For anybody trying to tackle "project bloating" or correctly handle project time tracking, there are some good online resources for getting oriented within the world of project management. In this industry, lots of factors influence each other, but news outlets and information sources help managers identify their challenges and goals within the greater reality of their field or environment.

Look for resources that include project time tracking in a wide spectrum of articles, news releases and timely announcements about how outside factors affect your projects, and what you can do about it. Learn about best practices to boost your project handling skills, and stay informed about what's going on around you. Managers may look to online news sources for:

1. Guidance on how to stay afloat when outside factors and a bloated project time combine to threaten the solvency of a particular action plan.

2. Help on how to use tools like project time tracking and billing software to the advantage of a company.

3. More on what's new within the project management industry and what others are doing to maximize efficiency, boost profits, and deliver projects on time, every time.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Look for broad spectrum resources on project time tracking from news forums

Lots of online resources help busy project managers find quick insights into ways to control project times, inventory billable hours and show that despite abstractions and other challenges, there is a way to stay on top of metering and rationing project time.

I recommend: Get eNews, updates and more from PM Toolbox, helping project managers get the latest scoop on developments in the industry. Your free subscription to PM Forum will likewise help fill you in on what's going on in the world of project time tracking and management.

Find news on project time tracking software

Software is a big tool for those who want to track billable hours on a project. You can find breaking news and insight into how a project tracking application helps accomplish these goals from online sites dealing in or dealing with project time tracking software tools.

I recommend: One resource for the issue of project time tracking is the blog at 1 Time Tracking where the company talks about new features in project time tracking software they produce. You can buy or just get a feel for what's out there at the site. For more, try the Buyer's Guide to Project Time Tracking Software from new media group Articles.DirectoryM.net.

Find more time tracking solutions and tips from project management associations

Large groups that bring project managers together also have their own resources. You can subscribe to briefs or bulletins or continue monitoring these sites for other tools you can use to remain knowledgeable about how project time billing gets done.

I recommend: At the Project Management Institute, readers can get help with different aspects of project time tracking and overall management. One focus of this site is how government action and financial realities impact project managers and this can be a great resource for looking at breaking news and trends. Look for more in new ideas and news from American Management Association online.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Combine project time tracking news and trends with you own ingenuity in billable hours tracking and solutions for project time tracking. The various tools managers use for controlling projects are just that: tools. The dependability of staff and the control you exercise are x factors that make or break any project deadline or budget.

Whether your projects are big or small, your business should have a way to efficiently and accurately track time and bill clients. Most firms rely on software to get the job done accurately. Whatever you choose, remember that when you streamline your company's time and billing practices, the end result is an increased cash flow and a better bottom line.

The top three things you should do to track and bill for your company's projects are:

1. Make and follow a To-Do List.
2. Track times using the best computer resources and software.
3. Analyze time expenditures against your company's goals and priorities.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Tackle the to-do list

The to-do list is vital for any project, especially those with multiple parts. This sets forth all tasks – big and small – to be completed, and lets you and your employees work on one item at a time, so nothing slips through the cracks.

I recommend: Check out TimeTiger, a 'one-click,' Web-based time and project tracking system with many benefits, including a track-as-you-work system. There's a free trial download.

Use the top tracking software

Tracking and billing time manually on a project is difficult for even the most organized business. Instead, look to specially designed software to tackle the job for you.

I recommend: One great solution is BillQuick Software - you choose the best version, add-ons, and pricing for your company. The software comes with over 400 invoices and reports. Order their Free Evaluation CD to see if this software will work for you.

Track time and expenses

Check out the various software choices available for project tracking and billing, rather than choosing the first one you find. Look for software that is customizable or small business-focused.

I recommend: Netsuite Small Business can track and process job and customer-related expenses with a single click. Remote employees can track/bill projects from their off-site locations, allowing for quicker cash collection.

Analyze time and billing to estimate future project success

During and after a project is completed, take a close look at how you and your employees used your time and whether this project (and this client) was profitable for your company. Was this project and its time/profitability in keeping with your company's goals?

I recommend: Activity & Expense Tracker includes detailed invoices and reports, and offers a free 10-day trial. Visit Timewatch for scheduling and project management solutions that include tracking and billing projects for your telecommuting and traveling employees.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Customize: Look for customizable tracking and billing resources.
• •  Delegate: Whenever possible, to your employees.
• •  Outsource: If you're running solo, outsource some work to free time up for the tasks you, the business owner, must handle.
• •  Just Say 'No': Be choosy in the projects you accept – do not bother with those that drain workplace productivity.
• •  Bill incrementally: Want to improve your cash flow? Then bill at project landmarks or specified time increments for larger projects.

