What to Keep in Mind When Choosing Project Management Software

Your company has grown and it is time to say goodbye to that freeware software, and expand your ability to track, manage and control resources required to deliver complex projects on-time and under budget. Large projects are complex, so project management software is inherently complex, but there are a few ways you can simplify selection.

Selecting software begins with features. When looking over those check marks on a chart, you will see some rows where only a few high-end programs have check marks. More features are better, but not if the additional features raise the price for features you never use. Make sure to keep your budget and the scope of your projects in mind when reviewing features. You will get no benefit from features you don't use. Look for features that you will use everyday that save time and money because they make your team's work faster and easier.

Another features/benefits issue is ease of use vs. complexity. Ease of use is one of the most important characteristics to look for in complex software. If extra features come with many additional layers of complexity, then they will simply get in the way. How much information can you see at a glance? When you go page to page, is the use and interface intuitive? How far do you have to drill down to get more information? Is it intelligent? Does it automatically calculate work hours or task duration? Can you plan to balance resources by asking “what if” questions and seeing scheduling impact?

Does the project management software work easily with the tools you work with? Can it import MS Project files? How does it work with MS Office applications? Quicken? When you search, will it search these documents?

Does it work easily with your diverse team? How easy and flexible is collaboration and communication? Can each member customize their workspace on their page? Can executives readily see and understand project status reports?

Find software that is easy to use, intelligent, and communicates well and it will save your company time and money, and those are the best benefits of all!

Written by Bill Hoffman for Metafuse