Nowadays a big part of getting anything done involves using the right tools. Leveraging innovative technology is by far the easiest way to manage projects. The key to success for any project lies in planning and managing tasks.
Having a way to manage your plan and monitor progress is a one of the most important aspects of successfully achieving your goals. There are tons of tools as well as complete task management solutions out there today designed to help managers oversee tasks and optimize productivity.
There are many centralized systems that can handle all your task management concerns in one location. You may want to consider a cloud-based solution to streamline communication, or opt for an in-house solution to maintain high security levels.
With so many applications out there it can be hard to choose which one is best for you. That’s why you should be familiar with some key features of task management software before you choose a solution. We outlined 5 key components to consider when shopping for task management software.
Task Management
Effective task management is probably the most basic and critical part of completing projects. Proper task management ensures that the project is planned out in an organized manner. This involves assigning tasks, identifying milestones, creating time limits and more. Task management software should sync with your calendar and send messages to team members and management regarding tasks. Helpful software will involve a way to ensure that no task is overlooked. The task management module contained in any task management tool needs to be scrutinized with care above all other things. This will dictate the workflow of the entire project.
Discussions and Collaboration
Many times team members and clients will want to discuss the project. Collaboration means that everyone who needs to be involved in group discussions is included. Those working together need to be able to see document changes, comments, and send messages in real time. Client’s as well as team members should be included in this phase of project management. The functionality of discussions and collaboration features will vary widely based on your solution.
This feature also adds a level of accountability. Adequate software should have messaging capabilities for text, files and a workspace for team members to productively carry out these tasks.
File Management
Managing a project will usually involve moving a lot of data around. File sharing and management will be a critical part of this process. It’s important to know that your data will not be compromised in any way. This means that you should be confident that files are secure, organized and easy to access, edit and share. Look for features like automatic backups to avoid overwrite errors and efficient sharing methods that minimize redundancy (avoid lengthy email chains if possible). One of the biggest things you need to consider is reliability. After that think about how speed, workflow and other functionality.
Customer Relations
Transparency is very important in today’s world. You can let clients know how the project is progressing every step of the way with a good task management solutions. More rudimentary programs will not include things like client portal for front end customer access. This can be a very useful tool alongside other customer relations options. Giving clients and stakeholders certain permissions can do a lot to build trust between you and your customers.
Access & Accountability
One of a manager’s main functions is to ensure that things are moving along according to plan. Look for software helps you easily manage task completion time, events, colanders and accountability. Having a centralized platform to handle all this can save you time and effort compared to relying on a system of separate components to manage team members, clients, files and tasks.