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July 19, 2023

How Operational Planning Skyrockets Your Business Success

You’re here because something sparked your interest. It’s that twinkle in your entrepreneurial spirit, a craving for knowledge, and a thirst for business success. Maybe you’ve heard about operational planning, or perhaps it’s a new term. Either way, let’s get down to the nitty-gritty, shall we?

Why Operational Planning is Your Business’s Secret Weapon

Why should you care about operational planning?

Just think about it. You’re at the helm of your business, steering the ship through the rough waters of the corporate world. You’ve got a destination in mind—a prosperous port, let’s say—but how do you get there? You wouldn’t set sail without a reliable map, would you? That’s where operational planning comes in.

Operational planning is your business’s compass. It’s a detailed roadmap guiding you towards your goals, helping you avoid potential obstacles along the way. When you’re navigating uncharted territory, you’ll be thankful for this invaluable tool.

The connection between your business success and operational planning

What’s the secret sauce behind successful companies like Amazon, Google, and Tesla? It’s not just about innovative products or charismatic leaders. At their core, these companies excel at one thing—exceptional operational planning.

Operational planning is like a backstage pass to the world of business success. It pulls back the curtain, revealing a carefully choreographed dance of tasks, resources, and timelines.

It’s not always glamorous, but it’s the hard work behind the scenes that ensures the show goes on, and the audience (a.k.a. your customers) keep coming back for more.

The statistics don’t lie. Companies that invest in operational planning have a much higher success rate than those that don’t. In fact, a study by The Hackett Group revealed that companies with mature operational planning processes outperform their peers by 20% on key financial metrics. Now, that’s a statistic you can take to the bank.

Next time you’re wondering why your business isn’t reaching its full potential, take a closer look at your operational plan. You might find the missing piece of your success puzzle.

So, welcome aboard, mate! Let’s hoist the anchor and set sail towards a brighter business future. Are you ready? Great! Next stop, understanding the fine line between operational and strategic planning. So hang tight, you’re in for a ride.

Operational vs. Strategic Planning: Where’s the Beef?

Ever get confused about the difference between operational and strategic planning? You’re not alone. Even seasoned business veterans can mix them up. It’s like trying to distinguish between fraternal twins. They may look similar and share a lot of DNA, but they have their own unique quirks and roles. Let’s see if we can clear the fog a bit.

Understand the Crucial Difference Between Strategic and Operational Planning

The quickest way to distinguish the two is by their time horizons and detail levels. Strategic planning is your company’s high-level, long-term game plan. It’s about setting your business vision, mission, and key goals for the next five, ten, or even twenty years. You’re looking at the big picture here, not worrying about every little detail.

Contrarily, operational planning is more like the weekly shopping list for your household. It’s detailed, it’s immediate, and it’s crucial for the smooth functioning of your household, or in this case, your business. It lays out the daily, weekly, or monthly tasks needed to meet the objectives laid out in the strategic plan.

Think of the strategic plan as the GPS coordinates for your business expedition. In contrast, the operational plan is the detailed trail guide, complete with potential obstacles and alternate routes.

The unique roles of strategic and operational planning in your business

Each type of planning plays a crucial role in your business. The strategic plan sets the course, but it’s the operational plan that gets you there.

Let’s take a coffee shop business as an example. Your strategic plan might involve opening 50 stores across the country over the next five years. It’s ambitious, it’s grand, and it’s a little bit intimidating. But that’s what strategic plans are all about.

The operational plan, on the other hand, zooms in on the nitty-gritty. It lays out tasks like hiring baristas, sourcing coffee beans, setting up the store, and designing the menu. Each of these tasks is crucial to opening just one store, let alone fifty.

How these two types of planning interact and overlap

Like peanut butter and jelly, strategic and operational planning are different, but they blend together to make your business run smoothly. The strategic plan provides the vision, while the operational plan provides the action steps to make that vision a reality.

Remember that opening 50 coffee shops goal? The operational plan makes it manageable. Instead of being overwhelmed by the thought of fifty stores, you focus on one store at a time. Each successful store opening is a step towards your strategic goal.

In other words, without an operational plan, your strategic plan is just a dream. And without a strategic plan, your operational plan lacks direction. They’re two halves of a successful business recipe.

Now that we’ve got that sorted, you’re well on your way to becoming a master of business planning. So, let’s keep this train moving and dive into how to create a killer operational plan. It’s easier than you might think. So, stick around, this journey is just getting started.

Creating a Rock-Solid Operational Plan: Step-by-Step Guide

Now that we’ve shed some light on the difference between strategic and operational planning, let’s get down to brass tacks. We’re going to dig into the nitty-gritty of operational planning. Don’t worry, we’ve got your back every step of the way.

So, What Exactly is an Operational Plan and Why Do You Need One?

An operational plan is like your business’s cookbook. It’s got all the recipes and ingredients you need to achieve your business objectives. It outlines the day-to-day tasks, who’s responsible for them, and when they should be completed.

Why do you need one? Without it, your business could look like a ship without a captain, drifting aimlessly in the open sea. A well-crafted operational plan keeps everyone focused, on track, and paddling in the same direction.

The basic anatomy of an operational plan

So, what does an operational plan look like? Here’s the skinny:

Objectives: These are derived from your strategic plan. You’ve got to know where you’re going to figure out how to get there.
Key Tasks: These are the steps you need to take to achieve your objectives. They’re like your recipe instructions.
Responsibilities: Who’s doing what? Assign tasks to your team members based on their skills and roles.
Timelines: When should each task be completed? A good timeline keeps everyone accountable and helps manage workload.
Resources: What tools, equipment, or other resources are needed to complete the tasks? Think of this as your shopping list for your recipe.

Key reasons why your business should have an operational plan

You wouldn’t build a house without a blueprint, would you? Same principle applies to your business. An operational plan brings structure, clarity, and direction. It helps everyone understand their roles, improves accountability, and ensures your team is working towards the same goals.

From Vision to Action: Crafting Your Operational Plan

You’ve got your strategic vision – now it’s time to turn it into action. Let’s break down how you do that.

Start with your strategic plan: turning your grand vision into actionable steps

Your strategic plan is like your destination. The operational plan is the roadmap to get there. Break down your strategic objectives into bite-sized tasks. Let’s say your strategic goal is to increase sales by 20% in the next year. An operational task might be to launch a new marketing campaign, improve customer service training, or introduce a new product.

Prioritizing your tasks: focusing on the big wins first

Not all tasks are created equal. Some have a bigger impact on your goals than others. Prioritize your tasks based on their potential impact on your strategic objectives. Remember, it’s not about being busy; it’s about being effective.

The Magic of Metrics: Navigating Your Progress

You can’t manage what you can’t measure. Tracking progress is crucial in operational planning.

Using leading indicators to keep your plan on track

Leading indicators are like your GPS. They help you see if you’re on track to reach your objectives. If your goal is to increase sales, a leading indicator might be the number of new leads generated.

The importance of early identification of potential roadblocks

No plan is perfect. There’ll always be hiccups and roadblocks. But if you can anticipate them, you can mitigate their impact. Regularly review your plan and adjust as needed.

Teamwork Makes the Dream Work: Getting Your Team Onboard

A successful operational plan isn’t a one-person show. It involves your whole team.

The importance of team involvement in the planning process

Get your team involved in crafting the operational plan. They’ll provide valuable insights and will be more committed to a plan they helped create. After all, who knows their job better than they do?

Tips for effective communication within your team during operational planning

Keep communication open, clear, and consistent. Ensure everyone understands the plan, their roles, and the overall objectives. Regular check-ins and updates can keep everyone in the loop and foster a sense of teamwork.

Remember, your operational plan is a living document. It will evolve and change as your business grows. But with this guide, you’ve got a solid foundation to start building a plan that can turn your business dreams into reality.

The Ups and Downs of Operational Planning

Now that you’re well-acquainted with what goes into making an operational plan, let’s chat about the highs and lows. Just like a roller coaster ride, operational planning has its moments of thrilling success and stomach-dropping challenges. But don’t worry, we’re buckled in together for this ride.

Sailing Smooth: How Operational Planning Elevates Your Business

Let’s start with the good stuff. The sweet, sweet benefits of operational planning. It’s like the secret sauce that can take your business from good to great. Let’s spill some of that sauce, shall we?

The benefits of operational planning: increased productivity, profitability, and competitive advantages

Increased Productivity: When everyone knows what they’re supposed to do and when, things just run smoother. Tasks get done faster, there’s less confusion, and your team can work like a well-oiled machine.
Boosted Profitability: With an operational plan, you can identify cost-saving opportunities, streamline processes, and allocate resources more efficiently. All these can help increase your bottom line.
Competitive Advantages: Operational planning can give you the edge over your competition. It helps you anticipate market trends, respond to changes faster, and deliver value to your customers consistently.

Potholes on the Road: Potential Challenges in Operational Planning

But it’s not all smooth sailing. Operational planning has its share of challenges. It’s like navigating through a city with unexpected potholes and traffic jams. Let’s take a closer look at some of these bumps.

The drawbacks of operational planning: potential for human error and issues with interdependencies

Human Error: Mistakes can happen, especially when plans are complex or when communication is not clear. This could lead to delays, increased costs, or even failure to meet objectives.
Issues with Interdependencies: In an operational plan, tasks often depend on each other. If one task is delayed, it can cause a domino effect on the others.

Strategies to mitigate these challenges

But you’ve got this. These challenges can be mitigated with a few smart strategies:

Clear Communication: Keep everyone in the loop about the plan and their roles. Regular updates can prevent misunderstandings and errors.
Contingency Planning: Plan for delays and setbacks. Having a backup plan can keep you on track even when things go wrong.
Regular Reviews: Regularly review and adjust your plan based on progress and changes in the business environment. Flexibility is key.

Conclusion Operational Planning: Not a Luxury, but a Necessity

To sum it up, operational planning is your business’s secret weapon. It increases productivity, boosts profitability, and gives you a competitive edge. Sure, it has its challenges, but with the right strategies, you can navigate through them.

Operational planning is not just some fancy business jargon. It’s a critical tool that helps you turn your vision into reality. It’s not a luxury; it’s a necessity.

So, here’s your call to action. Don’t wait for the perfect moment or the perfect plan. Start crafting your operational plan today. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It just needs to be a clear roadmap that helps you and your team move towards your goals.

July 19, 2023

The Four Functions of Management: Your Secret Sauce to Effective Leadership

Ever felt like you’re trying to juggle water? That’s what management can feel like when you’re trying to balance planning, organizing, leading, and controlling – the four essential functions of management. Let’s unravel this bundle and put your management puzzle together piece by piece.

Now, don’t get discouraged if these four functions seem as elusive as a four-leaf clover. Just as every clover field hides that special four-leafer, every manager has the potential to master these four key functions. So, buckle up and get ready for a deep dive into these essential facets of effective leadership.

Stay tuned for the rest of the article where we’ll take you through each function in detail. But first, let’s jump into the world of planning. It’s a fun place, we promise. Not too much algebra involved.

1. The Art of Planning: Your First Step to Successful Management

Did you know that the first step to management success is effective planning? But it’s not just about setting objectives and saying, “Go get ’em, team!” No, it’s about paving a strategic pathway, setting milestones, and giving your team the tools to achieve them.

Mastering Strategic Delegation

Think of your team as a toolbox. You wouldn’t use a wrench to hammer a nail, would you? Each member of your team has their own unique skills and abilities, like tools in a toolbox. Strategic delegation is about recognizing these abilities and assigning tasks accordingly. It’s about empowering your team to put their best foot forward.

Creating Realistic Timelines

Sure, we’d all love to have our cake and eat it too—right now, if possible. But in reality, great work takes time. A realistic timeline gives your team the space they need to produce quality work without the stress of an unreasonable deadline. We’ll guide you on how to gauge the time needed for a task, taking into consideration the complexity, resources, and potential roadblocks.

Balancing Long-term Goals and Short-term Objectives

Climbing a mountain starts with the first step, but without an eye on the peak, you could wander off the path. Your long-term goals are that peak, while your short-term objectives are the steps you take to reach there. You need to juggle both without losing sight of either. Sound tricky? Don’t worry, we’ve got your back.

2. Organizing: The Second Function of Management

Organizing is not just about keeping your physical workspace tidy; it’s about aligning your team, your resources, and your processes for maximum efficiency. It’s a bit like a game of Tetris, where every piece has its place.

Setting Up Efficient Internal Processes

Processes are the railways on which your business runs. Efficient processes keep your team on track and ensure that your operations run smoothly. We’re here to help you design a streamlined workflow that simplifies tasks and minimizes bottlenecks.

Responding to Challenges with Graceful Reorganization

Ever watched an acrobat juggle? They start with three balls, then four, then five. And when one drops, they don’t panic. They smoothly integrate it back into their pattern. This same skill applies to management. When challenges crop up, you’ll need to adjust and reorganize. We’ll show you how to do it with grace, keeping your team confident and focused.

3. Leading: The Third Key to Management Mastery

You might’ve heard that a boss says “Go!” while a leader says “Let’s go!” Let’s explore the subtle yet powerful distinction as we dive into the third function of management: leading.

Projecting Confidence Amidst Change

Here’s a little secret: change is just as inevitable in business as it is in life. But here’s the catch: while change might seem scary, it’s also an opportunity for growth and innovation. As a leader, your job is to help your team navigate these changes with confidence and resilience. It’s about saying, “Yes, this is new, but we’ve got what it takes to handle it.”

Becoming a Master Communicator

It’s not just what you say; it’s how you say it. Communication in leadership goes beyond instructions and updates. It’s about creating a dialogue, encouraging feedback, and making sure everyone feels heard. Because when your team feels valued and informed, they’ll move mountains for you.

4. Controlling: The Final Piece of the Management Puzzle

The word ‘controlling’ might bring to mind someone with a stern face and a pointing finger, right? Well, let’s change that perception. In management, controlling is all about making sure your team’s efforts align with your organization’s goals. It’s about keeping the ship on course.

Monitoring Performance without Breathing Down Necks

No one likes a micromanager. It’s about checking in, not checking up. Keeping tabs on your team’s performance isn’t about constant surveillance. It’s about fostering an environment where progress can be openly discussed and challenges can be addressed.

Ensuring Quality Without Sacrificing Morale

It’s a delicate balance, isn’t it? You want top-notch work, but you also want a team that’s enthusiastic and motivated. The key is in setting clear expectations, providing the right tools, and celebrating successes. And when improvements are needed, it’s about constructive feedback, not criticism. It’s about saying, “We can do even better.”

Developing Your Management Skills: Your Roadmap to Mastering the Four Functions

So, you’ve dipped your toes into the world of management. You’ve explored the four functions and their role in successful leadership. But you’re probably wondering, “How do I develop these skills?” Let’s chart out your journey.

Formal Education vs Real-life Experience

It’s the age-old debate, isn’t it? Classroom learning or on-the-job experience? Theory or practice? Well, here’s the thing: they’re both valuable in their own ways. Formal education can provide you with foundational knowledge and theories. On-the-job experience, on the other hand, throws you into the deep end, giving you a firsthand understanding of real-world scenarios and challenges.

