Project Time Management: Strategies, Tips & Tools

Time isn’t in your facet in terms of challenge administration. Work piles up and deadlines method rapidly. Whereas challenge managers haven’t discovered the way to bend time and house to their bidding, there are time administration methods that you should utilize to handle the time you spend on duties.

No, it’s not science fiction, it’s challenge time administration. Managing challenge time requires planning, scheduling, monitoring and controlling duties all through the challenge life cycle. However we’re getting forward of ourselves. Let’s begin initially.

What Is Undertaking Time Administration?

Undertaking time administration is the method of analyzing work, growing a timeline and establishing schedule management procedures to make sure initiatives are accomplished inside a specific schedule. That is an ongoing course of that spans throughout the initiation, planning, scheduling, execution and monitoring phases of a challenge.

Undertaking administration software program may also help handle time all through the challenge life cycle. For instance, ProjectManager is on-line software program with time administration instruments akin to Gantt charts, challenge calendars, timesheets and lots of different instruments and options to facilitate the challenge time administration course of. Its real-time challenge dashboards enable challenge administration groups to simply monitor challenge timelines, workload, progress prices and extra. Get began with ProjectManager right this moment.

Undertaking Time Administration Course of

There are three main steps within the challenge time administration course of: challenge time estimation, challenge scheduling and challenge time monitoring. Right here’s a fast overview of those levels.

1. Undertaking Time Estimation

This determines how lengthy it’ll take to finish a challenge or process. It’s an vital a part of the time administration course of as a result of it helps managers plan and assign sources successfully. Correct estimates also can assist initiatives be delivered on time, preserve shoppers completely satisfied and forestall groups from changing into overwhelmed.

2. Undertaking Scheduling

Undertaking scheduling in time administration is making a structured timeline that outlines a challenge’s duties, deliverables and milestones. It additionally consists of the beginning and finish dates for every exercise, how lengthy every process will take and the sources that will likely be assigned to them.

3. Undertaking Time Monitoring & Schedule Management

Undertaking time monitoring and schedule management are each a part of the challenge administration course of that assist be certain that a challenge is profitable and on schedule. Time monitoring includes the monitoring and recording of how lengthy it takes to finish duties, actions and initiatives. Schedule management helps to find out if a challenge is forward of or not on time.

The time administration steps above require enter out of your challenge crew, but in addition stakeholders and different events concerned within the challenge to be as correct as doable. Your challenge timeline isn’t static and should be reviewed and revised all through the challenge life cycle.

Significance of Time Administration in Undertaking Administration

Tasks are intimidating. There’s quite a bit to do, with often little time or cash to do it. There’s no room for errors, which might be pricey and time-consuming. Stakeholders like certainty—and whilst you can’t promise them every little thing will run like clockwork, you may actually do your finest to handle time.

Undertaking time administration lets you break a challenge down into extra manageable elements, akin to duties. Undertaking time administration works completely with process administration and useful resource administration to maintain you on schedule.

By assigning time to every process in your challenge, you may management the challenge timeline and ship as scheduled. Whether or not that’s with a to-do listing or extra strong challenge administration software program, you may prioritize duties, determine dependencies and set milestones to assist observe progress.

Undertaking Time Administration Methods

There are numerous methods for managing challenge time on initiatives:

• Comply with the three steps above: That is essential for organizing and scheduling your work. It is advisable to know the way you’re spending your time. That features logging hours for your self and your crew.
• See how lengthy every process is taking: Evaluate this to the time you estimated. If there’s a discrepancy, look into why and alter your schedule. Possibly that process ought to be carried out when your crew is recent, whether or not that’s very first thing within the day or week.
• Focus in your duties: Preserve your process listing organized. Whether or not you’re utilizing a easy to-do listing or challenge administration software program, manage your duties by the due date to see after they should be accomplished.
• No matter you do, don’t over-commit: Generally it’s finest to go away a process that’s taking an excessive amount of time and transfer on to the subsequent one. It might sound counter-intuitive, however that’s what challenge time administration is all about effectivity.
• Time blocking: Use the 80/20 rule, often known as the Pareto precept, which states that 80 % of your outcomes come from 20 % of your work. What which means is studying to optimize your workload by prioritizing duties and time.
• Use the correct challenge time administration instruments: Undertaking administration software program can save time by streamlining and automating the work that bogs you down throughout the day.

Undertaking Time Administration Instruments

Whereas some charts and diagrams may also help challenge groups estimate and preserve observe of time, most organizations use challenge time administration software program. Right here’s a fast overview of a few of the finest time administration instruments to look out for.

Undertaking Dashboard

Undertaking dashboards assist with time administration by offering a centralized location for monitoring challenge data and metrics, which assist challenge managers keep on schedule and keep away from micromanaging by monitoring hours, seeing accomplished duties, viewing workload, deadlines and extra.

Gantt Chart

Gantt charts are a challenge time administration device that visually represents a challenge’s timeline, duties and the time it takes to finish them. Every horizontal bar within the chart represents a process and the size of the bar reveals how lengthy it’ll take to finish. Gantt charts additionally embrace process begin and finish dates, milestones, dependencies between duties and who’s assigned to them.

PERT Chart

A challenge analysis evaluate method (PERT) chart helps challenge managers visualize a challenge’s duties and dependencies to make extra knowledgeable choices about sequencing duties, deadlines and extra. They assist to determine the vital path, estimate process timeframes and create an preliminary challenge schedule.