One critical factor in project management is project time tracking solutions. Project inflation or out-of-control time factors can sink a project of nearly any size. That's why professional managers and business leaders are going back to school to get certified in project time tracking and other aspects that are generally categorized under project management.

Comprehensive project management programs from educational and instructional companies offer students the tools they need to take control of any ramp-ups for a business, whether they are in the role of co-owner, project manager or multi-line administrator. Managers involved in beefing up their credentials might seek out these programs:

1. For certification that will show that the person has been proficient in making project time tracking and billing. decisions or learning skill sets for handling time tracking issues

2. For getting to know more about the nuts and bolts of real life project time billing and appraisal.

3. To comply with goals within a corporate structure for continual process improvement overall.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Get project time tracking certified from online universities

A whole host of schools around the country have gone online to offer programs in fields like project management. Find the course that fits your needs.

I recommend: Project management certification from Villanova University online will get a student competent in the core factor of time tracking, as well as the rest of the basic tenets of keeping projects feasible. Find more project management and other business courses at University of Phoenix online.

Find other e-learning companies offering project time tracking solutions including certification

It's not just e-universities that help managers get competent in project management. There are a lot of other institutions you can turn to for courses and programs in understanding or getting certified in aspects of project management.

I recommend: The Striumph Learning offers training for those wanting to learn more about project time tracking software, resources and skill sets. Get certified in project management factor like time tracking from programs at World Wide Learn online.

Find companies offering project time tracking as part of a diversified service strategy

For lots of training and instructional companies, services go far beyond any one corner of the project management field. Look for easy lists of courses and programs from management training firms to pick out offerings you feel will truly boost your professional credibility.

I recommend: Executive coaching is just one part of what Performance Change Initiatives deliver to struggling businesses. Any time you feel a project is off kilter, talk to reps about how PCI can step in to help handle project factors. Another project time management firm, 4PM, offers a range of courses for bettering overall understanding of billable hours tracking and other functional administrative aspects.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  To find a project time tracking solution or skill set, or in learning a project time tracking system, think about what scope you want to apply your learning to. The industry, type of project, and organizational structure you work in have a direct effect on how you will approach challenges.

All businesses tackle a number of projects in order to maintain efficiency in the workplace and create new ways to serve customers. Projects need to be managed for tracking time and billing. This can be done with many different time tracking solutions, including time cards, task lists and various progress reports. Effective project time tracking enables a business to keep employees on task and working toward meeting project goals for fast and successful results.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Attendance management

Attendance management is the process of managing the presence of employees in the work place. This helps to determine ways to reduce losses due to employee downtime.

I recommend: Benefits Interface gives an overview of attendance management, what causes employee absenteeism and how attendance management works to reduce unnecessary absenteeism.

Billable hours

Billable hours is a process of time tracking for employees that have no set hours. The use of billable hours is common use for lawyers, consultants and other professional services.

I recommend: Replicon provides information on tracking and invoicing billable hours to make professionals using this system more accountable for the work they do.

Electronic time sheet

An electronic time sheet is a system of time tracking for employees and specific projects. Instead of using traditional time cards, an electronic time sheet is a software program that records all necessary information such as time in/time out, price per hour and other information about the project.

I recommend: Electronic time sheets can be created through traditional spreadsheet programs, such as Microsoft Excel, or a company can use electronic time sheet software, such as Standard Time, for additional project management features.

Project costing

Project costing is one element of project time tracking. Project cost management helps to regulate the cost of employees and the cost of the project as a whole.

I recommend: Entrepreneur Magazine provides tips on how to keep projects profitable using project costing systems.

Task

A task is a specific job assigned to one or more employees working on a project. Many project time tracking systems use a task scheduler to track the time an employee spends working on a project.

I recommend: The California Polytechnical Institute provides a manual on project management that includes information on assigning and tracking tasks throughout a single project.

Expense report

An expense report is a single report that includes all of the purchases and money paid out while an employee is working on a project.

I recommend: Expense Report Forms provides an example of a common expense report an employee would submit for expenses while working on a project.