nTask - Collaboration and Project Management

Story taken from the nTask Blog — New in Slack Project Management: nTask for Slack is here!

The pyramids are one of the wonders of the world — magnificent and complicated. Archeologists still argue how the Egyptians managed to build such a masterpiece.

How about the Great Wall of China? The Emperor had employed millions of people in its construction: soldiers, common people, and criminals.

The emperor sure did know how to make the most of his resources. Something only a great project manager could do — would do — should do. You decide.

Today, each one of us is a project manager. We might not pay attention towards it, but even our smallest chores need proper project management and some of us have mastered the skill of it, because we are all responsible for things to be done — and mostly these things work like milestones for the bigger bricks.

Project Management and Multitasking

Each era has witnessed its own state of project management techniques evolving over time.

In today’s digital world, there are many apps for getting through the work day. Internet offers a plethora of platforms for team communication, task management, and email coordination, all pertaining to your needs.

These platforms have further streamlined multitasking. The ability to do multiple things at the same time is now no big deal. Working on multiple applications for work and personal needs is now considered a usual thing. Unfortunately, statistics don’t give a happy number regarding people that are actually proficient at it: only 2%.

On one hand, everything seems defined. You know which app is for what. On the other, a number of apps opened at the same time can get confusing and constant juggling between apps can result in mental exhaustion. After all, we’re all humans at the end of the day!

Switching between apps also results in wastage of time. Unfortunately, as much as 40% of productivity is lost just by task switching.

Technology Integrated

Luckily for us, technology has solved this matter, too.

How? One word: Integrations.

Instead of using multiple tools for different purposes at one time, you can integrate them into one and get more work done in less time.

Instead of allocating a task in one app and exchanging information in another, you can do both by combining the apps in one shared view. That’s exactly what the newest update of nTask is all about!

If you’re already using nTask or Slack, or both, your work life got a whole lot easier, because nTask can now be integrated with Slack for easy updating and monitoring of projects. Yes, you heard that right! Slack project management through nTask is now just a few clicks away from you.

Sounds productive, no?

Read on to find what exactly are we talking about.

nTask + Slack = Awesomeness!

Before moving forward to how nTask works with Slack and vice versa, let’s have a quick glance at what exactly Slack is.

Slack is a collaboration tool that makes communication among organization members easy and streamlined. It consists of multiple workspaces for teams to communicate effectively and get things done faster by safe file transfers.

It’s only been a year since this team messaging app came into existence but it’s already taking over the world.

There are about six million daily active users (up from four million in October 2016) with over half of Slack users in 100 countries outside of the United States.

With such a massive number of users around the world, nTask is giving a great platform for achieving successful project management through the integration of nTask account with Slack.

Why use nTask for Slack Project Management?

One sentence; nTask for Slack makes task management effortless for you.

nTask for Slack increases user convenience in a way that your team doesn’t have to manually check updates in nTask. Add a new project or change information for existing ones in nTask, and it’ll automatically get updated in the linked Slack channels.

You can link and unlink the tasks with the Slack channel individually too, if you wish.

For your assistance, let’s take an example here; you want to set up a meeting, but you’re not sure what time suits the team? Initiate a meeting call in nTask and ask them to review the timings, all through the messages appearing on Slack. Or, just tell the team to be there at the time you decide! You’re the boss.

Your team can now give their feedback without manually switching over apps. The integration gives users the ability to achieve successful Slack project management by using the advanced features of nTask to create and manage projects, all through one platform.

There is no complicated procedure to go onboard with the integration. Simply follow this step-by-step guide to get started. Your increased productivity journey just began!

See how simple the entire process of integrating both the applications is?

So, what’s in it for Project Managers?

If you haven’t gotten the gist of above-mentioned update and are new to our space, read on to find more about what exactly nTask is and how it works for your project management needs.

A project management application that lets you manage tasks while being connected to your team for efficient communication. All by itself. Well, with the help of a few clicks.

A task management software, primarily, that helps you manage your projects by breaking them down into tasks and subtasks and lets you assign resources. Coming with the additional features of managing issues and risks, nTask gives great liberty for effectively managing all critical aspects of the project, without threatening the lifecycle of a project.

Plus, you get to collaborate with your team and track your tasks absolutely free. Forever. All in all, it makes task management a dream, while facilitating integration with other applications (like, Slack) too. Apart from all the other amazing things you can do with the smart features of nTask, you get to implement Slack project management too!

