Project management is a complex activity that involves dealing with 4 constant variables: expenditure, timing, duration and quality. A more challenging objective is to optimize work procedures and resource distribution. Most projects utilize such components as labour, funds, and equipment to deliver something of value and hit selected targets. To manage projects successfully one have to work on a number of factors. A few of them can be found below:

- Goal setting and reviewing achievement.

- Managing risk. Most feature a this or that level of risk.

- Allocating and managing resources.

- Understanding the result you want to have when the project is finished.

- Managing what is going on: giving out jobs, controlling execution.

- Managing quality.

- Handling instability. Circumstances change. When you begin the project, you have to anticipate how it will develop with time.

- Talking to everybody doing the project.

To handle these elements you can employ pencil and paper or perhaps MS EXCEL. Nevertheless, dedicated project tracking software has a number of relevant advantages:

- It simplifies scheduling. The software will automate scheduling calculations. It is possible to set work calendars for different employees. It just as well makes it simpler to track progress on different jobs.

- Working with several projects and handling a set of specifications. Management can use progress tracking software to facilitate portfolio of projects analysis.

- It helps you find the critical path. The critical path is made of tasks that directly influence the real duration of the project. Should a task on the critical path change duration, the whole project will be touched by this change. It should be noted that for activities that are not on the critical path small changes in how long it takes can have no influence whatsoever on other activities.

- Distributing data among the team members. Big projects require data exchanges. Groupware productivity tracking software allows each participant to know what is up at any given point in time.

Is it always a must to employ task tracking software?

Like any instrument, project tracking software has its limitation. The best time to reap the benefits from such programs is when you supervisea few large projects. Little projects can be supervised using a spreadsheet program which helps you save on overhead costs of employing fairy complicated software.