Doing and dealing with any kind of project takes careful planning and wise decision-making while exhibiting explicit time management. To meet deadlines and the client’s expectations, a team, or at least the leader should clear the plan map and direct the members to their responsibility. Skilled people manage projects like breakfast: effortless. Some handle it like cooking dinner after a day full of work: painless. In most cases, due to the fast phase of the industry and unexpected occurrence of problems along the way, no matter how skilled a person is in handling projects, it is getting harder to connecting and updating everyone with their progress especially now that the team is most likely to be in a spread out and working from home. There are many project management tools that can help you win the game.
Challenges in Project Management:
Unclear Target:
Whether it is setting goals or deciding a deadline, a target objective should be the first to be determined when taking a project. Unclear expectations will lead to misleading the project to its proper destination.
The key to a successful project is clarity of the what’s, whys, when, and how. Explaining all these things to the whole team before doing a project will lead everyone to the right path and will give everyone a clear picture of what the project looks like.
Uncharted Progress:
I get it. Everyone is working at home and is facing challenges such as how to keep track of everyone’s works. I mean, are the members still working or watching Youtube? But in the member’s defense, it is hard to keep on focus in the comfort of your home without a boss checking your productivity every minute.
Missing the Team:
Since everyone has stopped going to the office, communication becomes a challenge. While on their locations and each has different tasks, it is hard to update everyone with a sudden change of plan or a specific task they need to give focus and priority.
Indefinite Cost and Resources:
Doing a project successfully and meeting the desired outcomes will benefit not only the client but also the whole team. But the process of doing the project is not free and may sometimes be costly. Getting all the resources needed to accomplish a plan and having enough funds to support the project is important and should be realistic. It is important to go back and address the first challenge which is setting a clear target. Be clear on how much money the team can spend on a specific project.
Project Management Tips:
Stay on Course:
Defining the goals and target of the project always comes first. Without a clear destination, your team will be driving to different roads. As the project manager, make sure that everyone knows what is expected of everyone and lead the team to the proper course of the flow, if not, you will get a different result.
Have a Plan B:
No one can predict the future precisely. One thing may go wrong along with the project but you cannot be stuck on a particular misfortune when you have to meet the deadlines. In times like these, the team should be prepared with a second plan or alternatives to continue the project.
Integrate Technology:
Although everyone is far from each other, it is not impossible to be successful in project management. With the use of the internet and communication software, everyone can communicate in real-time. Humanity has come too far in technology that it can benefit us not only in communication but also in tracking, updating, and accomplishing tasks as if the whole team is in just one place.
Here are some useful tools you can use in project management:
Basecamp:
This is a great project management tool that tracks tasks, memos, and assignments for everyone. You can easily add your team to the project and what’s particularly best with this tool is that you can also add your clients to keep them in the loop.
Asana:
Asana is a web application that helps team leaders track and delegate tasks and assignments to everyone. You can add files and update everyone with their to-do list.
Toggle:
This is software that allows you to keep track of the progress of everyone in the team. What best about this tool is that it can track the time your team spends on a task or a project, so productivity is ensured. It also has a feature that helps you in selecting the right people during the hiring process.
Winning the Game in Interior Design with the Right Project Management
Interior design is a perfect combination of art and science. Every interior designer needs to be creative and technical when doing a project. Having the right mind and dedication in project management is essential but it is also good to use alternatives and tools that will help in the progress and success of the project.
Keeping the inclusiveness of the whole team may be hard but necessary especially during this pandemic. But with the right management, no project will be impossible.
If you are looking for a team to handle a project related to your interior design needs, OFS Interiors handles every client’s needs uniquely and with personalized-focus. Our team stays connected, professional, and productive even during the pandemic to give our clients their desired results. Consult our team with your interior design desires.