Find out more about the application and its uses here.

In a nutshell

We’re all geared up to explore exciting new ways nTask can be used for Slack and what kind of impact would it make on the overall productivity levels of teams.

If you’re using nTask, now it’s your turn to communicate with your team members using nTask for Slack and increase your output.

Blog taken from the nTask Blog — 5 of the Best Free Monday Alternatives (formerly DaPulse)

Monday.com, formerly known as DaPulse, has been around the project management block for quite some time. Bagging some major clients including Fiverr, Discovery, McDonald’s and more, Monday has surely made its mark as a great productivity and project management tool, with over 10 years of history.

Monday is a project management tool with a multitude of features for team management and project delivery. So, why do we need alternatives?

Like each entity present on the surface of the earth, this tool, too, is not perfect. It’s not exactly a one-size-fits-all solution. For instance, here are some of the basic features it lacks:

No Gantt Charts

Yes, you read that right. Monday does not believe in Gantt charts. In fact, they have an entire blog on why they pride in offering a tool that does not include Gantt charts. It’s sad but if you’re looking for a Gantt chart software in a project management tool, Monday will be a no-go for you.

Pricing vs. Features

With so many tools that offer a vast feature set for reasonable prices, Monday seems to lag behind in competitive pricing. The preliminary package costs $25 per month for features other tools offer in less than one-third of the price.

Recurring Tasks

Monday does not have an inbuilt module for scheduling recurring tasks. Teams often need to work with certain types of tasks on a daily level. It can be monotonous setting a schedule every day and many tools allow one-time scheduling for such tasks.

Time Tracking

As with recurring tasks, Monday does not even have its own time tracking feature. You need to make use of third-party integrations to implement it.

So, here is a list of top Monday alternatives you can avail today resulting in an equal or even higher level of user satisfaction and team productivity.

1.nTask

First up on our list of free Monday alternatives is nTask. A project management and team collaboration tool, nTask caters to teams from numerous industries with varying work patterns. nTask has a clean interface and very intuitive to learn.

With efficient modules placed neatly on the side, it helps you work with tasks, projects, meetings, timesheets, risks, and issues with ease while managing multiple workspaces simultaneously.

Key Features

Check out the following robust set of features you can make use of with nTask:

Comprehensive task management that allows you to structure your work through task creation, organization, prioritizing, assigning and sharing. You can schedule tasks on a one-time and recurring basis. You can either create projects, associate tasks or treat tasks independently. Plus, you can switch tasks between projects, which makes it easier to improvise along the way.

By integrating with Slack, you can create tasks and projects during discussions with team members as well as send updates from nTask to Slack conversations relevant to tasks and projects.

Efficient project management through timelines, percent-complete tracking, Gantt charts, efficient reporting, and resource allocation.

Track time for each task individually for better task planning.

Through the timesheet management module, employees can list down the hours spent on tasks and shows the cost incurred per resource. You can manage employee task efforts and payroll with this dedicated module.

A complete meeting management module for scheduling meetings. You can schedule meetings as one-time or recurring with sending invites to attendees, adding timing and location details as well as adding follow-up tasks and decisions.

The issue management feature helps you easily track issues through listing them down with multiple statuses and assigning an issue owner.

Identify potential risks through the risk management module. You can list down the risks assigned to a risk owner and with multiple statuses.

Send alerts, notifications, and reminders to keep teams on track.

iOS and Android mobile apps

Pricing

Free — 5 workspaces, 200 MB storage, up to 10 team members

Pro — $2.99 Unlimited members, Pay-as-you-grow, unlimited tasks and projects

Rating: 4.7/5 — nTask is the perfect choice for small teams and solopreneurs.

2.Hygger

With Hygger, you get a free Monday alternative that offers team and project management, all the while catering to popular Agile frameworks.

With Hygger, you can effectively implement Agile practices through Scrum and Kanbanboards. You can also combine both the approaches to customize the way you keep track of your team and projects.

You can avail a spectrum of features dealing with task and project management, time tracking, issue management, and customer feedback.

Key Features

Get to work with the following capabilities with Hygger:

Task and project management through Scrum and Kanban boards. Through Swimlanes or Labels, you can organize tasks on your boards. Plus, you can identify and tackle potential issues via visible bottlenecks.

