7 Workplace Trends You’ll See in 2017
Technology is evolving year after year at a rapid pace and most of the workplace practices which have been used a decade ago have become obsolete. Having befitting HR policies that align with the present day environment is imperative for growing organizations.
Following are the 7 Workplace trends you will see in 2017:
1. Wearable Technology
Wearable Technology helps HRs to keep track on their employees’ health and aids in developing operational efficiency. Studies show that healthy employees cost less, as they have lower health care costs and fewer lost workdays.
Devices such as Fitbit will keep track of movement, eating habits, and sleep activity of an employee to promote a healthier lifestyle within the office. These practices attract employees and they continue to stick around for a long time, and at the same time reduces sick leave and healthcare costs.
Wearable technology is highly recommended at workplaces with dangerous work environments such as construction and manufacturing factories.
2. Automation of HR & Payroll
The way your employees get paid will be automated by Modern HR and Payroll Software. These applications are compliant with the corresponding government rules. Along with the payroll automation, they also have integrated features like time, attendance, and leave management systems. This will drastically increase productivity and employee engagement in the organization.
3. More Importance to Employee Engagement
“If you don’t have engaged employees, you’re not going to create next generation of innovation.” – Mike Metzger.
It is a proven fact that companies with engaged employees outperform companies with disengaged employees at an exponential rate. The key point in employee engagement is to be super transparent.
Employee engagement is less about expense and more about effort. Companies fail because they don’t make enough effort. They may try, but they don’t try hard enough.
More importance will be given to employee engagement to improve the business efficiency and to retain the best talent.
4. Smart Ways to Hire Talent
Technology in increasing at a rapid pace leaving no stone unturned to reveal the true personality of an individual. Social media platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter have become the mainstream for many recruiters to find new talent and to help evaluate them. This trend will increase in the coming years.
5. Flexibility at the Workplace
High performing organizations and best leaders in the world are slowly comprehending the importance of flexibility and the future of work. Workplace flexibility allows employees to engage in the work they do and give 100% of their effort.
It allows employees to work independently without any pressure of working in the office premises. Flexibility should mutually benefit the employer and the employee, and at the same time accomplishing the business needs. Workplace flexibility is predominant to attract and retain the top Talent.
6. More Emphasis on Office Design
More business owners are approaching minimalistic ways in designing their workplace to look decluttered and organized. This approach gives a distraction free environment and helps employees to work more productively.
Unique office designs can play a key role in the branding of the company as well.
Multi-purpose workspaces use flexible furniture which allows a small team to work together on a project can also be used for creating team meetings.
7. Work-Life Balance
Work-life balance is a very broad concept and the perspective of work-life balance between the employer and employee is distinctive. Recent research says that 60% of employees are not able to find a balance between their professional and personal life.
The best companies are embracing flexibility and giving priority to work-life balance. Creating seminars for training line managers to recognize signs of overwork and creating surveys of employees’ work/life issues can help HRs to make right decisions. However, it mostly depends on the individual and how he plans his work schedule.
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Hubstaff Talent – Hire Freelancers and Remote Workers for Free
A 2015 Gallup poll showed that telecommuting in the US is increasing. The poll also showed that the telecommuters were just as productive as other employees. Another survey conducted by TINYpulse this May reported that remote workers are happier and feel more valued. As the world becomes more accepting of remote work, there is also an increasing trend in finding great contractors and freelancers. Hubstaff time tracking software recently announced the launch of Hubstaff Talent. It is a free resource for companies looking for remote talent and freelancers across the globe.
Introducing Hubstaff Talent
A few days ago, Hubstaff Talent was released to help business owners find quality staff at affordable prices. This is a free service created by the privately held, Indiana-based company of Hubstaff. The service provides a directory of high-quality freelancers and agencies. When business owners and employers post jobs and projects, they receive applications and detailed descriptions from applicants who believe they are the right fit. Employers also see not only summaries but up-to-date resumes of contractors. They can, but not required, use Hubstaff time tracking, communicate through the platform, or communicate via email, Skype or whatever means preferred.
