Four Reasons Why SharePoint from Office 365 Suite should be your Project Management Tool

From the time I ventured into the business of providing technology solutions, one common problem I have heard my clients talking about is poor delivery of projects. Although they are closely keeping a track of all the activities and tasks associated with any project but somehow, they either miss the deadlines or are faced with one or the other challenges.

It is not about the micro-management of tasks that can lead to improving the project deliveries, it is actually about improving skills of project managers and the tools they are using to manage their projects. A report by AIPM (Australian Institute of Project Management) and KPMG states that 66% businesses that are able to deliver successful projects have formal processes in place.

Actual Problems Businesses Face with Project Management

The gap which is leading to extended delivery of projects somewhere lies with project managers as well. I am not talking about the technical skills but the wider business skills that are critical for driving organisational changes. Some of the skills which are becoming a challenge for the project managers of this day and age are:

I totally buy the fact that Australian corporate landscape has access to a myriad of project management software and one of them is SharePoint. SharePoint, an eminent product from the Microsoft Office 365 package, is a one stop solution for all your project management needs. Apart from offering collaboration features, it acts as your data management system, content management system as well as an intranet portal. SharePoint Online and Microsoft Project work seamlessly to provide the best project management experience. Read on to know how SharePoint can help you with seamless management of multiple projects.

• Built-in dashboard for monitoring progress of tasks

You can keep a track of all your on-going and pending tasks for any projects with a built-in dashboard. The intuitive dashboard displays a list of the selected projects and mentions critical tasks that are associated with it. You can review their statuses and make a note of the tasks that require your personal attention. Since, the information is available in visual format it becomes easy for you to have a look at the data in a single glance. To infuse flexibility in the entire process of project management, the feature of extracting summary of the management report is also available. You receive an email notification for any item change in the dashboard or tasks ensuring that you remain informed about the progress of your every single project.

• Content collection from multiple project sites

You can establish a robust communication link amongst the teams working across different locations with use of SharePoint online application. The software collects data from various project sites and eliminates the need of employees going to different project sites and gathering data. SharePoint enables employees to save their time and efforts and focus on other productive tasks. With the same interface, your employees can gauge the progress of the tasks and monitor the amount of work done in any project.

• Ready to use project templates

You can create a standardised template and upload details in it and the same template can be used for your future projects as well. By establishing a standard framework from the very start, you can analyse the gaps if there are any and find apt solutions for the same. Furthermore, since you are the one creating a standard template it will be according to your company’s standards and will also suit your employees’ requirements and expectations.

• Informative project task lists

You can gather full knowledge about any task by using this functionality. The task list also has predecessor and successor tasks linking which enables you to priortise tasks and delegate them properly. You can relocate the task lists and the same also enables you to keep a check on the quality and quantity of work done by a particular team member for management purposes.

I do understand that after learning the benefits and easy accessibility of SharePoint, you might want to replace your existing project management software with it. But there are many aspects associated with it and one of the major things is how ready are your employees to move from a legacy software to a modern one. To allow them to gain a hands-on of the product, you can invest in trainings and workshops where subject matter experts visits your facility and take your employees through different capabilities of SharePoint.

We house an agile team of SharePoint consultants in Sydney who can impart training to your employees and help you improve SharePoint adoption in your organisation. We will assist you on your entire journey of SharePoint implementation starting from understanding your requirements till the solution is deployed. If you want a customised solution, then you have your back there too. Give us a call today to begin your SharePoint project!