Time tracking and estimation for tasks through hours, log time it took to complete a task and the hours logged and hours estimated ratio.

Project reporting through Gantt charts, percent complete tracking, milestone tracking, Burndown report for Scrum and Cycle Time for Kanban real-time monitoring.

Ideas storage and scoring

Ability to create roadmaps and share with teams

Time and expense tracking for accounting and payroll

Release management

iOS and Android mobile apps

Pricing

Free— Free forever, no strings attached.

Paid — $9.00per user/month, unlimited everything

Rating: 4.5/5 — A great collaboration tool for teams.

3. Allthings

Allthings is a Kanban based tool for project management and team collaboration. This is one of those free Monday alternatives that help you organize and monitor your work via a neat interface using drag and drop.

View tasks, status updates, send notifications, share lists and track time for efficient project planning and coordination. Plus, with Hygger, you can add your own custom fields to have more control on the way you steer your projects.

Key Features

Allthings allows you to make use of the following feature list:

Task management including creating, organizing, prioritizing and sharing tasks and to-do lists. You can set deadlines for one-time as well as recurring tasks.

Project management options including daily email of work summary and highlighted deadlines to stay on time.

Time tracking for tasks and estimation of time spent.

Comments and file attachments for added information.

Capacity and resource planning

Customization of fields

Group collaboration tool

Mobile apps for Android, iOS and Windows Phone

Multi-platform

Kanban boards

iOS and Android mobile apps

Pricing

Free — 30-day trial, no strings attached

Pro and Team plans — $3.99, unlimited everything

Rating: 4.2/5 — Great for teams and individuals.

4.Avaza

Another tool that makes it to our list of free Monday alternatives is Avaza.

Avaza covers project management from the very beginning i.e. customer quotations and to the very end, i.e customer invoicing.

This project management tool is one of our top suggestions as an alternative to Monday. Just like other basic project and team management software, Avaza also allows you to be more responsive to customers using the Questions tab.

You can also share detailed project estimates with potential clients. On approval, these estimates can be converted into a project right away.

Key Features

Task management including group tasks, task views via Kanban, Gantt and List

Project management including project budgeting, Gantt charts, reports, project burn-down charts, and project progress dashboards

Time tracking for tasks

Activity feeds

Comments, file sharing and collaboration

Timesheet entry and payroll management

Online payments (partial payments, PayPal payment integration)

Invoices and online billing

Cloud accounting

Credit notes

Invoice, Quotation and Estimation

Billing and expense management including multi-currency expenses, invoicing, payments, credit notes, and support for split payments across invoices

iOS and Android mobile apps

Pricing

Free — Free forever, no strings attached

Startup — $9.95, great for small teams

Rating: 4.1/5 — Great for teams and individuals.

5.Project Insight

Our 5th pick for free Monday alternatives is Project Insight. Catering to project and portfolio management, avail numerous features through a centralized interface including task and project management, team communication, resource management, expense estimation and more.

Plus, you can customize themes, labels, and fields as required.

Key Features

Here are key project planning features you can avail with Project Insight:

Task management including customization for fields, forms and other elements.

Project management including project dashboard reports, Gantt charts, status updates, project budgeting, reporting and scheduling.

Time tracking

Team collaboration and discussion channel

Cross-project resource allocation

Resource management

Expense assessment and management including Budgeting and costing

Capacity planner for resource management

Workflow and approvals

Pricing

Free — Basic functionality. Free forever.

Business — $45.00, unlimited everything

Rating: 3.8/5 — Great for teams and individuals.

Story taken from the nTask Blog 7 Productive Things to Do When Bored

Time and again we find ourselves sitting at our workstations, waiting for a task review, the next job to be assigned or just waiting for the feedback for our new proposal.

Although the slot may not quite the time to go for a leisurely walk or grab a coffee with your team, it is a significant chunk of time that could be used to do something constructive than sitting idle. To begin with, it wastes precious company time.

Did you know that according to a recent study by the University of Texas researchers, idle time can cost employers USD 1 billion per annum?

Plus, it also costs the employees — in terms of productivity. A study by Gallupstates that employees who exercise their strengths daily are 8% more productive and 6 times more likely to be engaged than those who don’t.