How It Works
It is simple to get started. Business owners can browse freelancers and agencies to find the right talent and size of a team. Next, they contact the team of their choice. The employer and the contractors jointly decide on the work terms. Then, they start work on the platform they choose. Getting work done by a handpicked, qualified team has never been easier. Another way is to simply post jobs for free and wait for applications to come.
Browse Freelancers by Skill
Hubstaff Talent makes it easy to search for talent. Business owners can filter by different means such as based on rate or availability. Searching by skill category is a great way to find talent for a particular job or project requirement. At present, there are 7 categories. They are development, marketing and sales, design and multimedia, writing and content, database and IT, admin, and business consulting. Under development, there are about 70 skill categories, including HTML, WordPress development, Javascript, CSS and more. Under design and multimedia, there are about 27 skill categories, such as Photoshop, web design, graphic design, and others.
Connect with Agencies
Contractors and freelancers can register their agencies in Hubstaff Talent. When companies find the team members that belong in agencies, the site provides the contact information of the agency. A main contact for the agency controls the flow and the sales process. Business owners can also search by agencies using filters. Some of the top agencies are Epic Coders from Romania, Topflight Developers from the US, and CyberCraft from Ukraine, among others.
Browse by Country
For location-specific requirements, business owners can also search by country. At present, there are 6 countries to choose from. They are the US, the Philippines, India, Russian Federation, Romania and Pakistan. From these 6 countries, there are about 1400 freelancers and 213 agencies to choose from. However, aside from these 6 countries, there are profiles from individual freelancers and agencies that come from all over the world, such as France, Germany, Gambia, the Netherlands and others.
A 100% Free Way to Find the Best Talents and Resources
Hubstaff Talent is provided as a service to clients at no cost. Regardless of how great one’s time tracking software works, if there are no right talent and contractors working at jobs and projects, desired results will still not happen. The site aims to be an open marketplace of awesome remote workers. Its goal is to become a leader in connecting remote contractors with those in need of their services. Hubstaff is on Twitter and Facebook.
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The Best Way to Handle Incoming Requests
Work is a maelstrom. Your team is receiving requests from a dozen different directions. Answer one email and there’s already three chats waiting for you. Every meeting generates four new projects. As PM, you are the captain and you need to steer away from the storm. Incorporate some practical steps to manage things. Emily Bonnie over on the Wrike blog recently gathered together five best practices to help you steer clear of catastrophe.
1. Have One Gatekeeper
Be it the PM, the team lead, or the department head, one person handles all the decisions. This person reviews incoming requests, prioritizes them and assigns the work. As Wrike points out, a gatekeeper is essential to aligning work with goals. This will also reduce conflict and confusion on the team.
2. Write It Down
Wrike refers to this as the line in the sand. Coworkers will make requests in meetings, informally in the hallway and hand you stickies. Make it clear that your team will only do work requested in writing. Wrike Request is an excellent tool for this purpose. Requests come in on a template. Once you start work, everything you need is in easy reach.
3. Keep All Your Requests in A Single Place
Sticky notes, spreadsheets, emails are a recipe for disaster. You can’t afford to lose any work. Sort work into folders. Track and prioritize the work and know immediately who is working on what. Get rid of duplicate requests. Wrike is a brilliant solution for this, funneling all your work into one place.
4. Organize Request As They Come In
Be proactive. Don’t wait for you current project to complete. Grab the requests as they land and assign them priority. Knowing what’s next keeps things moving. As Wrike points out, this will keep your team focused. A clear focus guarantees your team produces at it’s best.
5. Map Incoming Requests to Strategic Goals
Help your team work with a purpose. Wrike suggests using weekly, monthly or quarterly meetings. Provide a top down view of the work and how it ties into goals – at team level, a department level, and a company level.
Conclusion
How do you manage your incoming requests? Let us know in the comments below. If you don’t have a system in place yet, try using Wrike Requests to keep all your incoming work requests organized and your team running smoothly. Founded in 2007, Wrike is a powerful, collaborative PM platform. They understand what it takes to produce at the highest level. With Wrike, you have a simple solution to incorporate these best practices.
