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Introduction
“What are project management tools” you ask? Well, they’re nifty little programmes developed and built by absolute brainiacs which make our lives easier as not just Project Managers but for individuals and teams. Whether you’re building out a massive website, or planning a wedding - project management tools are there to guide you from beginning to end. From scheduling, to collaboration, documentation or evaluation, let’s take a look at some of my favourite tools:
Communication
Microsoft Teams
Most common used phrase of 2020 - “Can you see my screen?”
We’re on video calls, instant chats, hearing toddlers having meltdowns while our CEO’s are presenting budgets, and connecting us as humans like never before - thanks Covid. And Microsoft Teams has been the vessel that has carried us through these strange times. It’s a powerful tool which allows us to setup our teams, schedule meetings easily, share documents and integrates into an array of powerful applications - streamlining our chaotic lives and connecting us. While I think the interface is quite bland, I do love the functionality of it.
Slack
Now this, I love. Slack is just way more fun to navigate and engage than any other communication channel I ‘ve worked on. The interface makes you feel like a kid again, and it’s super easy to work. They’ve taken the notion of doing business seriously and changed it to making business exciting. It also allows easy team collaboration with channels, app integrations into Office 365, GoogleDrive etc. as well as all the security that your company needs. It’s got everything MS Teams has, just a better interface, usability and FUN!
Scheduling
Float
There’s nothing more frustrating than a complex scheduling tool or program. That’s exactly why I love float.com - it’s by far the easiest scheduling system and it brings all the best scheduling features into one place. A few standout features:
- Live schedule updates: see changes to your schedule in real-time, as they occur
- Advanced schedule editing features that let you drag, drop, insert, replace, split, duplicate tasks, along with plenty of time-saving keyboard shortcuts (such as the ability to select and move multiple tasks at once)
- Powerful search for filtering by virtually any variable (tag, department, client, project) and saving your searched segments for future use
No more daily work schedules sent via mail - yes, people still do that. Gasp!
GoogleSheets
If you can’t afford to pay for a software program like float, fear not - you can take matters into your own hands and setup your own variation on GoogleSheets. I have done it and it works! All you have to do, is manually setup your Google sheets to replicate float - add text to your sheet, with a task name and maybe hyperlink to the brief (whether it’s on Jira, Trello, Asana etc.), your team can have a real-time view of what they’re working on and if anything changes, it’s as easy as dragging, dropping, editing or replacing. Voila! Thank me later.
Monitoring Projects
Trello
It’s free, it’s fun and it’s super helpful! Trello is a tool which allows you to plan, track, and manage your teams and projects successfully. It follows the idea of a kanban board, which means that it is made up of columns (eg: To Do/Doing/Done) and cards which describe the task to be done. These cards are shifted around between the columns and you can track the project’s progress easily and in real-time. Another highlight, is that you can add attachments, briefs etc. to each card, and assign it to the team member responsible.
JIRA
Exactly like Trello - but on steroids. Jira is a powerful software which allows teams to plan, track and release software projects. But also allows you to choose or create workflows which match the way your teams work while allowing you to integrate into hundreds of development tools. It streamlines processes, is scalable, and offers the security your organization needs.
All in One Project Management
Asana
Asana is another personal favourite of mine as it allows you to do everything all-in-one place. From planning, tracking, and communication - it allows you to stay on top of everything your team is doing while smashing deadlines. You can schedule resources, put timings together, add project briefs and documentation as well communicating and keeping track of progress. It’s also really nice to look at and super easy to use!
Basecamp
“The all-in-one toolkit for working remotely”
This one is especially geared towards those companies who are working remotely as it takes all the bits and pieces from your project requirements and puts it all in one place - the best part, is that you can access it from anywhere and on any device. Basically, you setup a board for each project and that board houses all the information you need for that specific project: a message board, to do lists, schedules, files and documents, group chats and automatic check-ins. It allows you to cutdown on meetings, no more endless emails where things slip through the cracks, and all in one centralized place with less distractions and fewer notifications. Sign me up!
Meetings and Workshops
Miro
I get so excited when I start talking to anyone about Miro. It’s the coolest online whiteboard solution for teams geared towards workshopping, brainstorming ideas, project planning and overall collaboration. Watch the onboarding video below as I feel that my words just won’t do it justice…
Conclusion
With an ever-increasing demand for swift delivery, project managers need to find tools and systems that allow them to automate and stay ahead. Using the above tools might just make your life easier and way less stressful, while still hitting those milestones and managing highly efficient and happy teams.
