Availability
If you find yourself wishing you could handle project management on your iPad, you’re in luck. Many project management solutions have developed apps and mobile sites that make accessing your project information simpler and cleaner for mobile access. Better still, apps for popular project management software, like Insightly, Podio, and Basecamp, are all free to download and use. Each allows users to access the most important project information without having to access the full desktop site. Optimized mobile sites are another way to access information easily from your mobile device.
Approach
When you’re mobile, stay on top of all critical management actions regarding every project you’re a part of, from defining roles and creating milestones to staying in constant communication and keeping important documents together. A great project management app lets you do everything necessary to your role. When a situation arises that needs to be handled immediately, like redefining a particular user’s role in a project, your smartphone or tablet may be the fastest way to address the situation, regardless of whether or not you’re in the office.
For your team members, implementing use of a mobile project management tools means everyone will be updated instantly on projects they’re involved with. Keep the momentum going with real-time syncing. Allow your team access to the latest supporting documentation shared in a project. Assign tasks and see them as they’ve been completed. Update calendars that sync to everyone else on the team. All these functions help keep your people working as a team toward the finished project.
Tools and Tips
Make sure whatever app you’re using is set to automatically sync new information. This way everyone is working from the most up-to-date information. This is especially important if you’re in a setting where you have data or Wi-Fi disabled for a time on your device. If you’re working from within a mobile browser, this won’t be an issue.
Simplicity is key. If your whole team or company needs mobile access to your project management software —and they probably do— ensure the available apps and mobile sites are as intuitive and clear of clutter as possible. Just as there is room for error with users on the site, there is within an app. The smaller the learning curve for everyone, the better.
Complementary apps can help with mobile project management outside your project page. Note taking apps, like the popular Papyrus, let you jot down notes with your fingertip or stylus without any typing. You can save and export notes, so they can be loaded into your project management app when needed (or when you’re around Wi-Fi). If you use Insightly’s ability to sync with Google Drive, you can use the Drive app to create documents, which can then be linked to any contact, organization, opportunity, or project. No need to email docs back and forth to be uploaded later.
The convenience of mobile project management apps is undeniable, but it will serve you well to do your homework on the functionality and user-friendliness of the apps and mobile sites available to you. Ideally, you’ll be able to manage all aspects of a project with ease from your app. Add in a few complementary apps, and your tablet will be a top-notch project management machine.
Diana Doherty is a freelance writer specializing in SEO content, and is a contributor to ChamberofCommerce.com. She loves all things tech, photography, craft, military family life, and business. She earned her BA in English Writing Arts from SUNY Oswego.