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7 Workplace Trends You’ll See in 2017
Technology is evolving year after year at a rapid pace and most of the workplace practices which have been used a decade ago have become obsolete. Having befitting HR policies that align with the present day environment is imperative for growing organizations.
Following are the 7 Workplace trends you will see in 2017:
1. Wearable Technology
Wearable Technology helps HRs to keep track on their employees’ health and aids in developing operational efficiency. Studies show that healthy employees cost less, as they have lower health care costs and fewer lost workdays.
Devices such as Fitbit will keep track of movement, eating habits, and sleep activity of an employee to promote a healthier lifestyle within the office. These practices attract employees and they continue to stick around for a long time, and at the same time reduces sick leave and healthcare costs.
Wearable technology is highly recommended at workplaces with dangerous work environments such as construction and manufacturing factories.
2. Automation of HR & Payroll
The way your employees get paid will be automated by Modern HR and Payroll Software. These applications are compliant with the corresponding government rules. Along with the payroll automation, they also have integrated features like time, attendance, and leave management systems. This will drastically increase productivity and employee engagement in the organization.
3. More Importance to Employee Engagement
“If you don’t have engaged employees, you’re not going to create next generation of innovation.” – Mike Metzger.
It is a proven fact that companies with engaged employees outperform companies with disengaged employees at an exponential rate. The key point in employee engagement is to be super transparent.
Employee engagement is less about expense and more about effort. Companies fail because they don’t make enough effort. They may try, but they don’t try hard enough.
More importance will be given to employee engagement to improve the business efficiency and to retain the best talent.
4. Smart Ways to Hire Talent
Technology in increasing at a rapid pace leaving no stone unturned to reveal the true personality of an individual. Social media platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter have become the mainstream for many recruiters to find new talent and to help evaluate them. This trend will increase in the coming years.
5. Flexibility at the Workplace
High performing organizations and best leaders in the world are slowly comprehending the importance of flexibility and the future of work. Workplace flexibility allows employees to engage in the work they do and give 100% of their effort.
It allows employees to work independently without any pressure of working in the office premises. Flexibility should mutually benefit the employer and the employee, and at the same time accomplishing the business needs. Workplace flexibility is predominant to attract and retain the top Talent.
6. More Emphasis on Office Design
More business owners are approaching minimalistic ways in designing their workplace to look decluttered and organized. This approach gives a distraction free environment and helps employees to work more productively.
Unique office designs can play a key role in the branding of the company as well.
Multi-purpose workspaces use flexible furniture which allows a small team to work together on a project can also be used for creating team meetings.
7. Work-Life Balance
Work-life balance is a very broad concept and the perspective of work-life balance between the employer and employee is distinctive. Recent research says that 60% of employees are not able to find a balance between their professional and personal life.
The best companies are embracing flexibility and giving priority to work-life balance. Creating seminars for training line managers to recognize signs of overwork and creating surveys of employees’ work/life issues can help HRs to make right decisions. However, it mostly depends on the individual and how he plans his work schedule.
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Hubstaff Talent – Hire Freelancers and Remote Workers for Free
A 2015 Gallup poll showed that telecommuting in the US is increasing. The poll also showed that the telecommuters were just as productive as other employees. Another survey conducted by TINYpulse this May reported that remote workers are happier and feel more valued. As the world becomes more accepting of remote work, there is also an increasing trend in finding great contractors and freelancers. Hubstaff time tracking software recently announced the launch of Hubstaff Talent. It is a free resource for companies looking for remote talent and freelancers across the globe.
Introducing Hubstaff Talent
A few days ago, Hubstaff Talent was released to help business owners find quality staff at affordable prices. This is a free service created by the privately held, Indiana-based company of Hubstaff. The service provides a directory of high-quality freelancers and agencies. When business owners and employers post jobs and projects, they receive applications and detailed descriptions from applicants who believe they are the right fit. Employers also see not only summaries but up-to-date resumes of contractors. They can, but not required, use Hubstaff time tracking, communicate through the platform, or communicate via email, Skype or whatever means preferred.
