Many project managers swear by Project Tracker spreadsheet templates, but they are not all created equal. So what should you look for in a quality project tracker template?
Project trackers provide data to project managers so they can identify what projects are most important and what projects need to be delayed or cancelled. It is not enough for a template to simply give a list of tasks, it has to work well within your business. The fact is that this is a technical problem which affects many people who manage their businesses using project management software.
What to Look For in a Project Tracker Spreadsheet Template
The best project management software will incorporate all the features you need to manage your project calendar and set up a target for project completion. A good template will be able to do these things and much more. With time and experience, you will soon find yourself becoming adept at working out which template works best for your business.
Many project templates do not focus on either providing a solution to the problem of the details of the project. Rather, they are excellent for basic tracking and compilation but lack the ability to organize and store project files. An ideal template should have the ability to import your project data from other third party applications into your own.
Check the template’s capabilities. Most excellent templates are easy to install and run. If you have any trouble getting them to function properly, or if your project database needs some additional work, you can ask the service provider to take a look at it.
A good template should offer some form of support for time zones and times. This is a major consideration for a project manager. Because a manager is responsible for everyone on the project, he or she can not know exactly when a deadline will be reached, and this is where a good template can help.
Tracker software will usually include a timer that will notify the person using it when a deadline is approaching. Unfortunately, some template programs only include a clock, which may mean that the clock is not accurate enough to keep track of your project progress.
Too many companies make the mistake of buying their software from free template products. While there are a number of good templates that are completely free, it’s best to choose the one that has a service that can give you assistance in configuring your software to match your needs.
Tracking software must also contain a feature that allows you to easily add and change task data, so you can start managing your project right away. Creating custom reports, sending them to multiple recipients, and sharing data with anyone on your team – even if it is from a different part of the country – are all good reasons to get tracking software with a service that can troubleshoot and configure your software to match your own requirements.
It is best to use project tracker software to deal with large projects. Though it is recommended that you begin with smaller projects, you don’t want to try to manage projects as they become large. Tracking and organizing your own needs, and of course managing the schedule of your project, will become far more complex and difficult, and you don’t want to put yourself through this type of pain.
The best spreadsheet template will also come with a user-friendly interface that makes it simple to add and track the data you need to be able to create a schedule and know when it is due. Not all templates are created equal, but you can certainly find a good one if you know what to look for.
A project tracker template is just one of many things you need to consider when choosing a software package for your organization. It is recommended that you use project-tracker spreadsheet templates, though, especially for small scale projects. PLEASE SEE : project timeline spreadsheet