Project managers need integrated IT

Having project managers considering better integration between IT systems, particularly between financial and other resource planning tools, is paramount in making sure individual projects are profitable, reports Computing.co.uk.

A survey conducted by the International Project Management Association, sponsored by enterprise resource planning vendor IFS, questioned 273 project managers and C-level executives in the UK, Scandinavia, Benelux, the US and Australia.

It reported that 65% find that customers expected projects to be delivered faster. 60% said the margins their companies earned on completing those projects had shrunk because clients wanted to negotiate costs and prices within existing contracts.

American Reprographics Company (ARC) has unveiled a project collaboration application, PlanWell Collaborate, says Wide Format Imaging.

A Web-based application that accelerates project team coordination and improves file sharing, PlanWell Collaborate claims to replace “inefficient” project management tools like FTP, e-mail or spreadsheets.

"Our reprographic services background gives us a first-hand view of how construction project teams use documents to communicate and collaborate," says Kumar Wiratunga, ARC's director of technology.

Project Manager Online has released a Web project management tool, ProjectManager.com, says Market Wire.

This latest release, the company says, promises new resource management features that give the project manager better control over assigning resources to tasks.

"One project manager is responsible for managing five, six, maybe ten or more diverse and very skilled project resources with different personalities," states Jason Westland, president and CEO of Project Manager Online.