This highlights the importance of keeping yourself occupied as much as possible. The value of taking a break and having some rest can never be undermined as long as it makes you feel re-energized and boosts your morale to get on with the day. However, staying idle with nothing to do on a regular basis is synonymous to setting yourself up for failure — in the long run.

In this blog, we bring forth some interesting and other not so interesting activities. However, all of these will not only kill time but also prove to be very productive and fruitful to your professional and personal growth. Plus, you can do these activities at any hour of any day.

1. Brush up on your skills

We invest a lot of time in skilling up and gathering knowledge when we set out to land a career track. However, somewhere between the work hours and the daydreaming for getting home faster to make time for more sleep, our skills start rusting.

Instead, we begin filing orders, calling customers and crunching numbers as reflexes without giving much thought or attention to adding creativity and newness to our daily tasks. This seemingly harmless daily boredom at work may lead to ultimately losing all your interest at the workplace. This, in turn, takes a toll on your productivity.

Instead of gazing into the screen wondering about productive things to do when you have free time on your hands, try to revisit your skills and hone them. Research into the latest developments in customer dealing, app development, writing or whatever your niche may be, and work on your skillset to continue shining in the long run.

2. Learn a new language

If you think you’re good to go with your professional skill set or want to look into a new arena that will take you away from your regular workday, how about learning a new language?

Ok, so you don’t feel the need to use another language at work or at home. But did you know that having multiple languages listed on your resume can boost your chances or career growth exponentially? In fact, according to the language experts at LearnALanguageOnline.net, professionals that are fluent in a second language can earn up to 10 to 15 percent more than there monolingual counterparts.

Plus, it also gives you a chance to discover new areas professionally such as working in organizations that need translators or have customers pertaining to different geographical locations speaking various languages. Also, languages always help.

Whether you are planning to travel to a new location and want to discover more by communicating with the locals or you would like to be more approachable to the subordinates that may not have the same first language as yours.

With so many free videos and text tutorials to choose from, take your pick at your pace, and begin on the journey of discovering a whole new language.

3. Download and use productivity apps

There are countless apps floating the internet that help you with workplace tasks, personal organization, and team productivity.

Research about the top apps suitable for your personal or professional needs, that are easy to use, lightweight on your device and that help you stay pretty much on top of your game.

If you are looking for productive things to do in your idle time, these apps can help you organize and prioritize your work, stay on track through timely reminders or just get handy tips to use your time better.

There are even apps that help you work with family, friends and professional teams to get shared tasks completed on time. To make your search for the best to-do list app easy, head on to our blog with handpicked top to-do list apps.

4. Listen to productivity podcasts

If you are more of a listener than a hands-on person, listening to a productivity podcast may be one of the productive things to do when you have time on your hands.

The best thing about these podcasts is that you can listen to them taking a break, driving to your next meeting or commuting to work in public transport. You don’t need to be sitting in a specific environment or spend money.

Ranging from a couple of minutes to hours, you can choose to listen to any podcast of any category and of any duration depending on the time you have.

From famous book authors, inspiring celebrities and everyday individuals each hosting a unique tale about accomplishments and overcoming obstacles, handy tips and tricks for your career and life hacks, you are guaranteed to have something useful just right for you.

So next time you are looking for things to do when bored, the only thing you need to do is just grab your headphones and switch on one of the numerous productivity podcasts out there. The audio file will do the rest. Need help? Check out our top productivity podcasts you can listen to any time, any day.

5. De-clutter your inbox

If you look at just a few of the statistics pertaining to email usage, you would realize how it has taken over an immense portion of our daily, productive time. For instance,

A study by UC Irvine and the U.S. Army found that limiting email access dramatically reduces stress levels

According to The McKinsey Global Institute, an average employee spends 13 hours a week reading and responding to email. That is about 28% of our work time, which equates to 650 hours per year spent on entirely low-value work.

According to SaneBox’s internal data, the average inbox contains only 38% important, relevant emails.

Need we say more? Email de-cluttering can be, by far, one of the most productive things to do in your free time.

Set up a reminder with sticky notes on your desk or where you can see it, get down to cleaning your inbox and make your life easier and more productive. Need some tips? Check out a number of ways this blog can help you achieve an optimized inbox.

6. Plan the task ahead

One of the best ways you can make use of your free time and shine at work is by planning your next task.

It may not exactly sound like a fun idea when looking for things to do when bored but if you know there is a task in the pipeline that may need extra attention or homework before you get down to it, now may be the best time to do so.

