The IPM Blog

Many construction companies can often be mistaken in thinking they don’t need a CRM system to help manage their projects – after all they are in the business of managing projects, not customers. However with developments in CRM technology in recent years, CRM tools are no longer just about contact lists and sales leads. That’s why I’ve put together the following reasons why project managers should be using a CRM tool as well as a project management tool to help manage their projects:

1. You can build and manage relationships
Apart from delivering the project on time and on budget, nothing is more important than managing the relationships you form on a project. You never know who you may need on future projects, or how far someone else’s recommendations of your work will take you. Keeping up to date contact details for all your project stakeholders and maintaining a good working relationship can go really far in ensuring the success of your project.
 
2. It helps you stay up-to-date with your outstanding activities 
New features in Microsoft Dynamics CRM such as conditional formatting means you can not only view a list of outstanding project activities in CRM, but it can also automatically highlight those that are due soon, or even overdue.

3. You can easily monitor and manage your supply chain
In order to finish a job on time, you need to have everything delivered on time. With a CRM tool, you know exactly who your suppliers are and have their contact details at your finger tips to keep track of everything that is supplied to site. CRM also lets you integrate with your accounting software, so accounts and payments are kept up to date.

4. It helps you to track your enquiries and tenders
Due to its tight integration with Outlook, Microsoft Dynamics CRM has one of the most advanced email tracking facilities available. It can automatically file all your emails relating to a particular enquiry or tender to ensure you also keep track of your project communication.

5. All your customer and project information is in the one place
A CRM system gives you the ability to store all your contacts, accounts and project data in the one database that can be accessed by everyone in your organisation, and from anywhere. It helps everyone stay up to date with everything that’s happening on your project and also ensures there is only one set of data, rather than multiple versions.

6. It gives you a single view of your customer and project data
Not only does having a CRM mean having a single database, features like the dashboards added to Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 give you a great overview of the data on your project. You are also able to customise these dashboards so you can see the information that is relevant to you.

7. You can focus on retaining your customers and growing your business
Finally, similarly to what I mentioned in my first point, it’s all about relationships. You can only continue to manage projects if people want to continue working with you and that’s why it’s so important to manage your working relationships as well as your projects. The combination of a CRM system with your project management tools can help you achieve this.

So even though it may feel like a sales tool, a CRM system can be invaluable when it comes to managing your projects. There are many CRM systems out there to choose from, but we believe Microsoft Dynamics CRM has the most features that can translate across to project management, and that is why our project management tool is built on the Microsoft Dynamics platform.

What about you, can you think of any more reasons a project manager might need a CRM tool? Let us know in the comments below.

I’ve talked often on this blog about the benefits a Microsoft platform can bring to a project management application. As a product certified for Microsoft Dynamics, IPM has been able to use the Microsoft Dynamics platform to build on and create a useful, well designed project management solution that is suitable for a number of industries.

However, the Microsoft platform doesn’t just give you a stable base to build on. It also allows you the option of extending your project management capabilities (and also the capabilities of other functions in your organisation) in a number of ways. Firstly, you can apply any number of independent add-ons built specifically for Microsoft Dynamics CRM that can enable expansion in a number of areas, such as marketing, customer and sales management, manufacturing and distribution. 

Not only that, take a look at this list of five Microsoft tools every business should know about. The ability to integrate with Microsoft tools such as Sharepoint and Lync is a serious advantage for any project management application, and being part of the Microsoft Dynamics family, one that IPM can boast. In particular, a tool like Sharepoint gives project managers the ability to collaborate on projects and share information quickly and efficiently.

Not all project management applications have such a flexible, fluid software platform to work with, and one that gives them access to and integration with some of the best applications in the world. With the changing nature of how we operate and communicate in this technology dominated world, having fluid and adaptable software that can extend across various applications and departments is not only a huge advantage now, I believe it will also be commonplace in a few short years.

