Among all of the previous options we have examined, with the exception of Slack (which is more communication than strictly Task Management), Trello will be the simplest and most pre-equipped program to handle the running and management of company projects.

Ease of Use

Trello is an example of a lightweight Task Management application. For some companies, it may be difficult to transfer from traditional pen and paper management to an online management system. Trello is focused on ease of use, and it doesn’t require an entire suite of features for maximum efficiency.

Trello’s Card System

Trello makes use of what it calls a “card” system for Project Management. Essentially, users can make columns of categories for different aspects of the business, and then create cards within those categories for the different aspects of each category. So, you might have separate categories for employees, ongoing projects, billing, and general items. You can create cards under each column, and then remove them when they are no longer needed.

Card Sub-Categories

With the proper labeling, users can actually convey a lot of information using this system. For employees, you may have separate cards for training material, hours worked, requested days off, etc. For ongoing projects (or support tickets), keep in mind that the most recent card will appear at the top. You can also assign specific employees to a specific card and control the privacy of the cards.

Distinguishing Cards

Another useful aspect of the card system is its ease of organization. For example, you may have a card for the company’s blog, one for company’s virus removal, and a card for the company’s training material creation. Users can even color code the labels to reflect information for separate brands or companies. For example, all cards pertaining to one company might be colored red, so if anyone wants to search for things related to that company, they just click the red label, and alternate companies can be assigned another color. This way, you can easily differentiate between projects. You can also assign a specific employee to each project, and when you click a card, see all related notes on the specific task the card represents.

Potential Limits

Trello is a very simple tool, and though it is used by quite a few larger companies, trying to manage a hundred contracts using Trello would likely prove a bit complicated. It should be noted that a set of columns and cards are dedicated to just one “board.” It is possible to have multiple boards, possibly one for each project, each with its own columns and cards, but once again the ease of use limits the functionality at times. This can be a great tool for the individual or the small team working on one specific thing, but managing an entire corporate empire with Trello would likely prove challenging.

Versions

Trello does offer a free version, but is regularly $10 for the Business Version and $20 for the Enterprise Version. The main difference between the Business and Enterprise versions is that the Enterprise Version has a lot more security put in place, including 2-factor authentication (meaning you need a password and a working mobile that will send a code to you), and encryption. The main difference between the free version and the Business Version is the amount of storage space they give you and the amount of customization and privacy available between various boards.

If you would like more information about Task Management programs, contact tekRESCUE, located in San Marcos, TX.

Today continues our ongoing series on Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Project Management software options by taking a look at the benefits of WORKetc.

Tickets and Billing

WORKetc is a great example of a fully functional CRM program. Some of its most useful features involve tracking tickets and billing. The program has a built in help desk for your website that immediately creates a ticket on the WORKetc app, which can then be categorized, either as a general ticket, or assigned to one specific client. WORKetc also offers billing features, for example, every time you enter a field note you have the option to enter in your time spent. From there, you can use those hours spent to create an invoice that will auto-populate with the relevant data and be ready to send to the customer, and track payment afterward.

Project Management

Another important feature offered is the projects feature. Each created project can be assigned to an existing client, so that when it comes time to send an invoice there is no need to work out the details of the project. This is especially useful because in reality, any one project is rarely just one task. Most projects require multiple tasks to reach completion for the success of the project as a whole.

For example, if you are building a house for someone, you can’t just assign “Build House.” There is a lot more than that one overarching task that goes into the project, usually in the form of several sub-tasks. Keeping track of the many sub-tasks involved in a project can be a challenge, which is why WORKetc’s projects feature is so valuable. Using this feature throughout a project enables users to keep track of all of their notes, all of the assigned tasks, logged hours totals, and all of the materials used in one organized and easily accessible space.

Customer Growth

You can see how having a process for Project Management and completion makes it easier to run a business. In addition to its Project Management features, WORKetc can also track leads on potential sales and buyers, and all of your employees can clock in from the available app, so payroll will also be simplified. Being able to have one centralized app for this means that you can take on growth and new customers without slowing down.

Enhance, Not Replace

Keep in mind that if you already have someone or something that handles payroll, someone that handles invoicing, someone for handling sales leads, etc, you don’t have to replace those positions with a program, which could cause confusion. You can use as many or as few of the WORKetc features as you want. Many companies already have outside firms handling accounting and payroll, and may prefer to use WORKetc specifically for handling customer support tickets and for the management of ones that come in.