The Value of Mentorship in Management

There’s something incredibly powerful about learning from someone who’s been there, done that. A mentor can provide guidance, share experiences, and offer valuable insights that can shape your journey as a manager. So, don’t hesitate to seek mentorship. It’s like having a backstage pass to a wealth of knowledge and wisdom.

Overcoming Common Obstacles in Management Functions

We’ve traversed the terrains of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. But it wouldn’t be a complete journey without acknowledging the bumps along the way. You’re bound to encounter hurdles as you implement these management functions. Fear not, though, we’ve got some useful advice on overcoming these common obstacles.

Balancing Act between Autonomy and Control

When it comes to leading, the scale often tips towards either extreme—complete control or total freedom. Neither, in isolation, works well. Your goal as a leader should be to find the right balance. How do you do it?

Try this: Set clear expectations and boundaries, but within that, give your team the freedom to explore and experiment. Let them know you’re there to guide, support, but not hover. It’s a bit like training wheels on a bicycle—they provide safety and support but still allow the rider to pedal independently.

Overcoming Resistance to Change

Change is a constant in the business world. But with change often comes resistance from the team. It’s your job as a leader to help your team embrace change, and it starts with communication. Be transparent about what the change entails, the reasons behind it, and its anticipated benefits. Address their concerns, involve them in the process, and make change a collaborative effort.

Navigating Through Uncertainty

Whether it’s market volatility or a project not going as planned, uncertainty is part of the management package. Here’s a mantra for you: plan for the best, prepare for the rest. Have contingency plans in place, foster a culture of adaptability, and remember—uncertainty isn’t always a bad thing. It can lead to unexpected opportunities and drive innovation.

Decision-Making Paralysis

As a manager, decision-making is part of the job description. But too often, fear of making the wrong decision leads to decision-making paralysis. In these moments, remember: not making a decision is a decision in itself, and often not a good one. Gather as much information as you can, weigh your options, and trust your judgment. And if a decision doesn’t pan out as hoped, see it as a learning opportunity, not a failure.

Now that you’re equipped with strategies to overcome these common obstacles, you’re ready to put the four management functions into action. So, go ahead, flex those management muscles, and remember—every challenge is a stepping stone to becoming a more effective leader.

Conclusion

Well, there you have it. The mystery of the four functions of management, unraveled. From planning to controlling, each function plays a crucial role in effective leadership. But remember, it’s not just about understanding these functions. It’s about putting them into action, developing these skills, and continuously learning and growing as a leader.

And as you embark on this journey, don’t forget the power of a positive attitude, effective communication, and the willingness to adapt and grow. After all, great managers are made, not born. So, here’s to you and your journey to becoming the best manager you can be. We’re rooting for you!

July 19, 2023July 19, 2023

Top Wrike Alternatives for Project Managers in 2023

Wrike offers a suite of features that project managers are forever searching for; to streamline workflows, enhance collaboration, and boost productivity.

However, it may not be the perfect fit for every team or organization.

Some may find its extensive feature set overwhelming, while others may seek specific functionalities that Wrike doesn’t offer.

Teams may struggle to navigate a tool that feels too complex, leading to reduced efficiency rather than the promised productivity boost. The absence of desired functionalities can lead to workarounds that complicate workflows. Budget constraints can force organizations to make do with subpar solutions that don’t fully meet their needs.

This article aims to address these challenges by exploring alternatives to Wrike.

Each alternative brings unique strengths to the table, potentially offering the features, pricing, or user experience that better align with your specific needs.

Whether you’re a small team seeking a more streamlined tool, a large organization looking for specific functionalities, or a budget-conscious business, this article is designed to guide you towards the project management software that fits your unique requirements.

Why People Choose Wrike

Wrike is a project management software that has gained popularity for its versatility and robustness. It is trusted by over 20,000 organizations worldwide and is designed to boost productivity and focus on work that drives ROI. Here are some reasons why people choose Wrike:

Team Coordination: Wrike allows for increased productivity within teams and organizations by bringing all work into a single platform. It helps focus priorities and adapt workflows, serving as a single source of truth.
Collaboration and Automation: Wrike provides tools for real-time collaboration, like @mentions and comments, and a powerful automation engine. This helps teams clearly outline targets and exceed their goals.
Visibility: Wrike offers fully customizable dashboards that increase visibility across teams and departments. This transparency allows for the early identification of potential bottlenecks.
Integration: Wrike integrates with over 400 popular apps, making it a versatile tool that can fit into a variety of workflows. Some of these integrations include Slack, Salesforce, Microsoft Teams, and Adobe Creative Cloud.
Customization: Wrike offers features like custom item types and dynamic request forms powered by conditional logic, allowing for a tailored work experience.
Resource Management: With features like project resource planning, Wrike enables the planning and allocation of resources for timely delivery.
Mobile & Desktop Apps: Wrike provides a robust app experience that allows work from anywhere.

Wrike is designed to serve various teams including marketing, professional services, project management, and IT. Each of these teams can benefit from custom workflows, dynamic reports, resource management tools, and more.

Why Teams May Pivot Away From Wrike

Every project management tool has its strengths and weaknesses, and Wrike is no exception. While it offers features designed to streamline workflows and enhance collaboration, it may not be the perfect fit for every organization.

For smaller teams or startups, the extensive feature set of Wrike might seem like navigating a labyrinth. They might find themselves yearning for a more straightforward tool, one that offers simplicity without compromising on the essentials.

Then there are those teams that have unique needs, needs that Wrike might not cater to. They might be on the lookout for specific functionalities that are critical to their workflows, nudging them to explore alternatives that offer these features.

Budget is another factor that can influence the choice of a project management tool. Wrike’s offer comes with a price tag that might not align with the budget constraints of all organizations, particularly smaller businesses or startups. For them, a more budget-friendly alternative might be the need of the hour.

While Wrike integrates with over 400 popular apps, there could be specific tools that your team relies on, tools that Wrike does not support. In such cases, a tool that supports those specific integrations would be more beneficial.

Lastly, user experience is a subjective matter. Some users might find that a different user interface or user experience aligns more closely with their work style or organizational culture, prompting them to consider other options.

In the following sections, we will explore some alternatives to Wrike that address these potential needs and considerations, helping you find the project management tool that fits your unique requirements like a glove.

1. Teamly

Teamly is a project management software specifically designed for remote teams, offering features to enhance collaboration, streamline tasks, and boost productivity.

Why Choose Teamly

In the era of remote work, Teamly stands out as a beacon of productivity and collaboration. Designed with remote teams in mind, Teamly is a comprehensive project management tool that offers a suite of features to keep your team connected, engaged, and productive, no matter where they are in the world.

Real-Time Team Chat: Stay Connected, Always

One of the standout features of Teamly is its real-time chat. This feature ensures that your team stays connected and communication lines remain open. Whether it’s sending a quick message, sharing a file, or starting a video call, Teamly’s chat feature fosters a collaborative environment that is crucial for remote teams. It’s like having your team in the same room, even when they’re miles apart.

Task Management: Organize, Assign, and Track

Task management is at the heart of any project management tool, and Teamly excels in this area. With Teamly, you can assign tasks, set deadlines, and track progress all in one place. This feature keeps your team organized and ensures that everyone is on the same page. It’s like having a personal assistant for your team, keeping track of what needs to be done and when.

Screen Capture: Enhance Understanding and Collaboration

Teamly’s screen capture feature is a game-changer for remote teams. It allows team members to share their screens during meetings or discussions, fostering better understanding and collaboration. Whether it’s a design discussion or a code review, screen sharing can make the process smoother and more efficient.

Time Tracking: Boost Productivity and Efficiency

Teamly’s time tracking feature is a boon for remote teams. It allows you to track the time spent on tasks, ensuring that your team is productive and that work is being done efficiently. With this feature, you can ensure that your team’s time is being used effectively, leading to better productivity and results.

Teamly’s Pricing

Teamly offers a range of plans to suit different team sizes and needs:

Free Plan: Ideal for small teams or startups, offering basic features like 2.5 GB storage, 1,000 active chat messages, and 1 project.
Starter Plan ($47/month): For growing teams, providing enhanced features such as 5 GB storage, unlimited active chat messages, and 5 projects.
Business Plan ($97/month): Perfect for larger teams requiring advanced features, including 10 GB storage, unlimited projects, and unlimited active chat messages.

All plans come with a free 14-day trial, allowing you to evaluate Teamly’s features. Start your free trial today.

2. Asana

Asana provides teams with a centralized platform to organize, track, and manage their work efficiently.

Why Choose Asana

Asana is ideal for project management, task tracking, and workflow organization. It’s used by marketing teams to plan and track campaigns, operations teams to streamline processes, and product teams to manage shipping and launches. It’s also a popular choice for remote teams, providing a platform to collaborate and manage work from anywhere.

Key Features

Asana offers a range of features to enhance team productivity and project management.

These include:

Asana Intelligence: AI for Asana to amplify your team’s impact
Workflow Builder: Create automated processes to coordinate your teams
Timeline: Build a Gantt chart in minutes
Boards: See and track your work on Kanban boards
Calendar: View your team’s work on one shared calendar
App Integrations: Asana brings apps together to support your team
Reporting: Get real-time insight into progress on any stream of work
Goals: Set strategic goals and track progress in one place
Forms: Submit and manage work requests in one place
Automation: Streamline processes, reduce errors, and spend less time on routine tasks

Pricing and Free Trial

Asana offers a free version for teams of up to 15 people.

Their paid plans include:

Premium: $10.99 per user per month when billed annually and $13.49 per user per month when billed monthly. This plan is ideal for teams that need to create project plans with confidence.
Business: $24.99 per user per month when billed annually and $30.49 when billed monthly. This plan is suitable for teams and companies that need to manage work across initiatives.
Enterprise: Custom pricing. This plan is for organizations that need additional security, control, and support.

Asana also offers a 50% discount for eligible nonprofit organizations on an Asana Premium or Asana Business annual plan.

3. Nifty

Nifty brings all aspects of project planning, tracking, and collaboration into one neat package.

Why Choose Nifty?

Nifty is versatile and can be used by different teams for various purposes. Agile development teams can use it to manage sprints and backlogs, while client management teams can use it to keep track of client interactions and deliverables. Digital agencies, legal teams, marketing teams, and product teams can all benefit from Nifty’s comprehensive suite of tools.

Key Features

Nifty offers a range of features designed to facilitate project management:

Discussions: Facilitate communication within your team.
Roadmaps (Gantt Chart): Visualize your project timeline and progress.
Tasks: Assign and track tasks.
Forms: Collect and manage data.
Docs & Files: Store and share documents and files.
Time Tracking: Monitor the time spent on tasks.
Reporting: Generate reports to analyze performance.
Project Home: Centralize all your project information.
Project Portfolios: Manage multiple projects at once.

Pricing and Free Trial

Nifty offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card required. You can upgrade, downgrade, or cancel at any time. Here are the pricing plans:

Free: Best to get you started. It’s free forever for unlimited members. It includes 100 MB storage space and 2 active projects.
Starter: Includes all core features. It costs $39 per month for 10 team members. It includes 100 GB storage space, 40 active projects, and unlimited guests & clients.
Pro: Great for growing teams. It costs $79 per month for up to 20 team members. It includes 500 GB storage space, unlimited active projects, and unlimited guests & clients.
Business: Best for advanced teams. It costs $124 per month for up to 50 team members. It includes 1TB storage space, unlimited active projects, and unlimited guests & clients.
Enterprise: A fully scaled solution. It costs $399 per month and includes unlimited team members. It includes unlimited storage space, unlimited active projects, and unlimited guests & clients.

4. nTask

An all-in-one project management tool that offers comprehensive features to streamline your tasks, projects, and team collaboration.

Why Choose nTask?

nTask has a deep range of features designed for project managers to be more effective in their duties. It’s designed to be user-friendly so busy teams can pick it up and get started. Teams of all sizes will find it easy to collaborate and stay organized. With nTask, you can manage tasks, projects, meetings, issues, risks, and more, all in one place.

Key Features

Task Management: Create, assign, and track tasks with ease.
Project Planning: Plan and manage your projects with Gantt charts and other project planning tools.
Collaboration Tools: Collaborate with your team in real-time with built-in communication and file-sharing tools.
Meeting Management: Schedule and manage all your meetings in one place.
Issue and Risk Management: Track and manage issues and risks to ensure your projects run smoothly.
Time Tracking: Keep track of the time spent on tasks and projects.

Pricing and Free Trial

Basic Plan (Free): Unlimited tasks and workspaces, 100 MB storage, limited features available at this level.
Premium Plan ($2.99/user/month): All features of the Free plan, unlimited projects and team members, 5 GB storage, advanced features like Gantt charts, custom roles, and priority support.
Business Plan ($7.99/user/month): All features of the Premium plan, 10 GB storage, additional features like risk management, issue tracking, and custom fields
Enterprise Plan (custom pricing): All features of the Business plan, unlimited storage, additional features like API access, custom onboarding, and dedicated support.

nTask offers a free trial for its Premium, Business, and Enterprise plans. You can try out the features of these plans for free before deciding to upgrade.

5. Jira

Jira by Atlassian is a powerful project management tool that helps teams plan, track, and manage agile software development projects.

Why Choose Jira

Jira is a tool for teams of all sizes. It is designed to improve team collaboration and work management. With Jira, teams can plan, track, and manage all their agile software development projects in one place. It offers customizable workflows, advanced reporting, and a multitude of integrations, making it a versatile tool for project management.

Key Features

Customizable Workflows: Every team has their own style for moving work from ‘to do’ to ‘done.’ Jira allows you to create a custom workflow that helps your team work as efficiently as possible.
Advanced Reporting: Jira provides access to more than 12 default reports with real-time, actionable insights into how your team is performing over time.
Automation: Automate any task or process in a few clicks. With global and multi-project automation, you can automate across as many projects as you need with a single rule.
Project Archiving: Archive projects and their associated issues when they’re no longer active to keep projects tidy, helping ensure everyone on your team has the most updated information.
Admin Insights: Gain visibility and a better understanding of your product usage with data such as level of security and access and activity over time.
IP Allowlisting: Bolster your team’s security by limiting your site access to trusted IP ranges.
Sandbox & Release Tracks: Prepare, test, and experiment with products and apps before making changes to your live production environment.

Pricing and Free Trial

Free Plan: For small teams looking to get started with Jira. It includes basic features like backlog management, scrum and kanban boards, and agile reporting.
Standard Plan: Priced at $7.75 per user/month, this plan includes all the features of the Free plan, plus additional features like advanced permissions, custom fields, and project roles.
Premium Plan: Priced at $15.25 per user/month, this plan includes all the features of the Standard plan, plus advanced features like global and multi-project automation, audit logs, and unlimited storage.
Enterprise Plan: This plan is designed for larger organizations and includes all the features of the Premium plan, plus additional features like data residency, 24/7 premium support, and unlimited global and multi-project automation.