CPM Chart

A vital path methodology (CPM) chart helps challenge managers visualize and schedule the duties wanted to finish a challenge by its deadline. They additional assist with time administration by figuring out the vital path, calculating time durations, prioritizing duties and evaluating progress.

Eisenhower Matrix

An Eisenhower matrix is an easy decision-making device that distinguishes between duties which can be vital, not vital, pressing and never pressing. Utilizing this helps visualize duties and decide the place they’re by way of precedence, which saves time.

Timesheet

Timesheets are a necessity. Groups need to receives a commission, and timesheets streamline the payroll course of whereas giving challenge managers perception into how a lot time their groups are spending on duties. By monitoring their efficiency, managers can see who’s working nicely and who may want additional sources to get again on schedule.

Workload Administration Chart

A workload administration chart can act as a time administration device by serving to plan work allocation, prioritizing duties and managing crew capability. They will additionally determine obstacles which may stop a easy workflow.

Time Administration Plan

A time administration plan is a structured method to making sure that every one the work that should be carried out is accomplished inside a specified timeframe. It is going to lay out how that work ought to be executed and prioritized, who’s assigned and different sources wanted to finish the duties.

Undertaking Time Administration Experiences

To get extra knowledge on the progress of the challenge and the efficiency of your crew, use challenge studies. Most challenge administration software program has a number of challenge studies, akin to standing studies and studies on time and prices. All of them present completely different views on the challenge and the way time is getting used.

Schedule Baseline

To precisely observe your progress, it’s essential set a schedule baseline. A baseline captures the challenge schedule plan, so you may examine the plan to your precise progress. Cloud-based scheduling software program supplies stay time monitoring knowledge and allows you to see if the challenge goes off-track.

Historic Information

To remain on observe, you want correct time estimates. Probably the greatest methods to analysis that is by evaluating your challenge to related ones up to now. Utilizing that historic knowledge provides you a clearer image of how a lot time you might count on to spend.

Undertaking Timeline Template

Making a challenge timeline is without doubt one of the most vital challenge planning steps. That’s why we’ve created a free challenge timeline template for Excel that will help you as you undergo this course of. We’ve additionally created different challenge time administration templates for Excel, Google Sheets and Phrase you should utilize without spending a dime.

Advantages of Efficient Undertaking Time Administration

Undertaking time administration is crucial for delivering initiatives as scheduled. Nonetheless, the advantages of challenge time administration are many. Listed here are some examples of the advantages of efficient challenge time administration.

• Enhance productiveness
• Decreased stress
• Lower the probability of challenge threat
• Higher work-life stability
• Shopper satisfaction

Undertaking Time Administration Suggestions

For one, preserve a to-do listing. It appears like an apparent step in the direction of managing challenge time, however you’d be stunned how many individuals aren’t intentional when attempting to work extra productively. Preserving your work on scraps of paper or littering your display with Put up-Its is a surefire method of lacking vital work.

Subsequent, you’ll need to handle distractions. This has turn into a giant drawback, as many within the workforce are doing their jobs remotely or from house. When you have the house accessible, arrange a house workplace in a secluded a part of your dwelling house.

Lastly, create a schedule for your self. Whether or not you’re working from house or in an workplace, time blocking is one of the best protection in opposition to slack in your schedule. Scheduling duties in a challenge is macro and scheduling your work is micro. Collectively they tie a good knot round time and squeeze out essentially the most from it. Do all that and also you’re managing time successfully and bettering your time administration abilities.

ProjectManager Is Sturdy Undertaking Time Administration Software program

Is there challenge administration software program that may do all that and extra? Sure. ProjectManager is on-line software program that delivers real-time knowledge to trace time because it’s spent, letting you monitor progress because it occurs. However that’s simply the beginning of what ProjectManager can do that will help you keep on observe and handle challenge time successfully.

Create Begin-to-End Plans on Gantt Charts

Manage your duties on ProjectManager’s on-line Gantt chart. Not solely can it hyperlink dependencies and set milestones, however you can too filter for the vital path in your challenge. After you have your timeline in place, set the baseline and your schedule plan is locked. Now, as you gather real-time knowledge in your progress, it may be in comparison with your baseline. Know instantly should you’re going off schedule and get again on observe earlier than it turns into a much bigger drawback.

Observe Time on Sturdy Timesheets

Handle your price range and time precisely with ProjectManager’s safe timesheet characteristic. Save time organising timesheets, which might auto-populate or copy final week’s duties in case your crew is doing the identical work. As groups work on their assignments, managers get transparency into their progress to verify they’re on schedule. When a crew member submits the timesheet, it’s locked and secured. Observe time, get extra correct estimates and handle labor prices in a single characteristic.

Handle Your Crew’s Sources with Ease

Groups can’t be productive if they’ve an excessive amount of work. Balancing their workload retains the challenge transferring alongside at an honest clip and saves time. Use ProjectManager’s useful resource administration options, such because the color-coded workload chart, to see your crew’s work allocation. If somebody has too many assignments, you may reallocate their work proper from the chart and preserve the challenge operating easily.

Associated Undertaking Time Administration Content material

Time administration is without doubt one of the most important duties for a challenge supervisor, program supervisor or challenge administration workplace (PMO), which is why we’ve created dozens of blogs, templates, ebooks and guides about this challenge administration information space.

ProjectManager is award-winning software program that’s utilized by tens of 1000’s of groups to handle challenge time and work extra productively. See why organizations as assorted as NASA to the Financial institution of America and Ralph Lauren use our software program to remain on schedule. Attempt ProjectManager right this moment without spending a dime.