How do you choose a project management solution?

There is no question—choosing to switch your business from a pencil and paper, Microsoft Office, or other archaic combinations of software/hardware/overflowing files to one streamlined project management system is overwhelming.

The choices are many—one program does this, this one does that, the other one integrates with this, but this one has free support. Every website is filled with superlatives: fastest, greatest, best. But with so many project management programs out there (all claiming to be the best) how do you choose the solution which is a good fit for your remodeling or construction business?

Constructech, the tech magazine for the construction industry, gives a few good ideas for choosing the right project management system (which we have elaborated on). They recommend:


1. Identify the purpose for putting the system in place.
Essentially, why do you need it and what are you going to do with it? What areas of your business do you struggle with? Leads and marketing? Tracking and managing project schedules? Client communications? Bidding and Estimating? Every program on the market will approach these (and other) issues differently. The key is to list what you really need before you decide which programs to consider.

2. Generate a list of targeted products and establish key benefits.
Remember the list you created? Apply that list to the various software solutions on the market. How many meet your criteria? How many meet your criteria and are cost effective for your business? Ignore things like bells and whistles, fancy websites, and appealing incentives. The only programs which should go on your list are those that offer the functionality that you deem essential to running a profitable business.

3) Make a selection based on research, testing, and evaluations.
Once you have narrowed down your list to project management solutions which meet your criteria, start investigating your options. Check out websites. Take demos. Talk to sales reps. At this point—the product offering is probably pretty similar. Service and price may be the only things which separate one software company from the next. Look for service benefits like phone support, free webinars, free trials, and money back guarantees. Look for a pricing structure which is affordable, that avoids limits on the number of jobs per month, that doesn’t demand huge set-up fees.