6 Steps of Project Time Management in Workplace You Need to Know

“Time is money” is more than just a phrase in project management, it’s the fundamental truth. The ability to manage project time efficiently is what separates successful teams from those constantly battling delays and scope creep. As a project manager, you are tasked with aligning stakeholder expectations with team realities, making a structured approach mandatory.

Here, we will move beyond the general importance of time management and walk you through the six core processes of project time management that every professional must know. We’ll show you how applying this structure, supported by project management tools, ensures your projects are delivered on schedule and within budget.

Project Time Management: Definition and Importance

In the context of project management, time management is the structured process of defining, scheduling, and monitoring every phase of a project to ensure its timely completion. It’s not just about tracking progress; it’s a comprehensive approach that helps project managers schedule and examine every step from initiation to delivery.

The Value Proposition

Effective time management provides a foundational structure for success:

• Improved Efficiency: By optimizing task flow, time management strategies enhance team efficiency and foster a more organized working environment.
• Risk Mitigation: It allows managers to proactively identify potential delays and take corrective measures, ensuring deadlines are met.
• Accountability: It provides clear visibility into assignments and deadlines, improving accountability across the team.

Modern project success relies on a combination of resources: a strong methodology, skilled execution, and reliable technology. These three elements can be categorized as:

1. Project Time Management Processes (The Method)
2. Implementation of Time Management Best Practices (The Execution)
3. Using the Right Time Management Tools (The Technology, such as TaskOPad)

For the purpose of this guide, we will now dig deep into the six major processes of project time management that form the backbone of any well-executed project schedule.

Six Effective Processes in Project Time Management

1. Make a Roadmap

Project management starts with proper planning and ends with excellent execution. As a project manager, you need to make a plan by keeping the project requirements and skills of your employees in mind. A project plan has a roadmap for meeting objectives and accomplishing the project on time. As an official point of reference for your team and stakeholders, the project plan can assist you to save a lot of time and effort when the project progresses. 

2. Project Schedule Management 

The project schedule is an advanced version of a to-do list.  It includes a project timeline and keeps all the resources on a single page. Every team member should get seamless access to a project schedule. Here, project schedule management plays a key role in communicating all the necessary information to the team in real-time. 

The project schedule has a direct link to time management and project schedule management is dependent on project time management. 

3. Define Tasks

This is one of the most important steps for time management. Every project manager has to define the tasks to assign them to various team members. The timely completion of your project depends on the completion of these tasks. If the project is complex, you can consider defining and organising these tasks based on Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) to ensure timely completion. It involves the breakdown of tasks into sub-tasks. 

4. Determine and Delegate Tasks

After segregating tasks into sub-tasks, you need to think of the capabilities of available resources. You can see the past records of team members in the project management software to find out their skills and interests. It can help you delegate tasks properly and it can increase the chances of completing tasks on time. Apart from this, proper delegation of tasks can keep employees or team members motivated and you can get high productivity for respective projects. It can also save a lot of time and effort for your team. 

Also Read – 5 Ways Task Management App Helps Managers in Task Delegation

5. Track Activities

Once a delegation of tasks is over, you need to monitor activities. It can assist you to find whether the project is on track. If you find any unexpected delay in the completion of any tasks, you can either assign them to other resources or handle them by yourself. It can help you manage time and projects effectively. You can create the most efficient workflow for any size of the project. 

6. Deadline and Resource Planning

At times, you need to assign some tasks to a third-party agency. In such a scenario, you have no control over the time for completing such tasks. Here, you can save time and effort by effective resource planning and deadline tracking using the team task management tool. It is also better to get the data from previous projects to plan the deadline more accurately. The right time tracking software assists companies to manage projects effectively.

Also Read – 12 Best Time Management Tips to Increase Productivity

Bringing It All Together

The six processes of project time management are not just optional steps; they are the essential framework for successful project execution in startups and SMEs alike. Implementing these processes systematically ensures your team is focused, efficient, and aligned with project goals.

By adopting this structured approach, you move away from reactive management and gain the power of proactive control over your project’s timeline and resources.

This is where a robust and reliable task management tool becomes invaluable. TaskOPad is designed to seamlessly support every one of these steps. It provides the visibility for delegation, the accuracy for deadline tracking, and the transparency needed to manage workflow effectively, allowing you to confidently tackle projects of any complexity level, on time, every time.

Don’t let poor scheduling erode your profitability. Take control of your time and your projects. Book your free demo now to see how TaskOPad’s features can streamline these project time management steps and boost your team’s productivity!