Here at IPM we’ve been busy developing a new product in the IPM suite; an integration tool for Oracle Primavera P6. As an additional product in the IPM suite, the integration tool gives you the option of extending your project management capabilities by incorporating features from both systems.

But what exactly does the integration tool do? Primarily, it synchronises all your Primavera P6 job activities with IPM, which gives you a more comprehensive break down of all the work being completed on your job. Within IPM, you then have the ability to manage the job activity completion dates and update resource, purchase order item and subcontract item information for each activity. This gives you a better overall view of each of your projects as you have the ability to link job activities to information that is not available in Primavera P6.

The integration tool also works both ways, so once you have finished adding information to job activities in IPM, you can synch the information back to Primavera P6 to accurately record and track the expenses on your project.

This tool is an exciting addition to the IPM suite as it gives project managers a way to fill small gaps in their project information, and it also means you get a fully encompassing view of exactly what is happening on your project.

We are currently running the Beta version of the Primavera P6 integration tool, so if you’re a current IPM customer and would like to be involved with putting it through its paces, please contact us or leave a comment below. Feel free to contact us too if you’d like more information on the whole IPM suite.

When most people hear the term social media, they immediately think of teenagers using applications like Twitter and Facebook to let their friends know how cool the party on the weekend was, or who is in a relationship with who.

But although this may have been how social media started out, it is becoming so much more than that, and something that has become ingrained in both our personal and professional lives. Erik Qualman’s Social Media Revolution 2011 shows just what a huge impact social media is having on us, and that it really is something to sit up and take notice of.

As technology tends to do, social media has evolved as we have found more and more ways to utilise this tool. Social media is not just about Facebook and Twitter anymore, as there are many other tools out there that are helping people communicate and collaborate more effectively. So instead of thinking of social media as a trivial way for teenagers to pass time, we need to start seeing it as groups of people communicating and collaborating with each other and contributing content to further develop ideas.

If we think of social media in these terms, it has huge impacts for project management, as communication is one of the most integral parts of the project management process. The nature of project management itself is also changing, becoming more about team collaboration and idea sharing rather than a top down command-and-control approach. With a team collaboration approach, just think of the benefits a social media mindset could have on a project team.

At IPM Global we already have some of the principles of social media in our software. Web based project management systems such as IPM mean everyone in the team can log in and check the progress of the project each day, and contribute to status updates, timelines and task lists. Being built on the Microsoft Dynamics CRM framework means IPM users have access to all the features of Microsoft Outlook integration, including the Outlook Social Connector. The Outlook Social Connector enables users to click on individual Outlook contacts to see their activity in social networks such as Linkedin, Facebook, Windows Live Messenger, Viadeo and Xing. Users can also send contact requests to connect on these social media sites, all without leaving the IPM environment.

 IPM is also able to integrate with collaboration tools such as Microsoft Sharepoint, which allows for the creation of team wikis, workflows and team websites. One of our clients, Murphy Pipe and Civil even plans to implement an organisation wide collaboration tool through IPM using this kind of integration in order for their teams to better communicate and collaborate.

As IPM is a fluid and constantly evolving platform, it can easily adapt to new trends and advancements in both technology and project management practices. Being able to adapt to the changes in the way social media is now perceived means we can keep our clients at the forefront of the exciting new development that is social project management.

What are your thoughts? Have you found any good social media applications to use in managing your projects?

Project management software is a considerable investment and one that takes much research, evaluation and comparisons of different offerings to get right. So to help you choose the best software for your organisational needs, here are seven things to look for when making the all important decision of which project management software to go with:

1. Job Costing
The software should be able to handle your job costing needs, including giving you instant access to actual project costs and the ability to alert users to potential cost overruns before they send the project too far off budget. Good project management software will also be able to produce cost projections easily and regularly.

2. Document Control
One of the main advantages of project management software is that all your job information is stored in a central database accessible to everyone who is working on the project. Therefore, an easily accessible database with the ability to store all the information relating to the project is a must. Documents stored in the database must also be easily tracked and retrievable in the event of a dispute, claim or change of scope.

