How Timesheet Support Project Management

How Does Time Management Impact Projects

•  February 19, 2019

The success of any project depends on multifarious elements and the greatest of them is time. Management or mismanagement of the same can make or mar the project. This is one of the prominent reasons why innovations in the form of timesheet management software have been a welcome change thereby, automating the entire process of time management. The key challenge is to remain on top of all the activities that make up a project, plan work and coordinate with multiple stakeholders and get everything done on time. Time is of great essence. Time lost can never be regained.  Therefore, a serious lack of time management strategies and skills can bring down a project like a pack of cards. Effective time management refers to:

1. Avoiding digital distractions such as the social media that eat away the precious time
2. Maintaining a task list on daily basis and meeting the daily deliverables
3. Filling up the timesheets to understand one’s own productivity level
4. Identifying and ratifying procrastination at the individual level

Top 10 Time Management Strategies

So before we boil down to how online employee timesheet software has streamlined the process of time management from the larger perspective of project management in purview, it is significant that we explore the popular time management strategies. This approach would help us to address how technological intervention has brought about a convergence of all the strategies.

When it comes to projects, there are some great project management strategies that are followed worldwide and across all the business verticals and these are:

1. Downloading and install applications that help audit one’s usage of time
2. Setting a time  limit for each work to tackle procrastination
3. Breaking a particular task or goal into smaller goals and tasks and then create a priority list to achieve them step by step
4. Spending the important and most productive hour of the day attending to and tackling the most important tasks
5. Delegating backend and tertiary jobs to a third-party or getting it done through employee timesheet management software for securing time for important ones
6. Focussing on one work at a time to deliver quality and on-time work
7. Maintaining small gaps or periodic breaks between significant meetings, calls, and deliverables for the sake of quality
8. Setting limits for tasks and developing the attitude to say ‘No’
9. Batching similar tasks and allocating a specific hour of the day to accomplish the same
10. Avoiding the competition to accomplish innumerable tasks during the day and that too within the stipulated working hours

The list of strategies identified and reinforced by industry veterans over the period of last 10 years is inexhaustible. Some of it can be enforced and followed manually by individuals but some need to be automated. Keeping this thing in the purview, timesheet management software suites have been developed. With multiple features and applications to its aid, the timesheet system has revolutionized the way, time-oriented tasks have been managed. So now, let’s dive deep into how timesheets impact the productivity quotient in project management.

Role of Timesheets in Project Management

Timesheet management systems offer the user with resource auditing timesheets that not only map the individual usage of time but also helps in important tasks such as:

1. Prioritize tasks and projects- A project manager ends up juggling between multiple projects. All the projects have their own delivery timelines. In order to be on the top of everything, the first priority of the project manager is to always prioritize the projects and tasks and basis this analysis, schedule the meetings, calls and other critical tasks. The time management systems developed currently come with features that enable prioritizing projects and tasks. This helps not only in retaining focus but also support in better resource coordination. To summarize, the timesheet management suite helps in bringing about a seamless convergence of multifarious processes at the same time.
2. Establish accountability and transparency – The timesheet management suites implemented at the enterprise level empower individual employees to better manage their time. Timesheets are currently viewed as a business productivity tool at individual levels that help real-time collaboration and communication as well. Each of these employees is a stakeholder in not one project, but many times on multiple projects. The intuitive dashboard for project managers offers a glimpse into project allocations and skill sets of the resource. This helps them not an only onboard relevant resource but also have a clear update of their tasks.
3. Offer accurate coordinates for better project pricing- The lack of a pricing support tool might end up in poor project pricing and cost estimates. The intuitive data provided by the timesheets, supported by multiple data filters, enable project managers to accurately calculate billable hours for the client. Also, the invoices generated are supported by real data creates a sense of trust between all the internal and external stakeholders of the project. The entire automation ushers in great efficiency when it comes to overall project management.

Further Reading

6 Best Project Management Software Techniques | OfficeTimer

How Project Management Software Is Going To Change Your Business Strategies.

Project Tracking Software will Eliminate Redundancy at Work

A Project Tracking Software will help you Finish your Project in Time.