Jira offers a 7-day free trial for the Standard and Premium plans.

6. ProofHub

ProofHub is an all-in-one project management and team collaboration software.

Why Choose ProofHub

ProofHub brings all your projects, tasks, and team collaboration needs under one roof. It eliminates the need for multiple tools, saving you time and money. You’ll plan, track, and manage projects of any size, from simple to complex, across your team from one platform. It offers custom workflows to map your team’s process from start to finish, keeping everyone on the same page as work progresses.

Key Features

Gantt Chart: Set dependencies, pinpoint roadblocks, and stay ahead of deadlines.
Board View: Visualize project progress, spot bottlenecks, and create unique workflows.
Table View: Easily update the status, resources, comments, and progress of multiple projects.
Calendar: See events, reminders, tasks, and milestones all in one place.
Time Tracking: Accurately track your team’s time and create time reports in one place.
Proofing: Review and proof files with markup tools and approve them right where you are.
Chat: Have quick one-on-one and group chat with teams and clients.
Custom Roles: Create custom roles and decide who gets to access what.
Project Templates: Save time by adding project templates and use them to later create similar projects.

Pricing and Free Trial

Essential Plan: $45 per month (billed annually) or $50 per month (billed monthly). This plan includes 40 projects, unlimited users, 15GB storage, and core features.
Ultimate Control Plan: $89 per month (billed annually) or $99 per month (billed monthly). This plan includes unlimited projects, unlimited users, 100GB storage, and additional features such as custom roles, white labeling, workflows, project manager, IP restrictions, API access, advanced activity logs, and priority support.

ProofHub offers a 14-day free trial with unlimited projects and no credit card required. They also offer discounts for non-profits.

7. Basecamp

Basecamp is a simple platform designed to reduce complexity and make project management more of a joy.

Why Choose Basecamp?

Basecamp stands out in the project management space due to its simplicity and user-friendly design. Basecamp’s design avoids the trap of feature overload that can make some project management tools overwhelming to use. Simplicity in this way makes it a suitable choice for businesses that need a straightforward solution to project management.

Key Features

Message Board: A central place for team discussions, reducing the need for lengthy email threads.
To-dos: Clear visibility of tasks for the whole team, helping everyone stay on track.
Docs & Files: An integrated solution for file sharing, eliminating the need to switch between apps.
Campfire: A chat tool within each project, providing a focused space for real-time communication.
Schedule: A built-in tool for managing key dates, making it easier to keep track of project timelines.
Card Table: A visual way to track progress, reducing the need for status update meetings.

Pricing and Free Trial

Basecamp: This plan is designed for freelancers, startups, or smaller teams. It includes all the essential features, 500 GB of storage for files & documents, and costs $15/user per month. You can also invite guests at no extra cost.
Basecamp Pro Unlimited: This plan is ideal for larger businesses and groups. It includes all available features, a 1:1 onboarding tour with the Basecamp team, 10x file & document storage (5 TB), priority support, and additional administrative controls. This plan costs $299/month for unlimited users when billed annually, or $349/month if you prefer to pay month-to-month.

Both plans include a 30-day free trial, and no credit card is required to sign up.

8. Hive

A flexible project management tool that adapts to your team’s workflow.

Why Choose Hive?

Hive is a project management tool that is designed to meet your team’s unique workflow. It offers a range of features that can be customized to fit your team’s needs, making it a great choice for teams of all sizes and industries. Hive’s flexibility allows it to be used for a variety of use cases, from managing simple tasks to coordinating complex projects.

Key Features

Task Management: Assign and manage tasks and sub-tasks with ease. You can assign multiple team members to a task and set up recurring tasks for regular work.
Collaboration: Hive offers unlimited notes for team collaboration. Share and collaborate on notes with your team members.
Project Management: With Hive, you can manage unlimited projects. Track progress across all your initiatives with ease.
Forms and Pages: Streamline your project intake with unlimited forms. Highlight important elements of your projects with unlimited pages.

Pricing and Free Trial

Free Plan: This plan is free forever and includes up to 10 users, 200MB storage, unlimited tasks, unlimited notes, and 10 projects. It also includes 5 forms and 2 pages.
Teams Plan: This plan costs $12 per user per month and includes unlimited users, unlimited storage, unlimited tasks, unlimited notes, and unlimited projects. It also includes unlimited forms and pages.
Enterprise Plan: For teams that need a full suite of add-ons, extra support, and enterprise security. The pricing for this plan is available upon request.

A 14-day free trial is available for those looking to try the Teams plan before committing.

9. Scoro

Scoro is a work management solution designed to streamline work and eliminate routine tasks.

Why Choose Scoro

Scoro offers features for project management, billing, and reporting. It’s designed to bring your team, projects, sales, and reports together in one place, making it easier for businesses to manage their work more efficiently. Scoro is highly customizable, allowing it to fit into your workflow seamlessly.

Key Features

Project Management: Scoro allows you to manage each project from a single page, including time spent and billed, planned tasks and meetings, invoices and expenses, comments and files.
Work Scheduling & Tracking: Scoro provides a real-time overview of everyone’s workload, realistic deadlines, potential overbookings & available slots.
Financial Management: From the first hello to the final invoice, Scoro sets your mind at ease about every aspect of your business.
CRM & Quoting: Track all sales opportunities and deals, and manage your sales pipeline with comprehensive CRM tools.
Reporting & Dashboard: Scoro’s highly customizable dashboards and reports allow you to monitor exactly what you need.
Task Management & Time Tracking: With Scoro, you can schedule tasks and track time with ease.

Pricing and Free Trial

Scoro offers a free trial and four different pricing tiers, each with its own set of features. There is also a minimum requirement of 5 users for each plan:

Essential Plan: Starting at $26 per user per month, features include projects, calendars, task lists, contacts & customers, quotes, invoices & receipts, bills, dashboards, detailed work reports, and summary financial reports.
Standard Plan: Starting at $37 per user per month, includes everything in Essential, plus Gantt charts, time tracker, project templates, purchase orders, expenses, recurring tasks, multiple currencies, triggers & actions, and detailed financial reports.
Pro Plan: Starting at $63 per user per month, includes everything in Standard, plus planner, project budgets, timesheet & time locking, track billable time, task matrix, sales pipeline & report, margin and markup, labor cost, supplier management, late invoice reminders, and utilization report.
Ultimate Plan: Custom pricing, includes everything in Pro, plus single sign-on, unlimited custom fields, budgets & forecasts, orders & contracts, customer portal, supplier management, WIP report, and multi-account reporting.

How To Choose the Right Project Management Tool

Choosing the right project management tool is an important decision that could lead to years of collaboration. Finding a tool that aligns with your team’s needs, work style, and budget is an essential quest for project managers and their teams.

Here are some key factors to consider:

Ease of Use: The tool should be user-friendly and intuitive, minimizing the learning curve for your team.
Features: Look for features that are essential for your team’s workflow. This could include task management, time tracking, real-time chat, and more.
Pricing: Consider your budget and the pricing structure of the tool. Some tools offer a flat rate, while others charge per user.
Scalability: As your team grows, your project management tool should be able to scale with you.

We think all these boxes are ticked by Teamly.

Designed with remote teams in mind, Teamly offers a suite of features including real-time chat, task management, screen capture video & audio recording, and employee time tracking. It’s easy to use, even if you’ve never worked with team software before, and it’s completely free.

With Teamly, you can bypass steep learning curves, skip endless onboarding sessions, and get your team up to speed lightning-fast. Plus, it’s scalable and integrates well with other tools, making it a versatile choice for any team, any time.

Remember, the right project management tool can significantly enhance your team’s productivity and efficiency.

So, take your time to explore your options and choose wisely.

July 18, 2023January 13, 2024

Best Practices for Project Management in the Manufacturing Industry

They say that change is constant, but for manufacturing, change is both constant and rapid. It wasn’t so very long ago that agile, kanban, lean and the theory of constraints took manufacturing plants by storm, and everyone was focused on pull workflows, continuous improvement and systems built around the weakest link in a process.

Now, it’s an entirely new can of worms. Phrases like the 4th Industrial Revolution, digital twin, and predictive maintenance are more than buzzwords that float around the office. They’re concepts that pose to upset the entire manufacturing industry.

For a project manager this poses a real challenge. You may have received your training in one set of skills, yet the current landscape demands something entirely different. It’s a bit like being on a treadmill that’s going faster than you can run. Yet if you can’t keep pace with change, the organization becomes obsolete.

With the right focus, however, things needn’t spin out of control. Managing projects in the manufacturing industry requires many of the same systems and processes as before. And with the dawn of this 4th Industrial Revolution, there’s a few more skills besides. Let’s consider some of these changes, the challenges they pose, and the skills and tools required to assist with managing a project in manufacturing.

Manufacturing: The New Landscape

Automations, artificial intelligence and robots pose significant changes to the manufacturing industry. While no one knows the full impact of these changes, some experts believe that they will upset the entire current systems of manufacturing. Others believe that many production processes will remain the same, but the overall efficiency will increase.

Many of these changes are already taking place. According to some statistics, the number of robots used in factories around the world has more than doubled over the last decade. In manufacturing industries like India and China, digitization is the top priority for upper management.

Let’s look at some of the components of this manufacturing revolution, and consider how each might impact current processes.

3-d Printing (Additive Manufacturing)

3-D printers have been around for some time, but it’s only in the past few years that they have become sophisticated enough to incorporate into a manufacturing system. These printers re-create objects out of plastics using a computer model. Their key advantage is the ability to create complex items that couldn’t be created by hand.

This capacity to recreate objects in 3-D, also known as additive manufacturing, is utilized for small items and will improve overall efficiency in the manufacturing process. It also allows for greater customization. They can also create 3-dimensional models from a 2-dimensional image, which offers a wealth of new opportunities to designers. Similarly, manufacturing software development plays a key role in enhancing these technological advancements.

Digital Twin

A digital twin simulates a manufacturing process. It is similar to business process modeling which allows managers to test changes to manufacturing processes without making the changes in real life.

Digital twin has many practical applications to manufacturing. For example, it has been used in designing self-driving cars. Using digital twins, a traffic situation is simulated, which allows designers and manufacturers to design and program these cars for ultimate safety.

Predictive Maintenance and Analytics

Predictive maintenance is a process of fixing problems before they start. It collects and analyzes data to identify maintenance or repair issues and assign resources to the right equipment in real time. Naturally, this technology should save time and resources in the manufacturing process. Predictive maintenance is possible in part due to the internet of things, which we’ll define next.

Internet of Things

Smart technology has connected so many of our everyday devices. It allows our phone to speak to the refrigerator and our computer at the same time. And this technology has a huge impact on manufacturing. It allows for remote asset monitoring, as explained above. With technology like this, gemba walks are a thing of the past. Plant managers needn’t peruse the plant to oversee the production line. Rather, technology can conduct this surveillance and report it back to the manager.

Robots and Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence (AI), as the name suggests, is a computer-based intelligence. It allows computers and robots to perform tasks that formerly could only be performed by a person. It’s abundantly clear how AI poses to upset the manufacturing industry. As robotic technology replaces human labor, it could lead to massive redundancies and complete transformation of manufacturing processes.

As you can see, the 4th Industrial Revolution presents many new possibilities, and with each comes its own set of challenges. It compels organizations and project managers to incorporate strategic agility, and to develop new skills to adapt to changing landscape. Now let’s consider some of these challenges.

New Processes & Challenges in Manufacturing

Manufacturing has been slower to adapt to automation and smart technology than other industries like IT. This is probably due to the many challenges that it poses. Let’s review some of these central challenges.

Implementation & Resistance to Change

While the leaders in manufacturing are enthusiastic about the possibilities of a digitization, implementation is the real stumbling block. Age old processes develop deep grooves, and upsetting these processes inevitably encounters resistance. Fortunately, resistance to change can be navigated. Getting the top brass on board with big changes and identifying change evangelists within the organization are two key methods to successful implementation.

No Data

It’s so common for processes to operate through memory, and to have no paper trail or proper documentation. This makes it difficult to identify how and where digital technology would benefit the current system. Documenting processes and gathering data are two initial steps that help identify where automations improve the bottom line, and where things can remain as they are.

Little Skilled Labor

At the same time that executives embrace new technologies, the skill sets necessary to apply this technology are still somewhat rare. Oftentimes manufacturing plants aren’t located in glamorous California coastal cities, but rather in remote and obscure places. This makes it harder to recruit niche talent to do the job.

Placing an emphasis on educating current employees helps to mitigate this challenge. When current employees are brought up to speed, it allows for a more fluid transition into the changes brought about by the 4th Industrial Revolution.

An Unknown Landscape

Things like 3-D printing, AI, robots and digital twins are so fresh and new that manufacturers still don’t know their full capacity. And this unknown translates to a lot of experimentation, trial and error. Nor have any of these technologies actually performed the real manufacturing. And so the disparity between the AI model and real life also poses challenges. As a possible solution, companies can set aside a portion of its budget to think tanks and experimentation, hedging their bets that the investment, ultimately, will pay off.

And this presents just some of the challenges that the 4th Industrial Revolution poses to the manufacturing industry. Let’s now turn to some of the skill sets that a project manager might develop in order to effectively navigate these challenges.

New Skills for Project Managers

At the same time that many things have changed for manufacturing, plenty of things still remain the same. The skill set for a project manager, then, requires some of the old and some of the new. Let’s consider some of the strategies a project manager utilizes in order to successfully navigate manufacturing in the current era.

Use Strategic Agility

Strategic agility refers to an organization’s ability to adapt and change. This includes decision agility, which means understanding the new opportunities and challenges in the market, and execution agility, which is applying this knowledge. And so a project manager must understand both how AI technology can benefit the bottom line of his or her organization, and then execute on these changes as well.

Strategic agility is a component of the company’s culture, and so integrating this skill means incorporating its principles into the mission statement and everyday life of the workplace.

Broaden Skill Sets

The role of project manager has many responsibilities and requires specific skills. However, implementing new technology often requires a thorough knowledge of the manufacturing process as well. If the industry produces airbags and seat belts for cars, then a successful project manager understands all of the materials and equipment required for this process. Understanding the ins and outs of the manufacturing process is at the crux of a forward-thinking project manager.

Consider Both Team and Customer Perspectives

The customer comes first in any organization, naturally. But cultivating a healthy culture and functional team is part and parcel to delivering value to the customers. And so a project manager needs to have his or her eye on both the team and the customer in order to make good decisions and keep quality the number one priority.

Coach for Autonomy

An effective project manager cultivates a sense of autonomy and ownership within all members of a team. Rather than entering a work situation and dispensing advice, this approach entails asking lots of questions. A project manager asks workers about the processes they use, what assumptions those processes are based on, and encourages collaboration across teams to share and increase knowledge and best practices. With this approach, employees become conditioned to think and act for themselves.

