Do you have many different plates spinning? If you run your own business, you most likely do. It’s unavoidable. And you know that letting any of those plates go is a problem. So, you just keep on spinning.

But spinning plates all at once, all the time is hard. It’s exhausting, and you can’t do it forever without some of those plates dropping. Every plate represents a project that needs attention in order to be completed. 

You need help to keep up with every project in order for your business to prosper. It’s time to get your hands on a tool that will track each of your projects and help keep you and your team on task. A lovely little thing called project time tracking is in order.

Project time tracking defined

Project time tracking is a critical part of any project-based process, whether it's in a small organization or part of an individual role. Time management plays a key role in the success and completion of projects on time and within budget. 

Project time tracking helps to ensure that deadlines are met and work is completed with optimal efficiency. It also provides insight into how long tasks typically take, how many resources are needed for successful completion, and what areas of the project need to be improved upon or adjusted.

In order for you to efficiently organize tasks, constant attention to detail needs to be applied so as not to let anything slip through the cracks. This includes ensuring that every step along the way is tracked properly—from initial planning stages to actual execution.

 Keeping track of each milestone ensures that all essential steps are accounted for and tasks can be updated dynamically as soon as changes occur. This can come in handy when dealing with complex projects that call for regular monitoring or addressing customer questions or issues on-the-fly. 

Time tracking also provides reliable data which allows decision-makers to better analyze performance and increase quality control while reducing costs overall.

The importance of tracking time for individual projects

Tracking time for projects is a powerful practice that can help businesses and organizations improve their processes, increase productivity, and achieve long-term growth. With the right project tracking app with time tracking capabilities, you’re able to monitor employee hours and workflow in order to maximize efficiency. 

This type of software can also provide insight into task progress over time, allowing managers to better identify bottlenecks and trends in past projects so they can be solved quickly. A solid time tracking tool enables your team to track hours accurately and ensure milestones are met on time with minimal effort. Utilizing these advanced tools allows teams to better manage their projects by staying informed of what is being worked on every day and ensuring that deadlines are met with ease.

Time tracking is an essential part of project management in order to understand the most effective use of resources, ensure timely completion, and deliver projects on time and under budget. Tracking the amount of time spent on each task involved with a project can help identify areas where efficiency could be improved, based on how long it takes to complete activities across multiple projects. 

Time tracking project benefits & how to enjoy them in your business 

 

Improved productivity

When it comes to increasing productivity, one of the best things that you can do is to begin recording the amount of time you spend on each task. By recording this information, you can get a better understanding of how much work you are actually completing in a given day or week, and this can be used to identify any patterns within your schedule or project plan. This understanding can then be used to prioritize tasks that are more productive while decreasing or eliminating those which have yielded mixed results.

Recording your total project time also allows you to track your progress more accurately and make better estimations for future projects. This type of tracking ensures that no task is left out of the equation, allowing for improved accuracy when planning future projects and maximizing productivity during current ones. 

The data collected through this process allows for easier decision-making when considering tradeoffs between tasks, as well as enabling adjustments to be made quickly in response to an ever-changing business environment.

More flexibility

If you need more flexibility in managing projects, try time tracking software. For instance, if an employee finds that they’re taking too long on a certain task, they’re able to readjust their timeline in order to remain on track with the original deadline. Likewise, if a task ends up being completed sooner than expected, then the additional time slots could be used for tackling another project.

Apart from keeping deadlines and managing tasks, this added flexibility could also come in handy when it comes to budgeting. By having accurate information about the amount of time each task requires, managers can more accurately allocate the funds and resources they have toward the various projects they are carrying out at any given time. 

Tracking progress enables you to keep better tabs on what is being achieved within a certain timeframe–which ultimately allows you to plan and spend money more efficiently over time.

Proper allocation of your resources

Properly allocating resources is an essential part of successful business operations. Utilizing time tracking can help to accurately identify how long tasks take to complete and which processes are inefficient or consuming excess resources. With this knowledge, you can adjust schedules and deadlines, assign tasks more efficiently, and make better use of staff time. 

