The best way to accomplish this goal is to manage every aspect of our business as a project in its own right. With a beginning, a middle and an end. The end of course, are the deliverables. One of the most important aspect of any business is the final deliverables. The deliverables are what make you stand out to the client, and it is what can make you profitable, or not profitable. We all know that people don’t go into business to lose money, right? We go into business to make money! So, how can you ensure that you are managing your company in all aspects? Treat your own business as if it were a client of yours, as its own separate project with a to-do list.
Write it Down — Create a list of non billable business tasks that you do every day, every week, and every quarter, and so on. On some tasks you have due dates built in due to tax laws, and the rules of business. Of course, you have to pay quarterly taxes, and of course you have to pay your light bill every month. Also create a list for each client the tasks you must accomplish starting with the end deliverable and working your way back to today. What you will end up with is lists of billable and non billable tasks to accomplish, with due dates.
Use Project Management Applications — A simple cloud based project management system can assist you with the list after you’ve written it down. The system will send you, or whomever is responsible for a particular task a reminder, and it will help track the time and expenses of the task as it’s being accomplished. In a good project management application each client will have their own space in which to insert tasks and deliverables as well as store documents. You can make your own company a client as well, and insert the deliverables and due dates there too.
Automate What You Can — By using cloud-based applications to automate some tasks, you can eliminate a lot of un-billable time from your day. For instance, a good cloud based bookkeeping software can collect payments from PayPal, your bank, or credit card without any data entry. It can also record money collected in the same way. If you like to update your social media with notice of new blog posts, this can also be automated with various cloud based applications and website plugins. Some forms of automation come in the form of the human touch. Need 100 blog posts uploaded, hire a virtual assistant (VA). Remember, if you can pay the VA less than your own hourly fee then the cost is more than worth it.
Managing projects simply means organizing, planning, facilitating, motivating and implementing. If you’re a small business owner, guess what, you’re also a project manager! There is a free eBook that requires no input of data or information for you to read it. It was written by independent project management experts. Plus, you can also share it freely with anyone you desire. I highly recommend that you read it to get more information about managing projects effectively and simply in Six Easy Steps.
About the Author: This article is provided by Paola Prieto Hemmingsen, Social Media Manager of GetApp.com.