Waiting till the task is just about to begin can be overwhelming, particularly if you are aware of the complexity and the potential late night sittings the project would be waiting.

Go ahead brainstorm the options, try coming up with a roadmap and make a list of professionals and tools that may be required on the way. It doesn’t hurt to track down colleagues that may have carried out similar tasks and try to get some advice from them.

Plus, there are numerous task management and project planning tools out there. Along with productivity apps, you may want to have a look at some top project planning tools right here.

7. Read

Whether you are into fiction or non-fiction, read up when you are not sure about what other productive things to do. Non-fiction such as how-to articles, daily newsletter, and community page can help you stay aware of your surroundings.

However, do not underestimate the benefits of non-fiction either. According to research at Emory University, reading non-fiction can help the brain function better and boost its connectivity.

Another study suggests that people who engage their brains through activities such as reading, chess, or puzzles may be 2.5 times less prone to developing Alzheimer’s disease than those who don’t.

So next time you go shopping, be sure to stop by a bookstore and grab your favorite comics or novels and keep them on your desk. Plus, you can just look up recommendations for books online through so many sites that introduce read-worthy books, offer book reviews and buying details.

Story taken from the nTask Blog 5 Common Project Management Challenges and Solutions to Tackle Them like a Pro

Project management is a comprehensive and complex field of work that requires extensive practice, skills, knowledge, and expertise. Despite the plethora of resources, certifications and expert advice available today, project management continues to hold its place as one of the most challenging professions.

A study by Gallup shows a staggering fact that only 2.5% of companies successfully complete 100% of their projects. The reasons behind this phenomenon can be many and although frameworks such as agile project management have streamlined this field to a huge extent, project managers continue facing issues and roadblocks on a daily basis.

Did you know, according to a research by PMI, for every $1B invested in the US, $122M was wasted due to lacking project planning and performance?

Each project is unique with reference to the scope, objectives or client requirements, and there is no common template to ease the project development lifecycle. Although, the problems each project faces may be different, there are some issues that are stumbled upon more commonly than others.

Based on research and findings by research giants, such as PMI, Gallup, Deloitte, Gartner, LiquidPlanner and more, here is a list of the 5 project management challenges commonly faced by project managers and Agile teams.

Unclear Goals

A study by PMI shows that 37% of project failures are due to a lack of clearly defined objectives and milestones to measure progress.

The process of setting both short-term and long-term goals for a project needs to be efficient and well thought of. The absence of unclearly defined goals does not only pave way for unnecessary confusion and miscommunication but also may lead to missing important milestones.

Milestones help measure your team and project progress. Without having a properly defined set of goals in hand, a project manager is bound to lose track of where the project is going in terms of cost and time. An efficient way to tackle this is to follow the SMART rules for goal setting.

Inadequate Communication

According to Deloitte, 32% of professionals cite inadequate communications as one of the biggest barriers to successful technology implementation.

It is no secret that miscommunication or lack of communication can have a dire impact on any project and team collaboration. When it comes to project management specifically, communication needs to be timely and transparent.

Be it a one-on-one discussion, daily scrum or weekly sprints, the team needs to be at par with exactly where the project lies and everything that comes with it including issues, prevailing risks and customer requirements.

According to PMI, for every $1 billion spent on a project, organization risk $135 million. Furthermore, another research indicates that about 56% of this expense ($75 million of that $135 million) is put at risk due to ineffective communications.

Misestimating Expenses

One of the most common project management challenges is the failure to estimate expenses correctly. Did you know that a study by Liquid Planner presented the finding that managing project costs were the principal problem faced by manufacturing project managers in 2017 (49.5%)?

Cost misestimating can lead to staggering complications in any project development lifecycle. A project revolves around numerous entities, each incurring a significant amount of expense, such as equipment, software, human resources, consultation, and other unplanned overhead costs.

It is no wonder that according to a study by Deloitte, 22% of professionals consider budgeting issues as a leading roadblock to project implementations. For this reason, it is absolutely critical to adopt a project management tool that can efficiently calculate, project and help you monitor project costs along the way.

Risk Mismanagement

Poor risk management is one of the most common project management challenges. According to James Lam in Enterprise Risk Management: From Incentives to Controls,strategic risks account for about 60 percent of major turndowns in market capitalization. He also added that operational risks contribute to 30 percent and financial risks about 10 percent to that downfall.

