What Is The Importance Of Project Management? A Basic Guide

If you run a business or you’re a project manager, managing projects is not the easiest thing to do. If you don’t know what you’re doing, the outcome of a project may not work out well. So what is the importance of project management? Without proper planning, you may not get the right outcome you intend for.

These days, it involves more than one thing to make any work project successful. Project management (PM) is important based on a few questions, including the following:

• Who is in charge of leading a project?
• What are some of the expectations for those who are working on a project?
• Which tasks and responsibilities are people assigned?
• When does the project need to be done? When is the right time to take action?

If those questions are addressed early on, the better chances that a project will succeed and end up getting the desired outcome.

9 reasons why project management is important

Project management ‌can‌ ‌be a hassle and  ‌easy‌ ‌to‌ ‌ignore. Understanding how it can make an impact can help reduce the risks, along with the headaches of a project failing in the end.

For the remainder of this article, I will go over some reasons why PM is needed to work on any project for your business.

1. Establishes Goals You Aim To Accomplish
2. Helps Your Team Stay On Track
3. Easier To Collaborate With The Team
4. Boosts Focus On Work
5. Increases Efficiency
6. Identifies Which People Should Be Doing Specific Tasks
7. Helps To Learn From Mistakes
8. Helps Build Value For A Company
9. Leads To More Satisfied Clients

Establishes goals you aim to accomplish

Setting clear, concise goals helps you understand what needs to get done in a timely manner. It’s good to refer back to when you get stuck sometimes.

If‌ ‌you’re doing something different, see if you can simplify it. ‌You may want to try something else if a task is taking longer than usual (or if it’s more difficult).

But if you get off track at times, then it’s good to go back to those goals made earlier. If the work you’re doing aims to accomplish those goals, keep going in that direction.

Helps your team stay on track

When expectations are made, things are meant to go smoothly. For example, assigning tasks to team members who know what they’re doing shows you can count on them. 

If they know what they’re doing, it’s easier to get those tasks done in a timely manner. Especially when it comes to setting deadlines, it helps everyone keep going while staying on track.

Breaking down my tasks

For me to stay on track with work, I tend to break down my tasks if I know it will take me longer than usual. If I was assigned to write a report, I usually started on it early. 

When writing the report, I would break it down by doing the following:

• Research (finding sources)
• Writing an outline,
• Writing an initial draft, 
• Editing/finalizing the report

Breaking it down into smaller tasks makes it a lot easier to tackle a bigger project. It will vary depending on the individual’s work style, but that’s how I do it for how I manage projects.

Easier to collaborate with the team

When a PM plan is set in stone, it can be easier to work with others involved in the project. ‌Following an easy-to-follow plan can help you and your team reach an agreement and solve problems.

When working together, it’s possible to get more work done sooner than later. There’s nothing wrong with getting ahead on schedule for a project, as it can help prevent last-minute work near the deadline. 

Boosts focus on work

When a project involves a developed plan with basic expectations, it helps maintain focus. If you have structures in place for completing tasks, it’s easier to figure out what needs to get done.

When there are certain structures in place, it helps with maintaining focus, especially if you’re on a tight deadline. Also, it helps avoid confusion and the need to ask more questions later on.

Increases efficiency

Using the best tips and tools can help improve efficiency. It’s best to not waste additional resources if you have the necessary ones to use.

There are a lot of project tools to choose from, including Monday.com, Asana, Wrike, and much more. I wrote a review on Wrike’s PM tool a while back. Check out the link later in this post for an in-depth review of the PM tool.

Identifies which people should be doing specific tasks

Having a proper process in place helps know who’s responsible for doing specific tasks. If you’re a project manager yourself, it helps to have a basic understanding of an individual’s strengths and weaknesses.

Suppose you know someone who is good at marketing goods and services. Would you not assign him or her marketing tasks?

When you assign someone to work on marketing tasks, isn’t it a good idea to know whether that person has the necessary‌ ‌skills? If not, that can be a problem later on. It may not be a good idea to assign tasks to people who are not trained in that area.

Helps to learn from mistakes

Not all projects will turn out with perfect outcomes, as mistakes will be made. ‌It may not be a major mistake for the business, but it can be an opportunity to learn from it.

Some situations can be falling short of a goal, or executing a task too soon. It may be something you wish you would have done a little differently.

But the best thing to do is to learn from it, so you know not to do it the next time around. It can help with working on future projects the next time around.

Helps build value for a company

Depending on what the project may entail, it can help grow the business in the long run. If some projects end up bringing excellent results, they can grow a business even further.

Making a business more valuable can bring more opportunities down the road. Whether that’s acquiring more clients (or earning more revenue), the successful outcome of a project can bring exciting results for any business.

Leads to more satisfied clients

When working on a project, some things may be at stake for the clients you work for. If a project doesn’t bring the right outcome, it may disappoint some clients.

The end result, however, may be satisfying for clients who are involved in the project. ‌ When a project is completed correctly and on time, it will result in more satisfied clients. That’s all businesses should strive for, which is maintaining high customer satisfaction.

Final Words

PM is important because it improves the direction of leadership, along with increasing efficiency. More importantly, it helps improve communication with your team. I believe communication is a key component of any successful project. 

Understanding who’s responsible for doing which tasks (and when it needs to be done) will bring better results. ‌ In the end, PM can be more effective in handling overtime if it grows a business and ensures customer satisfaction.

Your Turn: Why is project management important?

I would like to get your thoughts on PM in general. Is PM emphasized in the work you do, whether that’s working for a company or running your business?

Is PM key to making sure work is finished in a timely manner? Do you find it easy to work on tasks that are easy to break down?

Which of the reasons do you think is more important when meeting deadlines with PM? Do you think it helps with achieving customer satisfaction?

Feel free to share your thoughts by leaving a comment below. I look forward to reading your responses, and I’ll gladly respond promptly. 

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Eric is a content writer and the site owner of notimekillers.com. He takes great pride in helping people manage their time and grow their businesses. Eric is a firm believer in time freedom, as he believes in taking ownership of time. 

“Time is your most important asset. It can be your best friend or worst enemy. How you use your time can shape the future you desire to have.” In his leisure time, Eric loves to write and read whenever possible. He enjoys going for long walks outdoors while doing in-home workout videos every week. You can follow Eric on LinkedIn.