Thinking “outside the box” and coming up with “new, innovative techniques” are often the expectations and praises lauded on elite executives. And why wouldn't there be? There is great value to these attributes. The human element of management – the skill acquired from personal talent and the knowledge that comes with experience – separates the great managers from the mediocre. However, the development of these methods is only one aspect of a multi-faceted managerial style.

Here's To You, Consistency

Often shuffled into the background or carelessly delegated away, consistent logistical analysis has the ability to refine a project (or project coordinator), combining the positive results of innovation and forward-thinking with the predictive ability of a hard data. Again, the key to effective long-term management strategy is consistency. That can only be achieved by keeping a close eye on all aspects of a project, team or industry. Such omniscience seems almost impossible given the breadth of the modern executive’s required responsibilities, especially when dealing with employees and individual skill. While some software solutions may partially resolve these issues, difficulties arise when the attempt is made to streamline the data therein.

Tools like Journyx PX gives each project team member real-time project and productivity data for decision support. Project managers have the ability to monitor the status of various projects based on cost, schedule and progress.

Managing Work Requests

Another important best practice to apply to smaller projects as a project manager is to give team members a voice. It might be tempting to just create project plans and demand that team members get it done, but that is a pretty unrealistic expectation that will set you up for project failure. It will also lead to low morale among your employees. A better way is to get input from team members on how long it will take them to complete certain tasks. A developer who has performed hundreds or thousands of similar tasks will be able to tell you right away how long it will take him/her to write that new piece of code while you, as a project manager, might have no clue.

It is also important to let team members communicate with you while the project is in progress. Small issues or holdups become big very quickly when unheeded. For this reason, project managers who implement project and resource management solutions should ensure that their team members will have the ability to request more time for their tasks when necessary.


How to Have Successful Projects of All Sizes

When project managers enforce time tracking and give team members a voice, everybody wins. Applying best practices to your entire project portfolio is one of the best ways to drive success every time.


About the Author: Curt Finch is the CEO of Journyx. Journyx strives to be relentlessly creative and to build tools that help you spend your time on things that matter. After all, time is all we have. Founded in 1996, Journyx offers customers two solutions to reach the highest levels of profitability: Journyx – project, time and expense tracking software – and Journyx PX – resource management software that provides work and financial forecasting for a complete picture of project and budget status, employee time and availability. Connect with Curt on Google+.