Every manager strives to maximize their employees’ efficiency, productivity, and focus. Reaching this goal is no small feat, but with the right tools, it is possible. One tool that every business should utilize is program management software.
What is Program Management Software?
Program management software, which is often referred to as project management software, is used to plan, organize, and manage tasks, projects, and employees within an organization. It allows team members to communicate with one another, collaborate on tasks, and keep track of all active projects.
This software is designed to keep all of this information in one place to simplify the process of project management.
Why Do Businesses Use Program Management Software?
There are a number of reasons why businesses of all sizes and from all industries invest in program management software, including:
- Get rid of time-consuming, outdated methods. Many businesses decide to use program management software after they realize that they are wasting valuable resources on manually monitoring tasks, projects, and employees. Using this software simplifies this process and frees up the company’s resources.
- Easily manage remote or freelance workers. The workforce is changing. In today’s world, many businesses rely on remote or freelance workers to perform a variety of tasks, including digital marketing, content creation, graphic design, and SEO. This software makes it easy for managers to connect, communicate, and collaborate with these workers.
- Streamline the project management process. Teams that aren’t using program management software may misplace files, let projects fall through the cracks, miss deadlines, and fail to follow up on important tasks. The quality of work may also suffer as a result of this mismanagement. This is one of the main reasons why so many businesses use program management software to streamline the project management process.
- Keep everyone on the same page. Using program management software also makes it easier for managers to ensure that everyone on the team is on the same page regarding a specific task or project. All communications regarding a project will take place within the tool, so everyone will have access to the same information.
These are some of the many reasons why a growing number of companies are using program management software to grow their business.
What Are the Best Features of Program Management Software?
No two program management tools are the same. Because each tool is unique, it’s important to know what features to look for when searching for the right software for your business.
The features you will need will vary depending on your business needs. But in general, the most effective program management tools have these key features:
Dashboard
A dashboard allows you to view all of your tasks and projects in one place. You won’t have to search for the data you need regarding overdue tasks, upcoming deadlines, or recent comments. All of this information will be presented in an easy-to-read format within the dashboard.
Project Management
Program management software is the only tool you will need to manage your team’s projects. This means you won’t need to shift back and forth between spreadsheets, launch multiple programs, or keep countless tabs open on your web browser.
Automated Workflow
Every team is unique, so you should choose software that allows you to create custom automated workflows. An automated workflow will keep each task and project moving forward until it is complete.
Customizable Templates
You shouldn’t have to waste time figuring out how to make program management software work for your team. Look for software that offers customizable templates so you can decide what information should be included on each task or project assigned to your team.
Analytics
It’s wise to look for program management software that connects directly with your website’s Google Analytics and Google Search Console data. This way, you won’t have to use other applications or programs to measure the success of each task or project.
Client Interface
Make sure your clients have access to certain features of your program management software as well. This way, clients can stay in the loop regarding the status of their projects.
Be sure to choose software that allows you to control what features and information your clients can access through their interface.
Reporting
Look for software that you can use to build and run custom reports. You can either send these reports to clients or analyze them to look for ways that your team can improve their productivity.
Invoicing
Program management software should be designed to handle both accounts payable and accounts receivables. This will simplify the process of working with clients, contractors, freelancers, and even salaried employees.
Time-Tracking
You can keep track of what your employees are working on and how long they are working with a time-tracking feature on program management software. You can use this information to determine how much you should charge your clients or to identify the strongest and weakest members on your team.
Integrations
If you’re in digital marketing, there are some additional processes that your project management software should be able to manage.
Editorial Calendar
If you plan on using program management software for content marketing, look for a tool that is designed with an editorial calendar. You can use this feature to plan, organize, and implement an effective content strategy for your clients.
Blogger Outreach
Link building is one of the most effective SEO strategies. The best program management tools will simplify the link building process by managing your blogger outreach efforts.
You should be able to track your communications with bloggers and media outlets through this tool so you can aggressively pursue links that will improve your SEO.
Ideally, you should be able to keep everything within one tool by choosing program management software that connects to Google Drive, Google Calendar, Dropbox, Slack, and other applications.
What is the Best Program Management Software?
There are many different program management software options for businesses to choose from, but none that can compare to Gryffin. This tool, which was built for digital marketers by digital marketers, is designed with all of the features that you need to efficiently manage your business.
This tool allows your team to complete everything from project management and content marketing to invoicing and blogger outreach without ever needing to open another application or program. Gryffin brings all of these features together into one platform.
Take your business to the next level—and make your life easier, too—with Gryffin.