What Is a Project Management System?
The word “system” has two different meanings:
- A set of principles and procedures that dictate how something is done
- A set of parts that form a complex whole
This means that the word “system” within a project management system can have different meanings.
The first way to define a project management system is an entire system of principles and processes for completing a project. This can include teams and contributors along with workflows, procedures, tools and more. One way to think of it is to imagine an entire ecosystem that you are utilising to deliver your projects.
With the growth of technology and its importance in our working world, a project management system is now also used to describe the technology platforms and solutions that companies use to organise, plan and manage their projects. This can be another from a task management software such as Asana to more complex management solutions like ESTA.
Because of the diversity of this management system, you may hear this being referred to as Project Portfolio Management Software.
Why use a project management system?
If your business isn’t yet using a project management system, you are likely to be doing more work for a small profit margin because of the time wasted on menial paperwork tasks. But if these tasks are automated and completed efficiently, your business and its team will have more time to focus on your primary services and operations. A portfolio management software is useful because it:
Betters Collaboration
When you are managing a larger project, it usually requires the collaboration of different teams with individual tasks sent to different team members. To ensure everyone understands the project, you can utilise a project management software to simplify the teams’ collaboration. If a team member has any questions or concerns, they can get a direct response by communicating with the team internally, getting the right answers from the right people without spending hours searching other sources. Being able to get quick answers reduces the time spent on various tasks. Plus, it also centralises all documentation, timelines and project statutes and will update relevant team members with updates and informant information.
Helps with scheduling and planning
When you don’t have a management system in place, it can become hard for your team to start on schedule due to the lack of specific deadlines and guides on what needs to be completed and when. A lot of time is lost when an employee doesn’t know what they should be working on, and this can ultimately delay the project as a whole. An effective software will be able to outline each employee’s tasks with their deadlines and priorities, which will help prevent any misunderstandings.
Provides resource management
Another great use of project management software is the ability to manage your resources properly. Managing your resources is an essential part of project operations so that time is not wasted. Knowing the materials needed for each project, you can work without a hitch of a missing piece of equipment or tool.
Assists with budget management
Every project has a cost that will be included in a budget. The manager of a project’s goal is to keep the cost below the profit earned to actually receive a profit. The benefit of a project management system is that it can assist with managing all expenses effectively and keeps you from being buried under piles of Excel Spreadsheets.
Organises documentation
There are a lot of ways to organise your documents. Some businesses opt for spreadsheets whilst others still prefer to use pen & paper to keep track of the progression of their projects. But these types of organisations can actually cause
errors. Did you know that 88% of spreadsheets contain errors in their data? If you were to use project management software, you are guaranteed to have accurate data in your documents.
Put all of this together, and you get a more efficient way to manage your projects on time and under budget.
Realise your goals with a project management system
So, we’ve looked at what a project management system is and how it can benefit your business, but there is nothing like experiencing it for yourself.
It’s best to know that every project management system or an ERP system has common features, but they all have their own unique features. This is why you need to trail a project management system first-hand to know how they work and which one is going to work to your benefit.
Once you have found the software solution that is best suited to you and your business goals, you can realise your project management goals.