One of the most important things for a project to go well is to use time well. Having accurate cost estimates, good teamwork, and useful project tools are all important for a project’s success, but meeting deadlines is the most important thing. Time is money, after all.
What Is Project Time Management?
Managing a project’s time means making a detailed and logical plan and making sure the project runs smoothly until it’s done. In simple terms, it means keeping track of time and progress to make sure that the project goes as planned.
But the real situation is much more complicated than that. The following steps are all part of managing time on a project:
- Outlining project tasks
- Sorting and making lists
- Figuring out what resources are needed.
- Giving people their jobs.
- Making plans and schedules for a project.
- Keeping an eye on progress, etc.
So, time management is one of the most important skills for a good project manager to have.
Why Is It Important to Keep Track of Time in Projects?
Now let’s look at why it’s important for projects to use time well.
Managing time well can make the difference between a project’s success and failure. Poor time management can cause many problems, but the most common one is that projects take longer to finish. No one likes missing a deadline, and if you miss the original deadline for a project, it can cost you a lot of money.
Managing time can also affect how well a project turns out. Poor task prioritization and time management can lead to a rushed process that is more likely to make mistakes than well-planned, systematic tasks.
7 Ways to Get Projects to Finish on Time
Managing time well on a project takes a lot of work, of course. Here, we’ll talk about how you, as a project manager or someone who helps manage projects, can make better use of time.
1. Make A Thorough Plan
In life and at work, there are times when doing the right thing is enough, but project time management is not one of those times. This is why a detailed plan is so important.
How do you make a good plan for a project? Experts say to start with a simple plan and add more details as you go.
Start by giving an overview of the project, including its scope, main goals, expected results, a rough schedule, and an idea of how much it will cost. At first, everything is just a guess, but as you talk to the client, stakeholders, and team, you get a clearer picture of what needs to be done.
From the point of view of the project manager, it is helpful to start with a general plan and then fill in the details.
2. Use Tools for Project Management
You probably don’t need me to tell you that tools and software for managing projects are useful in general. Even though you can manage a project with just receipts and notes on a flip chart, using digital tools has a lot of benefits.
Time management for projects is the same way. Shared management tools can be very helpful for keeping track of the status of a project and managing the project schedule.
Here are some tips on what to look for in a tool for managing projects that can help you manage your time better.
- Figure out why you need the tool, to begin with. In this situation, your team might miss project deadlines because of a messy workflow.
- Tell us about the most important parts. The basic functions won’t change much, but the extra features are probably what will make you choose one over the other.
- Is it easy to use and does it cost a fair amount? Look at reviews, such as blog posts and YouTube videos. You can also sign up for a free trial or demo to see if the project management tool is “right” for you.
3. Project Time Tracking
Keeping track of the time spent on projects is one of the best ways to get better at managing project time. Tools for tracking project time give you accurate information about how long a project took, let you figure out how much it cost based on how long it took, and give you detailed reports.
This lets you keep track of how much time you spend and make better business decisions to meet deadlines.
With real-time employee monitoring software, managers can see how much time each employee spends on a project. This makes it easier to figure out how much a project will cost when employees’ hourly rates for that project vary.
Clients will want to know how their projects are going. In these kinds of situations, automated reports can save the day. You can find everything you need for your project with just a few clicks. You can also use EMS to make reports about how your project team is doing.
4. Why It’s Important to Set Reasonable Deadlines
When people are tired, they often make mistakes. The same is true for project managers who can’t do their best work when they’re having trouble.
Being too confident about meeting deadlines can make you tired.
The client will definitely be impressed with how quickly the team finished the project, and as the project manager, you may also see this as a competitive advantage. But too short of a deadline can make it easy to make mistakes. And you can’t fail because you won’t have enough time to fix your mistakes.
This shows how important it is to set deadlines that are reasonable if you want to better manage the time on a project. Think about what the team can do and always leave room for mistakes. This makes it more likely that the project will be done on time and to a high standard. I think it’s the perfect match.
5. It’s Good to Have Goals for Each Day, Week, And Month.
When you start a project, it can be hard to stay motivated because the end goal seems so far away. It can also be hard to just focus on doing the job, which can cause teams to put things off.
The more important the task, the more anxious you are, and the more likely you are to spend the day doing something other than what needs to be done.
In this case, the best way to manage time on projects is to break the never-ending list of things to do into smaller tasks and set goals that are important.
The project team’s main goal is to finish the project on time, but setting individual daily or weekly goals and team goals for the month can help manage project time better.
6. Set Up Progress Meetings for The Project (But Keep Them Brief)
Regular meetings to report on the project’s progress are also an important part of managing time well.
Most people get together once a week. They usually happen on Mondays and tell everyone involved what the most important goals for the week are, what the results of the previous week were, and how the project is going right now.
From my own experience, I can say that a short meeting in the middle of the week is also a good idea, especially if the project team is working remotely or in a hybrid mode. Also, it’s a good way to see how the team is doing.
But it’s important for the meeting to be short and productive. Your team will save time and move the project forward if you plan your meeting well. It’s about managing your time, so you don’t have to spend hours in chaotic meetings to find out how the project is going.
7. Take A Break
Yes, it’s true. Getting enough rest and taking breaks often are important to keep things moving. Time management for projects is no different. Overworking and being tired can make it hard to keep a pulse.
Even the best people in charge of a project get tired. When you’re tired, it can be tempting to put yourself under a lot of stress to show yourself (or others) how smart you are. However, the best thing to do is to rest.
