Everything in the green zone: The numbers in the Excel lists announce that the next project section will be reached in Time, in Scope and in Budget. There is nothing like a clean project planning! Stupid only if the numbers recorded in the Excel lists do not correspond to reality. Thus, a data import from the time recording software reveals that 80 working hours are incurred, but have not yet been incorporated into the project control. In addition, a supplier's invoice was not yet transferred by mistake. In addition, the view of vacation planning and sick leave reveals that the required experts will not be available in the next phase of the project.
The key question is: how can this be avoided? How do I never lose track of my projects?
Always up-to-date
The enemy of any successful project management is missing or outdated data. Because they provide a distorted image of the project status. And outdated data always arises when there is a latency between data collection and processing or evaluation. For example, if employees record their working times on timesheets and only hand them over to the customer after several days at the customer's office, who then records them manually after three more working days (and possibly reads and enters a handwritten "2" as an "8"). Or when supplier invoices first take a detour via billing software, whose data is only transferred to the project management software or ERP system every few days. To put it briefly: Latency times and therefore outdated data always arise when information has to cross system boundaries, when the data flow is disrupted by media disruptions.
So it's about getting rid of barriers. And that can be - that is the unpleasant truth - not achieved by doctoring, but only by a fundamental system change. It would be possible to connect individual island systems through interfaces. Time recording with project management, financial accounting with purchasing and so on. But: This is very time-consuming, makes the next program update to hell and is prone to error. With an interface, you have to constantly make sure that what A is releasing is what arrives at B - and experience has shown that this always causes trouble.
No data silos
A really undisturbed data flow can only be achieved if all - really all - accumulating data is managed in a database. From the initial sales activity to performance, from quotation to invoice, from project plan to realization. And here comes KUMAVISION project365 in the game. The solution is based on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, a sophisticated business software environment. As a modular platform, it ensures a seamless interaction of ERP and CRM functionalities, Office 365, Power BI as well as other applications and establishes consistent processes, workflows and evaluations. All data is combined in an integrated data model and data exchange takes place without any interfaces.
KUMAVISION project365 provides important industry-specific functionalities. Transparent project planning, billing options according to effort, payment plan or progress. Working hours or travel expenses are recorded directly in the system - as well as supplier invoices or other external costs. And because everything is together, a look at the figures at the project control gives an unobstructed view of the reality of the project status - accurate to the second. As a result, there is a database in which impending time and budget overruns can be detected in good time so that we have time to counteract this. Incidentally, this can be extended to the entire company: With relevant KPIs (key figures), reports can be generated at the push of a button - days of data collection from a wide variety of sources is canceled without replacement.
A conclusion
And that brings us back to the initial question: How do I never lose track of my projects again? With a unified database, a modular business platform and an intelligent industry solution that connects all business units with each other, thus increasing efficiency and transparency.