Gather Comprehensive Feedback

Knowledge is power. When a project manager makes a practice of speaking to everyone in a manufacturing process, it provides a complete picture of the strengths and weaknesses in a current system. Questions like “What is the best part of the company?”, “What would you improve, if you could” and “What are the tools that you need to better do your job?” help to tease out critical information, and highlight areas for improvement.

Lead Transparently

No one likes being spoken down to. And an organization that conceals important information and never discloses income or revenue cultivates an obsequious environment where hard-working employees feel they’re treated like children.

A transparent work culture, however, immediately changes the tone. Exposing numbers, revenue goals and targets makes employees feel like stakeholders. This empowerment elevates enthusiasm and rapport. It increases the team’s adaptability and decreases its resistance to change.

Share Best Practices

Anyone who does the same thing over and over again year after year becomes proficient in their profession. They discover efficiencies and develop a high level skill. However, if everyone works in silo, this expertise is hidden under a blanket. Making a practice of collaborating and sharing knowledge cultivates synergy. People can learn from each other, and the growth of the company compounds.

And this covers some of the top skills required for managers in the manufacturing industry. Fortunately, there are plenty of tools to assist as well. Let’s look at those next.

Manufacturing Software for Project Managers

New technologies like digital twin, robotics and AI can be intimidating. But fortunately, plenty of smart manufacturing softwares are ready at hand to provide assistance. Some of these softwares are decades old, while others are up and coming. Some operate on the cloud, while others are downloaded to a hard drive. All of them provide a sophisticated system for incorporating new technologies into your current manufacturing process. Let’s look into three of the top softwares.

1. Tebis

Tebis is a decades old software that started in Germany. Its forward-thinking team of executives has positioned it as a leader in computer aided machinery (CAM). Tebis provides tools to assist with quality assurance, reverse engineering, and manufacturing planning and design. It offers many of the advancements of the digital revolution, including digital twin and preventative maintenance.

For project managers who are still getting up to speed with the advancements of the 4th Revolution, Tebis provides consulting services that highlight those areas for development and improvement. Plus, this software has an active online community for sharing best practices. Its numerous video tutorials and articles make it easy to get up to speed quickly on the software as well.

2. Fusion 360

Fusion 360 is a computer aided design (CAD) software developed by Autodesk. It operates off of the cloud, and is the first software of its kind to do so.

Fusion 360 is suitable for many professions including machinist, industrial designer, mechanical engineer and industrial engineer. Its capabilities include 3-D design and modeling, team collaboration, additive manufacturing (3-D printing) and simulations. All these tools create more efficient processes and keep manufacturing plants interconnected.

Fusion offers a 30-day free trial. It provides several plans, including a one year subscription for $300-$500 a year, or bundle options that are either monthly or tri-yearly. This software is also suitable for educational and personal purposes.

3. Siemans

Siemens is a software company based out of Plano, Texas that offers simulations, 3-D printing and data management. This software is suitable for manufacturing in multiple industries, including aerospace and automotive supply chain, agricultural machinery, medical devices and robotic devices.

The website provides helpful example videos that serve as tutorials and models to determine whether the software is right for your business.

Siemens is available both in the subscription model, or as a software to purchase with a perpetual license. For anyone interested in trying them out, they offer a 30-day free trial.

These sophisticated softwares are just the thing for a project manager looking to up his or her game in the manufacturing industry.

Conclusion

For manufacturing, the good old days aren’t so very long ago. It’s been just a few decades since everyone was learning how to incorporate scrum and agile into its systems, and now it’s a whole new ballgame.

Project managers still face the same problems of yesterday, and so need to master skills like fast tracking, crashing and network diagrams. Yet the 4th Industrial Revolution poses a whole new set of advancements, including digital twin and 3-D printing. And with them come new challenges.

Some of the skills for navigating these challenges include strategic agility and transparent leadership. And it’s necessary to be forward thinking and develop a broad knowledge base not only of project management, but of the manufacturing process as well. Many sophisticated tools, fortunately assist with this.

As a project manager, What is your greatest hope for new technology? What is your greatest challenge?

July 18, 2023April 19, 2024

No Show? Here’s How to Politely & Impactfully Email Someone Who Missed a Meeting.

Sample Email to Someone Who Missed a Meeting - Teamly

You show up for a scheduled call. Five minutes go by. After ten, you can decide to call it. Whoever you’re waiting for has probably missed the meeting. Ugh.

Whether it’s an employee, colleague, manager, client, or potential client, this can be a frustrating roadblock, especially if it’s recurring. When someone misses a meeting, not only is it a poor use of your time. It can make it harder to move whatever you’re working on according to schedule. But take a minute before following up with a message you’ll regret. Keep in mind that there are plenty of reasons someone might not have showed, and by politely sending a well-written email to someone who missed a meeting, you give yourself a better shot of maintaining the relationship and reaching your ideal outcomes.

If you’re someone who already struggles with writing emails, figuring out how to navigate an email when you’re frustrated or stressed might prove to be especially challenging. That’s why today, we’re covering some best practices for professional emails, offering a structure, and sharing some email templates to someone who missed a meeting.

Best practices for professional emails

Let’s start with some best practices for any kind of professional email.

Some of these go without saying, but they’re worth reiterating. Bottom line: no one likes getting a passive-aggressive email! Nor a long one. Nor one that’s missing context. And this is rarely the best way to get the point across. So before you draft your email to someone who missed a meeting, remember these tips.

Be polite and direct. First things first – keep the purpose of this email to communication. Save any frustrations or feelings for your next conversation. Avoid passive-aggressive phrases like “as you weren’t in the meeting,” and keep your message to the point. They might have a valid reason, or there was a misunderstanding. By giving them the benefit of the doubt, you take a solution-oriented approach to moving forward.
Short and organized. Choose an email format that’s easy to understand. Short sentences, clear headers, and consistent formatting will make it easier for the person who missed the meeting to follow. Include key takeaways as bullet points or suggest a time to follow up when you can go over the topic in more detail. If the email gets too long, consider linking to additional documents that support your message rather than including everything in the body of an email.
Give context. It can also be useful for the person who missed the meeting to have context around the purpose, tone, or key roles of the meeting. Start with a summary before dropping into the action items.
Call to action or next steps. Rather than wasting more time on an unending email chain or unclear follow-ups, ensure that your email has a clear call to action or next steps. What would you like them to do after reading and reviewing the email? Schedule another call? Action something on the project? Give clear deliverables so the person who missed the meeting can make it up.

Writing an Email to Someone Who Missed a Meeting

Sending your follow up? Here are some of the most important sections to include.

Introduction
Context
Important points
Supporting links or documents
Next steps – how to reschedule, follow up, or move forward with the project

While the exact contents of the email will be determined on a case-by-case basis, this structure serves as a good foundation for any professional email you write!

Email Templates to Someone Who Missed a Meeting

Below are some email templates to someone who missed a meeting, along with context about when you might use them. The key is to use these as a framework, while adapting to your tone or situation.

Reschedule request to an external who missed a call

Hi {NAME},

Wanted to follow up on the {purpose of meeting} we had scheduled for {time of meeting}. Know your schedule is probably packed, but would love to share some ideas about how we can work together on {their project} like {interesting idea}. Are you still interested?

If you’re up to reschedule, you can book an appointment {booking link}. Speak with you soon.

{your name}

Reschedule request to a team member or current client

Hi {NAME},

We missed each other for the {purpose of meeting} we had scheduled for {time of meeting}.

Are you free to reschedule {suggested times}? I’d like to discuss {topic} and a meeting would go a long way. You can book an appointment {booking link}

Let me know?

{your name}

Meeting Summary, reschedule

Hi {NAME},

We had a {purpose of meeting} meeting {time of meeting}. Wanted to send a follow up with some key points.

{Key point}
{Key point}
{Key point}
{Any supporting documents, more about the project}

Let’s plan to schedule another call {time} so we can go over these? You can take a look at my calendar to reschedule {booking link}. Be in touch soon!

{your name}

Meeting Summary, no reschedule

Hi {NAME},

We had a {purpose of meeting} meeting {time of meeting} and I wanted to send a follow up with some key points.

{Key point}
{Key point}
{Key point}
{Any supporting documents, more about the project}

The next steps are {next steps}. Please let me know if you have any questions and we can have a brief call to discuss?

{your name}

Frequently missed meetings

Hi {name},

I noticed you haven’t been at our {purpose of meeting} the last couple times. Is there another time or format that will work better for your schedule?

It’s important that we cover {topic} and this {timeframe} check-in will be of significant help. You can take a look at my calendar to reschedule {booking link}

{your name}

Ongoing scheduling issues

Hi {name},

Sorry we keep missing each other! Would still love to speak about {topic} when it works out. The gist is {quick summary}.

You can pick a time that works for you {booking link}, but if our schedules don’t match, let me know and I’ll find another time that works for you.

Thanks and looking forward to connecting!

{your name}

You can check some more follow up email templates on skrapp.

How to improve meeting scheduling

If missed meetings are a recurring problem for you or your team, there are a few steps you can take to improve things! Here are our best suggestions…

Use a scheduling tool

Rather than relying on phone tag or getting lost in email limbo, having a scheduling tool with your up-to-date calendar is a powerful and efficient way to manage your meeting schedule. Modern booking tools like Calendly, Acuity, etc., allow clients to view bookable time slots, automatically showing your availability and updating your calendar when booked. Your client management software might also have this function built in.

Calendar invitation with agenda and joining information

People are more likely to show when they know what to expect from a meeting. By adding event details to the calendar or sending an email ahead of the call with agenda items, both parties are more accountable and have an opportunity to prepare. The meeting becomes a better use of everyone’s time!

The same goes for adding join information to the calendar event. Make sure it’s obvious how and when to join the call when the scheduled time arrives.

Reminder Emails

And to have the very best chance of someone showing up for a meeting – use reminders! This can be an automated email with joining information 24 hours before the event or a quick email in the days leading up, noting that you’re looking forward to the meeting and what you’d like to achieve.

In summary…

No one likes getting stood up for a meeting. But a passive-aggressive or disorganized email will get you no closer to restoring the relationship or completing your project!

Use these email templates to someone who missed a meeting to guide a productive and tactful follow-up so you can get back on track.

July 13, 2023July 13, 2023

Turbocharging Your Success: A User-Friendly Roadmap to Business Process Analysis

Isn’t it intriguing how some businesses run like well-oiled machines, while others seem to stumble along, constantly dealing with crises? If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you’re seeking ways to make your business more like the former and less like the latter.

Guess what? You’re in the right place. We’re about to explore a powerhouse tool that can help streamline your business operations and supercharge your efficiency: Business Process Analysis (BPA).

Getting Acquainted with Business Process Analysis

Defining Business Process Analysis: Your Secret Weapon

In your quest for business efficiency, you’ve likely come across many tools and strategies. But let’s cut through the jargon and get to the heart of the matter. Business Process Analysis, or BPA, is a systematic review of your business operations to uncover inefficiencies and identify opportunities for improvement.

Remember those well-oiled machines we mentioned earlier? Well, consider BPA your mechanic. It looks under the hood, identifies what’s working and what’s not, and makes recommendations to get all parts running smoothly.

But why is it essential? Imagine running a race with a pebble in your shoe. You might still finish, but wouldn’t it be easier (and less painful) without the pebble? BPA helps you find and remove those metaphorical pebbles that slow your business down.

Not Everything is BPA: Clearing up the BPA vs. BA Confusion

Hold on a minute. You’ve heard about Business Analysis (BA) too, right? And you’re wondering if it’s the same as Business Process Analysis. It’s a common confusion, so let’s clear that up.

While BPA and BA might seem like identical twins, they’re more like cousins. Business Analysis is a broader discipline that looks at all aspects of a business to identify problems and recommend solutions. It can touch on anything from marketing strategies to hiring practices.

On the other hand, BPA is a bit more specialized. It zeroes in on your business processes—those step-by-step methods your team follows to get things done. It’s like a detective gathering evidence (data) to find out how things work and where the issues lie.

So while both BPA and BA are crucial, they play different roles. BPA digs deep into your processes, while BA takes a wider view. Knowing the difference can help you apply the right tool at the right time.

In the following sections, we’ll delve deeper into the world of BPA, from knowing when to use it to master its techniques. We’ll also explore its benefits and even recommend some tools that can give your analysis a boost. So, stick around, and let’s get you on the path to becoming a BPA pro.

The Perfect Time for BPA: When Should You Dive In?

It’s just like when your car makes that odd clicking noise. You don’t wait until it breaks down in the middle of a road trip to see the mechanic, do you? Just as you’d listen to your car’s subtle signs of distress, your business also sends signals that it’s time for a BPA. Let’s decipher them together, shall we?

Is Your Process Feeling Ill?

No, your business process doesn’t literally fall ill, but it can certainly exhibit symptoms of inefficiency.

So, what are these signs?

If your team’s productivity is dwindling and tasks are piling up, your process might need a check-up.
If you’re consistently missing deadlines and quality is taking a hit, it’s time for a process review.
If employees are expressing frustration with cumbersome, confusing workflows, you might have a problem.

These are just a few signs that it’s time to roll up your sleeves and dive into a BPA.

Ready to Automate? Check with BPA First!

You’re thinking about automating your processes, right? That’s a smart move. But before you sprint towards automation, remember to tie your shoelaces. Why? You wouldn’t want to trip and fall flat, would you?

By shoelaces, we mean a well-executed BPA. Diving headfirst into automation without a solid understanding of your processes is like trying to make a cake without a recipe. Sure, you might end up with something cake-ish, but wouldn’t it be better to follow a tried-and-true recipe? A thorough BPA before automation ensures that you’re automating a process that’s efficient and effective, not one that’s full of flaws.

The Nuts and Bolts: How Does BPA Work?

Now that we’ve discussed when to consider BPA let’s talk about how to conduct one. You might be picturing a colossal, tangled web of steps, but don’t worry—it’s not as daunting as it sounds. Let’s break it down.

1. Picking the Right Process: Your First Step to BPA Success

Where do you start with BPA? Simple. Identify the process that’s causing you the most grief. It could be your customer service process, your order fulfillment workflow, or your employee onboarding procedure. Don’t feel like you need to overhaul everything at once. Remember, even a small change can have a ripple effect across your entire business.

2. Your BPA Treasure Hunt: Collecting Crucial Process Information

Now that you’ve picked a process to analyze, it’s time to gather all the information you can about it. This step is like a treasure hunt—except instead of gold, you’re after information.

Ask your team members involved in the process for their insights and experiences. Look at any data you’ve collected about the process, such as time taken, costs incurred, or errors made. Remember, the more information you gather, the clearer your understanding will be.

3. Dissecting the ‘As-Is’ Process: The Heart of BPA

You’ve collected all this great information—now what? Now it’s time to map out your process as it currently stands, often called the ‘As-Is’ process.

Consider this stage the heart of your BPA. It’s where you’ll identify bottlenecks, redundancies, and other inefficiencies. You’ll measure your process’s effectiveness and determine where improvements can be made.

