10 Advantages of Project Management Tools

Last Updated on March 16, 2021 by Filip Poutintsev

Project management tools, also known as project management software, are aids to help an individual or group to viably organize work and oversee projects and errands. This term is usually alluded to project management software you can buy online.

In spite of its name, project management tools are not only intended for project managers. These tools are made completely customizable so that they are compatible with different teams with different goals.

Table of Contents

How did PMT Begin? – History of PMT
Why PMT?
Conclusion
References

How did PMT Begin? – History of PMT

Henry Gantt, known as one of the first fathers of project management created a scheduling diagram called Gantt chart in 1917. It was a radical tool then which became known worldwide in the 1920s.

The Hoover Dam project was among the primary recipients of the Gantt chart which started in 1931. Today’s Gantt charts are a part of many project management systems. They are the same as their original counterparts.

The American Association of Cost Engineers was formed by early project management practitioners and those involved with associated special fields of planning and scheduling, cost and schedule, and cost estimating in 1956.

The group has become the foremost professional society for project managers, project control specialists, cost estimators, schedules, and cost engineers and is currently known as AACE International.

The Critical Path Method (CPM) was invented in 1957. It was developed by the Dupont Corporation to estimate project duration and designed to address the complex method of shutting down as well as restarting chemical plants due to maintenance.

The US Navy Special Projects Office designed PERT (Program Evaluation Review Technique) during the cold war the following year. The method for analyzing the tasks involved in completing a project, especially the time needed to complete each task and identifying the minimum time needed to complete the total project is known as PERT.

The United States Department of Defense created and mandated the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) Approach for its projects in 1962. Many private businesses then adopted the WBS and now, it is a common project management tool.

The International Project Management Association, the first project management associated in the world, was founded in Vienna in 1964. It has 120,000 members all over the world currently. A nonprofit professional organization for the advancement of the profession, science, and practice of project management called the Project Management Institute was launched five years later.

The quick development and progress of computer technology resulted in the growth of some project management software businesses such as Oracle (1977), Artemis (1977), and Scitor Corporation (1979).

Why PMT?

The basic role of project management software is to help project chiefs as they dash through various project stages. These types of software come with the necessary features to plan your projects, manage your available resources, respond to problems and keep all the stakeholders involved. Regardless of the type of services your business offers, having the best project management tool can make a significant impact. Here are some of its advantages:

1. Improved Project Planning and Scheduling

Irrespective of the applied methodology, project planning and scheduling is a critical aspect of project management. The key advantage of advanced project management solutions is automation when it comes to project planning and scheduling. Softwares like these help experts establish a solid foundation for their projects, provide tools to scope out the milestones before its execution.

2. Balanced Resource Management

Experienced project managers know that to complete projects successfully, they’ll need an effective resource management strategy to keep their teams in top condition without overbooking them with work or vice versa. The effectiveness of resource planning shouldn’t be underestimated. It can skyrocket the results. Project management tools have the features to spot resource bottlenecks and insights when to bring more people onto the team.

Project teams are composed of members from different departments. They are required to handle their day-to-day activities as well. This makes it hard for all the stakeholders to attend meetings and stay updated which can create delays in the projects and waste a lot of resources. To counter this, project management tools can play a vital role in keeping all the communications in a unified place for the members to collaborate effectively.

4. Real-time Project Budget Management

Budgets can be considered as one of the deciding factors in controlling your projects. Despite all the planning and coordination, without the proper budget and its allocation, any project becomes very hard to handle and manage. The way you use your budget paves the path forward for your business. Project management tools help to control the budget from the initial statement of work to final delivery.

5. Delegate Tasks More Easily

It is very time consuming and hard for managers to hand out tasks individually to the employees. Instead of briefing each person one at a time, the task can simply be inserted in the project timeline and assigned to each team member, along with instructions. This makes it easier for both the managers and the whole team. It’s effective and time saving.

6. Document Sharing and Access

Project management tools provide users greater control over documents. Everything is centralized into one place. The documents cannot be lost or misplaced. It is also very practical as team members can find the required documents without having to trawl through shared drives or links.

7. Easier Integration of New Members

Projects are dynamic in nature and including new members to projects is necessary most of the time in a project. Whether it is a member from the organization or a fresh new intern, it is challenging for new members to catch up with the team within a short time. So, effective project management tools have the ability to automatically maintain a project log and visualize the entirety of the project in a simplified manner.

8. Effective Risk Mitigation

A great manager should have the ability to identify potential bottlenecks and apply effective countermeasures. With project management tools, the managers will be able to enhance their risk mitigation strategies and take help from all the resources at hand to deploy effective countermeasures. This helps to improve the efficiency of the team and allows the managers to allocate the resources in an efficient manner.

9. Remote Working

Unlike old-school projects, modern projects are not binded by the physical locations. With project management tools, remote project management becomes easy as these types of software help managers effectively lead their teams. Scattered workforces is no longer a problem with project management tools.

10. Enhanced Customer Satisfaction

When you get a project done swiftly and under budget, there is no way that a customer will not be happy. And a happy and satisfied customer is one that you will see again. Project management tools allow this customer/supplier relationship to carry on. By applying project management strategies, you will be able to achieve your goals very easily and improve your rate of success.

Conclusion

The advantages of using project management tools are undisputable. When confronted with a complex task with a scattered team, the immediate question is how to handle organization. But, with effective project management tools, these issues can be dealt with easily.

These tools allow the managers to effectively handle and lead the projects and it also allows the workers to focus on their tasks. As a result, the process becomes effortless and a positive end result is obtained.