At any level, project managers and teams need be on a constant lookout for potential risks and plan to avoid or mitigate the impact of these risks, altogether. John A. Wheeler, Research Director at Gartner says that only 25% of companies view risk management as an important strategic tool.

This research indicates the dire need to adopt risk management strategies. By having an effective risk management software in place, project management teams and managers can achieve a significant control on the projects through timely risk identification and strategy alignment.

Simon Andras is an Account Executive at Higher Click. Andras advises keeping risks in check so you can take preventive action to avoid it, or you can control it with corrective measures.

Unrealistic Deadlines

A research by Wellingtone indicates that only 37% of teams in the U.K. reported completing projects on time more often than not. Moreover, according to Liquid Planner, meeting deadlines was the second largest issue faced by project managers in manufacturing (45.8%), making it one of the more common project management challenges faced by Agile teams today.

It is normal to have delays in achieving different milestones in a project; however, you can prevent the project from going off track by monitoring the project from the very beginning. It is also important to keep the customers in sync in case sudden customer requests for changes are posing threats to the timely completion of a project.

Timing activities and using Gantt charts can contribute a great deal to helping the team stay on schedule.

Like design, innovation, and IoT, customer experience (CX) is the new buzzword in business circles despite the absence of a clear, commonly-held definition.

The 2017 Digital Marketing Trends Report by Econsultancy and Adobe found that customer experience was identified by companies as the single most exciting opportunity for their organizations in 2017, for the third year in a row.

This emphasis on CX is justifiable, as a better customer experience translates into improved sales.

According to CEI Survey, 86% of customers are willing to pay more for a better customer experience, while 40% will buy more from a company offering great customer experience. According to the White House Office of Consumer Affairs, loyal customers are worth 10 times the amount they initially spent.

The above statistics, combined with the fact that the probability of selling to an existing customer is around 60-70% compared to a 5-20% for a new customer, emphasizes that businesses cannot afford to ignore CX.

The very first few instances of companies focusing on improving customer experience can be dated back to 1894, when the switchboard was invented. The invention of the switchboard allowed companies to establish and even encourage communication between buyers and sellers.

While the importance and essential nature of CX is not disputed, providing it still proves to be challenging for many companies. This is perfectly demonstrated by this quote from Tim Suther, Vice President of Global Multichannel Marketing Services, Acxiom:

“Eighty percent of CEOs believe they offer a superior customer experience; only 8 percent of their customers agree”.

If this surprises and intrigues you, check out the following 10 astonishing facts about CX:

1. CX will become the key brand differentiator by 2020

According to a Walker study, customer experience will overtake price and product as the key brand differentiator by the year 2020. This change is astonishing but reflects the current service-centric shift in customer satisfaction and retention.

2. CX excellence allows companies to outperform competitors

According to Kissmetrics, 98% of respondents said that customer experience was among their top three factors in deciding whether or not to do business with a company. Clearly, modern customers keep CX in mind before making a purchase.

According to Peppers & Rogers Group’s Customer Experience Maturity Monitor, 81% of companies with strong capabilities and competencies for delivering an excellent customer experience outperform their competition.

This is because superior quality service allows companies to add a premium to their price, as they know that their customers are brand loyal.

ALSO READ: How to encourage feedback learning at work

3. Consumers pay more to ensure a superior customer experience

The Customer Experience Impact Report by Harris Interactive found that almost 9 out of 10 U.S. consumers say they would pay more to ensure a superior customer experience. Consistent great service has a direct impact on your product’s valuation and profitability.

In the words of George S. Patton: “Always do more than is required of you.”

4. Customers need quality customer service

American Express Survey found that 67% of customers have hung up the phone out of frustration when they could not talk to a real person. Accenture found that 89% of customers get frustrated because they need to repeat their issues to multiple representatives.

The above statistics show that timely feedback provided by a real and knowledgeable person has a direct impact on customer experience.

5. CX will ultimately eliminate the need for human interaction

According to a research by Centric Digital, by 2020, 85% of a customer’s brand experience will occur without any human interaction.

Through implementation of artificial intelligence, automated CX will help customers find answers and solutions without any human interaction. The process will be swifter and more streamlined. Also, agents and resources can stay more productive while automating routine tasks and customer issues management.