3. Reporting
Good project management software should come with built in comprehensive reporting facilities that can be easily customised to suit your organisation’s specific needs. Reports should be able to be generated quickly and easily with up to the minute information to give you the most accurate view of your project. A bonus is also the ability to report on all aspects of the project, not just document control but also costs as well.

4. Ability to Customise
With the nature of project management, no two organisation’s processes are the same and that’s why it’s important to be able to customise the software to suit your organisation. Small configurations to the software that do not need external consultants and are free for users to do themselves are so important when it comes to any kind of software. Customisable forms, field labels and dashboards all help make project management software easy to use and relevant to your users, as well as user-defined workflows to streamline and automate your processes.

5. Integration
In order to keep everyone in your organisation on the same page and reduce duplicate data entry, project management software should be able to integrate with your ERP system. Good project management software will have seamless integration with a number of ERP systems that allows smooth transfer of information between the two applications. Integration between other applications is also a plus, such as email integration with Outlook.

6. Web based/SaaS option
With advancements in cloud computing and hosting software online, many project management software applications are moving towards this new technology. Although it may not suit every organisation, good project management software provides the option to buy an online version of the software. This gives you the opportunity to assess which is the best option for your business needs and the ability to choose to use the software either on premise or online.

7. Scheduling
This may seem obvious, but some project management software applications do not provide the ability to schedule work on the project. Gantt charts are an easy way to see at a glance the project schedule, and if these are integrated with other areas of the software to automatically update should something change elsewhere on the project, it’s even better.

If you are in the market for a new project management software solution, feel free to contact us for a free demo of IPM and all of the above features.

There has been lots of talk in the blogosphere lately about Microsoft’s recent $8.5b acquisition of the VoIP service Skype, with many people speculating over what use the software giant will put its new technology to. With gamers gunning for enhancements to the Xbox experience, Windows Phone 7 users hoping for better calling experiences and business users hoping for a corporate application, there is no end to the possibilities for this popular technology used by millions around the world.

In an article for Forbes, Gene Marks has speculated that despite its hefty price tag, Skype could be Microsoft’s best acquisition ever. The secret is applying the technology to its CRM offering, Microsoft Dynamics CRM.

As Marks points out, CRM already has the ability to track the communications between a company and anyone else who communicates with that company, but Skype could be used to enhance these communications to include online video conferencing, call tracking and the ability to make VoIP calls, all from within the CRM environment and without the need for third party add ons. Microsoft Dynamics CRM prides itself on seamless integration with other Microsoft products, such as Outlook and ERP systems, and should the Skype technology be applied to the CRM product, this seamless integration would naturally extend to Skype’s facilities as well.

And not only would CRM users benefit from this technology, but users of ISV add ons such as IPM Global’s project management software would also. Being able to currently tap into all the features of Microsoft Dynamics CRM means project managers and other IPM users would be able to access any Skype features that become integrated with CRM. The benefits of this type of technology for a project management team could be huge, from online video conferencing for project meetings, to tracking all the calls made to and from clients, suppliers and subcontractors.

Not only that, the call costs of project management firms could be greatly reduced by managing all phone communication through CRM, which is something CRM users have been hankering after for years. With this kind of technology, communication between project managers and their teams could become so much more efficient, all encompassing and simple, and project team members would be more accountable for their communication with phone call tracking and logging.

This is of course all speculation at this stage as no one is quite sure yet exactly what Microsoft’s plans for Skype are. But given the $8.5b price tag, it is highly likely that Microsoft will want to take advantage of as many situations as possible to integrate the technology with its current offerings. And that means that for project managers using the IPM/Microsoft Dynamics CRM combination the future does indeed look bright.

Please contact us if you’ve like to jump on board CRM and IPM now and possibly take advantage of the Skype technology on your project in the future.

