10 Best Practices for Task Management in Zoho Projects

Everyone has their own way of following up on tasks, but not everyone has the same techniques for managing them. Task management in Zoho Projects makes it easy to organize and schedule tasks so that your team completes them on time, every time. Task management is about more than assigning tasks and checking a box when they’re finished. It’s about making sure that each task reaches the right person at the right time so that all tasks are completed as efficiently as possible, without falling behind schedule or scope.

There are many different ways to manage tasks, from simple spreadsheet systems to complex software programs designed specifically for managing tasks. The challenge is finding the one that works best for you and your team members.

Create Milestones to keep your Tasklists Organized

Just as you organize your project by creating milestones, you should also organize your task list by milestones. It’s one of the best ways to keep your task list organized and easy to navigate. You can create Milestones by clicking on the Milestone tab on the top.

Secondly, if you already have a task list created and just added the Milestones, don't worry! You can simply click on the task list and it will give you an option of Related Milestone to assign to that particular tasklist. Simple, isn't it?

Assign a due date and deadline for each task

Assigning a due date to each task is important for keeping your project on track. If a task has a due date, the task will automatically appear on a task list on the project’s home page with a red “overdue” icon. If the task is an assignment, the red “overdue” icon will appear in the assigned team member’s task list as well. You can use the due date as a reminder of when the task is due or, if the task is an assignment, you can use the due date to determine how much time the team member has to complete the task.

Setup due dates in Zoho Projects - Erphub

Deadlines are different from due dates. Deadlines are more important than due dates because they give you a specific point in time when a task must be finished. If you add a deadline to a task, the task will automatically appear on a task list with a red “overdue” icon. You can also add a countdown with the deadline to show how much time is remaining.

Determine how many people are needed for each task

Assign a person to each task, and then use the number of people assigned to each task to determine how many people are needed for each task. For example, if you assign a task to one person but two people are needed to complete the task, the task will remain in the assigned person’s task list and the other person will receive a notification to let them know they are needed.

You can assign the created task to entire teams or you can assign more than one person to a task for a few different reasons. One reason to assign multiple people to a task is to assign a task to a virtual team member. In this case, you’ll want to assign the task to a person who can manage the assignment and let other team members know when they’re needed. Another reason to assign multiple people to a task is if you want to assign a task to a regular team member who has a lot of other work to do and the task is too big to be completed in a reasonable amount of time. You might also assign multiple people to a task if you want to let the team members decide between themselves who will be responsible for completing the task.

Set a budget for each task

Assigning a budget to each task allows you to know how much money is being spent on each task. Budgeting tasks is a good way to keep track of which tasks cost the most and to determine which tasks have the biggest impact on your project’s bottom line. Budgeting a task is a great way to give yourself an idea of how much money you’ll need to complete a task. This information might help you get funding or let you know if you need to scale back your expectations.

If you add a budget to each task, the budget will appear in the task list and you can see how much money is being spent on each task. You can assign a percentage or amount for each task. If you assign a percentage, the percentage will apply to the entire project budget. If you assign an amount, the amount will apply to the amount that has been allocated for the task.

Estimate the amount of time required for each task

Assigning a budget to each task is a good start, but it’s important to know how much time each task will take so you can plan your project more effectively. If you estimate the amount of time required for each task, you’ll have a better idea of how long the project will take to complete. You can estimate the amount of time required for each task in the following ways:

Add a time estimate to each task
Create a task with an estimate of how long the task will take
Time each task while you’re working on it If you add a time estimate to each task, the time required will appear in the task list beside the task name.

If you create a task with an estimate of how long the task will take, the estimate will appear in the task description. If you time each task while you’re working on it, the amount of time will appear beside the task name.

Add a task description and detail requirements with tasks

When you create a task, it’s a good idea to add a task description and detail requirements for each task. A task description is a short summary of the task, like “Write an article about the benefits of project management.”

A task description is helpful for you when you’re checking the status of each task, and it’s also helpful for the person who is assigned to the task. A task detail requirement is a specific detail you want the person who is assigned to the task to follow, like “The article should be 500 words long” or “The article should include one example of how project management benefits businesses.”

Task descriptions and task detail requirements are helpful because they let you know where your team members are in terms of completing the task, and they also help the person who is assigned to the task know what is expected of them.

Always start by assigning critical tasks to your most-skilled team members

When you assign tasks to team members, start by assigning the most critical tasks to your most-skilled team members. Critical tasks are those that are most important to the success of the project. For example, if you’re managing a project that has a deadline, the task of writing the article or completing the proposal is a critical task because if they’re not done on time, the project will be delayed.

Assigning critical tasks to your most-skilled team members gives you two benefits. First, they’ll be able to complete the task faster because they have more experience. Second, the project will stay on track because the most-skilled team members will be completing the most critical tasks first.

Don't assign more than 2 or 3 people to any given task

Assigning more than two or three people to a task could result in the task being under-resourced. If you assign a task to a team member and two or three people are assigned to the task, the person who is assigned to the task will receive notifications from the other team members letting them know they are needed.

If too many people are assigned to a task, the person who is assigned to the task will receive notifications from the other team members letting them know they are needed and the person who is assigned to the task will receive notifications from the other team members letting them know they’re needed. Not only will this cause confusion, but it will also slow down

Mark Tasks as Completed to keep things organized

One of the best ways to keep your tasks organized is to complete them as soon as they are created. When you complete a task, it will move from the ‘in progress’ section to the ‘completed’ section. This will help you keep track of what has already been accomplished and what remains.

Another way to keep your tasks organized is to use a checklist. A checklist is a list of all of the things that need to be done in order for a project to be completed. It will help you stay on top of everything and make sure that nothing falls through the cracks.

Zoho Projects is one of the most easy to use online project management softwares out there. That being said, it is also one of the most feature rich, with layers upon layers of tools available at your fingertips to make your life easier. But, it can be a handful if you're just starting out and it may become slightly overwhelming.

We hope that this basic task management piece will help you in your business journey and enable you to use Zoho Projects to its maximum potential.