There are plenty of project management tools available in the market. But it is important that you choose a software that allows you to plan, schedule and budget your resources and project efficiently. Moreover, you should know how to use these tools to their best potential and understand when and how to implement them in your organization.
A PMP certification can help you gain the required knowledge to strategically select and implement the right tools to effectively manage your projects. Here is a list of the top seven project management tools that can help a project manager throughout all the levels of a project:
Asana
Asana is a cloud-based project management solution that enables enterprises and entrepreneurs to manage and organize projects and tasks, communicate and collaborate effectively without email.
You can organize your tasks into projects for streamlining the workflow. Divide the work into smaller units aka tasks and assign them to team members. Keep a track of your team’s progress against milestones and get a quick overview of the project from the Asana dashboard.
Trello
Trello is another popular project management application that gives you an in-detail view of the entire project. You can see which of the tasks are being worked on, and who is working on it. It is widely popular for visualizing project tasks. Project managers essentially use Trello for short and quick everyday tasks.
Each Trello card represents a task that can be assigned to a team member. You can add images, links, descriptions, and even label the cards in different colors. It is easy to use and simple task management application where you can organize each task according to dates or by priority. Stay connected to your team members and give them regular feedback on their cards via comments ensuring compliance to guidelines and high-quality work.
JIRA
JIRA is a powerful project management tool that tracks cross-platform issues and bugs with its advanced features and capabilities. It is optimized for agile methodology and offers ample benefits that ensure smoother project management. JIRA helps you build a centralized communication system from where you can create tasks, review them, and effectively communicate with your team.
You can create user stories, issues, and plan sprints. Additionally, project managers can also prioritize tasks and discuss their team’s work. You can track real-time reporting of your team’s work and see how far you have come along in the project.
WorkBook
The WorkBook is an agency management software and suite for project and resource management, file sharing, CRM collaboration, forecasting, and accounting. It is specifically built for in-house teams and agencies.
A WorkBook is a versatile tool that helps organizations boost their revenue and productivity as it streamlines the company’s project and financial management processes and provide complete visibility and insight to become more productive, efficient and profitable.
Some of its top features include Gantt Charts that are used to oversee project progress, financial management features like forecasts, budgets, and automatic billing.
Zoho Projects
Zoho Projects is a cloud-based project management tool that is designed for small to mid-sized companies. It is one of the best-known tools for small and simple project management, that can assist teams to streamline their upcoming tasks and work.
It offers project budgeting and scheduling, which enables project managers to define and outline project tasks, assign them to team members, and estimate the project costs. Zoho Projects also allows project managers to take regular follow-ups on the in-progress tasks so that they’re constantly updated. Zoho Projects also offers Gantt charts for tracking project progress, assists in the proper document and file management, and helps you access time tracking and timesheets.
Microsoft Project
It is one of the most trusted and popular project management software across the globe that is widely used by companies. Microsoft Project helps to streamline resource, project, and portfolio management. It is used by 20+ million users.
It allows easy project scheduling and budgeting with an array of features that support efficient project and resource management. In addition to this, Microsoft Project also offers reporting and business intelligence that helps project managers track each task without any hassle.
Insightly
Insightly is a powerful CRM built with project and business management capabilities. It is designed for companies to convert leads to projects and promote timely delivery. Insightly helps businesses build lifelong customer relationships and increase revenues faster.
You can explore task dashboard, activity sets, and reports to track work progress. Also, you can manage your leads, contacts, partners, vendors, suppliers, and organizations, all from one platform. Last but not least, you can also track performance and project activity against milestones.
Takeaway
Project managers use these tools significantly to streamline their projects’ workflow and manage them end-to-end. It is important to choose an ideal project management tool that fits in your organization’s requirements, but it is also essential that you have the knowledge to plan, implement and review carefully. Taking a Project Management Professional Course can help you gain skills and empower you with the right knowledge needed to manage projects efficiently.