A customizable project management software makes project planning, execution and progress tracking a piece of cake.
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If you can implement a variety of features. For example, you can create a transparent record so that everyone knows how things are.
However, this is just one option. The benefits can be manifold.
Needless to say, when you need to work on a project, it is paramount to consider choosing the best customizable project management software.
We will explain why in this article.
What is a project management software?
Fundamentally, a project management tool is software that helps teams to plan, manage and optimize resources in an organization.
This sort of tool is fundamental to businesses for a variety of reasons, some of which are essential:
- First and foremost, it helps keep the team organized and ensures that processes are followed;
- Secondly, it provides a clear picture of all the activities occurring regarding a project or activity at any given time.
Project management tools also provide teams with a way to communicate clearly and quickly through dedicated features.
Here are the reasons why a customizable project management software is valuable for businesses of all sizes:
1. Collaboration
When managing a large project, each team member is assigned one single task.
To make sure everyone is on the same page, a project management system streamlines collaboration across the team.
Should an employee have questions or concerns, they can immediately get the right answer by communicating internally with the team, without searching for other sources and thus saving time.
Moreover, such a tool streamlines document sharing, deadlines and status updates by sending notifications.
Among the various features that might be of interest are:
- File sharing: this allows you to quickly share files, calendars and contact lists wherever you are.
- Communication: some project management tools come with a built-in messaging app so employees can communicate seamlessly with each other.
- Sharing client data: having client profiles is critical in a project management tool. This provides an easy way to categorize them, to swiftly add their contact information, and to link invoices and projects.
- Team dashboard: dashboards provide an overview of team activities and project progress. Here, based on functionality, you can add visual charts and metrics to get a more transparent recap.
2. Programming and planning
Without a proper system set up and with a lack of guidelines, it can be tough to meet deadlines.
Time is wasted when employees work without knowing exactly what tasks they should be carrying out.
Using project management software allows you to outline tasks and make them visible.
Establishing deadlines and priorities, along with planning, prevents misunderstandings and overlapping tasks and schedules.
Some of the features that might be worth mentioning include:
- Prioritize activities: this makes rescheduling using priorities easier.
- Shared team calendar: calendar synchronization is key to notifying all team members of assigned tasks, deadlines and meetings. It also provides an overview of milestones by forwarding due dates.
- Time slot: an overview of the tasks and schedules reserved by each employee. This helps to accelerate and improve the task assignment process.
3. Resource management
Resource management is yet another good reason why custom project management software is valuable.
Good resource management is important to ensure that processes run smoothly.
Moreover, this capability helps you prevent resource shortages and overutilization that leads to unnecessary cost increases.
4. Budget management
Every project has a budget, which is included in a budget, along with quotas and profit.
The project manager’s ultimate goal is to keep the actual cost below, or at least within, the estimated cost to maximize the profit earned from the project.
To manage expenses efficiently, in most cases, creating a simple Excel spreadsheet will not work.
Among the various features that you may find interesting are:
- Time tracking: this automates the billing process.
- Budget report: provides monthly and weekly reports about expenses and totals so you can monitor budget performance and see at first glance if you are overspending.
- Budget dashboard: usually consisting of KPIs and graphs to show the project’s progress.
5. Documentation
As stated earlier, an Excel spreadsheet is not enough for most cases and more complex projects.
Therefore, the solution is to pick a customizable project management software to ensure accurate data-driven documentation.
Among the many features that you might find interesting are:
- Central data storage: everything in one place for convenient recovery and access.
- Quick access: this avoids having to switch between spreadsheets and allows sharing in just a few clicks.
Managing projects, due to its nature, is not an easy task.
Since there are many parts involved, this work can easily become messy and disconnected.
That’s why customizable project management software becomes very important.
However, when there are so many tools available on the market, it can be daunting to find the best project management tool.
When comparing tools, it’s wise to bear in mind that a sound project management software should meet one basic requirement: it should be customizable and come with all the features a project manager needs.
