Gantt Chart WITHOUT dates/deadlines

[Holli_Younger]

How can I use the Gannt Chart feature when our tasks don’t start or end on a specific date? I run a general contracting company and no incoming project starts on the same date. Furthermore, not all projects are the same, so alternative tasks might need to be triggered based on the circumstance. The only dates used are follow-up after X amount of days and schedule dates. Suggestions?

[ScottWorld]

If there are no start & end dates, then it’s not a Gantt Chart. Sounds like what you’re looking for is Kanban view, which is one of your view options in Airtable.

[Holli_Younger]

Thank you @ScottWorld. I’m confused about how Gantt charts can work when multiple projects have a different timeline of events. I know Gantt is what we need in order to have dependencies work on our base. But if what you are saying is true about dates, how are projects with dependencies and tasks tracked?

I could use the incoming project date (the initial request) as the start date how can you determine the dates for the next dependency task? Since most of the tasks typically depend on previous task completion or information from a 3rd party can the end (or follow update) be set at X number of days?

Are you required to change this every time a new project comes in?
How are you able to specify an alternative step, since these happen a lot in the construction industry?

[HeyJessiJay]

Kanban is missing the dependencies which is what I love about Gantt. I make templates for events which means the due dates should be very flexible & easy to move. I've had to create so many workarounds when a Gantt chart that relied solely on dependencies (vs dates + dependencies) would completely solve. 

[HeyJessiJay]

Here's my kinda crappy workaround. It's a pain but it works well enough for move dates of entire Milestone segments. 

Milestone or Task (FX)	Due X Days Before Event (FX)	Days to Complete (#)	Start Date (FX)	End Date (FX)	Successors (link)
Checks to see if a milestone or task.	Counts Successors and multiplies times 2. If a Milestone, add one.	Enter 0 (or length of task) if a task, blank if a milestone	Subtracts {Days to Complete (#)} from the end date. Counts length of to avoid 0=Blank() issue.	Subtracts {Due X Days...} from the event date which is set in this column's function. Counts length of to avoid 0=Blank() issue.	What items depend on this line item. (Choose Successors as your Gantt Dependency field)
IF({StartDate}=BLANK(),  "Milestone", "Task")	Sorry!		IF((LEN({Days to Complete} & ""))=0, BLANK(), DATEADD({End Date},-{Days to Complete},'days'))	IF(LEN({Due X Days Before Event (FX)} & "")=0, BLANK(), (DATEADD('6/6/2024',-{Due X Days Before Event (FX)},'days')))
Task	6	3	5/28/2024	5/31/2024	Milestone 1, Milestone 2, Milestone 3
Task	6	0	5/31/2024	5/31/2024	Milestone 1, Milestone 2, Milestone 3
Milestone 1	5	-	6/1/2024	6/1/2024	Milestone 2, Milestone 3
Task	4	0	6/2/2024	6/2/2024	Milestone 2, Milestone 3
Milestone 2	3	-	6/3/2024	6/3/2024	Milestone 3
Task	2	0	6/4/2024	6/4/2024	Milestone 3
Milestone 3	1	-	6/5/2024	6/5/2024	-

You have to have all milestone Successors set. Even if its several arches above or only has one item dependent.

Could be simplified if you'll never have a multiday item: Dropdown choice for {Milestone or Task} and {Days to Complete} would get an IF() formula.

I honestly can't believe there's not another dependency option in extensions. Lots of integrations though!