How do I choose a project tracking tool?

June 19, 2023
Project tracking tool

Choosing a project tracking tool may seem complicated, as there is a plethora of software out there, all of which seem to more or less fit the bill. However, this is far from being the case. They are not necessarily the same, and each has its own specific features.

To choose it's important to follow certain steps to avoid getting lost, and to ensure that the software you choose perfectly meets your specific needs.

An effective project monitoring tool allows:

  • speed up project completion,
  • identify and resolve project bottlenecks,
  • improve a project's profitability,
  • track project progress.

Prioritize your objectives: a first filter among project tracking tools

Three objectives can be pursued in project management organization, profitability and communication.

Although these objectives are all important for teams working in project mode, the order of priority may differ.

  • Organization: this is a key objective of project follow-up. You need to be able to assign project tasks to the various players, and track which tasks have been completed, and which remain to be done.

 

  • Profitability and management: Even if the project isn't sold, there are always costs behind a project. Time spent is often the first item. This must be kept in line with the initial objectives, otherwise profitability will be affected. If the project is sold, this objective must be particularly closely monitored, and the various types of cost reported in the project follow-up.

 

  • Communication: Facilitating interaction between different project stakeholders (such as customers or subcontractors) can also be a major project management challenge.

Most project tracking tools can help you achieve all 3 objectives, but each has its own speciality.

 

Table of main project monitoring objectives :

Choose a task management tool, such as Trello, Asana or their equivalents. Choose a project monitoring tool like Stafiz or Monday. Choose a tool like MS Project.

Discover project management in Stafiz

Specify your functionality requirements

To choose the right project management tool, you need to define your expectations in terms of each of the criteria that are important to you .

At this stage, you may decide to draw up a complete specification, or simply list the criteria you expect in detail, so that you can validate them in your benchmark phase.

Aspects to take into account in your benchmark

Criteria related to project management

In pure project management, you first need to organize the project and break it down into tasks to facilitate progress and reduce the risk of project risk of project failure.

Overwhelmed by the offers available on the market? Choose and complete this list of selection criteria:

  • create and assign project tasks and subtasks ;
  • be able to set a target time or deadline for these tasks;
  • create a detailed job brief;
  • be able to plan the project and visualize the planning in a Gantt view ;
  • know the connections between tasks to identify possible bottlenecks;
  • be able to differentiate between types of task: follow-up points, one-off actions, scheduled or completed tasks.

If these criteria are met by the project monitoring software, you will be able to effectively organize projects, and allow each actor to properly manage their tasks and their contribution to the project.

Criteria related to project cost monitoring

A completed project is not necessarily a success. The project must also have been completed within the the original budget.

Good management allows you to record the various costs associated with projects (time spent in-house, subcontracting purchases, expenses, product purchases, etc.) and to inform project managers well in advance if the project is at risk of going over budget. risk of budget overrun.

List and customize the following criteria related to the financial management of the project according to your needs in order to verify that the project tracking software you are looking at meets your requirements:

  • track time spent on projects and tasks and calculate associated costs;
  • track subcontracting costs;
  • be able to charge back non-billable expenses (such as travel expenses);
  • track products sold (if any) and associated costs;
  • know the margin to date and to completion by calculating the remaining work to be done ;
  • be informed of any budget overruns;
  • monitor the value of production achieved and future production;
  • be able to invoice projects ;
  • track key project performance indicators.

If your project tracking software enables you to carry out these different actions, then you'll be able to better monitor project performance. You'll also be able to identify projects that deviate from their budgetand you'll be able to take corrective action to improve margins.

Project Forecast Budget Table Template

Take a look at our sample benchmark table in Excel!

Depending on the importance of each criterion, you can weight the answers to determine an overall score and rank the different solutions.

Download benchmark template

 

Negotiate with the solution provider

To secure your purchase, it is important to sign a contract contract governing your useand the associated rates.

Remember that you can negotiate with the solution vendors. You can obtain discounts, for example, by committing to a certain term.

Make sure you have validated the rates for the duration of the contract, and the amount invoiced for the project tracking tool deployment service.


Stafiz helps service companies gain visibility and better track their projects with real-time data. Projects are better managed, and deviations from budget are identified well in advance to facilitate corrective action.

To find out more about project management and monitoring in Stafiz, visit the dedicated page.

Manage your projects with Stafiz