Top 5 ways to do Project Time Management are: 

1. Prioritize the work
2. Organize the project activity list 
3. Spend time effectively
4. Set realistic target and commitments
5. Use softwares and tools

We all have heard “Time is Money”. Time is one of the most important aspects of any organization. The business strategies and project goals are highly aligned with the time. The successful project is the one that is completed within time constraints.

Project Managers hold the responsibility of deciding the resources and getting the project activities done within the time constraints.

Project managers play a vital role in the completion of the project with respect to all the processes of project management aligned with Schedule, Cost, Scope, Quality, Resources, Risks, Changes, Stakeholders.

In order to keep track of the project’s timeframe, the project schedule is created at the beginning stage. The documented framework is created including the project’s milestones, project activities, deliverables, and timeframe.

 The main aim to develop the project schedule is to know: 

• What needs to be done?
• Who will do the task?
• When is the deadline for the project?
• When should the task need to be finished?

The top 5 ways to do Project Time Management are: 

1. Prioritize the work
2. Organize the project activity list 
3. Spend time effectively
4. Set realistic target and commitments
5. Use softwares and tools

1. Prioritize the work 

Accurately Prioritizing the task is one of the biggest challenges faced by project managers. Irrespective of the size of the projects, prioritizing effects the progress of the project and team engagement. 

Here are the steps to prioritize the work:

• List out all the tasks

Collect a list of all the tasks and put together everything possible. While listing out, don’t worry about the order of the task. 

• Identify important v/s urgent 

After listing out all the tasks, the next step is to identify the tasks which need immediate attention. Check the dependency of the task on further tasks.

• Assess value

Once you identify the important work, know the task which brings the highest value to your organization and business goals.

• Set the tasks based on estimated effort 

Always start with the task which takes maximum effort to finish. Once the task with maximum effort and time is finished, the other tasks can be done.

• Be adaptable and flexible  

Changes and uncertainty are very common in project management. The project management professional should be able to adapt to the changes. 

2. Organize the project activity list 

The list of all the project activities should be organized to determine the project responsibilities to the team. Tasks can be organized in many ways. The common ways to organize the task are:

• Organizing the task by the due date
• Organizing tasks by progress 

Organizing the tas by the due date:

Due date is very important for project managers and a team when they organize tasks. The team gets motivated to finish the milestone when the task is allotted with a due date. The team plans and executes based on the time given to complete. 

The dude date can be set using tools and softwares to check on task recurrence, check overdue and finally set the due dates according to the changes. 

Organizing tasks by progress 

All the project tasks include sub-tasks. Sub-tasks can help to get the framework of the ultimate task objective through progress. These tasks are managed in Kanban. The to-do list on the Kanban board can help you to organize the work by progress. 

Kanban helps in visualizing all the steps included in the project workflow. 

3. Spend time effectively 

Time is one of the most valuable assets Keep track of how you spend your time. Over tracking of time can also harm productivity. 

List out the most time-consuming task and decide on which task you can invest your time effectively. Everyone has 24 hours a day. It depends on individual capabilities to get the desired result in the allocated time. 

Nowadays project management software tools are available to automate the time-tracking process:

• Avaza
• Clockify
• Freedcamp
• Harvest
• Hubstaff
• MeisterTask
• TimeCamp
• Toggl
• Proofhub

4. Set realistic target

The target set must be achievable. The milestone set can be difficult to achieve but it should not be impossible. In project management, over commitment can lead to project failure. Setting realistic targets will minimize task repetition. While setting a target, the following conditions are considered:

• The project goal should be clearly defined
• The target should be trackable
• The task should be achievable
• The project task should have a deadline. 

The team members working on project task must feel motivated and positive about achieving the target. 

To optimize the work, it is advisable to use 80/20 rule 

80/20 rule, also known as the Pareto principle.

It states that, 

“80% of the output or results will come from 20% of the input or action.”

Note: Don’t assume that the numbers 20 and 80 add to 100. They don’t! The actual thing is that 20% could create 5% or 30% or even 100% of the result.

5.Use softwares and tools 

The softwares and tools save a lot of time while executing day to day tasks. There is a huge range of project management tools available to fulfill all the requirements of project managers. The software tools are used for the following benefits:

1. Accuracy in estimation
2. Optimization of resources
3. Tracking the progress of the project
4. Planning
5. Budget tracking 
6. Risk assessment
7. Automated reporting 

Some of the softwares and tools important for  time management are:

• Trello: Trello is based on Kanban card-based management system. It has a collaborative approach with Trello’s cards, boards, and lists which enables the user to organize and prioritize the projects and tasks.
• Wrike: Wrike is also a project management tool for collaboration. Wrike includes built-in standard features of project management like Gantt Charts, dashboards, time tracking tool and reporting suite. 
• Basecamp: Basecamp is one of the old project management tools available for over a decade. Basecamp includes scheduling and calendars
• Zoho Projects: Zoho Projects is a cloud-based project management software tool. It saves a lot of time by eliminating the manual tasks

The benefits of Project Time Management includes: 

• On-time delivery
• Better quality of work
• Productivity and efficiency
• Much less procrastination
• Less stress and anxiety
• More opportunities and career growth

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