Introduction:

Over the past several years the approach of managing the works has evolved due to
the availability and the competition of technology. Many organizations have had the
challenge of reviewing various softwares to cope with the technological advancement in
the industry.

In order to decide on a significant part of the management process, we need to have
clear understanding of the project. Even more the size of the projects has a big effect on
the choice of the type of software. Wysocki said the larger the project, the more you will
need to depend on software package (Wysocki, 2009, p.113).

In this week case study I will recommend to adopt MS project as a management tool. In
this recommendation we will look at the key areas and the management techniques
offered in this software.

Parameters that would be considered while choosing the management tools:
Many parameters should be taken into consideration before choosing the management
tool. We must understand what the objectives of the program are, and how these
objectives can be reflected on our projects. First of all we need to be sure that the new
software will not clash with the available office programs. After that we need to look at
the possibility of integration between single and portfolio management. The input,
output, visual and numerical reports are very important aspect we have to check. The
implementation time of the new software should be considered. And the most important
aspect we need to look at is the cost of this software.

Benefits of Using MS Project:
There are many reason would make the use of one software over another. MS project
have many advantages that should be considered in the selection criteria (Bucki &
Chefetz, 2002, p. 5-10):
- It is user friendly software, and it will take no time to know the basics of this
software. Further to that, tutorials and training sessions are available.
- MS Project offers online support for their users and training sessions in the
launching stage of each new application.
- It is capable of dealing with thousands of numbers of tasks and resources per
each project.
- It is very easy to create and update the project schedule.
- Various numbers of visual and numerical reports can be created.
- It is possible to compile individual project with the portfolio management system.



Summary:
There are various number of project management softwares. Plus, there are numerous
conditions that affect the selection criteria. The cost, maintenance, technical support
and many other factors are very important for selection criteria. In addition to that
organizations should consider the users feedback in their selection criteria. In my
working experience I had the chance to use MS Project and Primavera P6, both of them
was very functional & effective. I was not part of the selection procedure, but I strongly
recommend involving the users in the selection process.

Regards,
AAhmad.

Wysocki, R. (2009). Effective project management: traditional, agile, extreme. (5 ed.).
Indianapolis, Indiana: Wiley Publishing, Inc
Bucki, L. & Chefetz, G (2002). Managing with Microsoft Project 2002. Boston: Course
Technology.