Choice of a project management system

Council 1: You treat the choice of a project management system as to the project

When choosing the solution for business management manage selection process as well as any other project. Application of an effective control technique projects when choosing a project management system guarantees that the solution selected by you in the best way meets your requirements and tasks for which it is intended. Excessively functional solution with excess opportunities which will probably remain not demanded not obligatory better, than simpler solution which meets basic needs of your company. At the same time it is necessary to consider that the simple solution can not provide perspective requests of your company in process of its development. To consider your requirements and requirements, having excluded at the same time the unnecessary properties and functions offered by software suppliers use methods of management of projects.^[1]

Council 2: Formulate a business challenge

Deliver a business challenge for ensuring the choice of a project management system. Whether really present system or the tool is not able to provide necessary functionality for project management and resources? Whether exceed your specific needs of a possibility of the existing system? Whether project fill rates concerning expectations of the management are reduced? It is simpler to solve the first two problems in terms of change of the tool while the third is more problematic. If processes are imperfect or in general are absent, implementation of the difficult tool will not solve this problem, and will add some more more likely.

Council 3: Set the purposes on optimization

To define and place priorities to requirements, at an early stage of the choice of the solution for project management set a task of optimization of this process. The project manager of the choice of business solution should document and approve both a current status of selection process, and the desirable. For achievement of desirable result set the measurable purposes. It will allow to hold selection process of a system within requirements of your business, but not to follow the tastes of the properties and the software functions unnecessary you offered by the supplier.

Council 4: Describe the planned process of management of the project

Before continuing the choice of a system, describe the planned process of management of the project. If the current process of management of the project does not work effectively, correct process. If specific purposes of project management are not satisfied, make the analysis of basic reasons for determination of necessary improvements in the current process. And until process of management of the project is not carefully described, refrain from further actions for the choice of a system.

Council 5: Turn on the appropriate software tools in process of management of the project

Use the process of management of the project as contextual demonstration of how different software tools and applications are used for all project lifecycle. Describe the entering, outgoing documents, the accumulated experience, councils and acceptances for use of tools. Do not limit integration of software tools only to the application for project management.

Council 6: Generate requirements by means of process description

Process description will define critical requirements to successful application of the solution on project management. Use process description to receive the complete list of requirements, including as requirements which should decide a new system, and requirements which should decide out of it.

Council 7: Make the final list of three suppliers

The final supplier list of software should be short. A detailed set of requirements will reveal requirements which can be implemented by two-three suppliers. Too large number of solution providers in the final list is a sign that determination of requirements did not give the differentiating signs and that you will suit any product.

Council 8: Test the product provider

Request from suppliers a system for testing. Test each of the offered products from the suppliers who were included in the final list, using data which in the best way reflect your business activity. Use opinion of the experienced personnel understanding work of business applications to estimate systems capabilities and the received results of tests of products.

Council 9: Estimate suppliers

All suppliers have strong also weaknesses. Before making the final decision, estimate suppliers according to their "record of service". Keyword parameters of assessment include their reputation, the customer base, the number of years in business, a financial status and long-term strategy. Try to discuss work of the supplier and his offer at least with three of their clients. If the seller and their products were successfully implemented in the companies similar on your own, then and you can expect similar success.

Council 10: Select the supplier

Remember that return from time spent for assessment of suppliers and their products is limited. The leading software solutions satisfy requirements of the majority, and will only units use all functions of a product of the supplier.

Despite importance of the cost accounting, the price should not become the defining criterion when choosing the supplier. Business requirements, for example, such as availability of functionality to all users of a product, ability to integrate with the used systems and also a possibility of simple and effective implementation in structure of projects of your office of project management (PMO) should be the most important.

Assessment of functionality of project management systems

Grouping of tasks on projects

Create tasks and store them in the general list – the bad idea for any scheduler. Over time, when the quantity of tasks everything increases, their display requires more and more accurate hierarchy. And the good project management system provides this hierarchy at once^[2]

Tasks should belong to different projects, and large and difficult tasks – to be divided into subtasks. Subtasks, in turn, mean simultaneous accomplishment of several stages of a large task by different contractors. The check sheet – the list of points of instructions which are eliminated in process of their accomplishment is in some cases convenient.

Access rights restriction

Even the small organizations on number have a need for restriction of visibility of these or those projects, tasks, fields. And case here even not in trust: just, for example, it is not necessary for the system administrator (and it is not interesting) to know about tasks of finance division and vice versa. The main requirement to functionality of setup of roles and access rights – flexibility and simplicity. Setup should be made without involvement of specialists of technical support of the application.

Possibility of delegation

If the task is carried out by several users, it should support a possibility of delegation. Well configured delegation provides setup who and to whom can give assignment, for subordination observance.

System of notifications

To independently monitor changes in a task it is inefficient and labor-consuming. In a sensible management system of businesses of notification should arrive quickly and to automatically interested users. Notifications can come by mail or to different messengers (Skype, Viber, Jabber, etc.), to be displayed within the application. At the same time by a system also the possibility of setup/shutdown of notifications should be provided. Such function is especially relevant for heads and chiefs of the departments receiving a day before one hundred different notifications.

Calendar

It is very good if the project management system performs also function of the scheduler. In that case she turns on the calendar where you can make the personal schedule. How detailed will be this schedule, to solve to you. If desired it is possible to paint each working day on minutes, and it is possible just to designate the most important events and meetings not to forget about them. Ideally the scheduler should support and a possibility of creation of the collective repeating event (for example, a weekly planning meeting). If you got used to use of other calendars (from Google, Yandex, Outlook, Evernote and so forth), the system by plus selected there will be an ability to integrate with them.

Comments on tasks

It is obligatory point for tasks which are carried out long time and/or several people. They can specify any information which will be found necessary in comments.

Joint work with files

Many of us refused information storage on own server for a long time and passed into "clouds". Many task management systems consider this moment and storages of files at themselves in "cloud" give an opportunity or Yandex Disk or Dropbox the Cloud service of file sharing are integrated with such third-party resources as Google One (before Google Drive). And, besides, here it is important to pay attention to setup of access rights for different users of your company.

The closed chat and other means of communication

The project management system means also existence of own means of communication. Agree, it is a little strange to discuss tasks and problems of the organization for Skype, having the multifunction appendix for business processes. It should be noted that internal mail will not be able to cover all requirements of communication. Look for an online chat, it is optimal with a possibility of calls.

Time recording and analytics

Such function is useful on any project where accomplishment of tasks has more or less accurate time frames. Time management can mean both control of working off by employees of the put hours, and time spent for closing of project tasks with each user.

From functionality on a time recording one more feature which should be provided by a good project management system naturally follows: this drawing up reports and providing data for the analysis. The powerful analytical module allows to estimate efficiency of departments and employees, to reveal so-called bottlenecks and to help to make the correct decisions on company management.

Filters

It is the only convenient way to understand a huge number of tasks and projects which collect in a business management system of any company over time. The filters, the better are more powerful and more functional. Separate plus – a possibility of preserving of the filters made under themselves.

Configurability

Even if the developer with complete confidence claims that his system is universal and approaches under any business, under itself not to avoid settings. Try to consider this moment, selecting for themselves the business application. Think, than your business process differs. Learn whether you will be able to create new fields for tasks, to manage templates, access rights and so on.

Export/import of data

This function is necessary upon transition from one management system to another. Most often rather simple support of import of .csv or .xls of files, but some systems have integration into other popular applications and allow to make transition automatically.

Besides, if you got used to work with other applications (for example, to make data tables in the MS Excel), then a possibility of export of tasks through integration or creation of external export files it will be appropriate too.

Notes