1. Project Management Checklist for Small Businesses
A project is any kind of activity that is associated with your business which has a clear beginning
and end within a stipulated budget and time. Now the question is who will manage the projects?
If the business is a one-man show, do you have the required skills to manage a project? If you are
an entrepreneur, managing a group of people, does any one of them have the project
management (project plan software) skills to save time, reduce cost and maximize profits? If
your answer is affirmative, you are already ahead of the curve. If not, don’t fret. With online
project management tools like Apptivo’s Projects App, you can easily plan and manage a project.
What is Project Management
Project management is the art of completing a project effectively and efficiently by applying
knowledge, skills and techniques. Project management helps improve the performance of an
organization or business, irrespective of its size.
One of the major mistakes that many small business owners and freelancers make is that they
do not develop a process or system for their projects because they feel project management is
not for them. It is important for you to understand that whether your small business is a one-
man show or consists of a small team, you need to standardize your processes, systems and
approach to complete your projects on time. Why small business owners and freelancers need
project management gives you an insight into importance of project management.
Project Management Checklist
 Know your Business Drivers. This is important because it is likely to help to recognize
areas where the project management techniques can be applied first.
 Simple is best. When you are implementing the project management techniques for the first
time, choose an approach that is simple to follow. If you are using an approach that is already
proven, it makes things less complicated.
© 2011 Apptivo Inc. All rights reserved.

2.  Get employees involved. Teach project management skills to your team members. Not only
will this ensure that a project will be a success, this added skill will improver their value to
your organization and business.
 Test before you invest. Before you invest in a project management tool, test to make sure it
works well for your business. Find out if it is easy-to-use, will provide expected return-on-
investment in terms of money as well as time. Use a project management tool that will
benefit you in the long run. Always choose an application that can handle multiple projects,
can be accessed from anywhere and has plenty of support.
Want a FREE Project Management tool? Check out Apptivo’s Project Management
It is time we realize that project management is as important for small businesses as for the
medium or the big ones. It is not the size of the business that matters but the effectiveness and
efficiency with which you run your projects. Ultimately, it’s all about working smart.
Maya Pillai is passionate about helping small businesses and professionals. She is a blogger
for Apptivo's Small Business University
© 2011 Apptivo Inc. All rights reserved.