If you’re a part of a project management team, there is no upper limit for productivity. There is always some scope to improve your efficiency.
While various tools can help you, everyone involved in a project should follow some methods to complete the task proficiently. Use the following practices today to enhance your efficiency while working on a project.
1. Planning Stage Is Crucial
Planning is key to project management. A carefully planned project will not only ensure its success. It'll also confirm that every team member is doing the right task at the right time.
During this stage, consider all the requirements from the client side to create specific goals.
Then proceed to outline your tasks and allocate them among your teammates. Before assigning the tasks to the team members, check if they are comfortable with their roles.
2. Effective Communication
Only when the communication between the stakeholders is clear, you can work with complete efficiency. Make sure the project members are on the same page with the clients and their teammates.
Depending on the project requirements, you may rely on synchronized or real-time communication. Whether you communicate verbally or nonverbally, the correspondence should be clear.
Any miscommunication can harm your productivity and cause a delay in the project. You may use Slack for transparent and documented communication.
3. Create Knowledge Base
Even if you have smooth communication among colleagues, multiple teammates asking someone for the same information will be counterproductive. To make the process of data sharing effortless, you should create a knowledge base or data hub on apps like Bitrix24.
Gather all the required data and instructions in a knowledge base and offer access to it to every project member. You can also create explanatory training videos to assist new project members without wasting time.
4. Managing and Budgeting Project Time
Time is a crucial essence of a project. Project delays can make you lose valuable and long-term clients. Therefore, you should properly budget time at the beginning of the project in order to ensure the full efficiency of the team.
Use the Timely app to record the time it takes you to complete each milestone and task. Besides tracking efficiency and productivity, the app can also help you provide invoices to clients.
5. Make Project Files Accessible
Every project involves creating and sharing hundreds of documents and paperwork. Some documents also need real-time collaborative work. A team member waiting for permission to access a file will only contribute to delays and inefficiency.
You can use any content management system like Microsoft SharePoint that lets you store in one central repository. Make sure the system has features like different permission levels, version control, and auditing facility.
6. Prepare to Manage Risks
No project is free from potential risks. Unwarranted issues during the middle of a project can hamper efficiency. Hence, it is mandatory to go through the risk assessment process before working on the project.
With the SWOT app, you can identify the risks and understand the damage these can cause. Discuss with the assignees to find a solution for managing the risk if it occurs.
7. Document All Data
Documentation helps you increase the accountability and efficiency of a team. Attended a Zoom meeting? Circulate the meeting memo in written format. Reached a decision verbally? Document that in an email and send it to everyone involved.
Documentation helps you find out the challenges a team faces during a project. These will work as a guide for your future projects as well. You may use the Asana task commenting system to systematically store all information related to a specific task.
8. Pick the Project Team Wisely
Numerous people may be part of your organization, but you need to accept that not all of them are fit for each project. Different projects demand different skills and experiences. That’s why choosing the right people for a project will help them put in maximum effort.
If you hire a creative writer for a technical content writing project, they won't be able to work efficiently even if they want to. Choosing the right person will make sure that one can utilize their talent.
9. Reward the Performing Team Member
Reaching small milestones in time paves the way to the timely completion of the entire project. Only a motivated and productive team can help you achieve the milestones and project objectives.
Although everyone gets paid for their job, rewards and appreciation can surely inspire a person to work better. By rewarding team members upon achieving a milestone, not only will the recipient be motivated, but other team members will also work hard to earn the reward next time.
10. Be Open to Feedback and Suggestions
Constructive feedback from your teammates can help you locate the weak points that you’re unaware of. If you’re serious about improving your productivity, you have to be positive about criticism and suggestions. Feedback from different people will help you to improve yourself.
To gather feedback discreetly, creating an anonymous survey form is a good idea. You can make a survey form for free using Google Forms and distribute its link among colleagues. They can share their feedback and suggestions without disclosing their identities.
11. Get the Right Tools for Mobile/Desktop
Automating project management tasks can improve efficiency manifold. You can use any project management tools available on the market. Before opting for it, make sure the app can fulfill what your project demands.
For instance, if your team works on software development, you might want to go for tools that support agile project management. These days, most projects demand you to be available on the go. Hence, the tools you choose for the project must have a mobile version.
12. Know Your Productivity and Improvise
Lastly, you should constantly track your productivity to learn your drawbacks and improve on them. Using a robust task management tool like Trello will let you know the progress of individual tasks and the overall project.
At the same time, the apps can show you the efficiency of individual members by comparing the hours they spend to achieve a goal. One can also perform a self-assessment to find out areas that need improvement.
Efficiently Complete Your Projects
Now that you know some of the best methods to increase efficiency, implementing these should show increased productivity. Modern-day projects require maximum efficiency from their team members.
It’s beneficial to build a culture of continuous learning to prepare your team to take on the challenges of future projects. Expose your team members to an in-house knowledge base or online project management learning for mutual benefits.