Why Project Management Software?

We have discussed implementing project management software, some of the benefits of it, and other related topics. I got to thinking, why use project management software? What are the fundamental, down and dirty, day to day issues that warrant making an investment with time, money, and resources in project management software?



Let's explore that. And I would love some help from you. What are some of the issues that you face now or have faced that may or may not be solved with project management software? Send those to me at blog@teaminteractions.com.

Let me define the term "project management software" for our purposes. With this term, I am referring to software that is specifically designed to manage projects. I am NOT referring to other tools (such as spreadsheets) that COULD be used to manage projects. The software could be simple, complex, in the middle (see categories), but fundamentally it was conceived to manage projects.

Why discuss this? Because sometimes it is hard to get past marketing hype, stated benefits, industry trends, etc. Implementing project management software takes a commitment. You don't just magically turn it on and all of a sudden achieve these fantastic benefits. It takes effort. It takes time. It takes resources. And usually it takes money. It's important to discuss why one would do this? What are the reasons? Are there real benefits that companies have experienced? Sure, but what are they?

In my next post I'll discuss the simple issue of having too many projects to manage.

Send your ideas to me at blog@teaminteractions.com and I'll add some of those to the list.

Comments

[Kevin Moore]

Hi,Just in case you or some of your readers are interested, Ive created an add-in that incorporates project management directly into Microsoft Outlook.All of your project based emails, files, tasks, contacts and appointments are managed in a central, easy to use location.You can find more information on our web-site: www.missinglinkprojectcenter.comKevin

[Ashley]

The purpose of project management software is to help project members achieve project goals.I may think by using this software a company can surely earn benefits..Project management software is a term covering many types of software, including scheduling, cost control and budget management, resource allocation, collaboration software, communication, quality management and documentation or administration systems, which are used to deal with the complexity of large projects.

[Nathaniel @ project management test]

Great post. I just realized that why we really need project management software to help us make out our projects, it's importance and it's purpose.

I'm glad that I have found this site, this really helps a lot. I can't wait for your next post! Keep it up!