If you're not using project management techniques and tools in your small business, you could be missing a trick. In simple terms, project management systems can help you and your team achieve your objectives, on time and on budget.
No matter what kind of business you run, project management tools can help you and your team to:
- Set realistic goals, deadlines and budgets.
- Create a workable schedule for your team.
- Break down projects into manageable tasks.
- Ensure everyone understands their role.
- Provide clear guidance to keep everyone on task.
- Share resources and documents. Collaborate and communicate effectively. Monitor spending and progress.
The wide array of techniques and buzzwords in project management can be confusing. Kanban, Gantt, Scrum - these are all project management techniques that could help your business to grow and succeed.
Finding the best tool for your business doesn't have to be difficult and you don't have to be a productivity expert to take advantage of these methods. Business platforms such as Bitrix24 can give you all the project management tools you need in an easy-to-use app, so you get results right away.
15 ways project management tools can help your business to grow and succeed:
1. Task management. Create, assign and track tasks and subtasks so everyone in your team understands their own role and its place in the project as a whole.
2. Task dependencies. It's important to define the relationship between tasks to ensure proper sequencing so things happen at the right time and in the correct order to prevent the project from stalling.
3. Kanban boards. Kanban is a workflow tool that allows you to move tasks across columns as they are completed so you can track the progress of the project. A simple Kanban board could have three columns showing tasks that have been completed, what's in progress and which tasks have yet to be started.
4. Gantt charts. Gantt is a bar chart that creates project timelines with task dependencies and milestones. Business teams can see at a glance what needs to be done on a project at every stage.
5. Collaboration tools. Effective project management requires good teamwork. Collaboration tools help teams to communicate effectively using chat, comments and notifications.
6. File sharing. Effective file storing and document sharing ensures you and your team don't waste valuable time looking for resources.
7. Calendar and scheduling. Bringing projects in on time calls for careful scheduling. By using a productivity app, you can schedule tasks, events, and deadlines on a shared calendar.
8. Resource management. Projects can easily stall when team members don't have the resources they need to get on with the job. Project management apps keep things moving by allocating team members and tracking resource utilisation.
9. Time tracking. A key part of project planning is monitoring how long each task has taken; productivity apps can make this easy by logging hours worked on tasks and projects for reporting and billing.
10. Reporting and analytics. You don't have to schedule a staff meeting to find out how the project is progressing - with a project management app you can generate reports and access dashboards that monitor project progress and performance.
11. Customisation. Setting up systems that work for your business is easy. The best productivity apps allow you to customise workflows, forms and fields to meet the specific needs of your project.
12. Integration. Projects run better when all your business tools can talk to each other. Project management apps integrate with other tools and services to give you seamless data exchange.
13. Role-based permissions. Being able to share resources is great but you also need to be able to control access levels and permissions for team members.
14. Budget tracking. No more nasty shocks at the end of a project - with a project management app you can keep tabs on costs, monitor expenses and compare them to the budget.
15. Mobile accessibility. Don't lose track of progress while you're out of the office. The best project management apps are smartphone-friendly, so you can get project information and updates anytime and anywhere.
These essential features provide a solid foundation for effective project planning, execution and collaboration within a project management tool. The best productivity apps also provide customisation to meet your specific project requirements and team preferences.
Project management that works for your business
Bitrix24 is a versatile project management and collaboration platform that integrates essential features like task management with dependencies, Kanban boards, Gantt chart visualisation, collaboration tools, file sharing and resource management.
Bitrix24 supports time tracking, offers reporting and analytics, and allows for customisation. With integration options, role-based permissions, budget tracking and mobile accessibility, Bitrix24 provides a comprehensive solution for streamlined project management and effective team collaboration.
Copyright 2023. Article written by Rachel Miller, Marketing Donut