Project Management: What Is It And How Do You Do It Right?

What is project management?

Project management involves planning, organizing, executing, controlling, and completing temporary projects. These projects always have a specific goal and a desired outcome, which must be achieved within a defined timeframe and budget.

The different phases of project management

A typical project consists of five distinct phases: initiation, planning, execution, monitoring, and closure. In the initiation phase, the project idea is assessed for feasibility and value, and key goals and stakeholders are identified.

Next comes the planning phase, where the details are worked out: who does what, when, with what resources, and within which budget. Once the plan is in place, the project moves into the execution phase: the team carries out the tasks and works toward the intended outcome.

During execution, the fourth phase—monitoring and adjustment—often runs in parallel. In this phase, progress, costs, and quality are tracked to ensure the project stays on course.

Finally, there is the closure phase: the project outcome is delivered, the team evaluates the process, and lessons learned are documented.

What challenges do you face in project management?

In practice, project management doesn’t always run smoothly—especially when multiple teams, stakeholders, and interests are involved. Take, for example, an IT project in a large organization with over 400 employees who all need to learn how to use a new platform.

That platform is built by developers, but the management team is working under a deadline and needs to report to the board. Meanwhile, the developers are missing deadlines due to software issues. And the IT manager? Caught in the middle—taking the heat from both sides.

Oh, and then there are the employees who need to be convinced. They have to learn something new and step out of their comfort zone, which, in large organizations, often meets with a little (or a lot of) resistance.

In summary, these are the most common challenges in project management:

• Poor communication
• Unclear goals and scope (what is and isn’t part of the project?)
• Scope creep (the project expanding beyond the original plan)
• Unrealistic schedules or budgets
• Risks and unexpected setbacks
• Lack of stakeholder engagement
• Resistance to change

How do you overcome these challenges and successfully manage a project?

One of the key factors that makes the difference between failed and successful project management is communication. When communication is clear, everyone understands each other. Expectations are aligned, information is easily accessible, and people trust one another.

All the ingredients you need for smooth collaboration. Good communication ensures:

• A clear division of tasks
• Avoiding duplication of work
• Faster decision-making
• More involvement
• A pleasant working atmosphere

But when there’s a kink in the communication cable, ambiguity arises—uncertainty about priorities, tasks, deadlines, responsibilities, and more. This significantly increases the risk of project failure.

So how can you improve communication?

For starters, clear communication requires good listening. It also demands clear structures, defined communication channels, accessible information points, and regular team meetings.

Digital tools can give you quite a hand in this regard.

How do digital tools help improve communication?

Digital tools make information more accessible, faster to retrieve, and better structured. Especially in hybrid teams or growing organizations, they’re essential to keeping everyone aligned.

So, what kinds of digital tools are we talking about?

There are many, but three of them form the foundation:

• A customer relationship management (CRM) system
• A task management tool
• A project management tool

These three digital tools are essential for better communication and smoother collaboration.

Real-life example of project management with digital tools

Suppose an IT company is implementing a new customer portal for an insurance company. The project has several phases: analyzing customer needs, designing and building the interface, testing the software, and delivering the final product.

Developers, UX designers, project managers, support, and sales teams all work together to make the project a success. External stakeholders are involved as well, such as the client, user groups, and IT consultants.

An integrated CRM system, combined with task and project management tools, plays a major role in this collaboration. All communication with the client and stakeholders is recorded—from initial agreements and responsibilities to feedback during testing sessions.

The CRM system tracks contacts, questions, requests, and project progress by client or department. Tasks and deadlines are linked, so teams always know exactly where things stand.

Can you imagine managing a project without an integrated CRM system? Neither can we.

Experience what FlowQi CRM can do for your project management

We could explain it all in detail, but the best way is to experience it for yourself. Sign up for our BETA Program and try FlowQi CRM—and all our other digital tools—completely free of charge!