I know that this blog has often talked about the benefits of IPM and how they can help you manage your projects better, so we thought it might be a good idea to show you real world example of IPM in action.

Last year, an Australian based civil construction company approached us looking for a better way to connect field-based project managers with the home office. Recently merged with UK based Murphy Pipelines, the now Murphy Pipe and Civil Pty Ltd builds and installs water and gas pipelines across Australia. After initially implementing a solution from MYOB and Workbench, the company discovered there were still problems the solution did not address, and that it was not being adopted by field employees.  They knew they needed user friendly project management software that could connect their front and back offices and streamline their project management processes.

So we showed them IPM, which is built on the Microsoft Dynamics CRM framework and encompasses all of CRM’s features, such as Outlook and ERP integration.  They were particularly impressed with the integration between IPM and Microsoft Dynamics NAV, which allows critical data to be exchanged seamlessly and easily between the two systems. Data such as Customer and Supplier information, including names addresses and contacts, Subcontract information, Variation information and Progress Billing invoices can all be exchanged between both systems.

Having now implemented IPM, one of the main benefits that Murphy Pipe and Civil has found is broad adoption across the organisation, with 37 IPM users and 5 NAV users. IPM’s integration with Outlook is one of the driving factors behind this, as Murphy Pipe and Civil’s project managers were already familiar with Outlook, so needed little time to adapt to the IPM environment. With Outlook integration, Project Managers can also get automated alerts when exceptions are encountered, and IPM’s automatic email emailing and secure document control facilities means there is always a complete paper trail.

Murphy Pipe and Civil have achieved great success with their IPM implementation, and have discussed a number of further investments to add to their IPM infrastructure. You can read more about Murphy Pipe and Civil Pty Ltd’s success with IPM in our case study, or if you’d like to find out how IPM can help with your project management needs, please contact us for a free demo.

Last week I came across a really interesting blog entry from Adeline Teoh, the editor of projectmanger.com.au. Looking back at project management as a profession over the last 30 years, the article talks about how there has been a paradigm shift in project management, whereby the profession is no longer confined to just construction and defence anymore. As companies are realising the importance of structured organisation and management of people and processes, the field of project management has stretched its influence to other disciplines such as IT, health and community development.

As such, in the last five years in particular, project management has come into its own as a recognised profession, with stringent examinations for accreditation and Masters Degrees available at some universities. And it is perhaps the nature of project management that has made it so difficult for software designers to continually evolve with the profession. From an accidental professional born out of construction and engineering, to a fully fledged career, the diversity of disciplines that project management covers means it can be challenging to develop software to assist in the managing of projects.

In the past, project management software has taken a purely construction approach, resulting in one size fits all solutions that haven’t been able to adapt and evolve as project management has expanded to other disciplines. These have also often been highly specialised solutions to fit the nature of construction project management, so have provided too  many complex and specialised features that project managers in other disciplines do not need, and therefore do not want to pay for.

But the IT industry seems to be catching up, and developing solutions like IPM, that can be customised. Customisation is one of the most valuable aspects a software solution can have, giving users the opportunity to tweak features such as field labels and workflow processes to suit the particular industry their project is managed in.

One of the best things about IPM is that it has a solid foundation of fundamental project management aspects that can then be customised or expanded if necessary to include things like integration with accounting systems. We have clients from all different disciplines who use the software, and we ourselves use it to manage our own IT projects. Because it is a fluid and evolving solution, it can keep up with project management as it evolves into other disciplines.

So if the last 20 or so years are anything to go by, project management as a disciple will continue to evolve rapidly. And it is important that we in the IT industry continue to evolve with it in order to develop helpful and logical solutions that can provide project managers, both within and outside of construction, with what they need.

Since childhood I’m sure most of us have been continually told about the benefits of team work and how success is often achieved when people work together. Motivational speakers feast on team work and collaboration and sometimes the meaning can get lost in mushy motivational stories about working together.