6. Multi-/omni-channel presence will be the driving force

Dialogue Marketing found that 85% of customers find it frustrating when a company’s website is not configured for mobile phone browsing, while an SDL survey showed that 44% of millennials expect the customer experience to be the same regardless of channel.

This should come as no surprise given that an average global digital consumer owns 3.64 connected devices. Customers want and expect consistent and quality customer experience across all the devices that they use daily. Asking consumers to use a different device for a better customer experience is like saying farewell to that customer.

According to Google, users move on to the next website if a website doesn’t load in three seconds. WOW Local Marketing found that 52% of customers are less likely to engage with the company because of a bad mobile experience.

This shows that customers are not afraid of giving your competitors a shot if they find it difficult to assess your brand online.

7. CX can be improved if complaints are quickly resolved

Failure to resolve issues is one of the foremost reasons why brands lose customers. However, complaints and issues are actually hidden opportunities of improvement.

According to the White House Office of Consumer Affairs, for every complaint received, 26 customers do not raise a complaint. CX can only be improved if the unheard complaints of these customers are resolved swiftly.

Lee Resource Inc. found that 95% of customers will do business with you again if you resolve complaints immediately. Thus, customers who didn’t complain will be additionally happy that an issue they faced has resolved itself.

ALSO READ: 6 loopholes in your CX journey and how to address them

8. Self-service adoption is on the rise

The increase in access to information triggered by the internet has made people more pro-active when it comes to solving their issues.

This has given rise to online support communities, official and unofficial, and RightNowfound that 55% of customers love it when they are easily given access to information and support.

This trend is likely to continue. Gartner predicts that by 2020 a customer will manage 85% of the relationship with an enterprise without interacting with a human, making it imperative that the right tools and direction be provided to customers.

9. The purchase process determines sales

Traditional online experience relied heavily on interactions between customers and salespeople. Online sale processes give the false impression that customers do not need support.

According to LivePerson, 83% of the more than 5,000 consumers surveyed said that they consistently needed some type of support during their online shopping.

RightNow found that 89% of shoppers have stopped buying from online stores after they’ve experienced poor customer service; Forrester reports that 45% of U.S. consumers will abandon an online transaction if their questions or concerns are not addressed quickly.

Clearly, customers still need some guidance during the purchasing process, and the quality of customer experience provided to them at the time of purchase determines whether or not they will make the purchase.

10. Customer experience has rippling effects

People talk. They share their experiences with their friends and loved ones. This is why customers are such a great way of promoting your brand.

Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon says, “If you do build a great experience, customers tell each other about that. Word of mouth is very powerful”.

However, this also works against you when CX fails.

According to Google, 13% of dissatisfied customers tell more than 20 people about their experience, while positive experiences are shared with less than half this number.

Within a short span of time, Agile frameworks have proven their worth in the field of project management. Termed as the best-kept management secret on the planet by Steve Denning, the director of the Scrum Alliance, Agile projects are found to be 28% more successful than traditional projects.

With a defined set of rules and roles, an Agile framework not only streamlines the project flow but can also enhance team collaboration. In fact, according to Manny Gonzalez, CEO of the Scrum Alliance, “Agile is now much more than a revolutionary approach to work for the software development industry. It’s transforming a wide variety of industries and specialties from marketing and human resources to financial services”.

Most common Agile implementation practices

The most common practices of Agile have been summarized in the 2017 State of Agile Report. The report was compiled by VersionOne and a summary extract is pictured below.

A simple process by design, the implementation of this framework has been met with different perceptions in different organizations. From defining roles in the existing organizational structure to devising methodologies for managing work flows in different departments, implementing any framework needs time and trial. It is no different for Agile.

In order to make this concept easier to understand and provide ideas for its smooth and swift implementation, here are some tips we have gathered from experts along the way:

Stay flexible

One approach that some organizations adopt is be all in or all out. When it comes to the implementation of any framework, it is usually attempted to be followed by the book. This approach is ineffective.

XBOSoft CEO Phil Lew recommends being flexible with the Agile implementation, working with it according to the pace and requirement of your organization. He believes it should not be implemented out of the box; rather, companies should focus on the purpose – which is the access to feedback.

As long as that purpose is being served, you can be flexible with the sprints, be it two weeks or three.

Keep it clear and documented

Clear communication is key to success in every project development cycle. The same applies to Agile methods.

