What Is The Best Software For Task Management? — Project Central
Gone are the days when task management had to be done manually. Nowadays, the market is awash with task management software and apps to make your life (and work) much easier to deal with. But what is the best software for it?
Although manual tasks are out-with-the-old, there’s a lot of skills we can take from those methods in order to apply them to collaborative task management that’s done online. You know, rather than on a whiteboard or a flow-charted brainstorm.
Many of us are better equipped to learn visually. This is a factor that a lot of schools didn’t think about back in the day. If you could understand math, that was one thing. However, if you needed neon pink post-it notes and a fluffy pen to keep you focused, you were kind of SOL.
Furthermore, there’s also something about being rewarded for doing what you’re supposed to be doing. It’s a psychological fact that’s being used by a few task management tools out there at the moment. For example, for every task you do, you can plant a tree. (And on the flip side, kill a tree if you pick up your phone).
We are forever learning, and the glory of visual task management rather than focus-based means that the actual task management in itself is the distraction. As in we’re literally distracting ourselves with what we’re supposed to be doing. Also, considering the majority of us is juggling 50 tasks at any one time, it’s kind of cool to know what to do and when to do it.
What is Task Management?
In short, task management is literally what’s been missing from all of our millennial lives until recently. Alongside purpose, we’re finally realizing what we can do to contribute to society while the world falls down around us and are tasked with making a better future for those younger than us.
But, I digress.
Jokes aside, task management has helped so many of my friends and colleagues pull their lives into perspective. Furthermore, the fact that all of this can be done on your computer, phone, or tablet cuts out the middleman who goes by the name, “Stationary”
Task management is a mix of schedules, to-do lists, and productivity. In ways, I suppose that makes task management the future and Project Central a massive part of it.
Project Management Task Types
While task management styles could literally make up a list as long as the first edition of the Bible, most of them are forms of the three basic types: Lists, Boards, and Schedules.
Lists
To-do lists are no longer scrawled lists of groceries and budgeting. They’re legitimate, leading applications that you can customize to your heart’s content. Lists can include recurring tasks, subtasks, reminders, and even collaboration. Most lists can be organized and shared.
However, you also have to be a certain kind of person to use lists productively. Or else you’ll uninstall the application quicker than you got it.
Boards
Boards, on the other hand, function much more visually. Following the age-old Japanese art of Kanban boards, this way of task management is more connective than dissonant. Team members who are perhaps slightly more prone to procrastinate usually benefit from this method a lot.
The key to a Kanban board approach is to limit the number of tasks you and your team have to do. But there are also some great apps on the market to help you do just that.
Schedules
As intensive as the word might make the task management system seem, timelines are successful for all types of workers. Having a deadline means that everything is clear, as in what’s going where, when is it going to be done, and by whom.
Visualizing the path of a project with a timeline helps to prioritize the work that needs to be done while also keeping track of the progress made.
So, What is the Best Task Management App?
Whether you’re using Office 365 task management such as Project Central, a list-based or board-based application, the best task management app really depends on your working style, your learning style, and what will benefit your team.
That said, there are some great software and apps out there for every single type of person. After all, where would the fun be in lack of options?
The Absolute Best Software for Task Management
Asana
Asana is an excellent team-focused project management solution. It’s also the most widely used out of all of them. Its biggest pro is its emphasis on teams and teamwork. By creating to-do lists, reminders, and instructions, you can keep on top of your projects at hand.
Trello
Trello utilizes the Kanban board-style technique, using cards and lists to delegate tasks, set due dates, and leave comments. It also has the option for you to link up tons of power-ups, though its strengths are in its simplicity.
Podio
Podio was designed for professionals who work on multiple projects at once. Teams across the globe have been using Podio, from Sony to the NFL. In the Podio app, you can create and customize tasks based on your workflow. Furthermore, there’s also a built-in messaging function.
Project Central
Project Central is the best of all worlds. You can visualize your projects through cards, moving projects forward quickly and easily as a team or an individual. Using Office 365, Project Central helps you focus on the bigger picture.
Basecamp
Basecamp has a more classic approach to project management. With it, you can organize and update multiple projects at a time, each of them getting a single card overview. Additionally, Basecamp can also function as a text editor.
GanttPRO
Nobody should be surprised that Gantt charts are up here. A lot of task management apps have utilized the Gantt form of organization. GanttPRO is purely cloud-based and within it, users can make charts, schedules, and track their progress.
Task management tools are the way forward in teamwork, businesses, and individual productivity. Every year, there are more and more options to consider down this path, and Project Central just might be the culmination of every one of them.
Originally published at https://www.projectcentral.com.
