Cascading timelines by linking timelines

I have three grid sheets, named Sheet 1, Sheet 2 and Sheet 3. The timeline of Sheet 2 is dependent on Sheet 1 timeline and the timeline of Sheet 3 is dependent on Sheet 2.

I want a function wherein if the end date of any one task of Sheet 1 gets changed then it automatically changes the start date of the task of Sheet 2 or Sheet (that is dependent on the end date of the said task in Sheet 1) without having the need to mention the task and end date of Sheet 1 (which decides the start date of task in Sheet 2).

Basically, I want the timelines being connected in such a way that changing the end date in any one sheet, automatically changes the start date and the subsequent timeline on the other sheet (which could be in Sheet 2 or Sheet 3).

Is there any way I could achieve this? I tried implementing dependencies for this task, however, it doesn’t seem to work.

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Accepted answers

Yvonne Smythe

https://community.smartsheet.com/discussion/comment/458804#Comment_458804

My apologies @Sudatta Paul_301219 I had to travel for an interview. How about adding a helper column in Sheet I with a workday formula in feeder sheet and linking out to the dependent sheet II to carry forward dates? This way you can hide it and also use it for any other formula assists you may need. Also, the formula picks up on the next business day in case the end date is moved to a Friday, or the duration pushes into the weekend and you can also amend with an accounting of number of holidays if ever needed.

All comments

Yvonne Smythe

Hi @Sudatta Paul_301219 - Have you tried linking the cells with a simple cell reference?

Sudatta Paul_301219

@YveNigma I already tried that approach. However, this approach simply copy-pastes the date from the source sheet to the desired date cell on the destination sheet which does not serve my purpose. What I want is the end date or any other date of the dependable task on the destination sheet to be the next immediate working date that gets auto populated on the basis of the date mentioned on the source sheet.

For instance, the end date of “6.3 Sub Task 18” as seen in the 1st image below is 12/25/24 (25th Dec 2024) and the start date of “7.1 Sub Task 19” as seen in the 2nd image below is also 12/25/24.

Image 1:

Image 2:

For your information, image 1 is a different sheet (named as “Sheet 2”) and image 2 is a different sheet (named as “Sheet 3”). Sheet 3 is the destination sheet and Sheet 2 is the source sheet.

What I want is the start date of “7.1 Sub Task 19” to auto populate the next working date on the basis of the end date of “6.3 Sub Task 18” without the need to add “6.3 Sub Task 18” in Sheet 3.

I hope I was able to explain it.

Thank You

Georgie

Hi Sudatta Paul_301219,

There currently isn’t a way to make tasks in one sheet dependent on tasks in a separate sheet. I found a similar feature request here. Please add your vote to this idea if it matches your request. You’ll then receive updates when the status of the idea changes!

I also found a previous thread where an alternative solution is provided, which is to create a report with your separate sheets as the source sheets, sort the report by the Start Date, and look at the report in Gantt view.

I hope that’s helpful!

Georgie

Yvonne Smythe

https://community.smartsheet.com/discussion/comment/458804#Comment_458804

Sudatta Paul_301219

@YveNigma Thank you very much! It worked. This is actually what I needed.

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