Streamlining project management using Internet technology

Streamlining project management using Internet technology

Introduction

How many companies are using the Internet's full potential as an organizational tool?

The Internet has grown in a short space of time from a specialized network used mainly by academics into a business tool that companies use for gathering customer information, direct selling, and advertising. But how many of these companies are using its full potential as an organizational tool? According to IBM's statistics, very few companies that maintain a presence on the Internet through corporate web sites are actually using the technology to change and improve the way they do business. And yet the Internet offers companies the chance to make improvements in many areas, from reducing long-distance telephone charges to linking thousands of employees together in a corporate intranet, where they can store, access, and share information quickly and easily.

Project managers are always under pressure to reduce the length of time it takes for a team to produce results. By effective use of Internet facilities like e-mail, videoconferencing, and internal web sites, you can communicate with your team more efficiently, even if your team members are in another country.

Creating virtual teams using an intranet

Intranets give employees instant access to information from anywhere in the world

Intranets are the fastest-growing area of internetworking technology. They are, in effect, private internets that companies build and maintain in order to give employees instant access to information from anywhere in the world. They are protected by firewalls, which prevent unauthorized access. Because all employees can access intranets in the same way as they access the Internet, you can use them to communicate with employees on the other side of the globe. With an intranet, you can create a virtual team for your project, made up of company employees who could be communicating from any one of your company's locations, or from home. With your company's intranet, your team members can access and share project-related information 24 hours a day.

Sending documents

Intranets simplify the transfer of large documents, such as spreadsheets, plans, or bulky manuals. Instead of sending the physical documents by post or courier, or even e-mailing them to each member of the team individually, you can simply put them on the intranet, where each member of the team can access them simultaneously. You don't need to worry that people's mail files will fill up with unnecessary information, or that important documents might not reach their destination. By cutting down the time it takes to distribute project-related information, you can reduce the time it takes to act on it. It also means that any reports or results your team produces from the project can be accessed by anyone in the company who needs them.

Procurement

You can also use the Internet to send and receive official documents as part of the procurement process. Once the tendering or solicitation process is complete, you can set up an Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) system to exchange invoices and order forms between selected suppliers over the Internet. This is particularly useful where projects are very large and have time scales of several years. This process is frequently used in large-scale government-sponsored projects.

Videoconferencing

Using the Internet, you can schedule virtual meetings with your team

Internet Protocol (IP), the networking protocol that drives the Internet, is versatile enough to accept text, graphics, voice, or video transmissions over a network connection. This allows you to schedule virtual meetings with your team where you can exchange ideas and information without the expense of flights, accommodation, or even long-distance telephone charges.

You don't even need an intranet to make use of videoconferencing, as long as everyone taking part in the conference has an Internet connection and the right software. Even basic videoconferencing software allows you to conduct meetings in almost the same atmosphere as face-to-face communication, and you can share any documents that you have on your hard disk with the person on the other end of the line, so there's no holdup if you don't happen to have the right papers to hand. Decisions can be taken quickly, because there's no need to fax or deliver extra papers after the meeting. Any necessary changes can be made online, and you can reach an agreement immediately.

Security considerations

Any information that's transmitted over an internetwork is vulnerable unless you have security software in place to protect it. Intranets are protected by firewalls, and you can use data encryption technology to protect any documents that you send to individuals. You can also use digital signing techniques to prove that documents originated from an authorized source. This software can validate any document that you send electronically, eliminating the need for paper copies with signatures. As well as reducing the amount of paper you use, it also cuts down the time it takes for authorized decisions to circulate within your team.

Conclusion

Most of the changes that Internet technology can bring to project management are changes in method rather than practice

Many companies resist change because it can be expensive, and it doesn't always mean improvement. But most of the changes that Internet technology can bring to project management are changes in method rather than practice. The traditional practice of creating a team to work on a project, producing results, and having these results approved and acted on is still in place. What changes with intranets, e-mail, and videoconferencing is the time and effort it takes to achieve the results. Team members can communicate quickly and effectively, and any changes that your company makes as a result of their efforts can be implemented more quickly and efficiently.