4. Envisioning the Future: Crafting Your ‘To-Be’ Process

You’ve dissected your ‘As-Is’ process, and now you’re left with a pile of data and insights. Your next step? Use this information to craft your optimized future process, or ‘To-Be’ process. This is where you’ll identify solutions to the issues you’ve uncovered, design improvements, and envision how your process will flow in the future.

BPA Techniques: The Secret Sauce of Your Analysis

Just like in cooking, every dish requires a unique mix of ingredients and techniques. Business Process Analysis is no different. Here’s a look at some common techniques that add flavor to your BPA – the secret sauce, if you will.

Filling the Gaps: Your Guide to Gap Analysis

Remember that road trip you took where your GPS lost signal, and you found yourself on a desolate road with no idea where you were? That’s what running a business without gap analysis is like.

Gap analysis is a technique where you compare your current state (where you are) to your desired state (where you want to be). It helps you identify the ‘gaps’ in your process and provides a roadmap to reach your business goals.

Think of it as your business’s GPS, guiding you from your ‘As-Is’ process to your ‘To-Be’ process without taking detours down roads leading nowhere.

Rooting Out the Issues: The Power of Root Cause Analysis

There’s a story of a gardener who, every day, noticed new weeds sprouting in his garden. He kept pulling them out, but they kept coming back. Why? Because he was dealing with the symptoms, not the root cause.

Root Cause Analysis (RCA) is about finding the root of your process problems, not just addressing the symptoms. By understanding the underlying causes of issues, you can solve problems at their core, preventing them from recurring. RCA is like a garden hoe that helps you dig deeper and eliminate those pesky business process weeds for good.

Supercharge Your BPA: Tools to Boost Your Analysis

Imagine trying to bake a cake without a mixer, an oven, or a recipe. It’s possible, but it’s going to be a tough slog, right? That’s where BPA tools come in – they’re the kitchen appliances of your process analysis.

BPA Superheroes: Why You Need Tools Like Nintex and Kissflow

Let’s talk about some of the power tools in the BPA toolkit. Nintex and Kissflow, for instance, are like the Swiss Army knives of process analysis. They offer a range of features, from process mapping to workflow automation.

When selecting a tool, consider your unique needs. What’s the scale of your processes? What’s your budget? What features are a must-have for you? A little research will go a long way in picking the right tool for your needs.

The Big Wins: Unleashing the Benefits of BPA

You’ve spent a lot of time analyzing, adjusting, and perfecting your processes. Now it’s time to enjoy the fruits of your labor. Or should we say, the big wins?

Say Hello to Clear Documentation and Robust Data

One of the major wins of BPA is clarity – crystal clear documentation of your processes and robust data to back your decisions. You’ll have a clearer understanding of how your business operates and what areas need improvement. It’s like having a detailed map of your business landscape, enabling you to navigate efficiently and make informed decisions.

Spotting the Trouble Makers: Identifying Process Obstacles

Another significant win is the ability to spot and overcome process obstacles. Think of it as being gifted with x-ray vision to see through your processes and identify bottlenecks, redundancies, and inefficiencies.

There’s a sense of achievement that comes with finding these troublemakers and resolving them. It’s not unlike finally finding where that odd noise was coming from in your car and fixing it. The ride’s smoother, the stress is lower, and your journey toward business efficiency becomes more enjoyable.

Conclusion: Your Next Steps in Mastering BPA

Well, it’s been quite the journey, hasn’t it? You’ve cruised through the landscape of Business Process Analysis, picking up essential insights, tips, and techniques along the way. But remember, understanding BPA isn’t the finish line; it’s the starting point of a grand adventure towards process efficiency.

So what’s next on the agenda for you?

Perhaps it’s time to take those newly acquired BPA skills and insights and give them a whirl. Maybe there’s a process in your organization that’s been a thorn in your side, something that’s been bothering you and your team for a while. Why not start there? Put your BPA cap on and start your gap analysis. Or maybe you’ve spotted a potential troublemaker? Time to whip out your root cause analysis skills.

Remember, you’re not alone on this journey. There are tools out there, like Nintex and Kissflow, ready to give you a helping hand. And, of course, there’s always room for learning more, improving, and refining your skills.

So go on, roll up your sleeves, and dive into the world of Business Process Analysis. There’s a whole realm of process efficiency waiting to be unlocked, and you’ve got the master key.

Remember, success isn’t a destination; it’s a journey. And with BPA, you’re sure to have one exciting ride.

July 13, 2023

Ditching Basecamp? Explore These Project Management Alternatives for Success

Basecamp’s strength lies in its simplicity and its all-in-one approach.

It offers a centralized platform where teams can communicate, track tasks, share files, chat within each project, manage schedules, and view progress in real-time. This comprehensive yet straightforward approach has made Basecamp a popular tool in the project management sphere.

However, the field of project management software is vast and varied, and while Basecamp is a strong contender, it’s not the only one.

Different organizations have different needs, and what suits one might not suit another. Some might be looking for more specialized features, others might prioritize a different pricing structure, and still, others might prefer a different user interface.

In this article, we take a look into the unique features of Basecamp and explore other software that offer different strengths. This is not about replacing Basecamp, but about understanding the diverse needs of organizations and the variety of tools available to meet those needs.

Whether you’re perfectly content with Basecamp but curious about other options, or actively seeking a different solution, this guide will provide you with a comprehensive overview of what’s out there. Stay tuned as we navigate this exciting landscape together.

Why People Choose Basecamp

Basecamp’s appeal lies in its simplicity and its all-in-one approach to project management. It offers a suite of features that are designed to streamline collaboration and project organization:

Message Board: This feature replaces long email threads, providing a centralized place for team communication.
To-dos: Offers full team visibility on a task-by-task basis, helping to keep track of work progress.
Docs & Files: Allows sharing files without the need to switch to another app.
Campfire: A chat feature within each project, eliminating the need for multiple communication channels.
Schedule: Helps manage key dates without the need for spreadsheets or separate calendars.
Card Table: Provides real-time progress view, eliminating the need for status meetings.

These features are intuitively organized in one centralized place, making it easier for everyone in every role to collaborate and manage projects. This simplicity and unified approach have made Basecamp a popular choice among a wide range of organizations, from marketing firms and software developers to schools and governments.

Why They May Need A Change

While Basecamp’s simplicity is its strength, it can also be a limitation for some users. Every organization has unique needs and workflows, and what works best for one might not be as effective for another.

Some teams might require more advanced or specialized features that Basecamp doesn’t offer.

For instance, Basecamp’s task management is straightforward but may lack the depth required for complex projects that need detailed task dependencies or advanced reporting capabilities.

While Basecamp’s all-in-one approach is convenient, it might not always be the best fit for teams that prefer specialized tools for different functions. For instance, some teams might prefer a dedicated chat app with more robust features than the Campfire feature in Basecamp.

The pricing structure might also be a factor. While Basecamp offers a flat pricing model, some organizations might prefer a per-user pricing model or a free tier for small teams, which Basecamp doesn’t provide.

In the following sections, we will explore some alternatives to Basecamp that address these potential limitations, each with their unique strengths and offerings.

Teamly: The Smart All-In-One Remote Team Management Solution

Teamly is a versatile, user-friendly project management tool designed specifically for remote teams, offering a suite of features that foster collaboration, streamline workflows, and boost productivity.

Why Choose Teamly?

In the modern work environment where remote teams are becoming the norm, Teamly shines as a comprehensive solution tailored to address the unique challenges of managing a distributed workforce.

It is more than just a project management tool; it’s a platform that brings together all the essential features needed to run a remote team efficiently.

Core Features of Teamly

Real-Time Chat: Teamly’s instant chat feature fosters collaboration and quick decision-making, acting as a virtual water cooler for remote brainstorming sessions and problem-solving.
Workflow & Task Management: Teamly offers user-friendly Kanban boards for tracking team progress. It also provides custom workflows, task assignments, and automation features, making it easy to manage tasks, projects, and timelines.
Screen Capture Recording: This feature allows users to create videos of what’s happening on their screens while providing verbal explanations. This is particularly useful for explaining assignments, onboarding remote employees, and answering team questions.
Time Tracking & Employee Monitoring: Teamly’s built-in timer tracks time to the second, providing incredibly precise digital timesheets. It also offers optional activity screenshots for monitoring employee activity.
Payroll Management: Teamly simplifies payroll management with its built-in time tracking feature. You can calculate what you owe by day, week, month, or a custom date range, aligning with your existing payment schedule.
Templates & SOPs: Teamly provides customizable Kanban board templates and over 100 Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and checklists for various businesses, making it easy to establish best practices and manage tasks more efficiently.

Pricing and Free Trial

One of the most appealing aspects of Teamly is its pricing structure.

It’s completely free to use, with no credit card required. This makes it an excellent choice for small teams or startups looking to manage their remote teams effectively without incurring additional costs.

To start using Teamly, all you need to do is create a free account and download the software to your computer, or use the browser-based version from anywhere with an internet connection.

Trello

Trello is a flexible project management tool that uses a card-based system to organize tasks and projects, offering a visual approach to team collaboration.

Why Choose Trello?

Trello is a project management tool that uses a card-based system to organize tasks and projects. It’s a flexible tool that can be adapted to a wide range of workflows, making it a popular choice for teams of all sizes.

Core Features of Trello

Boards, Lists, and Cards: Trello’s primary organizing structure involves boards (which represent projects), lists (which represent stages of a project), and cards (which represent tasks). This structure provides a visual overview of a project’s status at a glance.
Views: Trello offers various views, including Timeline and Calendar views, to help teams visualize their work in different ways.
Butler Automation: Trello’s built-in automation tool, Butler, allows teams to automate repetitive tasks, helping to streamline workflows.
Power-Ups: Trello offers a range of integrations with other tools, known as Power-Ups, which can enhance its functionality.
Templates: Trello provides pre-built templates for different types of projects, helping teams get started quickly.

Pricing and Free Trial

Trello offers a free plan for individuals or small teams looking to organize their projects. For teams that need more advanced features, Trello offers several paid plans:

Standard: $5 per user/month if billed annually. This plan is designed for small teams that need to manage work and scale collaboration.
Premium: $10 per user/month if billed annually. This plan is suitable for teams that need to track and visualize multiple projects in several ways.
Enterprise: $17.50 per user/month if billed annually. This plan is designed for organizations that need to connect work across teams with more security and controls.

While Trello’s visual approach to project management can be appealing, it may not be the best fit for all teams. For instance, teams that prefer a more traditional, list-based approach to task management might find Trello’s card-based system less intuitive.

Podio

Podio is a flexible project management platform that offers customizable workspaces to adapt to your team’s specific needs.

Why Choose Podio?

Podio is a project management tool that stands out for its customizable workspaces, allowing teams to create a work environment that aligns with their specific workflows and processes. It’s a tool that can be tailored to a wide range of project types and team sizes.

Core Features of Podio

Customizable Workspaces: Podio allows teams to create and customize their own workspaces, making it adaptable to a wide range of workflows and project types.
Task Management: Podio provides task management features that allow teams to track and manage their work effectively.
Integrated Chat: Podio includes an integrated chat feature, facilitating real-time communication within the team.
Connected CRM: Podio offers a connected CRM system, allowing teams to manage customer relationships within the same platform.
Full Customization: Podio stands out for its full customization capabilities, allowing teams to tailor the platform to their specific needs.

Pricing and Free Trial

Podio offers a free plan for individuals and small teams, with limitations on the number of users and the amount of storage. For larger teams or those needing more advanced features, Podio offers several paid plans:

Plus: $14 per employee per month, including automated workflows and read-only access for external users.
Premium: $24 per employee per month, offering visual reports, interactive sales dashboards, and priority support.

While Podio’s customizable workspaces can be a strength for teams needing a flexible project management tool, it may also present a learning curve for teams used to more straightforward, out-of-the-box solutions.

Teamwork

Teamwork is a project management platform offering a suite of tools designed to enhance collaboration and productivity across various team types.

Why Choose Teamwork?

Teamwork is a project management platform that caters to a variety of team structures, including agency teams, marketing teams, creative teams, and professional services. It provides a comprehensive suite of tools designed to streamline collaboration, enhance productivity, and provide a holistic view of project performance and progress.

Core Features of Teamwork

Resource Scheduling: Teamwork provides a bird’s-eye view of team capacity and workload, helping managers allocate resources effectively.
Time Tracking: With built-in time tracking features, Teamwork helps ensure deadlines are met and provides insights into team productivity.
Dashboards and Reporting: Teamwork offers robust dashboards and reporting features, providing a comprehensive view of project performance and progress.
Integrations: Teamwork stands out for its integrations with other tools, allowing teams to manage all their work in one place.
Customizable Workflows: Teamwork allows teams to customize their workflows, making it adaptable to a wide range of project types and team sizes.

Pricing and Free Trial

Teamwork offers a 5-user free tier, allowing teams to test out the platform before committing. For its paid plans, users can expect the following tiers:

Starter: Priced at $5.99 per user/month (billed yearly), with a minimum of 3 users. This plan offers all the project management basics you need to get started, including templates, custom fields, automations, and intake forms.
Deliver: Priced at $9.99 per user/month (billed yearly), with a minimum of 3 users. This plan offers more robust project management features, including automations and forms, project status reports, and team management.
Growth: Priced at $19.99 per user/month (billed yearly), with a minimum of 5 users. This plan is designed to manage more complex client projects, offering workload and capacity management, advanced budgeting, and powerful reports.

For teams that need even more features, Teamwork also offers a Scale plan. Pricing for this plan is not listed on the website, but it includes features like retainer management, unlimited custom reports, and a resource scheduler.

Teams that prefer a more straightforward, less complex tool might find Teamwork overwhelming. Additionally, while Teamwork’s integrations are a strength, teams that use fewer tools might not find this feature as beneficial.

ProofHub

ProofHub is a project management tool that centralizes tasks, teams, and communication, enhancing organization and productivity.

Why Choose Proofhub?

ProofHub is a project management platform that aims to bring all your tasks, teams, and communication into one place. It’s designed to streamline workflows and improve productivity, making it a versatile tool for teams of all sizes.

Core Features of ProofHub

Task Management: ProofHub provides comprehensive task management features, allowing teams to create, assign, and track tasks effectively.
Gantt Charts: With Gantt charts, teams can visualize their project timeline and manage dependencies between tasks.
Board View and Table View: These features offer different ways to visualize and manage tasks, catering to different team preferences.
Calendar: ProofHub’s calendar feature helps teams keep track of key dates and deadlines.
Time Tracking: With built-in time tracking, ProofHub helps teams manage their time effectively and gain insights into productivity.
Discussions and Chat: ProofHub provides a platform for team communication, facilitating the exchange of ideas and quick conversations.
Proofing and File Approval: This standout feature allows team members to review and approve files directly within the platform, with markup tools for providing feedback.

Pricing and Free Trial

ProofHub offers a simple and flat pricing structure with no per-user fee. It offers two plans:

Essential: Priced at $45/month when billed annually or $50/month when billed monthly, this plan includes 40 projects, unlimited users, 15GB storage, and core features.
Ultimate Control: Priced at $89/month when billed annually or $99/month when billed monthly, this plan offers unlimited projects, unlimited users, 100GB storage, and additional features like custom roles, white labeling, workflows, IP restrictions, advanced activity logs, and priority support.

