We faced with difficult decisions at the present time. Remote work without appropriate tools causes big difficulties with the control of currently implemented projects and efficient collection of reports. How to deal with it? Should you invest in tools or try to prepare a remote tool yourself, e.g. in a spreadsheet? I will try to help you make this decision.
Where should we start?
Let’s start by analyzing the needs we have. Let’s consider who and how the tool should help. Who is the main stakeholder? Do we care about collecting project statuses or maybe preparing reports? Or maybe we need totally manage whole aspects of project? What’s more, before we decide to start choosing a tool, let’s think about how many projects we have in our organization and how large and long these projects are. If we run more than 30/40 or a dozen large strategic projects per year, this is the moment to think about a project and portfolio management tool. Depending on the answers received, we will find out what solution we need.
Emerging doubts
The questions that will arise in the organization are of course the business case for such implementation. Especially now in the era of savings and allocating funds only for the most necessary expenses. So how do you justify the management board’s to buy this type of software? Apart from incurring costs related to the implementation and license, it is possible that we will have to change or adjust the methodology in our organization and the question is “is it worth it?” Again, we should consider what we will gain. The main benefits of choosing a full tool for project portfolio and project management are the time savings that project managers have to spend on preparing and collecting data, and this time saved can be spent on a more detailed risk analysis in projects or contact with the project team. Thanks to that the projects will be implemented in more effective and efficient way. We will also save a lot of time on the preparation of reports by the project office and project managers. Which is also a big plus for the organization, when the management board needs not only “some” data, but data that is real and verified. Decisions now have to be made quickly and we cannot afford to make mistakes as they can be costly.
Which solution to choose?
Once we analyze the needs and draw conclusions, you need to recognize the market and what solutions are available. If we want to collect project statuses, maybe a spreadsheet prepared in an appropriate structure, posted on the web, where everyone has access to it, is enough. It is the fastest and cheapest solution to the problem of collecting information about the project status. A short description of the project manager what has been achieved since the last reporting and what are his plans for the next reporting period. Another solution is a BI class tool. For such a tool, we have to prepare appropriate inquiries so that reports are generated from available sources that we have in the company (spreadsheet, data from accounting systems, etc.). The competences to prepare such inquiries are probably in our company. However, if we want to monitor and support the project manager in conducting the full scope of the project (schedule, budget, competences, risks, periodic reports), then let’s look for a complete solution. And also consider whether we want to design all the processes ourselves and “write” a tool exactly to our needs, which may take several / several dozen months, or maybe choose a ready “box” solution and implement it in a maximum of several months. Some companies offer the implementation of their software even in 5 days. What about the costs …? Portfolio and project management tools are very expensive? Not necessarily. Most vendors offer their software in the form of a subscription in the SaaS offer and the monthly cost is not all that deadly. However, let’s consider whether the security of our company allows data to be stored outside the company’s servers. If not, pay attention to whether the provider offers a subscription model, but in the On-Premises solution. Thanks to this, the costs of monthly or annual subscription will not be such a heavy burden on the company’s budget. There are many financing options in the current situation and it is worth getting acquainted with the solutions offered on the market.
What to look for?
When creating a short list of suppliers, check how many implementations a given supplier has completed. Does he have references, maybe our friends already had contact with one of these suppliers? Let’s ask the supplier if he can arrange a reference visit to one of his clients who already uses the tool and we will learn about good practices of another organization. Currently, companies are willing to share their knowledge and experience. Let’s ask the supplier to test the best pre-configured solution for our needs. This will allow us to verify whether the tool meets our expectations. We will be able to check how our organization has to prepare for full implementation. What else needs to be considered before making a decision? Let’s check if the consultant who will implement the tool has project experience, because thanks to this, apart from the “dry” implementation, we will also get a lot of valuable advice and suggestions from his project experience. By paying for the implementation, we get design consulting included in the price
Summarizing
The tool can really improve work in the current situation, when we cannot discuss project topics over coffee with the team and collect project statuses. With online access, the management board has ad-hoc access to real data about projects and their statuses. The design office can oversee those projects that actually require attention. With one integrated solution for managing your portfolio of projects and projects, most activities are performed automatically as managers run the full range of projects in one place.
Pracuje w firmie Hadrone gdzie prowadzi projekty wdrożeniowe oraz szkolenia z narzędzi PPM. Posiada wieloletnie doświadczenie w roli kierownika projektów oraz portfolio managera. Prowadził audyty biur projektowych, przygotowywał rekomendacje i finalny raport dla klientów. Doradzał firmom w zakresie doboru odpowiednich narzędzi do zarządzania projektami oraz portfelem projektów.