Implementing task management

You can manage tasks with a variety of tools, including: Simple to-do lists or check lists, Kanban boards, ... more

What is Task Management? - Definition - Benefits

Q: What is task management?

Task management is a methodology that oversees the entire lifecycle of tasks, from planning to execution.The implementation of task management streamlines workflows, efficiently organizes tasks, and ramps up productivity, making way for educated decisions. Task management also involves monitoring every aspect of a task, like its budget, completion time, scope, and resources.

Q: Who is task management for?

People who pursue task management can fall into the following broad categories: Project Leaders, Teams, ... more

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How to manage tasks

In PMI's 2017 Global Project Management survey, 37% of executive leaders agreed that projects in their organizations primarily failed due to a lack of clearly defined objectives and milestones, along with poor discipline when following a project management strategy. Keeping this study in mind, here are some key steps involved in task management:

Prioritization: Whatever tool you use to manage your tasks—whether a simple to-do list or a comprehensive project task management system—the most important aspect of task management is prioritization. This helps the team complete all tasks involved while maintaining the planned constraints.

Milestone tracking: The findings of this PMI study also show that establishing clear goals is essential to the successful completion of a project. Although for task management an end goal isn't necessary, defining milestones helps motivate teams to execute tasks successfully.

Schedule management: Making sure your task is completed on time has an impact on the overall project health. Attributing the right time frame by estimating the effort involved is crucial here.

Resource allocation: Optimum resource management is the next step to ensure effective task management. Depending on the budget and schedule, assign the right talent and amount of resources to get work done.

Collaboration: For all the steps mentioned above, collaboration is key. While working in teams usually means more work gets done, keeping team members in sync can be difficult. A proper task management process helps you keep your team connected.

Another interesting way to manage tasks is by categorizing them on a deadline or priority matrix with "schedule" and "priority" as the axes. With this structure, necessary work that needs to be done immediately should be placed high on both priority and schedule, while necessary work that isn't needed immediately should be placed high on priority but low on schedule.

Cloud task management

Task management in cloud computing refers to the effective management of all products and services functioning in a private, public, or hybrid cloud environment. It synchronizes all the servers under one cloud, and cloud task management enables the seamless execution, delivery, and distribution of tasks within the cloud.

Benefits of task management

Task management benefits business owners, freelancers, students, and anyone who wants to bring order to their daily routine. Listed below are some of the advantages of task management:

Helps the team stick to the deadline.
Singles out bottlenecks early on to prevent unforeseen mishaps
Keeps the team on the same page
Promotes effective communication
Prioritizes tasks efficiently
Streamlines workflows
Optimizes work allocation
Helps monitor progress

What is task management?

To define task management, it is a methodology that oversees the entire lifecycle of tasks, from planning to execution.The implementation of task management streamlines workflows, efficiently organizes tasks, and ramps up productivity, making way for educated decisions. Task management also involves monitoring every aspect of a task, like its budget, completion time, scope, and resources.

Project management vs task management

Project management is the process of managing a project with a fixed start and end date through the stages of planning, execution, monitoring, and closing. A project has a specific end goal that it needs to meet through multiple work items, which are otherwise called tasks.

On the other hand, task management is the process of managing an individual task from its conception to closing. A task does not need to have a goal or specific deadlines. Completion of a group of tasks contributes towards the execution of a project. Task management is inherently a branch of project management.

Project managers have multiple projects of varied priorities running all at once. This is where project management comes handy, as it requires evaluation of the big picture. Successfully managing them requires a detailed analysis of the relationships and dependencies that exist between the components. Task management, on the other hand, involves focusing on the task at hand in order to achieve successful task completion. Both project and task management are two wheels in a cart; efficient implementation of both leads to a project's successful delivery.

Why do project teams need a task management tool?

Time and task management improve your workflow in many ways.

Make your work more efficient

Inefficiencies often stem from disinterest. Task management principles greatly improve productivity by making sure the right resources are utilized at the right time. This includes giving team members tasks and responsibilities that match their abilities and interests.

Bring focus to your job

Whether you work as an individual or for an organization, all your tasks are done in order to achieve a particular goal. However, we often end up doing things that distract from or don't contribute to this. If there's a systematic way to approach all your work items, your work will be more focused on the end goal.

Organize your efforts

It's not always possible to work on just one task at a time. However, working on many things all at once can become chaotic. Organizing your tasks in a way that helps streamline your workflow will help you reach your target.

How to implement task management?

Tool

You can manage tasks with a variety of tools, including:

Simple to-do lists or check lists
From grocery shopping to planning a sophisticated wedding, making simple lists to manage tasks never goes out of style. Kanban boards
Kanban boards
Visually appealing and easy to use, these boards are simple yet effective. Dragging a task from "In process" to "Done" is almost as cathartic as striking it off a list.
Calendars
What's a day without at least one reminder about that thing you forgot to do last week? Adding deadline-oriented reminders to your calendar helps organize your time.
Software
Whether you use cloud or on-premise software, taking the time to set up your tasks here will reward you with insightful resources, reminders, and reports.

techniques

Beyond just the tools you use, there are many points to remember while implementing your task management system.

