Software has long since been an important tool in project management, but for many years has not really been very project management friendly. For decades, project management software has been limited to highly specialised solutions with very little room for manoeuvre, or solutions developed on accounting frameworks that look, feel and ‘think’ like accounting systems.
This has created a noticeable gap between how project managers work, and how project management software works. The one way to fill this gap has been with spreadsheets. But in our virtual, interconnected world spreadsheets are rapidly becoming unviable tools and resulting in project data scattered across numerous computers and different versions of data as team members update and save numerous copies.
Spreadsheets do have their place in a project manager’s toolbox, but they should by no means be the principal tool used. But if previous project management software solutions are so bad, what is the solution?
The key is finding a software solution that works like a project manager works, so much so it sometimes doesn’t even seem like they are using a dedicated project management software tool. Project managers love Outlook and Excel, so what if you could create, edit and send all of your project documents without ever leaving your email? Or import and export spreadsheet data in minutes, that then becomes accessible to every relevant team member? IPM can do all of this and much more. The accounting side is also taken care of with seamless ERP integration, meaning project managers never have to set foot inside an accounting application again.
For too long dedicated project management software has focussed on the software side, and not the project management side. Now, technology is moving in such a way that there should be no excuse for accounting based project management software, projects run solely on spreadsheets, or project managers not wanting to use software that companies make considerable investments in.
For a free demo of how the above features of IPM work, please contact us.