Key Takeaways
- Odoo Project integrates task tracking, timesheets, and billing so billable hours flow directly to invoices
- Gantt charts with task dependencies and critical path analysis help teams manage complex schedules
- Customer portal gives clients real-time visibility into project progress without internal system access
- Template projects with pre-defined stages and tasks accelerate new project setup and ensure consistency
- Sales integration auto-creates projects from confirmed quotations with inherited budgets and descriptions
Task Management and Kanban Workflows
Kanban boards organize tasks by stage with drag-and-drop simplicity. Custom stages reflect your actual workflow, and sub-tasks break complex work into manageable pieces. Each task tracks assignees, deadlines, priorities, and time spent.
- Custom stages: Define pipeline stages matching your delivery process (New, In Progress, Review, QA, Done)
- Sub-tasks: Break large tasks into trackable child items with independent status
- Recurring tasks: Automate repetitive work items on daily, weekly, or monthly schedules
- Tags and priorities: Categorize and prioritize work for efficient triage
- Activity scheduling: Plan calls, meetings, and follow-ups with deadline alerts
Limit your kanban stages to 5-7. Too many stages slow down task movement and make the board hard to scan. Use tags for additional categorization instead.
Timesheet Tracking and Billing Integration
Timesheet tracking lets team members log hours against specific tasks with timer functionality for exact duration capture. Managers review and approve timesheets before they flow into payroll and client billing.
| Billing Model | Configuration | Invoice Trigger | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time & Materials | Hourly rate per employee | Approved timesheets | Consulting, development |
| Fixed Price | Project milestone value | Milestone completion | Defined-scope projects |
| Prepaid Hours | Hour package purchase | Timesheet deduction | Retainer agreements |
| Subscription | Recurring monthly fee | Calendar-based | Managed services |
Billing integration creates invoices directly from timesheets. Configure rates by employee, project, or task type. The system calculates billable amounts automatically and generates professional invoices for client approval.
Gantt Charts and Resource Planning
Gantt charts provide timeline views of project schedules with task dependencies and critical path identification. Resource allocation views prevent team overload by visualizing workload across projects and team members.
- Set task dependencies to establish sequence requirements
- Identify the critical path to focus attention on timeline-sensitive tasks
- Adjust schedules when delays occur with automatic cascading updates
- Monitor resource allocation to prevent team member overload
- Track burndown progress against original project estimates
Gantt chart views and advanced planning features are available in Odoo Enterprise. Community edition provides kanban and list views but not Gantt visualization.
Customer Portal and Project Templates
The customer portal gives clients visibility into project progress, task status, and invoices without accessing your internal system. Clients can approve deliverables and communicate within the portal, reducing email back-and-forth.
Template projects accelerate new project setup. Create templates for common project types with pre-defined stages, tasks, team assignments, and budget allocations. Cloning templates ensures consistent execution across similar engagements.
| Feature | Benefit | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|
| Client task visibility | Transparency without system access | 10 min |
| Document sharing | Centralized deliverable exchange | 5 min |
| Invoice viewing | Self-service billing access | Automatic |
| Project templates | Consistent project setup | 30 min per template |
| Sales integration | Auto-project from quotation | 15 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
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