phases and projects, allocates resources and monitors progress. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.

ProjectManager's roadmap — ProjectManater’s Gantt charts and roadmaps make powerful master schedules. Learn more

Master Schedule vs. Project Schedule

The master schedule and the project schedule are both essential components in project management. However, they serve different purposes, have different scopes and levels of detail and are used by different stakeholders. Let’s compare the two.

Scope

The master schedule has a broader scope. It represents the entire project’s timeline at a high level, including all key phases, milestones and deliverables. It typically includes all major tasks but doesn’t go into deep detail about each task.

The project schedule, on the other hand, has a narrower scope and provides more detailed information about each specific task or work package. It breaks down the tasks from the master schedule into smaller, actionable steps, with specific start and end dates, assigned resources and task durations.

Level of Detail

The master schedule contains high-level information about major phases and milestones. It might only show the critical path and key milestones, focusing on the project’s overall timeline and important checkpoints, without getting into the granular details of each task.

The project schedule is much more detailed. It lists all the individual tasks, their durations, dependencies, responsible team members and resource allocation. It provides the necessary information to manage and track day-to-day activities, often including specific deadlines for smaller components or deliverables.

Purpose

The purpose of the master schedule is to provide an overview of the entire project. It helps to track the major milestones and phases, ensuring that the project is moving forward according to plan and within the overall timeframe. It ensures the project aligns with its goals and timeline and serves as a reference for high-level reporting to stakeholders.

The purpose of the project schedule is to manage and coordinate the specific activities so that tasks are completed on time and within scope. It serves as a more actionable document used for daily management, providing detailed timelines for the team and ensuring that resources are effectively utilized. It is also used for managing risks, tracking progress and adjusting timelines.

Users

Senior management, project managers and key stakeholders typically use the master schedule. It helps them get a high-level view of the project’s status and make strategic decisions based on overall progress. It is generally used in executive meetings, for reporting and high-level project tracking.

On the other hand, project managers, team members and departmental heads use the project schedule. It’s the primary tool for those directly involved in the day-to-day execution of the project. Team members rely on the project schedule to understand their tasks and deadlines, while project managers use it to monitor progress, manage resources and adjust the plan as needed.

What Should Be Included in a Master Schedule?

A master schedule provides a high-level overview of a project, capturing essential elements that help ensure its successful execution. Here’s a brief breakdown of what should be included.

High-Level Timeline: Spans the entire project duration, from start to finish.
Key Milestones: Represents significant events or checkpoints in the project.
Key Deliverables: Results of a project that embodies its main goals.
Critical Path: The critical path of a project is the longest sequence of tasks that determine the project’s completion time.
Dependencies Among Tasks, Phases or Projects: Tasks, phases and projects that cannot start or finish until another starts or finishes.
Resource Schedule: Identifies key resources needed for each phase or major task.
Potential Risks: High-level view of risks that might affect the timeline.

When to Make a Master Schedule

Creating a master schedule varies based on the type of industry or project one is managing, as different sectors have distinct requirements. Below are considerations in a variety of settings.

Manufacturing & Production

In manufacturing, a master schedule is referred to as a master production schedule (MPS). It differs from a production schedule, which is a more detailed, short-term plan used to organize and manage specific production activities, focusing on daily or weekly tasks, to ensure efficient workflow and address immediate operational needs.

A master production schedule is a high-level, long-term planning tool that outlines what products need to be products, in what quantities and by when, based on forecasted demand, inventory levels and capacity constraints. It provides a strategic framework for aligning production with business goals, feeding detailed requirements into project schedules.

Program and Project Portfolio Management (PPM)

The master schedule manages multiple projects or programs simultaneously, aligning them with organizational objectives and ensuring that resources are allocated appropriately across initiatives.

Construction

Here, master schedules are crucial for coordinating tasks, managing subcontractors and ensuring timely project completion within the agreed-upon budget.

Master Schedule Template

To create a master schedule, download this free Excel timeline template. It can map activities, processes or projects that will be executed over a timeline that can expand across a year. It provides the same high-level overview that a master schedule does.

Use this free template to create a project timeline, product roadmap timeline, strategic roadmap timeline and more. It will help adjust planning needs over a six-month, year or multiple-year timeframe.

Benefits of Making a Master Schedule

Master planning helps to achieve project objectives, manage resource constraints and track project progress, among other things. Creating a master schedule is a good idea for both personal time and management. Let’s explore some key advantages more deeply.

Allows Organizations to Allocate Resources Effectively Across Projects

A master schedule provides a clear overview of all projects an organization is working on. This allows project managers to see where resources are needed and avoid over-allocating them to one project while neglecting others.

It also helps to plan for better resource availability and identify potential conflicts or overlaps in resource usage, which avoids resource conflicts. Project managers can also monitor how resources are being used across multiple projects to ensure no resource is overused or overburdened, and it allows for adjustments if there are bottlenecks.

Facilitates Capacity Planning and Monitoring of Resource Utilization

By providing a comprehensive overview of all upcoming projects, tasks and deadlines, the master schedule enables organizations to forecast the resources required for each project or phase. Understanding the scope of work in advance, ensures organizations have the necessary resources.

Project managers can balance the workload and assess whether the current resource capacity can meet the demands of all projects and whether additional resources are needed. They can also monitor resource utilization, which helps to identify bottlenecks, optimize efficiency and adjust for changes.

Helps Make Progress Reports for Stakeholders

Another benefit is that a master schedule offers a visual representation of the project timelines, milestones and deadlines, which makes it easier to communicate project progress to stakeholders. It breaks down the project into key milestones and deliverables. Progress reports can then note whether these milestones have been met as well as identify delays and issues.

How to Make a Master Schedule With ProjectManager

To get the most out of the master schedule, create it with ProjectManager. Our award-winning project and portfolio management software has robust Gantt charts to create project timelines, plus features that allocate resources, track costs and visualize and report on the status of projects, programs and portfolios in real time. To make one, simply sign up for a free trial and get access to the software for 30 days. There’s no credit card information required. Then follow these steps.

Create Timelines with Gantt Charts

Once logged in, create a new project or import one from a spreadsheet or even a Microsoft Project file. If a new project, add tasks and subtasks with start and end dates. Milestones can also be set to indicate the end or one phase and the beginning of another, for example. As this data is inputted on the Gantt chart spreadsheet on the left, it will automatically populate the timeline to the right.

Allocate Resources and Costs

On the Gantt chart, under each task, assign resources. These can be human resources, such as team members, or nonhuman resources, such as equipment, tools, costs, etc. Be sure resources are allocated efficiently. Use the team page to get an overview of the team’s activities (this page can be filtered by progress, priority and more) or visit the color-coded workload chart that shows resource allocation across the project or projects. From this page, users can balance the team’s workload to keep them working at capacity while avoiding burnout.

Visualize the Status of Projects, Programs and Portfolios with Real-Time Dashboards

Once the baseline is set on the Gantt chart, the software constantly updates with real-time data that can be used to track progress and performance. Project managers can toggle to the real-time project or portfolio dashboard, depending on whether they’re managing one project or multiple projects. Here they’ll find easy-to-read graphs and charts that display live data on time, cost, workload and more. It’s like getting an instant status report.

Create Reports In Minutes

Users can also set up notifications for task updates, approaching deadlines and overdue tasks to ensure that team members and stakeholders stay informed. Customizable reports also track key metrics like task completion percentages, timelines and resource usage. A status or portfolio status report can be created with a keystroke and filtered to give project managers details they need to deliver projects on time and within budget. Or filter for a more general overview to share with stakeholders and keep them informed.