How It Works
It is simple to get started. Business owners can browse freelancers and agencies to find the right talent and size of a team. Next, they contact the team of their choice. The employer and the contractors jointly decide on the work terms. Then, they start work on the platform they choose. Getting work done by a handpicked, qualified team has never been easier. Another way is to simply post jobs for free and wait for applications to come.
Browse Freelancers by Skill
Hubstaff Talent makes it easy to search for talent. Business owners can filter by different means such as based on rate or availability. Searching by skill category is a great way to find talent for a particular job or project requirement. At present, there are 7 categories. They are development, marketing and sales, design and multimedia, writing and content, database and IT, admin, and business consulting. Under development, there are about 70 skill categories, including HTML, WordPress development, Javascript, CSS and more. Under design and multimedia, there are about 27 skill categories, such as Photoshop, web design, graphic design, and others.
Connect with Agencies
Contractors and freelancers can register their agencies in Hubstaff Talent. When companies find the team members that belong in agencies, the site provides the contact information of the agency. A main contact for the agency controls the flow and the sales process. Business owners can also search by agencies using filters. Some of the top agencies are Epic Coders from Romania, Topflight Developers from the US, and CyberCraft from Ukraine, among others.
Browse by Country
For location-specific requirements, business owners can also search by country. At present, there are 6 countries to choose from. They are the US, the Philippines, India, Russian Federation, Romania and Pakistan. From these 6 countries, there are about 1400 freelancers and 213 agencies to choose from. However, aside from these 6 countries, there are profiles from individual freelancers and agencies that come from all over the world, such as France, Germany, Gambia, the Netherlands and others.
A 100% Free Way to Find the Best Talents and Resources
Hubstaff Talent is provided as a service to clients at no cost. Regardless of how great one’s time tracking software works, if there are no right talent and contractors working at jobs and projects, desired results will still not happen. The site aims to be an open marketplace of awesome remote workers. Its goal is to become a leader in connecting remote contractors with those in need of their services. Hubstaff is on Twitter and Facebook.
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The Best Way to Handle Incoming Requests
Work is a maelstrom. Your team is receiving requests from a dozen different directions. Answer one email and there’s already three chats waiting for you. Every meeting generates four new projects. As PM, you are the captain and you need to steer away from the storm. Incorporate some practical steps to manage things. Emily Bonnie over on the Wrike blog recently gathered together five best practices to help you steer clear of catastrophe.
1. Have One Gatekeeper
Be it the PM, the team lead, or the department head, one person handles all the decisions. This person reviews incoming requests, prioritizes them and assigns the work. As Wrike points out, a gatekeeper is essential to aligning work with goals. This will also reduce conflict and confusion on the team.
2. Write It Down
Wrike refers to this as the line in the sand. Coworkers will make requests in meetings, informally in the hallway and hand you stickies. Make it clear that your team will only do work requested in writing. Wrike Request is an excellent tool for this purpose. Requests come in on a template. Once you start work, everything you need is in easy reach.
3. Keep All Your Requests in A Single Place
Sticky notes, spreadsheets, emails are a recipe for disaster. You can’t afford to lose any work. Sort work into folders. Track and prioritize the work and know immediately who is working on what. Get rid of duplicate requests. Wrike is a brilliant solution for this, funneling all your work into one place.
4. Organize Request As They Come In
Be proactive. Don’t wait for you current project to complete. Grab the requests as they land and assign them priority. Knowing what’s next keeps things moving. As Wrike points out, this will keep your team focused. A clear focus guarantees your team produces at it’s best.
5. Map Incoming Requests to Strategic Goals
Help your team work with a purpose. Wrike suggests using weekly, monthly or quarterly meetings. Provide a top down view of the work and how it ties into goals – at team level, a department level, and a company level.
