How to Choose the Right Project Management tool?
Are you aware of the latest trend? Many project management software solutions available have risen steeply in recent years. These tools come with a user-friendly interface designed to enhance team collaboration and provide multiple reporting options to keep everyone informed. But how to choose the top project management software for your business? Let’s discuss further!
Understand Your Business Needs and Challenges
All top project planning software will mention that they are great and innovative. But a very important question remains. “Which software is right for my company?” Your choice will impact how your work is managed, how your team collaborates, and how your work is maintained and approved.
So, before you fall into the rabbit hole of a lively project management function, you need to clarify your business needs and challenges. In this way, you can find the best solution for your team. For any project to be successful, the goals, requirements, characteristics, and requirements of the project must be collected and defined. Otherwise, you will not know what a good solution to the problem is. In the end, you will feel devastated when the tool doesn’t give the results you want.
What Does Your Team Actually Need?
Different teams require project management tools of other project management software like Bigtime software reviews with different feature sets. The size of your team, the nature of your business, and the complexity of your project, all impact the type of project management software you need.
Some teams might need simple software to keep track of specific tasks or to-do lists. Meanwhile, other teams such as small businesses, HR, management projects will benefit from additional features. The features such as task assignment, progress tracking, and reporting will work well for these teams.
For companies that require professional and essential project management activities including system integration services or consulting will need broader functionalities. These functionalities are such as task assignment, resource allocation, budget planning, and invoicing.
So, you need to figure out which type of business or team you have.
Know the Challenges
Sometimes it is hard for team members to articulate what they need exactly only by seeing the best project management demo. Your team members will not tell you that they need better planning or reporting tools like the Wrike demo Instead, you will have to sit down with your team to map out how work is currently being done to figure out where the inefficiencies are.
Try to ask questions such as:
- Is there a process?
- Are the challenges caused by the lack of a cohesive process that everyone understands and follows?
- Do team members know where to look for information or who to contact for questions and support?
- Are you fully accountable for the process?
Understanding your current challenges can help you identify specific features of your project management software. The right software will eventually help you streamline all the processes and increase productivity.
What to Look for from Top Project Management Software?
Most top project management software comes with similar capabilities. However, they can be approached in different ways. Thus, when it comes to choosing the right one, look for the features below.
Task Management Feature
This feature allows you to list all the tasks and assign a team member for each task. Then focus on your highest priorities and set deadlines so everyone knows what needs to be done and by whom.
Some task management software tools allow you to sort tasks in different ways. This can be done by resource, department, or due date. In this way, you can easily find and organize information. Most software will also notify team members when a deadline is approaching.
Scheduling and Planning Feature
This feature helps you manage small projects like creating a set of banners with just a list of tasks in a spreadsheet. However, some large projects such as starting a new website might be tricky. For this, you need to choose top project management software with the ability to visualize timelines. The software also needs to help you understand how different timelines and dependencies can affect each other. Gantt chart has an important feature for visualizing task lists and project schedules.
File Sharing Feature
Best IT service management tool shows that they provide the ability to share files in a team with team members. As a result, your team members can quickly access the information they need to get their work done. If you often work with people outside of your company, such as suppliers, contractors, or customers, you may also share files with these external parties.
Easy to Use
The project management software that is difficult to use by your team is useless. Some software can be very intricate. In fact, it can take days to completely transform an entire team. While some businesses need these complex capabilities, others can work efficiently with easier features and interfaces. Choose a software that provides the right combination of features, delivered through an intuitive interface that complements the way your team works.
Real-Time Reporting Feature
The reporting feature collects data about previously entered projects. Then, it will generate reports on project budgets, costs, resource allocation, team member productivity, and more. Regardless of top project management costs, most software comes with a set of predefined reports. These reports will be easy for you to generate, and some even support custom reports.
Optimized Communication Feature
Good communication facilitates collaboration and this is the key to getting work done effectively. Today, more people work remotely or spread across offices in multiple locations. Accordingly, the need for optimized communications becomes increasingly important. A built-in messaging app from design project management software will help team members quickly communicate with each other in real time without going through a lot of emails.
User-Friendly Interface
The visual design may not seem like your top priority. However, a cluttered interface can make it difficult for your team members to find what they need. Eventually, this will reduce the productivity of your team.
Many top project management software mention that a clean, simple, and professional interface makes the user experience more enjoyable. Even better, it will even help your team members to be more interested in using the software. A well-designed interface is even more important if your project management tool has a client component that you use to interact with the client. After all, the modern and professional design enhances the brand image of the company.
Also Read: Everything You Need to Know About Best Project Management Tool