ProofHub also offers a free trial, allowing teams to test out the platform before committing.

Teams that prefer a more specialized tool for certain functions might find that ProofHub doesn’t fully meet their needs. It’s important to consider the specific needs and preferences of your team when choosing a project management tool.

Wrike

Wrike is an all-in-one platform designed to manage projects, organize work, enhance collaboration, and accelerate execution across all departments.

Why Choose Wrike?

Wrike empowers teams to streamline their workflows, enhance collaboration, and achieve project success. Whether you’re managing small or large-scale projects, Wrike’s comprehensive set of features makes it a reliable solution for optimizing productivity and achieving your project goals.

Core Features of Wrike

Team Coordination: Wrike brings all your work into a single platform, enabling increased productivity within your team and organization. It allows you to focus on priorities and adapt workflows, serving as your single source of truth.
Collaboration and Automation: Wrike enables you to outline targets for your team clearly and exceed your goals with real-time collaboration, like @mentions and comments, and a powerful automation engine.
See the Whole Picture: With fully customizable dashboards, Wrike breaks down barriers and increases visibility across teams and departments. It allows you to run projects with full transparency, enabling you to spot bottlenecks before they set you back.
Pre-built Project Templates: Wrike offers pre-built project templates to help you launch your project or campaign faster. It simplifies your processes and allows you to get right to work.
Security Features: Wrike provides enterprise-grade security, including user authentication, role-based access control, and 99.9% uptime. It also offers the Wrike Lock add-on for an extra layer of security, allowing you to own and manage your encryption keys for maximum control of your cloud data.
Integrations: Wrike allows you to connect to the apps you alreast use with integrations available at point of use for over four hundred popular apps.

Pricing and Free Trial

Wrike offers a two-week free trial, allowing teams to test out the platform before committing. For its paid plans, users can expect the following tiers:

Free: For teams of up to 5 users, offering basic features such as task management, file sharing, and real-time activity stream.
Professional: Priced at $9.80 per user/month (billed annually), this plan is for teams of 5, 10, or 15 users. It includes full project planning and collaboration features, such as Gantt charts, shareable dashboards, and advanced integrations.
Business: For teams of 5-200 users, priced at $24.80 per user/month (billed annually). This plan includes additional features like custom fields and workflows, shared real-time reports with scheduled notifications, report templates, and more.
Enterprise: For larger teams, the pricing is available on request. The Enterprise plan offers advanced security features, controls, and support.

Teams that prefer a more straightforward, less complex tool might find Wrike overwhelming. While Wrike’s integrations are a strength, teams that use fewer tools might not find this feature as beneficial.

Monday.com

Monday.com is a work operating system that empowers teams to run projects and workflows with confidence.

Why Choose monday.com

monday.com is a highly regarded project management platform that excels in providing a visual interface and multiple views and dashboards for teams of all sizes. With its user-friendly features and collaborative environment, monday.com simplifies project management and enhances team productivity, making it a standout choice for effective project execution.

Core Features of monday.com

Visual Project Tracking: monday.com offers a highly visual interface for project tracking. This includes color-coded statuses, timelines, and Gantt charts, which provide a clear visual representation of project progress and deadlines.
Workload Management: With monday.com, you can balance your team’s workload in a glance. This feature allows you to allocate resources effectively, ensuring no team member is overworked or underutilized.
Ready-made Templates: monday.com offers a variety of pre-built templates for different industries and use cases. These templates can be customized to fit your team’s unique workflow, helping you get started quickly.
Automations: monday.com allows you to automate routine work. You can create custom automation recipes to automate your workflow, saving your team time and reducing the risk of human error.
Integrations: monday.com integrates with a wide array of popular tools, allowing teams to streamline their workflows and keep all their work in one place. This includes integrations with email, cloud storage, CRM systems, and more.
Customizable Workflows: With monday.com, you can build and customize workflows to match your team’s way of working. This includes creating custom fields, setting up unique project stages, and more.

Pricing and Free Trial

Monday.com offers a 14-day free trial, allowing teams to explore the platform before committing. Its paid plans include:

Basic: Starts at $10 per user. Ideal for small teams needing basic task management features. It includes unlimited boards, over 20 column types, and 5GB of file storage.
Standard: Starts at $12 per user. This plan offers timeline & Gantt views, calendar view, guest access, automation (250 actions per month), and integrations (250 actions per month).
Pro: Starts at $20 per user. This plan includes time tracking, chart view, formula column, dependency column, automations (25,000 actions per month), and integrations (25,000 actions per month).
Enterprise: This plan is for organizations seeking enterprise-grade features and includes advanced security and governance, multi-level permissions, and premium support. Pricing is available on request.

While monday.com is a powerful tool, teams that prefer a simpler, less feature-rich tool might find it overwhelming. However, its flexibility and customization options make it a valuable tool for teams that need to manage diverse workflows and projects.

ClickUp

ClickUp is a cloud-based productivity platform that provides a comprehensive solution for task management, project collaboration, and team communication.

Why Choose ClickUp?

ClickUp is an all-in-one productivity platform designed to help teams of all sizes manage tasks, projects, and collaboration effectively. It offers a wide range of features including task management, time tracking, goal setting, document sharing, and more, all in a single, user-friendly interface.

ClickUp is designed to replace multiple workplace apps, bringing all your work into one place, and it integrates with a variety of other tools, making it a flexible solution for many different types of teams and workflows.

Core Features of ClickUp

Task Management: Create, assign, and manage tasks with custom statuses, priorities, and tags.
Time Tracking: Track time spent on tasks and generate detailed reports.
Goal Setting: Set and track goals to keep your team focused and motivated.
Document Sharing: Collaborate on documents in real-time, right within the platform.
Integrations: Seamlessly integrate with other tools like Google Drive, Slack, and more.
Customizable Views: View your tasks in a list, board, or calendar format based on your preference.
Dashboards: Create custom dashboards to visualize your team’s work and productivity.

Pricing and Free Trial

ClickUp offers a free plan with limited features, which is suitable for small teams or individual users. The paid plans start at $9 per user per month and offer more advanced features and larger storage. They also offer an Enterprise plan with custom pricing for larger organizations with more complex needs.

A free trial is available for the paid plans, allowing you to test out the features before committing to a subscription.

Due to ClickUp’s extensive features the software will require a significant learning curve for some users. If your team values having a multitude of features and integrations at their disposal, ClickUp could be a fitting choice.

Notion

Notion is an all-in-one workspace where you can write, plan, collaborate, and organize.

Why Choose Notion?

Notion allows you to take notes, add tasks, manage projects, and also create your own wiki. It’s highly customizable and flexible, enabling you to create a system that fits your personal or team’s workflow.

Core Features of Notion

Notes & Docs: Write and organize your notes in a clean, distraction-free interface.
Knowledge Base: Create your own wiki and neatly organize it for easy access and navigation.
Tasks & Projects: Manage your tasks and projects with customizable views like list, board, table, and more.
Spreadsheets & Databases: Create flexible spreadsheets and databases to manage and visualize your data.
Collaboration: Collaborate in real-time, share your work, and comment on any content.

Pricing and Free Trial

Notion offers a free plan with limited features, which is suitable for personal use. They also offer paid plans for teams and businesses, starting at $8 per member per month, which include additional features like advanced permissions, version history, and priority support. For Enterprises, they offer bespoke pricing tailored to your needs, free trials available for both the Enterprise and Business plans.

Notion’s strength lies in its flexibility and its ability to adapt to various workflows. It’s a great tool for those who want to consolidate their work into one place. However, its wide range of features and customizable nature might be overwhelming for some users.

Smartsheet

Smartsheet is a leading work execution platform that helps teams to collaborate, work on projects, automate their workflows, and achieve better results.

Why Choose Smartsheet?

Smartsheet is a platform designed to help teams streamline their processes, improve collaboration, and drive better outcomes. It provides a flexible and intuitive interface where teams can plan, track, automate, and report on work.

Smartsheet offers a range of features and capabilities that empower teams to effectively manage projects, tasks, and workflows, making it a popular choice for organizations of all sizes.

Core Features of Smartsheet

Project Management: Smartsheet provides tools for project planning, scheduling, and tracking. It allows teams to create Gantt charts, set dependencies, and monitor progress in real-time.
Task and Workflow Management: With Smartsheet, teams can create and manage tasks, assign responsibilities, set due dates, and track progress. Automated workflows streamline repetitive processes, saving time and reducing errors.
Collaboration and Communication: Smartsheet offers robust collaboration features, including real-time updates, file sharing, commenting, and @mentions. Teams can work together seamlessly and stay connected.
Reporting and Dashboards: Smartsheet enables teams to create dynamic reports and interactive dashboards to visualize project status, track metrics, and make data-driven decisions.
Resource Management: Smartsheet allows teams to allocate and manage resources effectively. It provides visibility into resource availability, helps balance workloads, and ensures optimal resource utilization.
Integration Capabilities: Smartsheet integrates with a wide range of popular tools, including Microsoft Office, Google Workspace, and other project management and productivity apps.
Security and Governance: Smartsheet prioritizes data security and compliance. It offers features like access controls, data encryption, audit logs, and enterprise-level security measures.

Pricing and Free Trial

Smartsheet offers multiple pricing plans to suit different team sizes and requirements. The plans include Free, Pro, Business, Enterprise.

Free: Includes 2 sheets with access for 2 editors. Gantt, Grid, Card, and Calendar views are available on this plan and there is up to 500MB attachment storage.
Pro: Starting at $9 per user per month. Pro includes unlimited sheets with access for up to 10 editors and an unlimited number of viewers. There is 20GB media attachment and 250 automations included with the plan.
Business: Starting at $32 per user per month. Business includes everything in pro with the added benefit of unlimited editors, unlimited automations, and 1TB media attachment.
Enterprise: The Enterprise plan is a bespoke offer that can be tailored to the specific needs of Smartsheet clients.

Smartsheet’s interface, although intuitive, may require a learning curve for some users who are new to the platform or not familiar with project management software. Adequate training and onboarding may be necessary to maximize the platform’s potential.

Other Project Management Tools to Consider

The above tools provide a good choice for different businesses but may not cater to the specific needs of the individual company. Here is a collection of other tools that may be worth considering:

Asana: A project management tool designed to help teams organize, track, and manage their work with ease.
Jira: A popular tool specifically designed for software development teams, offering comprehensive project tracking and issue management capabilities.
Microsoft 365: A project management software that provides advanced scheduling, resource management, and reporting features for complex projects.
Airtable: A flexible collaboration platform that combines the power of a spreadsheet with the functionality of a database, allowing teams to organize and track their work in customizable views.
Hive: A centralized platform that integrates project management, collaboration, and time tracking features to help teams streamline their workflows.
Zoho Projects: A project management solution that offers task management, time tracking, document collaboration, and reporting features.

Each of these tools offers unique features and capabilities, so it’s important to assess your team’s specific requirements and preferences when choosing the most suitable project management solution.

Conclusion

As you consider the various options available, assess your team’s specific needs, project requirements, and budget. While tools like Basecamp, Trello, and Notion offer valuable features and have gained popularity, it’s important to select a tool that aligns with your team’s workflow and project management style.

Teamly has been built from the ground up to be a project management solution with teams at the heart of it.

Designed with remote working in mind, Teamly provides a comprehensive platform that promotes effective communication, seamless collaboration, and streamlined project execution. Its user-friendly interface, extensive feature set, and emphasis on remote team productivity make it a standout choice for modern businesses.

Successful project management is not just about the tool you choose but also how you leverage it. Invest time in training and onboarding your team, encourage regular communication, and establish clear processes and goals to maximize the benefits of any project management software.

July 13, 2023July 13, 2023

7 Game-Changing Client Management Software For Every Kind of Business

Managing clients is the number one aspect of any business.

It involves keeping track of numerous details, from contact information to communication history, sales data, and more. It’s a complex task that requires a high level of organization and efficiency.

However, as your client base grows, so does the complexity of managing these relationships. It can become increasingly challenging to provide personalized service, identify sales opportunities, and maintain efficient processes.

This is where client management software comes into play.

These tools are designed to simplify the task of managing client relationships. They consolidate all client data into a single platform, automate various tasks, and provide valuable insights into customer behavior.

By using client management software, businesses can improve their customer service, increase sales, streamline their processes, and make more informed decisions.

In the following sections, we will explore some of the top client management software options available, highlighting their unique features, benefits, pricing, and free trials.

Why You Need Client Management Software For Your Business

Client Management Software, or Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software, is a powerful tool that serves as the backbone of customer interactions for businesses.

It’s like a Swiss Army knife for customer relationships, offering a suite of features designed to enhance customer service, boost sales, and streamline processes, all while driving profitability.

One of the key features of client management software is its ability to consolidate all customer data into a single, easy-to-navigate platform.

Think of it as a digital Rolodex that does a lot more than just store contact information.

It keeps track of your communication history with each client, logs sales data, and even notes customer preferences. This centralized hub of information enables businesses to provide a more personalized and efficient service to their customers, enhancing the overall customer experience.

But client management software doesn’t stop at just managing customer data. It also comes equipped with tools for lead qualification, lead scoring, sales metrics, and customer analytics. These features are like having a personal business analyst at your disposal, helping you identify potential customers, prioritize leads based on their potential value, track sales performance, and gain insights into customer behavior.

Benefits of Using Client Management Software

Client Management Software offers a multitude of benefits that can significantly enhance the way businesses interact with their customers.

Here are some key advantages:

Improved Customer Service: With all customer information readily available in one place, businesses can provide a more personalized and efficient service. This includes quick access to a customer’s purchase history, communication history, preferences, and more.
Increased Sales: The software can help businesses identify potential customers, prioritize leads, and track sales performance. This can lead to more effective sales strategies and increased profitability.
Efficient Processes: Client management software can automate various tasks such as data entry, scheduling, and reporting. This not only saves time but also reduces the risk of errors, leading to more streamlined business processes.
Insightful Analytics: The software often includes features for customer analytics. These can provide businesses with valuable insights into customer behavior, which can be used to improve products, services, and marketing strategies.

When choosing a client management software, businesses should consider factors such as ease of use, customization options, integration with other software, customer support, and pricing. So stick with us and we’ll fun you through some of the best client tracking software options on the market.

What is the Best Client Management Software?

We’ve compiled a list of the top client management software, but before we get into it, it’s important to note that each software is unique and may target different types of businesses.

Be sure to use the software that best aligns with your company and your vision.

Here are our picks:

AgileCRM

AgileCRM combines CRM, sales enablement, marketing automation, and customer support capabilities into one package.

Use Cases and Features

AgileCRM caters to a variety of business needs. It’s a perfect fit for businesses looking to streamline their sales, marketing, and customer service processes.