Conclusion
How do you manage your incoming requests? Let us know in the comments below. If you don’t have a system in place yet, try using Wrike Requests to keep all your incoming work requests organized and your team running smoothly. Founded in 2007, Wrike is a powerful, collaborative PM platform. They understand what it takes to produce at the highest level. With Wrike, you have a simple solution to incorporate these best practices.
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Moving Offices? How To Project Manage A Successful Office Relocation
Moving your office is a large undertaking and complex project that must be managed properly from start to finish to ensure a smooth completion. A seemingly small mistake can prove very costly for SMEs and a poorly managed office move can significantly impact on bottom line sales. Like with any large and complicated project, it is important to break down into sections the various tasks involved in moving offices, working through each step logically and conscientiously planning every minute detail.
If you have been assigned the role of project manager for an upcoming office relocation, take a deep breath and follow our top tips on how to manage and execute a successful office move.
Map It Out
As a rough guide, you will require at least three months to prepare for a small move and for a medium to large office, at least six to eight months. The key is to start preparations as early as possible. Creating a timeline detailing all of the necessary stages of the move will reduce the risk of key details being overlooked. It is important to make a note of essential information in your plan such as the budget, where you are moving to, the moving date etc. Ensure your manager signs this off in writing so that the goals of the project are clear and you always have these details as a reference point.
Ask for a floor plan of your new office so that you can determine the new office layout and seating plan. It is a good idea to have a general plan of your existing office space too so that you can compare the two. This will enable you to identify any areas that are not working in your current office space so that you can resolve the problem in your future office.
Call in the Calvary…Early
A move of this magnitude will require a professional removals company that has experience in handling office moves. “Research and contact three moving companies that are at least accredited and approved by the British Association of Movers,” advises John Watson, Managing Director UK Services at Abels, a moving company specialising in domestic and international removals. “Visit their premises unannounced as this will give you a feeling as to how they will manage your move. Tatty trucks and warehouse will often transpire to tatty work practices,” he adds. Schedule this into your timeframe as early as possible. Taking time to hire a good moving company will ensure you have access to sound professional advice and support throughout your move and minimises the risk of errors.
Rally the Troops
Some people are naturally resistant to change so it can be challenging to get everyone in the team on-side for the big move. It is really important to have the team in a positive mind-set about the move and it is your job as project manager to lead by example and create excitement around the event. Keeping the team informed of the moving plans through team meetings and giving them a chance to ask questions is a good way to abate any anxiety they may be feeling towards the move. Take the time to really emphasise how the move will benefit them directly as individuals. It will help keep morale high and importantly ensure that they are 100% clear with what is expected of them before and during the moving process.
Make a Contact List
Even the most organised project manager can get so caught up in various tasks involved with moving that they can forget to create a contact list. It is a good idea to assign this task to another member of the team, asking them to make sure everyone you do business with as a company, both suppliers and clients, know that you are moving. Suppliers and clients will appreciate the gesture and warning if there are any disruptions to their services on your moving day.
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Why Help Desk Software Is a Critical Business Asset for IT Companies
What Is A Help Desk Software And How To Implement It?
It is a highly resourceful software designed for IT Organizations and IT Professionals to be used whenever they or their clients/customers face any kind of IT-related issues. Help Desk Software lays down a multi-tiered approach towards trouble shooting as many personnel well-versed with extensive technical knowledge are available to tackle the issues. Implementation of this support system varies widely within different companies. In one company it maybe a single person handling it through his cell phone whereas in another company it may be a multitude of people executing all levels of support.
The Advantages of a Help Desk Software for an IT Company:
Help Desk Software are used in IT Companies to provide quick and effective solutions to customers/clients/prospects facing technical problems related to computer systems, network connections, entertainment systems, passwords, etc. Here are some major advantages that a Help Desk Software can provide to an IT Company:
Quality Improvement
Help Desk Software helps in improving the quality of an IT company’s products & services. IT Companies can use this software to track reports of any customer query – right from Query Registration to Query Resolution. The Developers or Designers can then review these reports and implement the required improvements. If many customers complain of the same problem, the software automatically sends ‘Alerts’ to the Quality Control Team or the Senior Management so that the problem gets fixed quickly.
