Project management can turn into a real nightmare from time to time. The tasks are late, the clients keep chasing you, and all of a sudden you have three key employees on sick leave, and it seems that everything is slowly falling apart.
Yes, this scenario sounds stressful, and it leaves you questioning what went wrong, and what you could have done to prevent it. The fact is that you won’t be able to carry out every project without any hiccups, but that doesn’t mean you should just accept the situation as is and do nothing about it.
Some situations can be prevented, or at least mitigated, and it’s as simple as time tracking projects. How does it work? Well, that’s what you’re here to find out!
Table of Contents
Team Communication
This factor has nothing to do with time tracking, but it’s essential to any team’s success, so we have to cover it. Communication is a two-way street, so while you are there to give directions and allocate tasks, you should allow your team members to speak up. Let them give their own inputs on how the project could be done better.
You should also work to create as open relationships as possible with your team members, so they can feel like they can ask for help when they need it.
Project Scope and Task Allocation
During the planning phase of your project, all roles, tasks and deadlines must be clearly defined. Use the time tracking for projects software to assign tasks to appropriate employees, set up due dates and urgency levels for every portion of the project. Not only will this help you in the beginning of the project, it will come in handy if any changes need to be made, or if you get some additional assignments for the team.
Now, this doesn’t mean your initial plan shouldn’t ever change. It will, whether you like it or want it, or not. Keep tracking project progress, and make changes if necessary along the way. If you see an employee is struggling, check what’s happening and assign someone else to that task.
Even though plans change, you should still plan ahead, as it will keep you from getting sidetracked by potential issues that might come up.
Don’t Forget About the People
Yes, you are a project manager and you should manage projects. But managing a project also means you’re managing the people who are working on that project. You must be aware of how much work all your teammates can handle, but also how competent they are in different areas.
Within your time tracking app for projects you’ll see how efficient everyone is, and you’ll get to meet them a bit better thanks to these numbers. But, don’t only rely on the numbers, don’t forget to count in the quality of their outputs. It doesn’t matter if they can do something quickly, if they can’t do it right.
What About Clients’ Expectations?
Another factor you’re managing as a project manager are clients’ expectations. You’re the one they’ll be chasing for project updates, if something goes wrong, or if they need additional work done.
Expectation management begins before you even take on a project. Once the client requests a quote from you, you must provide them with a realistic, precise estimate of how long it will take, and what can they expect to get in the end. Failing to keep this promise will lead to you losing that client.
This is where your time tracking on projects comes in handy. Compare the data from previous projects to get the most accurate estimate for the project that’s coming your way.
Also, during the project you’ll be able to track progress, and see if maybe you need to change something in the workflow in order to make it before the agreed deadline.
Wrap Up
Managing a project isn’t a walk in the park, and there’s no project manager in the world who’ll tell you that they’ve had multiple projects go without any issues. This shouldn’t be discouraging. Instead, you should rely on technology, and find tools which can help you make it with as few challenges as possible.