Here’s a closer look at what it offers:

Sales: AgileCRM provides a 360-degree view of contacts, allowing for efficient contact management. It includes features such as lead scoring, appointment scheduling, and email tracking. It also offers unlimited deals, tasks, and document management.
Marketing: AgileCRM is equipped with marketing automation tools including email campaigns, web engagement, form builder, and landing page builder. It also provides contact level analytics and the ability to send up to 5,000 branded emails.
Service: AgileCRM includes a helpdesk, groups, labels, canned responses, views, activities, and reports. These features help streamline customer service processes and improve customer satisfaction.
Extras: AgileCRM offers additional features such as Google Sync, a Chrome extension, and basic reports. The number of plugins/integrations varies depending on the plan.

Pricing and Free Trial

AgileCRM offers a free plan for up to 10 users, making it an excellent choice for small businesses or teams just starting out. The free plan includes 1,000 contacts & companies, custom data fields, lead scoring, unlimited deals, tasks & documents, appointment scheduling, custom deal milestones, and email tracking.

For businesses with more extensive needs, AgileCRM offers three paid plans:

Starter Plan: Priced at $8.99 per user per month, this plan increases the contacts & companies limit to 10,000 and adds features such as 2-way email integration and marketing automation.
Regular Plan: At $29.99 per user per month, this plan further increases the contacts & companies limit to 50,000 and adds features like 2-way telephony and mobile marketing.
Enterprise Plan: For $47.99 per user per month, this plan offers unlimited contacts & companies and additional features such as post-call automation, call recording, automated voicemails, and access controls (ACLs).

Keap

Keap is a platform that combines CRM, marketing automation, and sales tools into one powerful package.

Use Cases and Features

Keap is a tool that can be used across various industries. It’s trusted by over 200,000 small businesses and has been in the market for over 20 years.

Here’s a closer look at its key features:

Organize: Keap helps businesses automate their processes to save time and scale. It offers a robust CRM to manage customer lists, reporting and analytics to track progress, and a dedicated mobile number to receive calls and texts. It also allows businesses to integrate their existing apps.
Market: Keap’s marketing automation features allow businesses to follow up automatically with leads. It offers lead capture tools, lead management features, email marketing capabilities, and text marketing options.
Sell: Keap automates sales processes, helps convert and upsell clients, schedules appointments easily, invoices customers automatically, and helps businesses rack up reviews.
Grow: Keap provides a framework for growth with its Lifecycle Automation. It offers coaching and support, guarantees growth in the first 90 days, provides marketing services, and allows seamless data migration.

Pricing and Free Trial

Keap offers a variety of pricing plans to suit different needs:

Pro: Priced at $159 per month (billed annually), this plan includes 1500+ contacts and 2 users. It covers all the basic features like email marketing, sales & marketing automation, lead capture & follow-up, CRM, appointments, sales pipeline & analysis, invoices & payments, landing pages & online sales, and text marketing.
Max: Priced at $229 per month (billed annually), this plan includes 2500+ contacts and 3 users. It includes everything in the Pro plan, plus lead scoring, lead source attribution, multi-page landing pages, upsells and discounts, promo codes, marketing analytics, advanced reporting, and text marketing.
Max Classic: This plan is designed for advanced marketing and sales team needs. Pricing details can be obtained by contacting the sales team.

Keap also offers a free trial for those who want to try the software before committing to a plan. This allows businesses to test out the features and see if it’s a good fit for their needs.

Dynamics 365

Dynamics 365 is a suite of intelligent business applications from Microsoft that helps you run your entire business and deliver greater results through predictive, AI-driven insights.

Use Cases and Features

Dynamics 365 offers a range of applications that work seamlessly together for a comprehensive solution.

These applications include:

Sales: Empower your sales team with predictive insights, relationship data, and process automation that helps them sell smarter and bring in more revenue.
Customer Service: Deliver customer experiences, using detailed insights and AI-driven guidance to resolve issues quickly and proactively handle customer needs.
Finance: Unify your financial processes and operations for more effective decision making and strategic planning.
Supply Chain Management: Achieve precision and satisfaction in your supply chain operations with predictive insights and intelligence from AI and Internet of Things (IoT).
Marketing: Run multi-channel marketing campaigns that deliver personalized experiences and nurture more sales-ready leads.
Human Resources: Take better care of your employees, from attracting, hiring, and onboarding the right people to ensuring they continue to perform at their best.
Commerce: Deliver seamless, personalized shopping experiences across physical and digital channels.
Project Management: Run your project-based business more productively and profitably using intelligent tools to schedule, manage, and bill for your projects.

Pricing and Free Trial

Dynamics 365 offers a variety of pricing options, depending on the applications and the number of users.

Here’s a brief overview:

For small and medium businesses, the first Dynamics 365 app starts from $70 per user/month, and subsequent qualifying Dynamics 365 apps are $20 per user/month.
The Sales Professional app is priced at $65 per user/month, with subsequent qualifying apps at $20 per user/month.
The Finance app is priced at $180 per user/month, with subsequent qualifying apps at $30 per user/month.
The Marketing app starts from $1,500 per tenant/month, with subsequent qualifying apps from $750 per tenant/month.
The Supply Chain Management app is priced at $180 per user/month, with subsequent qualifying apps at $30 per user/month.
The Service apps range from $50 to $95 per user/month, with subsequent qualifying apps at $20 per user/month.

Microsoft also offers a free trial of Dynamics 365, so you can test out the applications and see how they can benefit your business before making a commitment.

Salesforce

Salesforce is an integrated CRM platform that gives all your departments a shared view of every customer.

Use Cases and Features

Salesforce is designed to cater to a wide range of business needs. It can be used for sales tracking, real-time analytics, web and email automation, customer service, and more.

The software offers a set of features that allow businesses to:

Sales Tracking: Salesforce’s Sales Cloud is designed to streamline sales processes and enhance sales performance. It helps businesses manage leads, opportunities, and customer accounts effectively.
Customer Service: With Salesforce Service Cloud, businesses can deliver exceptional customer service experiences. It provides a platform for managing and resolving customer issues efficiently.
Marketing Automation: Salesforce Marketing Cloud enables businesses to personalize every step of the customer journey. It offers tools for email, mobile, social, advertising, web personalization, content creation and management, and data analysis.
E-commerce Solutions: Salesforce Commerce Cloud helps businesses create seamless, personalized shopping experiences across all touchpoints. It’s a powerful tool for managing online stores, improving customer engagement, and boosting sales.
Customer Data Management: Salesforce Customer 360 is a customer data platform that allows businesses to build and manage a unified customer profile. It helps in understanding customer preferences and behaviors, enabling businesses to deliver personalized experiences.

Pricing and Free Trial

Salesforce offers a variety of pricing options to suit different business needs and sizes. Here are the pricing details for some of the main modules:

Salesforce Sales Cloud: The pricing starts at $25 per user per month for the Essentials edition, which is ideal for small businesses. The Professional edition costs $75 per user per month, while the Enterprise edition is priced at $150 per user per month. For businesses that need unlimited CRM power and support, the Unlimited edition is available at $300 per user per month.
Salesforce Service Cloud: The pricing for the Service Cloud also starts at $25 per user per month for the Starter edition. The Professional edition is available at $75 per user per month, and the Enterprise edition, which is the most popular, is priced at $150 per user per month. The Unlimited edition, offering unlimited CRM power, is available at $300 per user per month.

All these editions come with a free trial option, allowing businesses to try before they buy. The free trial provides a hands-on experience of the platform and its capabilities, helping businesses make an informed decision.

Insightly

Insightly is a tool that not only streamlines your sales process but also ensures that your customer relationships are nurtured and managed effectively.

Use Cases and Features

Insightly is a great fit for sales teams, startups, small businesses, mid-sized businesses, and even large enterprises.

Here’s a snapshot of what Insightly brings to the table:

Create Stronger Pipeline: Insightly offers robust lead management features, allowing you to effectively track, manage, and qualify leads. It also provides automated, customized emails, email templates, web-to-lead capture, and a Kanban view for visualizing your lead pipeline.
Build Customer Relationships: Insightly integrates natively with Marketing and Service tools, enabling you to create long-lasting customer relationships. It offers contact and organization management, opportunity management, task management, and relationship linking.
Sell from Anywhere: With the Insightly mobile app, you can use Insightly from anywhere, at any time. It offers real-time data synchronization, mobile business card scanning, mobile contact and calendar integration, and mobile voice notes.
Real-time Sales Insights: Insightly provides built-in business intelligence dashboards, configurable reports, and customizable, real-time insight cards to help you visualize your business growth in real-time.
Seamless Project Delivery: Insightly allows you to convert won opportunities to projects, track key project metrics, and build automated task and event templates.
Integrations: Insightly integrates with the applications you use every day, including Google, MS 365, PandaDoc, QBO, and Xero.
Model and Automate Business Processes: Insightly offers role-based permissions, configurable profiles/page layouts, custom fields, REST public API, webhooks, comprehensive audit logging, complete workflow automation, custom objects, and more.

Pricing and Free Trial

Insightly offers three pricing tiers for its CRM platform:

Plus: Priced at $29 per user per month (billed annually), the Plus plan is the most popular and offers a comprehensive set of features for businesses looking to streamline their CRM processes.
Professional: Priced at $49 per user per month (billed annually), the Professional plan offers advanced features for businesses that need more customization and control.
Enterprise: Priced at $99 per user per month (billed annually), the Enterprise plan is designed for large businesses with complex CRM needs.

Freshsales

Freshsales is designed to help businesses manage their sales processes and customer relationships more effectively.

Use Cases and Features

Freshsales is a tool that can be used by businesses of all sizes and across various industries. It offers a range of features to streamline sales processes, improve customer engagement, and ultimately drive business growth.

Lead Scoring: Freshsales uses AI to score leads based on their behavior and demographic information. This helps sales teams prioritize their efforts on the most promising leads.
Built-in Phone and Email: The platform includes built-in phone and email capabilities, allowing sales teams to engage with customers and prospects directly from the CRM.
Visual Sales Pipeline: Freshsales provides a visual sales pipeline that helps teams track the progress of deals and identify bottlenecks in the sales process.
Sales Sequences: With this feature, sales teams can set up a series of automated steps to nurture their sales contacts and convert them into customers.
Workflow Automation: Freshsales allows businesses to automate repetitive tasks, freeing up time for sales teams to focus on selling.

Pricing and Free Trial

Freshsales offers a range of pricing plans to suit different business needs and budgets:

Free CRM: This plan is free for up to 3 users and includes basic features such as contact, account, and deal management, built-in chat, email, and phone, and AI-powered contact scoring.
Growth: Priced at $15 per user per month (billed annually), the Growth plan includes everything in the Free CRM plan plus additional features such as sales sequences and 1 CPQ license.
Pro: For $39 per user per month (billed annually), the Pro plan offers everything in the Growth plan plus multiple sales pipelines, time-based workflows, and AI-powered deal insights.
Enterprise: At $69 per user per month (billed annually), the Enterprise plan includes everything in the Pro plan plus advanced features such as custom modules, AI-based forecasting insights, audit logs, and a dedicated account manager.

Freshsales also offers a free trial for those who want to test out the platform before committing to a paid plan.

Nimble

Nimble helps businesses build better customer relationships and manage their sales and marketing processes.

Use Cases and Features

Nimble is perfect for businesses looking to streamline their customer relationship management, sales, and marketing efforts.

Key features include:

Contact Management: Nimble allows you to unify your contacts and enrich their data for a comprehensive view of your customers and leads.
Activity Tracking: Keep track of all customer interactions and activities, ensuring you never miss a beat.
Workflows & Automation: Automate your tasks and workflows to save time and increase efficiency.
Marketing & Outreach: With group messaging, templated emails, and segmentation, you can reach out to your customers effectively and efficiently.
Pipeline Management & Reporting: Manage your sales pipeline, forecast revenue, and generate reports for insightful decision-making.
Mobile Apps: Stay connected with your CRM on the go with Nimble’s iOS and Android apps.

Pricing and Free Trial

Nimble offers a straightforward pricing model with two options:

Billed Annually: $24.90 per user/month
Billed Monthly: $29.90 per user/month

Both plans come with a comprehensive set of features, including contact management, activity tracking, workflows and automation, marketing and outreach tools, pipeline management and reporting, and mobile apps.

Nimble also offers a free trial for 14 days, allowing you to test out the platform before committing.

Conclusion

The best client management software is the one that fits your specific business needs. It’s not just about the features or the price—it’s about how well the software aligns with your business goals, processes, and customer management strategy.

Consider the size of your business, the complexity of your client management needs, and the level of customization you require. Think about the integrations you need with other software you’re currently using. And don’t forget to take advantage of free trials to get a hands-on feel of how the software works.

In the end, the goal is to choose a client management software that helps you build stronger relationships with your clients, makes your processes more efficient, and supports your business as it grows.

So take your time, do your research, and make an informed decision that will propel your business forward.

July 13, 2023July 13, 2023

You’ve Got This! A Step-By-Step Guide to Crafting an Unbeatable Quality Management Plan

No more worrying about managing quality in your projects. This guide has got you covered, offering a straightforward path to crafting a winning Quality Management Plan (QMP). After all, who doesn’t appreciate a bit of order in the chaos of project management?

A friendly nudge: Why you need to care about Quality Management Plan (QMP)

Let’s not beat around the bush, quality matters. In fact, in a world where businesses and projects are in a constant state of flux, managing quality has become a make-or-break factor. A well-crafted QMP isn’t just a fancy document gathering digital dust.

It’s your roadmap to meeting stakeholder expectations, achieving project deliverables, and most importantly, keeping your sanity amidst the project pandemonium.

How to Build Your Quality Management Plan Brick by Brick

Alright, no time to waste. Let’s dive into the nitty-gritty of creating a solid QMP.

Putting your hat on: Defining project requirements and objectives

You’ve been there, lost in the project wilderness, not sure which direction to take. That’s where setting clear project requirements and objectives swoops in to save the day.

They’re your North Star, guiding you toward project success. Think about what your project aims to achieve, what deliverables are expected, and what steps you need to take. Let’s call them your project’s must-haves, nice-to-haves, and got-to-dos.

You and your stakeholders: Meeting needs and expectations

Consider this: you’ve crafted what you believe is a groundbreaking project plan, but your stakeholders think otherwise.

That’s a disaster waiting to happen. When building your QMP, take the time to understand your stakeholders’ needs and expectations. Conduct meetings, send out surveys, or have informal chats. Whatever it takes to ensure everyone’s singing from the same hymn sheet.

What’s in it for you: Understanding project deliverables

Okay, let’s get real. You’re not managing quality for the sake of it. There’s a goal, right? Project deliverables.

These are the concrete outputs your project promises. They can be anything from a fancy new software system to an eye-catching marketing campaign. By defining these deliverables clearly in your QMP, you’re already halfway up the ladder of project success.

Setting the Standards: Your Secret Sauce to Winning the Quality Game

Standards are more than a set of arbitrary rules. They’re your path to project enlightenment.

Industry standards: Your pathway to compliance

Whether you’re in healthcare, finance, or digital marketing, industry standards provide a guiding framework for maintaining quality. They’re like the secret recipes used by top chefs.