Process Efficiency
When there is a central Help Desk Software in an IT Company, the staff members are able to improve their skills in several technical areas, leading to faster problem resolution. Process efficiency is improved tenfold due to the Help Desk Software. The customer’s concerns are addressed promptly. A help desk software makes sure that issues are handled in chronological order by employing the method of ticket generation.
History Logs
The help desk software can create a complete log documentation of all the different problems and queries directed by the customers/prospects. This documentation can be used as a reference if a similar issue pops up again. These logs can also be used if an employee himself faces a problem and needs to contact the IT department many times in order to settle it.
Proactive Prevention
The help desk software can use the information they get on a daily basis to run performance reports. These can help them find out the systems that are consistently going through bottleneck issues. The IT Company can then be proactive about rectifying or replacing them.
Performance Surveys
It can be a difficult and time-consuming task to accurately judge job performance of the employees when it comes to customer satisfaction. But a help desk software will send out automatic surveys after an issue is concluded and if the IT staff took too long to resolve an issue or behaved unprofessionally, the survey will reflect that too, on the basis of which the top management can take the required steps.
Apart from the above-explained IT Industry-specific advantages, there are some general advantages too. They are as follows:
- Efficient in handling pre- and post-sale issues, both offline and online
- Enables a business to grow by helping all the customers to communicate and get their problems resolved smoothly
- With a Help Desk Software, a business need not expand its phone call management system because it can easily utilize less employees more effectively
- Ensures 24×7 Customer Support and effectively handles Time Management of the employees
- Analysis and Formulates business plans, automates maintenance of database, stock records, marketing trends, etc.
- Plays a vital role in Information Management Systems
- Efficiently handles the Audit Trail of a Business Organization
Here are two ways through which you can maximize the benefits of a Help Desk Software:
1) Open A Dialogue
Add a “Community Discussion” section to your website so that your customers can post questions and answer each other while your Support Agents help them out by being the moderator.
2) Contact Form
When customers can’t find their answers in your support center, they should be able to find you easily through a contact form. Addition of a contact form can help them communicate with you quicker and better.
The Bottom Line: Help Desk Software Improves The Revenue, Profit Margins, And Overall Growth Of An IT Company!
A good Customer Service creates more customer interest, subsequently leading to more orders. The ultimate objective is to sell more products and services to existing customers and bring-in new ones, thereby to increase the revenue.
But revenue can’t be increased unless customers are happy with the product or service offerings. Operating costs can’t be reduced unless the company makes sure that cost reductions don’t have a negative impact on the ability of the organization to serve its customers. Every change and investment that goes on in the company is linked to customer service, customer satisfaction and ultimately revenue.
If the needs of your prospects are satisfied, they will become customers leading to improvement in revenue. Similarly, if the needs of your existing customers are satisfied, they will continue to buy your products and services, and help in sustaining your revenues. In the end if you continue to operate efficiently, the revenues being generated will be greater than the cost of doing business.
Customers have the power to give your business and they also have the power to take away or reduce your business. This is where a Help Desk Software becomes handy. Installing a help desk software helps an IT Company to reduce the cost of service operations by decreasing overheads, and brings in significant savings. Also, by streamlining and coordinating key activities, this software can reduce inefficiencies and provide higher profits. By saving money in one area, resources can be diverted to other areas to improve the company’s competitiveness.
Moreover, task automation with the help of a help desk software can be used to chart out workflows for common processes. Once the staff productivity is optimized, the employer can recognize and appreciate well-performing employees. This in turn can be a great way to increase the overall productivity and thereby the revenue and the profit margins recognize hard work.
Furthermore, a Help Desk Software can help your business identify trends and problems. Asset management is another useful function of this software. By monitoring your assets and devices, it can help your company decrease costs, produce better services and implement automatic action wherever appropriate.
