The success of a business project relies\nheavily on a number of factors: individual and collective expertise of the team\nmembers, budget, resources, communication, and productivity among other things.\nProductivity, however, is becoming a serious concern for many project-based\nfirms.<\/p>\n\n\n
According to a recent productivity survey by\nVoucherCloud<\/a> that interviewed nearly 2,000 employees, the average\noffice worker in the United Kingdom is productive for just 2 hours and 23\nminutes. This study pertains to employees who do office work such as typing\ndocuments, taking calls, printing files, and setting appointments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A separate research on work-life\nbalance by RescueTime<\/a>, this time focusing on US-based knowledge\nworkers (those that work with information), echoed an almost similar result.\nKnowledge workers in the US are productive for just 2 hours and 48 minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unproductive workers and lost hours form\na problematic mix for any business organization and its clients. Team members\nwho slack negatively affect the overall efficiency of the group. Aside from the\nhuge financial setback, this concoction of problems results in multiple delays,\npoor quality of work, and dissatisfaction of clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But with the right project management<\/a> software,\nfirms have a solid answer to many productivity issues and can further empower\ntheir workers to deliver their best work at all stages of the project from\nplanning and execution to realization and delivery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To make your team members productive\nfrom start to finish, you need to establish a project plan right from the\nbeginning. And that plan has to have a high degree of quality. You have to sit\ndown with your team members, upper management, and your clients to discuss\nthoroughly the details of the project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The goals of the project must be\nestablished from the beginning. Together with other involved parties, you can\nperform various project estimation techniques such as analogous estimating<\/a> to create\nviable estimates for costs, resources, and schedule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the plan becomes more defined,\neveryone involved in the project will have their roles and responsibilities\nestablished and made known to other team members, superiors, and stakeholders.\nAll project information, goals, schedule, roles, and protocols are centralized\nin the project management software that members can access securely whenever\nneeded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Solid planning coupled with absolute\ntransparency empowers employees. They become extremely motivated and,\ntherefore, productive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the many benefits of project\nmanagement software is that it allows you to set and document every change made\nto the overall plans and goals. Majority of project plans, if not all, undergo\nseveral changes and adjustments as they progress. Changes to plans occur for\nseveral reasons, including delays due to late approvals, internal\nreorganization, additional tasks, and new goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is critical for project managers to\nkeep all these changes documented and members notified. Documentation makes it\neasy for members to review the new information. It also simplifies the auditing\nprocess as it helps create an audit trail. Documentation of project\ndevelopments allows project managers to perform and\/or repeat several critical\nprocesses such as project cost estimation<\/a> and justify\nrequests for additional funds, members, and extension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n An employee can be highly protective at\nthe individual level. But if he is working fast and furious on less important\ntasks and oblivious to the scheme of things, he can cause bottlenecks that\nseriously hamper the overall performance and efficiency of the entire team. In\nsuch situations, the importance of project management tools can\u2019t be stressed\nenough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A reliable project management solution\nhelps boost team productivity by helping team managers create effective\nworkflows and regularly notify members of which tasks take priority attention.\nThe software automatically notifies members when a milestone has been achieved\nor when a deadline is fast approaching. Thus, it motivates them to be not just\nas productive as individual operators but also work with a keen awareness of\nthe big picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n1. Plan With Quality<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
2. Document Every Development<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
3. Focus on High-Priority Tasks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
4. Find and Eliminate Wasteful Activities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n