Costs

Pricing starts at $78 for 2 users maximum for the most basic package that is mainly limited to task management. For a few more features, the usual cost is around $195/mo with 3 users included (each extra user + $49/mo), and $395 for 3 users for the full package, including website integration, and an additional $59/mo for each extra user.

If you would like more information about CRM and Project Management programs, contact tekRESCUE, located in San Marcos, TX

There are several different kinds of project management software. Some are for personal use, some are basic and just include task-management, some are more like an all in one app for running your business, some are more for support tickets, and all kinds in between. Two applications that can be helpful for project management are Slack and Google Drive.

Slack

Slack is not a pure project management software; instead, it is more of a communication hub that can be used for a lot more than just task-management. Slack is more of a collaboration software than anything else. It is used by student groups, friends, and clubs just as much as it is used by professional groups like businesses and charities. It is possible to use this in conjunction with other management software, or as a primary means of communication. One great thing about this one is that it actually has integration with over 150 other services, such as Dropbox, Google Drive, Trello (a task-management webapp), Github, and many more.

Slack stands for “Searchable Log of All Communication and Knowledge.” That sharing of knowledge that drives its development is one of the reasons that management software should be used. When you can keep detailed notes, if another employee needs to work on the same job then they won’t have to start from the ground. In Slack, the user can create different “channels.” There could be one for “Appointments,” “Customer A,” “Customer B,” or “General.” Having one for each customer means that all communication about that customer and their projects and jobs goes in that channel.

Any appointments for the day can be also recorded for the purpose of availability. A “General” channel can be for announcements and things of that nature. The channels can also be used to record field notes, which should include the hours spent on that customer for billing purposes. For getting full functionality out of Slack, you will likely need to use its integration features on platforms like Google Drive for hosting files, or an outside application for sending invoices.

Google Drive

Google Drive is not a task-management software, but it is great for collaboration on documents and files. Any changes one user makes to a document are immediately distributed to all of the other users that the file is shared with. This is another example of something that can easily be used as a supplement to full-featured software. It isn’t the best option for being your only app used, but even if you use something like WORKetc or Trello, you can use Drive to store files related to the projects you are handling.

Drive can be reconfigured to handle all of the features that a normal project-management app would, but it would take some work creating the processes. However, there is not a system in place for notifications being made to documents other than notice that it has been modified, and no system in place for true communication.

Good Drive could in theory handle appointments and scheduling, billing and invoicing, and project management. You can create a spreadsheet for entering in billed time and costs, and have a template to send to people for invoices. A simple document could be used to take notes for projects and jobs for clients, and a document could also be used to track all appointments. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t be easy to show the newest first, and could get cluttered fairly quickly. The best use of Drive is to distribute the files and documents related to projects you are managing through a project management app.

For more information on applications and software that can increase the communication and management efficiency of your business, contact tekRESCUE in San Marcos, TX.

Technology is meant to be something that makes it easier to run your business, not one that makes it more difficult. It is not meant to complicate or to slow down business strategies, but to complement them. When properly utilized and taken advantage of, the right combination of devices, programs, tools, and other technology should make it easier to run your business and focus on the part of your business that makes you money. Technology can save you time, stress, and labor costs. Below we’ll look at several of those helpful technologies.

Why You Should Use Task-Management

A web-app that a lot of business owners can seriously benefit from is task-management software. Task-management can create scalable processes and help sustain growth in the long-run, as well as save on labor costs and ensure problems get resolved. When a business is just starting, it is easy to keep track of all of your customers and projects. If you only have 1-2 employees and less than 10 customers to keep track of, it can be easy to just use simple pen and paper and to just tell your employees what to do in person. But when your business starts growing, and you suddenly have more employees and a few dozen different jobs, projects, and customers to manage, suddenly things can start slipping through the cracks. Even if you can get all the work you need to do done, it will require a lot more effort on your end. You will have to keep track of all of the open jobs.

Common Task Management App Features

The best project management software should combine several already existing program needs and put them in one place. This means that your customer help desk, billing and invoicing, and appointment scheduling could all be combined into one. The following shows what you should look for in suggested software.