The subtle art of saying "no"
Learn it. Practice it. Say it to anything that won't help with your goal. Beware of killers
Beware of killers
Time or productivity killers will make you lose focus. Business as usual
Business as usual
Always remember to set aside time for your routine tasks while planning. Balance your workload
Balance your plate
Delegate tasks. You may be a perfectionist, but taking on everything yourself is a sure path to disaster.
Don't put it off
Things that can be done today should be done today. Procrastination leads to multitasking, and not in a good way. Take a break.
Take a break
No one can be productive 24/7, so it's a good practice to prioritize even break-taking. Since interruptions are bound to happen throughout the day, taking deliberate, timed breaks will help you come back to work with renewed vigor.
Mind over matter
Stop worrying about things that you have no control over. While planning, make some room for the unexpected to happen, but otherwise, don't let it affect your work.

Who is task management for?

A task management system benefit anyone who has tasks to do—which is everyone. People who pursue project and task management can fall into the following broad categories:

Project Leaders
Stay up to date on how free or busy your team members are, and delegate work accordingly.
Teams
Task management for teams helps with delegation of tasks, which coordinates team members to work productively towards a common goal.
Personal task management
Get instant updates and notifications on all work completed by your team members.

Stages of task management

To help you better explain the stages of task management, we have broken them down to bite-sized steps.

Identification
By implementing the work breakdown structure, your project is broken down into smaller portions or tasks. Just like a project has a goal, tasks are also tied to objectives that jointly make up the overarching goal of the project.
Prioritization
The most critical tasks are then prioritized based on the urgency, objectives, and their impact on the overall project are taken up first in order to complete the project without notorious delays. Non-threatening tasks can be undertaken at later stages of the project's course.
Assigning
Tasks are assigned to resources with relevant expertise, and a deadline for each task is scheduled in parallel. When everyone on the team is aware of their contribution to the project, accountability increases, and members are obliged to deliver work of high quality, on time.
Monitoring
Every minuscule detail of a task's lifecycle has to be tracked to a T to understand the project's progress and whether it is in par with the planned objectives you set out with. This helps in picking up on potential threats and nipping them in the bud, and ensures the project does not derail from its path.
Execution
Once every box for task execution is checked and objectives are achieved, the task at hand is labeled as complete. When all the tasks within a project's timeline are also completed, the project comes to a successful close.

Why do you need a task management tool?

From task planning to managing, a task management system helps you log and track every piece of information related to your project. The ability to keep track of your tasks, deadlines, meetings, and team responsibilities makes task management software a crucial tool for your business needs. If any issues arise, it only takes a click to gain insight into the exact source of the problem, take control immediately, and make changes to improve your work flow successfully. Additional collaboration features like chat, forums, and dashboard help your whole team stay connected and on top of the latest developments.

Tips to improve task management

Focus on one task
Focusing all your attention on one task at a time boosts productivity, prevents mistakes, and helps you get the job done efficiently, as opposed to context switching, which can waste precious time, deliver tasks of poor quality, and get you overwhelmed. Both time and task management are effectively implemented when a single task is given priority.
Start small
When the smaller tasks like drafting emails and scheduling events are taken care of, you have more time on your hands to tackle mammoth tasks that require more time, resources, and headspace.
Deconstruct your tasks
Breaking up tasks into smaller portions lets you pay more attention to detail in each segment of the task, address inconsistencies at the outset, and increase the quality of the task output as a whole.
Set realistic deadlines
It is advisable to consult with your teams and set an attainable deadline instead of setting ones that are impractical to chase. This ensures that the output meets the set expectations and also buys time for the team to make any improvements or correct discrepancies.
Create a schedule
With a solid schedule, prioritization of tasks becomes efficient, allowing you to take on tasks as they come and inspect every intersection of the schedule to ensure that you're on track.
Leverage your team's expertise
Consult with your team on whether you're on the right path and gather insights on how to complete your task efficiently.

How to choose the right task management software?

Depending on your purpose, price range, existing work environment, and preferred platform, there are several project and task management tools available. From simple checklists, which may not even require an internet connection, to a full-fledged project task management software, the capabilities are varied. There are also software options that fit specific industries like construction, IT, or education, or specific functions like CRM task management.

Zoho Projects is an online task management system that's not only affordable and easy to use, but also has features that ensure scalability and data security.

Check out the pricing details of Zoho Projects here.

Zoho Projects is tasked to help you

As an online task management system that's not only affordable and easy to use but also has features that ensure scalability and data security, Zoho Projects emerges as a well-rounded project management tool that sets the bar for effective project and task management.

Strong collaboration features, Kanban boards, Gantt charts, detailed reports, and task-specific time trackers make this one of the best task management software options available on the market.

The feature-rich basic version is also a means for performing free task management.

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