Project Management and the New Year, part 2

As part of the series about using project management in the New Year, you may find yourselves with items on your to do list that were not accomplished. Are you determined to begin the year on a positive note? Have you set a goal to be in better control of your projects? It may take determination and commitment on your part and your team’s part to successfully control your projects. Let’s continue breaking down the acronym C.A.S.T. further to help you tackle of your projects for the New Year and keep you focused all year long.

C - stands for Control of your project’s time line. That sounds easy enough but how do you apply it to your team and your work? Below is a quick list of things to keep in mind when keeping control of your projects.

• It is important to control your time line, which can be done by developing a schedule. Using a schedule will keep you and your team on the same page and working towards the same goal.
• Using a project management system will simplify this task for you. A project management system will help to keep you and your team focused on the project at hand. It is very easy to get distracted and begin a project or tasks, only to realize later there is a deadline that must be met and you are not prepared.
• It is not easy to accomplish tasks or projects on your own, but with a team and a project management system the tasks will be accomplished more efficiently.
• Setting a goal and listing what will need to be accomplished to satisfy that goal is very important. More importantly is sharing this goal and list with your team. By sharing your project goals with your team, projects and task can be accomplished at a quicker pace with less stress.
• Sticking to a time line is extremely important and following the C.A.S.T. system will enable you to get your projects accomplished.
• As the team leader or person in charge of the project team it is your responsibility to set a time line for all to follow.

You will find with a bit of organization and time management your projects will be attended to and completed in a timely fashion. Controlling the project’s time line is one goal to strive for this coming year and the stress will be replaced with projects and a more organized team. Apply the acronym C.A.S.T. to your resolution list for the coming year and apply it to all your projects. You will find your time is better managed and tasks will be easier to finish. Be sure to watch for the next post to this series, where we will discuss always keeping you project’s scope in mind.

Image credit: Kim Beasley (creator) using an icon from http://Softpedia.com