Negosentro | Your business has realized it can’t afford to do without project management or PM software. However, there are many different options out there. How do you choose the right project management tool for your work group? Here are five things you should be looking for when picking a project management tool. We’ll explain why these features are so important and the questions to ask to verify that the PM tool has what you need.
Project Management Flexibility
One benefit of project management software is that it can manage much of the work for you. Ideally, the project management software has clear workflows for each task. Can you assign who you want to work on the task? Can you tag teammates or reassign work?
Another factor to consider is if the workflows work for you. While you may be designing websites, can the workflow handle other types of tasks appropriately? Can you configure tasks and assign them the way you want? The project management tool should simplify your process, not get in the way of it.
One factor that businesses overlook in project management is the flexibility they have once they input the data. How many reporting options do you have to track the status of your projects? Do you have clear and transparent milestones for tracking progress? There’s no point getting project management software if you can’t immediately identify the state of the project at any given time.
The ideal project management solution will bring all of your data together in one place. The best will combine project management and resource management. For example, you can manage money, people, equipment and general schedules all in one place.
Security and Control
Your business data is its lifeblood. You have to know that it is secure in the project management system. You also have to be able to control the project data for your protection. For example, you need to be able to securely transfer files between team members and clients. Internal and external communication records need to be secure while flowing seamlessly between parties authorized to access them. You need to be able to add people with the necessary access permissions while knowing no one else can access your mission critical data. Look for tools that allow you to control access via role-based permissions to minimize your administrative workload.
Application Support
It doesn’t matter if you’ve found a great project management tool, if you can’t figure out how to use it. Know what type of training is offered and if it is good enough for your team before you sign up. Verify that the documentation available is up to date before you decide to teach yourself how to use it, too.
Collaboration
Bouncing between chat apps, email and other tools can slow down your team. This is why having everyone work within the same project management tool is essential to productivity. However, you can’t just look for real-time chat. Search for project management software that lets you set up knowledge forums and team blog posts. Then everyone is kept up to date without interrupting their workflow. The best tools are able to store commonly used documents and files in a central location so that team members don’t have to search for them.
Bad project management tools add more work to your already busy schedule. Good project management tools put everyone on the same page, giving them more time to get work done.
