Baselines and versions

A programme moves through more than one moment worth keeping

A project's programme is never agreed once and then left alone. Riverside Apartments moves through a real sequence: a first proposal, a client-approved contract, then the everyday disruptions, a sick day here, a late client variation there, that push the live plan further from what was signed. Monument's schedule is versioned so you can freeze any of those moments and keep editing afterward without losing the ability to look back.

We'll save two baselines around a real sign-off, then let two later disruptions move the live plan, and finally compare it against the contract point to see the drift.

Two versions, one live and any number locked

The schedule only ever shows you one of two kinds of thing. The working version is the programme you actually edit, every stage you draw and every delay you insert lands here. A baseline is a frozen copy of it: the instant you save one, Monument snapshots the working version exactly as it stands and never lets it change again. That immutability is the entire point, a baseline you could still edit wouldn't be a promise, it would only be another draft.

Focus the project, then freeze the moment

Baselines are saved per project, so start by opening Riverside Apartments alone. Click the Edit project icon on its row in the firm-wide schedule to enter a single-project view with every stage visible, then open the version selector, which reads Working on the live plan.

1. 1

   Click the Edit project icon on the Riverside Apartments row to open it alone.

2. 2

   Open the version selector and choose Save as Baseline.

3. 3

   Name it Initial proposal and confirm with Create Baseline, before any client discussion changes the plan.

Let real disruption move the plan, then freeze the sign-off

With Initial proposal saved, client discussions add a review day to Concept Design. Open the stage's Delay control to insert the day, watch every later stage slide out to match, and save the working version. That's the moment the client actually signs off, so it becomes the second baseline.

1. 1

   Open Concept Design, click Delay, then Apply to insert a review day and push the linked stages later.

2. 2

   Save the revised programme.

3. 3

   Open the version selector, choose Save as Baseline, and name this one Agreed contract.

Delivery doesn't stop being disruptive once the contract is signed. Staff sickness adds a day to Documentation, and a later client variation adds one more to Contract Administration. Both delays use the same Delay control on the stage, and both push the remaining programme further out. Save the working version again once they've landed, this live version, carrying both disruptions, is what gets compared against the contract.

Compare the live plan against what was signed

Comparing versions happens on the project itself, not the firm-wide schedule. Open Riverside Apartments' own Schedule tab and use Compare version to stack Agreed contract underneath the live plan.

1. 1

   Open Riverside Apartments' Schedule tab from the project page.

2. 2

   Click Compare version and choose Agreed contract.

3. 3

   Agreed contract appears read-only beneath the live plan, on the same dates across the top.

Both timelines share the same dates, so anything that's moved since sign-off, Documentation's extra day, Contract Administration's slip, shows up as the visible gap between the two rows rather than something you have to hunt for.

Troubleshooting

• The timeline won't respond to a drag. You're viewing a baseline inside the version selector, not the working version. Choose Return to Working Version and editing comes back.
• Compare version has nothing to offer. It lists saved versions other than the active and working versions. If a project has none yet, save a baseline first.
• A baseline looks stale next to the current plan. That's expected, baselines never update themselves. If the agreed plan genuinely changes again, take a new baseline rather than expecting an old one to move with it.

Where this fits next

With Initial proposal and Agreed contract both locked in, keep evolving the live plan freely: plan with roles and tracks, hand role work to staff, and adjust the work programme as delivery continues. Both baselines stay put, ready to compare against whenever you need to see how far things have moved.