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Project management software and features

Project management software and features

By Charlotte Goyard

Published: November 8, 2024

The best project management software comes in a variety of forms to suit different business needs. Whether by profession or by functionality, it's important to choose the right software for your project. Once you've defined your company's context and purpose, you'll have a clearer picture of the functionalities you expect from project management software. Take the time to consult the different offers, so you don't end up with software that's far removed from your real expectations.

The different types of software

Project management software is designed to meet different needs, with a wide range of features and presentations.

  • Planning tools: these enable you to monitor the progress of a project. They offer a detailed schedule of the various tasks that make up the project, with links between the different activities and a follow-up of deliverables.
  • Contract management software : to carry out your project, you may need to call on outside contributors or bring in new collaborators. Contract management software provides templates that can be updated to reflect the new contractor's data.
  • Material purchasing and stock management software: to keep a precise overview of your material stocks and to initiate orders for missing products, this software establishes a regular inventory.
  • Resource and skills management software: a project also involves resources, both material and human. You can use this type of software to find out which people are available, what skills they bring or what equipment they have at their disposal. They will also correlate a team member's needs with the materials available.
  • Document management software (EDM): Knowing where a document is and how to access it quickly is essential to the successful completion of your project. This software will save you a considerable amount of time, especially if your document search can be done by keyword.
  • Billing and payment management : If you involve a large team of collaborators or work with numerous suppliers, you can rely on this software to facilitate the formatting of your invoicing and settlement documents.
  • Inventory and accounting software: This shows you exactly where your budget stands, what you've purchased and how much you need to budget. Budget management is an essential part of project success. Without a well thought-out budget, you won't be able to achieve your goals.

Functionality

With a wide range of functions to suit every need, management software is a real ally if you know how to manage its potential.

Task management

Manage tasks in just a few clicks. Once your project has been divided into sections, the tasks are highlighted. All you have to do is enter the data into your software and apply a completion time. You then have the choice of creating your own schedule of tasks to be carried out, or leaving it to the software, which will automatically link the tasks together. The schedule will then be created directly, giving you a start and end date for each task, as well as for the entire project.

Schedule

Managing the schedule can be a good way to lose patience. That's why software programs offer a detailed schedule that takes into account delivery times, the people involved and the availability of materials or machines needed to complete the job.

Location management

At a glance, you can get a precise overview of the premises or worksites available to complete the job. Who occupies the office or room where the activities will take place? What time can you be on site? No need to spend long minutes calculating. It's all at your fingertips with our project management software.

Material management

It's vital to know whether the equipment you have available for your project is available on the day you want to use it. There's no point in sending for a worker or a collaborator if the right material isn't delivered.

Gantt chart

This is an essential tool for bringing a project to fruition! It is used by most of today's software. It consists of horizontal bars displayed on a time axis, representing all priority data. The software will use the WBS (Work Breakdown Structure) hierarchy to divide your project into subsets according to deliverables. This makes each section more comprehensible to the entire team of partners working on the project. The Gantt chart shows the tasks to be carried out according to defined dates, critical or non-critical status, dependencies between different tasks and allocated resources. It can also show days not worked, which will be taken into account when calculating delivery dates for completed tasks.

Budget management

It's impossible to embark on a project without keeping a constant eye on the budget. You'll find features to help you keep your budget up to date, and to allocate funds according to tasks and resources required.

Accessibility and online communication

The software offers easy access anytime, anywhere. As a result, your staff have access to all project-related information whenever they need it. You can communicate quickly and directly via an instant messaging application. Notification is sent to each member when a modification is made or an urgent item needs to be taken into account.


In order to avoid duplicating support, project management software concentrates on essential functions to help entrepreneurs gain in efficiency, quickly grasp information relating to their project, and communicate rapidly to avoid wasting time.


Article translated from French