Cape Town, 31 May 2018
Successful project management starts with successful project planning. Putting together proposals, budgets, tender documents, material requirements and project timelines can be very demanding, even for experienced professionals.
Having the right technology and the correct platforms makes it possible to streamline the entire process to present realistic and competitive project proposals, uphold delivery promises and accurately manage costs.
Craig Johnston, marketing manager of Bluekey Seidor, explains how a single, integrated business management system with powerful project management functionality will help small to medium-sized businesses to plan for success.
Streamlined proposal generation
With a sophisticated and comprehensive project management system, such as SAP Business One Projects, historical data from similar projects can be accessed quickly through a practical browser-based application. This enables managers to quickly put together accurate project plans that have been refined and matched to business processes.
Project-based companies are now able to create precise proposals in a fraction of the time they normally would. This is possible by drawing on previous project deliverables and costings and applying them to new proposals.
Providing planning details to suit project requirements
The level of detail required in project plans and reports differ from project to project. In the engineering and manufacturing fields, for example, projects can range from a simple one-day undertaking through to extremely complex assignments. A flexible planning solution allows managers to choose the level of detail required for each project. Companies can ensure accurate project management and billing through multi-level activity tracking combined with itemised billing per completed billable task.
Effective resource management
Traditional project management systems lack interdepartmental information-sharing. Assigning the right resources to the right tasks is therefore a common challenge for project managers. With an integrated project management system, team members are able to share and get a clear view of resource allocation and capacity.
Depending on the complexity of the project, project managers can assign resources to the entire project or to specific activities, whichever they require. Activities, time and expenses can be tracked within a single solution to help ensure resources are available as and when needed. With effective resource allocation and planning, the project management team can meet their delivery promises and reduce time constraints.
Accurate cost management
Pricing can be significantly simplified by implementing a standard price list that automatically sets the costs and sales rates for all resources. Expenses across all projects are then shared across the business in a single management solution. The costings for individual projects can be modified and the required resources can be customised to adapt to specific markets, seasons and industries.
"Proper project planning and management is vital for manufacturing and engineering firms. With the right enterprise resource management solution, businesses will have much better control over each project from start to finish," Johnston concluded.
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