The predecessor changes the start and finish dates

Reema Hussain

Hello,

 

I'm creating a construction schedule. I entered all my start and end dates which automatically calculated the duration. The problem is, when I enter a predecessor, it automatically changes the start and finish dates; why is this happening and what can I do to stop it?

 

Thank you.

Kennedy Stomps

Hi Reema-- To confirm, this is expected behavior in Smartsheet if dependencies are enabled on your sheet. If you link a task to another task with a predecessor, this indicates that the start and end dates of these tasks are related in some way. For example, if you link a task to another task with a Finish-Start dependency, this indicates that Task 1 must finish before Task 2 can start. Thus, Task 2's start date will change to match Task 1's start date.

 

This article might also help better explain how dependencies and predecessors work in Smartsheet. Hope this helps clear things up!

Reema Hussain

Thank you for your help Kennedy! I discovered that I needed to put in lag days in order to stop the dates from changing.