Task and Project Management

Task and project management applications should have the ability to:

• Create projects and assign specific tasks related to the project to specific employees
• Record any notes related to the project and record extensive logs for any costs incurred from services or materials (proper usage of field notes should also save you labor costs by encouraging the sharing of knowledge and discouraging people doing the same work twice to rule out a specific problem)
• Store files related to the project. This feature is offered by some applications, but normally with somewhat limited storage space and feature functionality. A solution often used is using a CRM/Project Management Suite alongside something like a Google Drive

Customer and Ticket Tracking

These applications should be able to:

• Use the task and project management features to distribute workload
• Track when customers come in and what their problem is
• Organize the support tickets that come in

Billing

Billing applications can vary, but should include these features:

• Send invoices and track payments
• Compile accounting reports for end of the year taxes and reports

Communication

Many applications are also meant to improve communication between employees in a business, and feature abilities such as:

• Alerting employees to company policy changes
• Allowing employees to put in maintenance requests

Helpful Software To Be Covered:

• Slack
• Google Drive
• WORKetc
• Basecamp
• Salesforce
• Trello

Each one of these has a few unique features, and while some are complete suites of software that cover almost every aspect of business management, others are very basic and mainly just handle the management of specific tasks and projects. We will be going over the differences in the following articles.

If you would like more information about tackling your project management tasks efficiently, contact tekRESCUE in San Marcos, TX.

]]> /clean-inbox-professional-inbox/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=clean-inbox-professional-inbox Fri, 17 Jun 2016 15:41:36 +0000 /?p=6379 There is nothing more frustrating than an unorganized, messy, and overall hectic mailbox. At work or at home, the constant search for important emails can waste a good chuck of one’s time. Using these simple tips, anyone’s email can work like a well oiled machine. Organization The first tip is to create a folder for...]]>

There is nothing more frustrating than an unorganized, messy, and overall hectic mailbox. At work or at home, the constant search for important emails can waste a good chuck of one’s time. Using these simple tips, anyone’s email can work like a well oiled machine.

Organization

The first tip is to create a folder for the most important “I can’t ever lose this” emails. Not only will this save time when looking for said emails, but it will also prevent deleting them by mistake. It might also be a good idea to create specific folders for specific things. Say someone at work always sends schedules through email, make a folder for it. This will make finding these emails and doing whatever it is that needs done. Furthermore, each client should always get their own folder. The last thing professionals want to do is mistake one email for another. After the folders have been created, remember to un-check the “important” button next to each email, keeping only the current affairs marked as important. This system of organizing should help to prevent any large mistakes.

Stop Deleting, Start Spamming

It can be very easy to just delete some junk mail and move on with the day, but why not just stop them at the source? This tip can be a bit tedious, but it’s one that can prevent some future annoyance. Getting into the habit of diving into an email and getting taken off of the mailing list is key. Every time that junk mail makes it through the spam filter, select several bits of mail and mark it as spam. Keep it up and soon enough the inbox will become much more manageable.

To-Do Lists

The most important file on anyone’s email should be the To-Do list. This tip will keep even the busiest and email flooded people on track, and it’s one of the easiest tips to get in the habit of. Every time that an email that has urgent instructions on it is received, send it right to the To-Do folder. Once there are four or five things in there, it begins to feel like a big deal. Seeing an empty mail box will be a reminder to check the To-Do list folder for instruction. If needed, even save a draft of even more specific instruction within the To-Do list folder.

Save Every Contact Known to Man

Before one even thinks about replying to an email, the first thing that should be done is to save the recipient’s email address into the contacts folder. Don’t always rely on remembering part of the email, or the person’s name because in a rush, it can be forgotten. Words do not take up much space to feel free to have a million contacts. Ranking those contacts might also be a good idea. Using a 1-100 naming system in front of the contacts first name could be a big help. Contacts that are always being contacted get a one in front and those who are never spoken to get a 100. This part is up the user, find a way to number them and prepare to be impressed.

]]> /how-to-share-and-collaborate-with-google-calendar-on-web-iphone-and-android/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=how-to-share-and-collaborate-with-google-calendar-on-web-iphone-and-android Thu, 31 Jul 2014 12:33:01 +0000 /?p=698 Here’s a great article about using a shared Google Calendar in your office. Google Calendar is what we use for all of our scheduling at tekRESCUE. Randy]]>



Here’s a great article about using a shared Google Calendar in your office. Google Calendar is what we use for all of our scheduling at tekRESCUE.

Randy

]]> /mailstrom-helps-you-clear-out-thousands-of-messages-from-your-inbox-in-about-an-hour/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=mailstrom-helps-you-clear-out-thousands-of-messages-from-your-inbox-in-about-an-hour Thu, 14 Feb 2013 05:00:18 +0000 /?p=190 http://m.lifehacker.com/5983474/mailstrom-clears-out-thousands-of-messages-from-your-inbox-in-about-an-hour]]>

http://m.lifehacker.com/5983474/mailstrom-clears-out-thousands-of-messages-from-your-inbox-in-about-an-hour

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