But when teamwork is applied to your daily work life and your career, it all of a sudden becomes very important. In a project management sense, projects can often succeed or fail based on how well each member of the project team works with his or her other team members. No mushy motivational stories here, just purely and simply working together to help a project, and often your career, succeed.

Collaboration and effective teamwork between team members can often be one of the most effective ways of ensuring the success of your project. Not only do people work well together when things are going right, but when things go wrong they have a far better chance of coming up with effective solutions and alternative ways of working.

I recently read a great post from Brad Egeland on 5 strategies for successful project management. And out of those five strategies, two referred to the need to have a collaborative working environment, and the tools necessary to facilitate this. Egeland points out that success for project managers not only involves their own efforts, but also the efforts of the team. That’s why it’s also imperative that everyone is working to the same plan, the same set of expectations and the same information about the project.

One of the most effective tools to facilitate good collaboration between project team members is of course a central information system that is accessible to everyone and contains one version of the most up to date, relevant project data. In order to achieve good collaboration between your team members it’s imperative they all have access to the required information, and that they are all on the same page with this information.

IPM project management software is one example of providing a collaborative working environment for all project team members. Not only do all team members on a project have access to one central database that contains all the relevant information about the project, team members can also access this database when they are not in the office. The central database can be accessed from a laptop or mobile device so long as there is an internet connection. This makes it easy for teams that are sometimes scattered across different offices, field sites or even cities to maintain a collaborative approach to executing the project. And of course, collaboration between team members is, according to Brad Egeland, one of the top five strategies for project management success.

As always, you can find out more about working collaboratively with IPM by contacting us or posting a comment below.

I know it’s human nature to hang onto things we’ve outgrown or no longer have use for. Be it some emotional connection we have to the tattered pair of jeans that no longer fit, or the fact we’re just too lazy to change mobile phone providers or switch from the energy supplier who is clearly charging too much. We’ve all been guilty of it at some point.

But many construction companies also tend to hang onto the software they have used for years, despite the fact that it may no longer fit the size of the business and type of work they are doing, or that it hasn’t kept pace with the changing nature of the industry. But in this economy it makes no sense to stick to software that could ultimately be costing you time and money.

So how can you tell you’ve outgrown your project management software and that it’s time to part ways? Here are five telltale signs...

1. Loss of productivity
Many older style applications require employees to enter the same information more than once, which ultimately leads to a loss of productivity. You should be able to integrate your project management software with your accounting system to avoid duplicating data, as well as giving you accurate reporting of costs with one version of the truth. If not, you are unnecessarily paying employees to do the same job twice.

2. Inflexible software
There are so many developments in software nowadays, such as workflows, that there should be no reason for a software application to dictate the way you run your business. If you can’t add customisations to your software and choose how you interact with it, it could be costing you time and money by hindering your efficiency.

3. Inability to access data remotely and from a central database
The nature of construction means there are times you need to access data when you are not in the office. If your current solution is to save information in spreadsheets on your laptop, there is a better way. Software that can be used in a web browser is far more efficient, and IPM’s central database means you can access the same information as everyone in your office. If there is no access to the internet, simply use it in offline mode and it will automatically sync up to the main database when internet access is restored.

4. Inability to provide accurate, real time reporting
It’s no good finding out at the end of the month that your project spend has overrun by 40%. You need to be able to access that information quickly and easily and with up-to-the-minute accuracy. Only solutions with accurate and easy to use reporting facilities can give you this information when you need it.

5. The software is not user friendly
If your employees still can’t find their way around your current software solution and are spending countless hours on menial tasks to get the right information in the right place, and then can’t find that information again later, your software is not user friendly. Software with a simple and familiar look and feel throughout, and that takes less time to do more work is definitely in order.

If you recognise these symptoms in your own organisation’s current software solution and would like to see how IPM cures them, please don’t hesitate to contact IPM Global for a free demo.