By adhering to these, not only do you ensure compliance but you also give your project a competitive edge. So, it’s time to embrace these standards. Learn them, live them, love them.

Internal metrics: Your customized yardstick for quality measurement

While industry standards are essential, they don’t tell the whole story. That’s where your internal metrics come into play. These are your personalized indicators of success.

They could be things like reducing project errors by 20%, improving team productivity by 30%, or decreasing customer complaints by 15%. Remember, what gets measured gets managed, so choose these metrics wisely.

By the end of this part, you should be able to draft an initial version of your QMP that defines the project’s objectives, takes into account stakeholders’ expectations, and sets clear standards for success.

But hold your horses, there’s more to come. Stay tuned for the next part where we’ll delve into quality control and assurance. Trust us, it’s a game-changer.

Taking the Driver’s Seat in Quality Control and Assurance

Strap yourself in because this is where the rubber meets the road. In this part, we’re shifting gears and driving headlong into the world of quality control and assurance.

Your Game, Your Rules: Crafting the Quality Control Process

Quality control isn’t just about catching mistakes—it’s about making sure your project runs smoother than a well-oiled machine.

Getting down to brass tacks: Identifying quality control activities

First things first, you’ll need to pinpoint exactly what quality control activities need to be in place. Think of these as your safety net—they’ll catch any project errors before they become full-blown crises. For instance, in a software development project, this could mean integrating a rigorous code review process or setting up automatic error detection tools.

The team huddle: Assigning roles and responsibilities

Just like a sports team, your project team needs to know who’s doing what. Who’s responsible for checking the final product? Who’s in charge of running tests? Who needs to approve the end result? Hashing out these roles upfront makes your quality control process run like a Swiss watch.

Assurance is More Than Insurance: Fostering a Robust Quality Assurance Process

While quality control is about fixing errors, quality assurance is about preventing them in the first place. It’s your ticket to a worry-free project journey.

Keeping a hawk’s eye: Monitoring and reporting essentials

Quality assurance isn’t a set-and-forget process. It requires constant vigilance. That means routinely checking up on your project’s progress, running checks, and updating your QMP as needed.

Remember, the sooner you spot a potential issue, the easier it’ll be to rectify. And let’s not forget reporting—it’s one thing to keep tabs on your project’s quality, but you need to let the rest of your team (and stakeholders) in on the status too.

Who’s on it? Identifying team members’ roles in quality assurance

Don’t let quality assurance become a one-person job. Divide and conquer is the name of the game here. Maybe your software engineer is great at spotting potential bugs or your project manager has a knack for catching small details that others might miss. Use your team’s strengths to your advantage and assign roles accordingly.

There you have it, your crash course on quality control and assurance. But we’re not done yet—stay tuned for Part 3 where we’ll tackle the all-important topic of quality improvement. Remember, a QMP isn’t a static document—it’s a living, breathing entity that grows with your project. So, don’t be a stranger to revisions and updates. They’re the secret ingredients to a truly unbeatable QMP.

Embracing Change and Dancing with Risks

Get ready to shimmy and shake, because here’s where we dive into change and risk management—two critical moves in your quality management dance routine.

Change is the Only Constant: Why You Need a Stellar Change Management Process

They say change is the only constant in life—and projects are no different. You’re bound to encounter changes, whether it’s a surprise budget cut or a sudden shift in project objectives.

Laying down the process for managing changes: Because surprises aren’t always pleasant

Change can throw your project into a tailspin—if you’re not prepared. That’s why you need a robust change management process. It helps you anticipate and handle changes efficiently. Think of it as your project’s safety harness—it keeps you secure even when the project terrain gets a little rocky.

Assigning roles: Because everybody should know their part in the play

Just like a well-rehearsed play, everyone on your team needs to know their role when change comes knocking. Who’s responsible for assessing the impact of the change? Who needs to approve it? Having a clear roles-and-responsibilities chart helps everyone stay in sync and reduces the chances of a mid-project hiccup.

Be a Risk-Taker, Not a Risk-Maker: Mastering the Art of Risk Management

You don’t need to be a daredevil to handle project risks. All you need is a bit of planning and a pinch of proactivity.

Identifying risks: Because forewarned is forearmed

Spotting potential project risks ahead of time gives you a leg up. It could be anything from potential delays in your supply chain to a key team member going on sudden leave. Once you’ve identified the risks, you can create strategies to counter them—making sure your project stays on track.

Mitigation and avoidance: Your action plan to stay ahead of risks

Creating a risk mitigation and avoidance strategy is like charting a safe path through a minefield. You’re not just reacting to risks—you’re staying one step ahead of them.

All About Information, Documentation, and Outputs

Your project is a bustling hub of information and documentation—and you’re the maestro orchestrating it all.

Organizing the Mess: Streamlining Information and Documentation Management

Think of information and documentation management as your project’s central nervous system—it connects everything together and keeps everything running smoothly.

Keeping records: Because details matter

Every project detail, no matter how small, needs to be documented. It could be an email about a minor scope change or a meeting minute highlighting a crucial decision. Each document is a piece of the project puzzle, and you’re in charge of putting it all together.

Ensuring accessibility: Because everybody deserves the right information

Making sure your team has easy access to project information is key to project success. A central repository for documents? Check. Clear communication channels? Double-check. Your goal is to ensure that every team member can find what they need when they need it.

Quality Control and Output Review: Your Ladder to a Successful Project

The finish line is in sight. It’s time to double-check your outputs and make sure they’re up to snuff.

Monitoring and measuring: Making sure your outputs stand up to the test

Your project’s outputs aren’t just about hitting deadlines. They’re about delivering quality—and that means keeping a keen eye on them throughout the project.

Reviewing and evaluating: Because there’s always room for improvement

Remember, you’re not just ticking boxes here. Each output should be thoroughly reviewed and evaluated. And don’t be afraid of criticism—it’s not a roadblock but a stepping stone towards improvement.

Quality Management Tools: Your Trusty Sidekicks

Ever dreamed of having a sidekick? You know, a trusty partner that’s always there, ready to lend a helping hand? Well, in quality management, you can have just that. Let’s meet your quality management tools.

Why Manual Isn’t Always Better: Leveraging Quality Management Tools

You might be tempted to do it all yourself—after all, you’re pretty darn good at your job. But why break a sweat when you’ve got an arsenal of quality management tools at your disposal? They can help lighten the load and streamline your quality management process. And who doesn’t love a good efficiency boost?

A quick overview: From Quality Management Software (QMS) to Business Process Management Software (BPM)

You’ve got options—lots of them. From Quality Management Software (QMS) that helps you track and manage quality issues to Business Process Management Software (BPM) that lets you automate and optimize your business processes—there’s a tool for every challenge.

Real-life superheroes: Examples of effective Quality Management Tools

For example, Trello can help keep your project organized. You can create lists for each part of your quality management process and move cards around as tasks progress. On the other hand, a tool like Process Street could help with process documentation, giving you a clear picture of your workflows.

Conclusion

Recap: The A to Z of creating an impressive QMP

Alright, let’s hit rewind for a second. We’ve talked about everything from defining project requirements and objectives, setting up your standards, crafting the quality control and assurance processes, to managing changes and risks, and streamlining information and documentation management. Phew! That’s quite a journey, isn’t it?

Parting thoughts: How you can make a difference with an effective Quality Management Plan

Creating a Quality Management Plan isn’t just about ticking off a box in your project checklist. It’s about making a difference. It’s about delivering quality that wows your stakeholders, boosts customer satisfaction, and positions your business for success.

Remember, you’ve got the power to turn projects into success stories with a robust QMP. And with this guide in your toolkit, you’re well on your way to becoming a quality management maestro. So go ahead, take that leap, and make your mark in the quality management realm.

July 12, 2023

Your Guide to Business Process Modeling, With Benefits, Tools & Examples

Have you ever taken the time to closely inspect your spending habits, and were surprised by what you discovered? Maybe you found that a huge amount of your budget was going toward eating out, leaving little left for savings.

Both in business and in real life, a subjective analysis is so oftentimes full of misconceptions. Once we dig into something, we discover that it’s really another way. In a business, you may think that the longest and hardest task is closing the books at the end of the month, and then upon closer inspection be surprised to discover that the real hangups are somewhere else entirely.

But how do you drill down and clarify some of these misconceptions? Business process modeling is at the heart of the answer. A business process model is kind of like the x-ray of a business process. It looks beyond the surface level, and provides an overview of various processes within a business. It assists with planning and identifies blind spots.

Are you wondering just what business process modeling is? In this post we’ll define the process, provide examples, explain its benefits, then go over some tools for creating a business process model. So let’s dig in!

What Is Business Process Modeling?

A business process model, essentially, is an event log of every step in a business process. It documents events sequentially and uses symbols to indicate how one event relates to another.

Here is how the Project Management Glossary defines the term: Business process modeling (BPM) is the representation, analysis, and evaluation of business processes in an effort to improve them.

As organizations become more and more complex, any automated process needs a BPM. Without a proper system for analysis, resources are wasted and hangups about.

A BPM helps to control the flow of activities. With the model, business analysts evaluate the data and identify trends. Business process models are fairly easy to grasp and understand, and so they also allow stakeholders to rally around a complicated idea or process and make improvements.

For further clarity, let’s look at some examples and techniques of a BPM.

Techniques & Examples of Business Process Modeling

A business process model is a language, in a sense, that uses symbols and shapes to communicate interrelated events. The two “languages” that are predominately used when creating a BPM are the Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) or Unified Modeling Language (UML).

This model above uses the BPMN language. It demonstrates a payment process. Let’s go over some of the symbols used in the BPMN framework.

Oval: This indicates the beginning and end points of a business process.
Rectangle: These are individual activities in a workflow.
Diamond: A decision point or a gateway. For example, this may indicate the stage at which a customer has a choice to either pay with cash or credit card in a grocery store checkout.
Arrow: These indicate a sequence of events.
Swim Lanes: This helps to divide a work process and indicates who “owns” which portion of the process. For example, in software development, one team may be responsible for writing code, while another is responsible for testing it.

As you can see, a BPM uses everyday shapes and symbols to communicate various stages in a business process. Here are a few simple examples of a business process.

Example: Customer using self-checkout in a grocery store.

This is a business process that we all engage in every day. Simply, the process is to:

Enter the grocery store.
Select a cart or a basket.
Select items and place them into a cart or basket.
Proceed to the checkout counter.
Unload items onto the conveyor belt.
Scan and total items.
Pay with either cash or card.
Collect the receipt.
Bag items.
Leave the store.

This is a fairly straightforward process. Outside of the payment step, there aren’t many opportunities to fork or choose a separate path. A BPM is helpful in the above example for identifying bottlenecks. It can help to determine, for instance, whether or not there needs to be an item limit in the self-checkout line in order to keep the process fluid for all customers.

Now let’s consider a more complicated business process.

Example: Insurance Claim

An insurance claim consists of many steps, and each sequential step is dependent on the outcome of the step preceding it.

Insurance company receives a claim.
The data for the claim is entered into the company’s system.
Within 48 hours, an expert visits the site to investigate the claim. Depending on the investigation, the claim either ends or it proceeds to the next step.
If the incident is covered, it is approved for the preliminary estimate.
If the cost exceeds the preliminary estimate, then a second investigation ensues to both approve the claim and estimate the damage. If the incident isn’t covered, the claim ends here.
If the incident is covered, then the payment is sent to the client.
The claim, finally, is filed to end the process.

As you can see, this business process looks fairly different depending on the type of claim and the outcome of the investigations. With such a complicated process, it can be difficult to intuit where to allocate resources, or to identify places where the process might be improved.

This highlights how a BPM is helpful. For instance, the data collected from a BPM reveals which stages take the most time. This can be an indication to either hire more labor or adjust the process to make it more fluid.

While we’ve touched on some of the benefits already, let’s now take a more complete look at the importance of BPMs in an organization.

The Benefits & Importance of Business Process Modeling

A business process model generally is developed on software. This is far superior than creating the model manually, as the software is able to mine for data and patterns in the data. These BPMs correct for erroneous assumptions, and provide much insight. Let’s consider the key benefits a business process model provides.

Identifies Bottlenecks

The BPM calculates the cycle time and processing time for any given process. Plus, it breaks the process down into stages. This analysis identifies those areas where work tends to build up. And by applying the principle of constraints (building a workflow around the slowest stage), it’s then possible to increase the efficiency of the entire workflow.

Conserve Resources

A BPM doesn’t leave anything to guesswork. With the data ready at hand, it’s possible to know the duration of every task in a workflow. This makes it simple to then calculate the cost of an entire workflow, as well as staff each work stage adequately.

Improve Processes

It’s always risky to implement a big change to an organization. For example, a small grocery store may struggle over whether or not to include self-checkouts. It wonders if the investment ultimately will pay off.

With a BPM, it’s possible to predict how changes will affect the workflow before making a large investment. A BPM software can simulate a workflow, and calculate the changes to materials and labor.

Get Everyone Involved

A BPM is fairly simple to grasp and understand, regardless of someone’s area of expertise. This makes it easy for a variety of stakeholders to collaborate on evaluating a work process and to provide insight to improving it.

Simplifies Compliance & Regulations

In certain industries, regulations are never one and done. Every year, something changes that affects the workflow. A BPM allows organizations to make adjustments to workflows, but still have data from the old system on record. Nothing gets lost, and old files are ready at hand.

And this summarizes the key benefits a BPM provides. Now let’s consider the top softwares for developing this BPM.

Tools & Software for Business Process Modeling

While a BPM is simple to write out with pen and paper, the diagram at its essence is about collecting and analyzing data. This is where robust software comes in handy. There are many softwares that do the trick, and the UIs are intuitive and easy to use. Here are two of the foremost softwares for creating BPMs.

IBM Business Automation Workflow

Whatever industry you’re in, and whatever problem you’re seeking to solve, IBM’s Business Automation Workflow has something for you. Its services include asset management, supply chain, security and identity, IT automation and much more. For anyone wondering where to start, a team of consultants are ready at hand for advice and guidance.

Customers love this software for its flexibility. It can solve complex business problems and no coding knowledge is necessary!

Workflow Automation by Nintex

Whether you’re looking to automate a system, optimize a workflow or simply map out a process to get your bearings, Workflow Automation by Nintex has you covered.

Their process management tools make it easy to plot out a workflow, and from there it’s a quick step to identify areas to automate for ultimate efficiency. This tool offers three plans, starting at $25,000 a year. Its basic plan allows unlimited users and workflows.

And this summarizes just two softwares. There are many tools out there, and finding the right one for you simply involves some research.

Conclusion

As organizations become more complicated, it’s increasingly difficult to rally a team around a process to make improvements. This is where a business process model is so helpful. It’s easy to understand, it mines data and it analyzes processes. A BPM will even fix problems that you didn’t know you had! Every automation process benefits from a BPM.

If you’re struggling with low efficiency and poor communication in your organization, then this simple diagram may be just the solution.