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Whether it’s launching a satellite into an orbit, climbing Mount Everest, or delivering projects within the defined scope, great endeavors require meticulous forethought and detailed planning to be successful. However, is it possible to ensure projects are delivered on budget and on time without using project management software? Indeed, it is possible to ensure timely delivery of projects without letting quality take a backseat but that doesn’t mean it won’t be arduous, stressful, and nerve-wracking for project managers. Fortunately, project management tools are here to ease their pain.
With a plethora of tools out there – 300 (and counting) – choosing project management software right the first time is tougher than it seems. But don’t fret anymore, since this ultimate guide covers all the aspects that need to be kept in mind when choosing project management tools. Before that, it is important to understand the reason behind the rising popularity of project management software. Let’s dig deeper.
Why the Demand for Project Management Software is Rising
Today, organizations both large and small alike are turning to project management software since it comes with a host of tools and connectors that facilitate both teams and project managers to organize, collaborate, and monitor the work in real-time to deliver a successful project from the start to finish. This may be one of the reasons why the demand for project management software has been rising incessantly. A recent report indicates that the global project management software market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 13.1% from 2022-2032 and surpass USD 20.4 billion by 2032.
How to Choose the Best Project Management Software Right the First Time
With hundreds of project management tools on the market, choosing the best one can be a daunting task for anyone. Too often, project managers don’t understand what makes project management software a good fit for their team. When choosing a project management tool, it is important to keep in mind that every team is different from others and every project is unique, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach. In such a scenario, it makes sense to follow the below steps to make an informed decision.
1. Outline Project Management Needs
Selecting the right tool begins with a clear and honest assessment of the challenges that come along the way during project management. First things first, outline all the pain points that could include:
- Uneven workload between team members
- Inbox overflowing with tons of email
- Disorganized workflows and missed deadlines
- Way too many meetings that end up wasting productive time
- Lack of coherent communication between teams
After documenting all the pain points, project managers need to ask themselves – does this project management tool address all these challenges? This will help in narrowing down the search and shortlisting the tools that solve the challenges faced by them during project management.
2. Make a List of Features Required
Choosing a project management tool is similar to buying a house. When selecting a property, several aspects need to be considered such as the location and size of the property, age of the house, proximity to work and school, monthly budget, mortgage rates, down payment, job security, etc. Based on these parameters, users make buying decisions accordingly.
For instance, a nuclear family would prefer to buy a 2 BHK flat that is near to a school and a shopping market. On the other hand, a large family that lives with their parents, grandparents, or uncles and aunts would prefer investing in a 4-5 BHK flat that is in the proximity of a hospital, a college, and an office. While those who are buying real estate for the renting purpose would check the YoY rental yield of the property.
When selecting a project management tool, project managers may face a similar dilemma. Instead of deciding on the debt-to-income ratio, availability of civic amenities, and resale value in the future, they may have to deal with resource management, deadlines, project goals, etc. Fortunately, project managers can overcome this challenge by opting for a tool which comes with the most-used features including resource allocation, budget planning and management, task management, resource management, time-tracking, reporting, invoicing, collaboration, process automation, and more.
3. Don’t Forget to Ask Team Members
Considering the above example, buying real estate without seeking the opinion of your spouse won’t be a wise move. Similarly, project managers should never overlook their team’s needs when looking for software for project management. The reason being is different members of the team may be using different software for collaboration, reporting, and tracking due dates. The project management software selected by managers should be capable of enterprise-wide use. Besides this, project managers should ask their team members about the third-party applications they are currently using since they may have to integrate them with the project management software later.
4. Plan for Future Growth
In life, it’s hard to predict whether the existing requirements will remain the same in the coming months or years. For instance, a nuclear family may have to look for a bigger flat if their family increases in the future. Or, a big family might have to shift to a smaller flat if the breadwinner loses his job. After all, who knows?
However, in the case of business, the situation is different since businesses are expected to grow. When investing in project management software, it becomes imperative to take future growth into account and choose a tool that can easily handle that growth in the future without any hiccups.
Why Businesses Choose monday.com for Project Management
monday.com is a Cloud-based project management platform designed to get more work done in less time. It allows users to manage everything right from Sales & CRM to Marketing, Software Development, and Operations, etc. This flexible Work Operating System (Work OS) has been around for years and is backed by 152,000+ customers across the globe. It allows project managers to build and streamline workflows using customizable functionalities without having any knowledge of coding. To make the most of this tool, it’s considered wise to seek end-to-end consultation from certified monday.com experts.
monday.com offerings considered by businesses globally:
- Hundreds of ready-to-use templates to help teams get started quickly
- A slew of data visualization options including Gantt, Kanban, and timeline
- 40+ integrations to bring all popular work applications at one place
- Personalized 24/7 customer support from monday.com specialists
- Hundreds of automation features to offload manual drudgery
- Project planning and scheduling are an absolute breeze
- A free 14-day trial with impressive discounts on annual plans
Summing Up
Choosing the right project management tool has never been an easy task. Hopefully, after reading this detailed guide, project managers can make an informed decision and choose the best software tailored to their existing and future requirements.
If you are planning to hire monday.com experts for your business, you may reach out to seasoned professionals. There are many certified monday.com partners out there that will help you unlock the potential of this project management platform.
