The modern world of work has changed exponentially in the last thirty or so years. Since the first web page was turned on by Tim Berners-Lee back in August 1991, the internet has come to dominate all facets of modern life, and, in particular, the way we do business around the globe.
The internet and web technologies have had a transformative effect on commerce. Indeed, these days, it’s almost impossible to think of any company that doesn’t rely on tech to some degree, at least for everything from simple email communications and reminders right up to fully-fledged e-commerce-enabled websites and mobile apps.
The need for strong management skills
As the world has begun to wake up to the tremendous commercial opportunities offered by remote working and collaboration, so the need for strong project management skills has come to the fore and are among the most desirable talents employers are looking for.
There are numerous personal aspects you should look at developing for good project management – as well a growing range of software solutions that can help you work more effectively. Here are just a few ways you can improve the way you manage projects in the future:
From the outset, develop a project schedule – and stick to it
Making a plan from the start of a job will allow you to establish realistic milestones and goals for you and your team. If you outline these crucial junctures in a job, everyone will know exactly what’s expected of them – and when. Remember too that no job stays static, so you’ll likely need to constantly revise this plan in terms of priorities and also keep your team up to speed by email, video messaging, or texts. Automated Artificial Intelligence (AI) tech like schedulers and reminders can help you stick to schedules.
Invest in project management software
In the not-so-distant past, paper notes and Excel docs were considered adequate project management tools but, in our modern age of new tech, there is now a huge range of task management apps that can help you liaise with your staff and ensure you’re all on the same page. Using collaborative software will vastly improve your project management ability and prowess.
Learn how to manage people and delegate
You may have developed your own managerial skills in terms of sticking to deadlines and delivering projects but do you also take account of the strengths and shortcomings of those in your team? Learning how to manage people effectively to work towards a common goal is an essential part of task delivery, as is honing your skills to be able to recognize which team member would be best-suited to which task and delegating tasks to individuals based on their skills. Again, software can help here to let you isolate problems or successes in previous jobs – and see who was responsible.
Learn to be proactive
Without exception, the best industry leaders and managers throughout history have been those that had an almost-prescient ability to predict changes, problems, or opportunities. Staying ahead of the game and keeping your staff fully in the loop of potential pitfalls or changes in requirements will see you heading up a formidable project team – one capable of forecasting and taking proactive – rather than reactive – decisions.