Project Management Software: The Definitive Guide
By Arnab Dey
For easy activities, you can use smartphones or even apps on your laptop, but when you’re working on a project with other people, these methods won’t work.
A basic computer can’t provide the scheduling, planning, and monitoring capabilities necessary for a project to be shared and collaborated on.
This is where project management tools will come in handy to keep track of all the details involved in making sure your project is a success. It’s your job as a project manager to make sure the team has the resources it needs to achieve the deadlines.
In this book, you will learn about the fundamentals of software solutions as well as how to select the finest.
Spreadsheets: A Practical Guide
Even in the analog era, spreadsheets were at the heart of project management. Spreadsheets are the best tool for scheduling and organizing because they provide a visual platform for arranging and tabulating data in a meaningful fashion.
Spreadsheets are still useful in today’s digital age because they provide project managers more flexibility in how they may deal with various data sets while also constructing a story around each data.
A much more effective project tool may be made by mixing spreadsheets and colored panels and a collaborative framework. This tool can also be implemented as software.
When choosing project management tools, consider this
All technology is not created equal. Some are better suited for smaller jobs, while others are better suited for bigger projects that take longer.
ERP software, which may give a coordinated approach for up to 100 people, is one kind of software solution that big firms utilize for important projects. However, all of these tools emphasize reporting, project tracking, and project planning as the most important features.
It’s also possible to enable the team to check the status of every activity and determine if there are provisions in place for all the various activities. Suppliers or customers may be required to contribute to certain initiatives.
Alternatively, you may use software for project management that allows restricted access to other parties and locks back access after their contribution is complete.
Getting the job done right
If you want to develop quality software, you’ll need to do your homework. Determine the scope of your project and who will be on your team before moving further. You may get a head start by downloading and trying out the free trials of a few different project management tools.
The easiest way to find a solution for your team is to first determine what they need. This method will allow you to get a firsthand look at the features of each software solution and then determine which one is best for you after a month of use.
You and your team will greatly benefit from this trial since it provides everybody an opportunity to choose the best strategy and solution for the project as a whole.
In charge of the project schedule: project manager
You should now estimate the start and finish dates of each item on your list and set those dates accordingly. You may get an indication of the project’s completion timeline by determining the length of each individual assignment.
Be cautious to give yourself a little wiggle room when calculating project completion dates. A Gantt chart is one of the most common methods used by successful project managers to generate a project timetable.
It is possible to measure progress, map your critical path, illustrate dependencies and make modifications by adjusting task durations using Gantt charts (visual timelines that represent tasks as bars).
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