Thus, there many ways a help desk software can make your life easier and your IT business more productive. The primary barrier that some businesses face while implementing a help desk system is the cost of software. However, in the long run, a help desk software will surely help companies operate more efficiently, save money and time and thereby increase the profits.
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How to Manage a Project with a Team that Works Remotely
Sir Richard Branson is one of the many businesspeople who believes that one day ‘offices’ as we know it will be a “thing of the past”. For many reasons, remote teams are becoming a more common thing with each passing year. Remote workers tend to log more hours each day and are more likely to be more engaged in the work they are doing. Remote teams also allow businesses to employ the world’s specialists, not dependent on where they live. Benefits for these employees include a much healthier work-life balance which will lead to increased mental health and efficiency in the long-run.
For businesses, a remote workforce makes a lot of sense for quality of work and productivity. However, at present managers are having some teething problems with effectively managing teams which are not in the same room all day. So what can be done to solve this issue and create a sense of ‘teamwork’ when apart?
Choosing the Right Team Members
Although many people would love to be given the freedom to work remotely, it takes the right sort of person to function well in a working environment with little or no structure. The characteristics the right team would possess include self-motivation, great communication skills, and openness and honesty. It is of the utmost importance that team members are selected on their ability to self-motivate themselves and based on their enjoyment of working independently rather than working in the environment where everyone is working on similar projects, and where there is someone encouraging you to get the job done. With face to face contact on the limited side, workers who intend to work remotely should be able to communicate flawlessly with their manager and others working on the project. They should also know how to use technology such as Skype or Google Hangouts and be very comfortable in using them.
Team Management Apps
As one of the main components of an efficient geographically dispersed team is excellent communication, it is important to have access to the right tools which can help this flow of communication for smooth running of the project. As much of office work, remote and practical in 2016 occurs with the help of the internet, it seems apt that these tools are online and computer based- in the shape of app. Examples of tried and tested apps for the purpose of project management include Trello, Slack, and Realtime board. Each of these apps have functions which allow seamless online communication. Slack provides an online instant messaging platform, where conversations can take place with two colleagues, or a whole group. It allows you to send files, videos and images, and allows you to search and find these messages again if you need them. Trello is a more visual based platform which is very beneficial for work delegation. On this app, you can create intuitive boards and cards which allow you to assign different tasks to different colleagues. It has a very collaborative design and function which allows everyone to update different projects’ boards as specific tasks are completed. Realtime board is also very visual, and allows the team to create visual story boards to brainstorm and enhance projects. Why not try out a couple, and see which works best for your team?
Feedback
Feedback is crucial for the performance of any team and for the general morale of a project, and this point applies for a remote team even more. Without the tone of voice to gauge progress of a project and constant encouragement of a line manager or equivalent, workers can find it difficult to gage their performance in any given project. This can prove hard to proceed long term. Additionally, with lack of feedback, common mistakes can be repeated over and over, decreasing productivity and efficiency of a team. Again, communication here is essential. In an office environment managers can circulate the space, giving workers praise and encouragement at their desks. You need to find the remote office equivalent of this.
Team Bonding
Promoting team bonding is important for the success of any project. However, this is harder to do when the team is based in different locations. Office teams have the opportunity to go for after-work drinks and occasional lunches together. However, it is harder to bond as a team when some colleagues have never even met each other face-to-face. As the project manager for a geographically dispersed team, why not be creative about how to get your team together? Depending on your budget, you could maybe try and get the team together at least once a year so the company can put a face to a name, and get to know a little about their colleague through various team building activities. Other ideas could be building a virtual team room, where team members can share more informal information about themselves to their peers. It is very important that team members are on good terms which will make the communication that much easier. And finally, being aware and sensitive of language barriers can help teams bond and grow their working relationship. When remote teams are based in different countries it is very likely that they speak different languages too. Guidelines for language for phone calls and teleconferences can make things more natural and uniform. Having meeting notes from all verbal communication can help people whose native language was not used in the conversation.
