Project types

All projects must have a defined Project Type (Confirmed, Tentative, or Internal) in Resource Management.

Who can use this?

Plans:

  • Resource Management

Permissions:

  • Resourcing Administrators
  • Portfolio Editors
  • Project Editors

Find out if this capability is included in Smartsheet Regions or Smartsheet Gov.

A project type will associate all assignments of that project with a specific color, so you can easily see what kinds of projects your team is assigned to on the Schedule.

There are three project types: Confirmed, tentative, and internal.

Resourcing Administrators, Portfolio Editors, and Project Editors can create new projects.

Confirmed projects

Confirmed projects show as blue on the schedule and project pages. They are approved, and your team can start working on them. For consulting companies, these projects are typically billable and have a signed contract from the client.

Tentative projects

Tentative projects show as gray on the schedule and project pages. These are projects that you want to schedule, but they’re not yet approved.

For consulting companies, you can create projects before you have the signed contract from the client by designating a project as a tentative project type. Creating tentative projects allows you to see the budgeting implications of the project on your resourcing plan before it begins. Once the contract is signed, you can change the project type to confirmed.

Think about when you want to add the project to Resource Management. Many companies add projects as tentative when they’re 75% sure they’ll be doing the work.

Internal projects

Internal projects show as purple on the Schedule and project pages. Internal projects are unique to your team or business. For consulting companies, these projects are typically non-billable.

If you’re tracking time in Resource Management, you may want to create a few internal projects for your team to track their hours on general business activities such as team meetings, marketing, or new business development.

Change a project type

When you create a new project, the project type defaults to Confirmed. You can change the project type of projects you own at any time.

  1. On the Projects page, select the project.
  2.  Select the Project Settings button. 
  3. You’ll see the fields in an editable format. Select the Project Type text box, and then select the project type (Internal or Tentative). 
  4. Scroll to the bottom of the screen and select the Save button. 

When you return to the Projects page, you’ll see the Project Type and color have changed.