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Four Steps to Encourage Team Use of Project Management Software

February 27, 2009 | Author: PM Hut | Filed under: Computer Based Information Systems, Project Collaboration

Four Steps to Encourage Team Use of Project Management Software
By Avinoam Nowogrodski

Managing projects in business has shifted dramatically—but too many project managers and team members do not yet have the right tools to allow them to adapt to this new reality. The Web has reshaped the ways we collaborate and make decisions, just as it has transformed the way we shop, the way we travel and the way we stay connected. One of the most difficult issues confronting an organization is gaining acceptance of this shift, especially when it comes to adoption of project management software. As with any change in work processes that moves staff from standalone, often paper-based methods to automated computerized systems, some will be eager to adopt software to help projects run more smoothly, accurately and collaboratively; some will be reluctant to do so because they either do not understand the benefits of the software or fear the technology.

The value of project management (PM) software is clear to top corporate officers who have examined all their options carefully. Attempts to gain adoption at the staff level, however, often produce mixed results. If a software-based PM system is to work effectively across the entire company, all relevant stakeholders should be on board and on track with the system. Put simply, when it comes to project management software, team adoption = project success.

Businesses can help ensure adoption of PM software by considering four steps that will promote buy-in from staff and higher productivity by instilling more efficiency throughout the organization:

  1. Choose software that users love. As with any software selection, those who use it must recognize its value or adoption becomes problematic. When evaluating project management software, the end user – and not just the project manager — must be looked at as the customer. Software should be intuitive, simple and valuable, with a familiar, welcoming experience for users; reminiscent of the software and web applications they use daily in their work and personal lives.

    There is one, simple way to gauge whether or not users will love the software: let them try it and listen to their feedback. Involve those who will be tasked to use the software on a daily basis to test it before you buy (make sure the vendor offers this option – most likely some type of free trial).

    Ensure that the team is wrapped into the selection and deployment stages for PM software so that they are eager to adopt it as soon as it becomes available to them. Those early adopters who may have been reluctant initially can become the organization’s strongest software advocates among their colleagues. They become attuned to the benefits that the software offers, not just to the company, but also to themselves, their creativity and their own value in the organization. Additionally, the input from users often can help customize and enhance the software with business-specific knowledge (e.g., the creation of templates and best practices) to meet specific needs that may not be obvious.

  2. Participation promotes adoption. Software with highly collaborative functionality is more attractive to users, lending itself to quicker adoption. Web-hosted software especially can make life much easier on the entire project team, as real-time knowledge sharing becomes universally accessible, 24/7, and duplication of effort is eliminated. Colleagues can share their knowledge instantly via Web 2.0 tools such as Wiki-like discussion forums, and decision-making is accelerated, without the hassles of calendar coordination for meetings or time-zone variances. Moreover, team members become empowered to make instantaneous updates to the project. With a Web-based system users can collaborate from any location around the world, at any time, with just a laptop, Internet connection and login. Projects are all about team work – it is therefore essential that any project management solution be viral so that all stakeholders are easily invited to participate and contribute to its success.

    Even the most advanced software even pulls in outside stakeholders, such as customers, business partners and/or third-party vendors, allowing the entire project team – not just internal contributors – to securely share project data, collaborate, update tasks and deadlines, giving a true up-to-date view of a given project’s status. Some Web-based software even sends email reminders directly to a team member’s inbox at specified points, and allows users to send updates back to the software through their own email account. Incorporating this level of familiarity within the system drives adoption that much quicker.

    As team members learn that project changes and updates are immediately available for the entire team and that they can easily share their views and perceptions with their peers much more intuitively than with older systems, they will realize that the project can be completed more quickly.

  3. Fast deployment means fast adoption. It seems like an obvious point, but sometimes the most apparent is often overlooked: choose software that’s easy to get up and running and doesn’t require an IT S.W.A.T. team for training. Management must look for the most effective software with the shortest ramp-up time for employees, yet still powerful enough to deliver on their business needs.

  4. Adopt software with an intuitive interface. When software is easy to use, adoption naturally will soar. Consider software that provides a simple, intuitive method to initiate, update and evaluate projects. Software can possess incredible functionality, but if it’s not easily understood visually and conceptually by team members, those functions have no hope of ever being used. Similarly, software that enables project managers to retain the processes, steps and overall knowledge created for one project, and re-deploy those same elements in subsequent processes, will allow teams to gain cumulative benefits from the software, shorten project cycles and improve productivity.

Experience with Web-hosted PM software shows that project teams are thrilled with this method of managing projects because it is easy to use and update. Teams become more productive because they can contribute more fully, and decisions are made more rapidly than is possible with other means of collaboration. Every team member becomes a part of project planning, initiation and execution, and the Web-based methodology generates a viral adoption of the software across the company.

Avinoam Nowogrodski is co-founder and CEO of Clarizen, a SaaS-based project collaboration software company in San Mateo, California. With more than 20 years of experience in the software industry, Nowogrodski’s vision is to bring collaborative project management to every business. Prior to establishing Clarizen, Nowogrodski co-founded SmarTeam Corporation, a leading provider of collaborative product life cycle management (PLM) solutions.

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