This will also assist with comparing different methods of working so as to optimize the workflow, such as perceiving whether a certain task takes longer when assigned to multiple staff members as opposed to a single individual. In addition, comparing data from time tracking allows for informed decisions around resource allocation that can help increase operational efficiency while reducing stress on staff. 

Accountability

Accountability is an incredibly important part of any project. Without it, tasks may not get completed in a timely manner and deadlines can easily be missed. To ensure that team members are being held to the agreed-upon standards, it’s necessary to have a system that records the amount of time each team member spends on their specific tasks. 

This also helps to identify any issues with training or understanding amongst team members, allowing you to address them quickly. Ultimately, using project time tracking to hold members accountable helps foster a productive working environment where every individual feels valued and respected toward achieving common goals.

How to successfully track time

The best way to track your time effectively is to use a time tracking tool. This will allow you to keep all of your data in one place and generate reports automatically, allowing you to get a broader overview of how you spend your time each day, week, or month.

Time tracking tools usually come with detailed breakdowns on how long each task takes, how often tasks are being completed, and when particular activities occur. This kind of analysis can be very informative in helping you identify what’s working for you and what could be improved upon. 

With the right insights from active data tracking, it can be much easier to set realistic goals and complete tasks quickly with maximum productivity. There are many different types of these tools available on the market which offer various features such as cloud-based accessibility, exporting data into various formats like Excel or CSV files, automation capabilities, and more. 

Key points when using time tracking software

 

Determine guidelines

Once you choose the right time tracking software, it’s important to make sure that everyone on your team is properly trained in its use and understands how to track their progress. To ensure this, you should establish guidelines with clear expectations for what each individual must do and when they need to do it. 

For example, specific tasks could have deadlines that trigger notifications or reminders for each team member. Additionally, reports could be set up to ensure that the overall progress of the project is visible to everyone involved. With these guidelines in place, a team can make sure that they are all on the same page and working as efficiently as possible.

Outline expectations

For the project to run smoothly, it’s important that all team members know what is expected of them and follow the instructions. This means that they must be clearly outlined in advance, so everyone understands their roles and responsibilities. 

Assigning specific tasks to each team member will help keep everyone focused on their duties, and allow you to keep an eye on deadlines to ensure that no one falls behind or takes longer than necessary to complete a task. You should also regularly review the progress made by their team and use data from the time tracking software to identify and address any potential issues or bottlenecks before they become major problems.

Set deadlines and reminders

Following established guidelines is essential to the success of any project. Ensuring that each team member knows exactly what they need to do will help keep everyone motivated and on track. It's important that everyone is held accountable for their actions, so assigning tasks and setting deadlines are key strategies for any project manager. 

Setting up reminders in advance can also help to ensure that no one falls behind or takes longer than necessary to complete their tasks. Data from the time tracking software should be regularly reviewed to identify any potential issues or bottlenecks before they become major problems.

Review team software usage

You should also pay close attention to how team members use the time tracking software. This involves setting up specific criteria for entries, such as task type and time frame so that reports are more accurate and easier to interpret. Deadlines should be established and communicated to each individual member of the team in order to ensure the tasks are completed on schedule. 

Be sure to conduct regular reviews to identify any issues or bottlenecks that may occur. By implementing these steps, you’ll have the insight you need to ensure your projects are successful and running smoothly.

Provide clear instructions

There aren’t too many things more frustrating than being expected to complete a task with poor guidelines and instructions given. Imagine being one of your team members who’s been told that using this brand new software is required but you’ve only been given enough instruction to log in.

To ensure team members use the software accurately and consistently, provide clear instructions on how to enter information. This may include tasks, estimated time frames, and specific criteria for entries. Additionally, encourage communication between team members so that any potential issues or obstructions can be quickly identified and addressed. 

Conclusion 

You don’t have to balance all those plates on your own. You can absolutely keep all of the necessary plates spinning with the proper use of time tracking software. When everyone on your team uses the software correctly, you should experience more efficiency and productivity. 


Reach out to Harvest if you’d like some help learning about time tracking software. We’ll do our best to answer all of your questions and give you guidance to keep you from dropping all those plates.