Whether your project is simple or complex, big or small, proper planning is essential. The best planners for project managers are designed to facilitate your efforts in this area, ensuring that you start your activities on the right foot. Over the years, various types of work planners have been created, from school notebooks to project management applications. In this article, we will explore the best online planners for project managers and help you decide which one is right for you.
The Benefits of Using a Project Planner
Using a project planner offers many advantages for project managers. Here are some of the key benefits:
1. Project tracking: An online planner allows you to stay updated on the status of your project and report it to top management in a timely manner.
2. Managing scope: A project planner provides a clear understanding of who is responsible for what and when, ensuring that everyone is on the same page.
3. Managing schedules: The best planner for project managers helps in managing schedules and ensures a continuous workflow with no delays.
4. Allocating resources: With a project planner, you can assign tasks, allocate resources, and define responsibilities efficiently.
5. Ensuring quality: By integrating all work in one place, a project planner helps you deliver a high-quality project to your partners or clients.
Each project planner tool has its own characteristics and specific purposes. Let’s explore some of the most commonly used types of planners in project management.
Best Planners for Project Managers: From Paper Notes to Professional Software Solutions
According to the Future of Project Management research (2022), factors such as human collaboration, mobile versions, and remote access will shape the future of project management software. Finding a planner that offers these options is crucial for ensuring business success.
1. Gantt Chart
A Gantt chart is a gold standard planner for project managers. It visually illustrates a project schedule and shows the relationships between activities and their current status. This type of chart is a reliable way to communicate what it takes to deliver a project on time and within the budget. A typical Gantt chart includes a task list, timeline, dateline, bars, milestones, dependencies, progress, and assigned resources.
A professional planner for project management should be well-visualized, feature-rich, and easy to use. One excellent option is GanttPRO, a comprehensive online Gantt chart planner specifically designed for project managers. It allows you to plan, schedule, set dependencies, manage resources, and collaborate with stakeholders effectively.
2. Task List
A task list, also known as a to-do list, is a prioritized set of activities needed to complete a project. It is especially useful for small projects or daily/weekly planning. Task lists ensure that nothing falls through the cracks and provide a clear overview of what needs to be done. Todoist is a reliable task list app that helps professionals streamline their personal and team productivity. It offers features such as task management, scheduling, assignment management, collaboration, and customizable templates.
3. Kanban Board
A Kanban board is a visual organization tool that enables project managers and teams to plan and manage workflows using cards and columns. Each card represents a task, and the columns represent different stages in the production cycle. Kanban boards provide a streamlined layout that allows for easy task management and resource allocation. Kanbanize is an excellent option for creating and tracking tasks on a Kanban board. It offers comprehensive boards, multiple workflows, time tracking, portfolio management, reporting, and more.
4. Spreadsheets
Spreadsheets can be a useful addition to the toolkit of project managers. They help organize and arrange data in rows and columns and can efficiently calculate numerical tasks. Spreadsheets are versatile and can be used for basic charts, task lists, and more complex systems. Smartsheet is an excellent option for project managers who want to utilize spreadsheets for project tracking and progress reports. It offers activity planning, resource management, access controls, reporting, shared team calendars, time tracking, and task prioritization.
5. Project Calendar
A project calendar is a visual format for displaying a project schedule. It helps in organizing timelines, planning milestones, and ensuring timely delivery. Online calendar apps offer the convenience of tracking and planning deadlines in one place, as well as setting goals and promoting transparency. Google Calendar is a popular choice for project managers due to its integration with Gmail and its ease of use. While Google Calendar is a great tool for scheduling and reminders, it may lack the specific project management features required for complex projects.
6. PERT Chart
A PERT chart, derived from the Program Evaluation Review Technique, is a visual tool for mapping out tasks and planning project schedules. It helps project managers determine task duration estimates, dependencies, and overall project completion time. Lucidchart is a powerful online tool for creating PERT charts and other diagrams. Its user-friendly interface allows for easy creation and customization of charts, and it offers features such as chart creation, handy containers, commenting, document management, and more.
Best Planners for Project Managers: Choose Your Favorite and Master the Art of Planning
Choosing the right planner is essential for project success. Take the time to study each tool and try working with available templates to find the one that suits your needs. Remember that even the most complex projects start with a small plan.
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