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5 Reasons Why a Project Plan Can Fall Victim to Scope Creep
Kudzu is a freak of nature. This vine, weed, or whatever you would call it can grow up to 12 inches every day!
Prevalent in the southern parts of the United States this twisting, turning, and choking vine can quickly overtake healthy plants that dare stand in its way. There have been many different methods tried to try to control this rampant vine…some more effective than others. Regardless, this ground cover is here to stay and something that people need to consider when it comes to landscaping challenges.
Scope creep on projects can be compared to Kudzu. Scope creep is the gradual expansion of project work that was not contemplated in the original project plan. It starts out with a “wouldn’t it be nice to…” and moves on to “we really should have…” and then finishes with “it’s not that big of a deal to add just this one more item to the project.” In no time at all, you will look at your project and find that it has been choked to death by the phenomenon of scope creep.
Why Does Scope Creep Occur if There is a Project Plan?
It’s important to understand how a project plan can fall victim to scope creep in the first place. One would think that as long as a project plan is in place and everyone is on the same page, there wouldn’t be an issue with project expansion. The following are some reasons ways that scope creep can occur:
1. Belief that “the customer is always right”
Many project managers relent under pressure of the adage that the customer is always right. It’s a truism in say the retail industry where it’s often better for future repeat business to allow a customer to return an item vs. a public argument about a product or service.
But, when you start talking about scope creep on a project plan with a budget of hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars, you are talking about something entirely different. A small change to a project plan from the customer’s perspective may easily cost the company $50,000-$100,000 depending upon the size of the change. There is a difference between a customer being right and a customer changing their mind. It’s important for a project manager to understand this difference and know when it’s OK to say “No” to a client.
2. You have something to prove
Another way scope creep may enter into a project plan is rooted in the mentality of the project manager. There may be a need to prove yourself. You may take it is a personal challenge that you’ll be able to take this change back to the project team and have it implemented in the project with little impact to the schedule. Human ego can open doors to a world of trouble. In the business environment there may be unintended consequences for going above and beyond the original project plan. For example, new functionality may be introduced only to find later that it conflicts functionality in another software project.
3. Processes that are “Loosey-Goosey”
Another way in which a project plan can fall victim to scope creep is through a lack of formal change control processes. Projects that start of “on track” can veer off when there is a lack of formal process in place to review and determination the impact changes to the plan will have on the project. It is critically important to document all changes to the project plan for future reference. People’s memories are short, there are so many things that we are bombarded with every day on our jobs that we many times archive the details. Having the proper documentation in place helps people remember what changes were made, who approved them, and the reasons why they were made.
4. The dots need to be connected
Sometimes the initial scope document is put together to quickly leaving out details which then forces the project team into the uncomfortable position of connecting the dots while the project is in mid-flight. If critical information is missing from the original scope document and project plan that must be part of the solution and is added on the go the project can internally generate scope creep unless the carefully monitored and managed.
5. “Free for All” approval access
People end up having special relationships with projects that are underway. For example, say the salesperson that sold the project has maintained a great rapport with the client, then the client suggests they would like to see changes to the project and is quickly reassured “We can do that”. Next day the salesperson meets with a developer “We need to do this, this, and this…” and the developer, who has not been around nearly as long as the senior level salesperson, sheepishly agrees to make the changes. Unfortunately, we all know how that story turns out.
Or, it may be an overzealous functional manager that feels they have a better way of implementing the project. The only problem is that it may take just a bit longer to complete. They pay no heed to a project plan that is in place and move forward with the changes by basically approving the changes themselves, voila! scope creep and untold chaos.
A Project Plan is Put in Place for a Reason
There has been much thought, time, and consideration put into the plan and it should be followed. I am not saying that it should be followed blindly with no thought of doing something better or different. Rather, you need to be mindful of inadvertently introducing scope creep into the project one good deed at a time. The next thing you know your project has been choked to death by the weight of client requests and internal changes. Carefully document any changes that occur to the project and you will quickly get this business phenomenon under control. Now, if we could only do that for the kudzu!
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