David Alsbury has over 20 years of experience and serves as the CTO for StartCHURCH. According to Alsbury, clear communication regarding the framework is imperative.

In order for the team to stay in sync with decisions and to avoid confusion, he recommends appropriately documenting stories, which are one-sentence descriptions of work. These stories should be easy to understand and should be followed up on after team meetings.

Lead by example

The management of any organization plays an important role in Agile implementation journey.

A lack of belief in the adopted framework can negatively impact the chances of the framework’s success. For instance, if the upper management does not believe in Scrumand does not take it seriously, it is highly unlikely that scrum will work within that organization in the long run.

That’s what Stijn Van Loo, Development Manager and Product Owner at Netlog, believes. Stijn recommends that the management proactively take part in scrum implementation. This participation will reflect well in the corresponding teams.

Emphasize on training

Change is inevitable, but, with a good strategy, organizations can make change management easy. Adopting a framework or transitioning from an old system to a new one takes time and effort.

Employees strive within the change, which is why it is important to implement it through a systematic approach.

Scott Dunn, CEO of Rocket Nine Solutions, considers training a key element in implementing Agile framework in any organization. These trainings, according to Dunn, should not only be limited to teams but should also include management.

The Agile team needs to be clear about the concept from the beginning for easing its way into the new structure.

The importance of training the management is undeniable, as the management is responsible in implementing the change over the entire organization, in essence developing a culture for long term success.

ALSO READ: The Project Manager’s Guide to Scientific Resource Management

Facilitate, don’t dictate

The role of a Scrum Master is to help streamline the scrum framework by guiding the team. Daniela Field, a technology professional with 10+ years of experience, considers the role of the Scrum Master as one of the core determinants in the project’s success.

According to Field, some Scrum Masters tend to to go off-track and resort to dictating and micro-managing activities. This, in turn, can damage the team confidence, reflects lack of trust and can serve as a potential roadblock in achieving goals.

On the other hand, some Scrum Masters are detached, leading to lack of involvement. This leads to lack of knowledge regarding the team or the project and affects the role as well. Field recommends that the Scrum Master should be approachable, well-updated on the work patterns, and have a clear idea on issue resolution.

Keep it simple

Intricate and complicated projects can consume a great deal of time and make it difficult to not only identify but also tackle potential issues. Field recommends breaking up complex requirements into smaller, more manageable stories that can be iterated over time.

Furthermore, planning is important. There should be well-devised backup plans for all likely issues that could arise. Even if all the issues cannot be resolved at a time, the process should be carried out in a way that allows for simplified monitoring of costs incurred by implementing changes.

ALSO READ: Agile Project Management for Non-Software Projects: You Too Can Be Agile

Use the right tools

Project management tools have made a mark along with the evolution of other project management elements. In fact, according to research by PwC, the use of project management software increases performance and satisfaction.

Depending on the requirements, budget, and ease of use, the perception of the ideal tool varies within each organization. David Alsbury of StartCHURCH believes that investing in good software can be a game-changer.

He endorses project management applications that can help visualize the status of a sprint, such as a Kanban board. This will help the project more streamlined towards successful completion.

Let’s face it: the weekend means party-time for many of us. But when it’s you who has to do the hosting, TGIF can turn into a lot of work and headache.

So, whether you like quiet, intimate affairs or elaborate, Gatsby-esque parties, follow these items religiously and you will never go wrong.

1. Set a date

This seems easy enough, but it can really make or break your party.

Setting the correct date will determine the success of your weekend party. It should be far enough in the future that it allows you ample time to plan, yet not so far away that people simply forget about it.

It should also be noted that the day of the party should not fall near any other holidays. If the holiday is expected immediately after your weekend party date, chances are people will either have already left town or will be rushing around completing last-minute tasks for the holiday.

On the other hand, if your weekend party is scheduled after a holiday, people will be too tired to enjoy themselves.

Or, as Sheldon Cooper would say, “Everyone’ll be partied out”.

2. Lists are your friends

Once you’ve decided on a date, you’ll need to start making a list. Specifically, a list of all the lists you will need to make your party legendary.

Start out with an invitation list to see how large your party will be, taking into considerations such things as the venue.

Once the venue is decided, it is time to decide whether your weekend party will have a theme, so another list is required. Themed parties are all the rage nowadays. They are especially helpful in setting the tone for drinks, foods, music, décor and dress code.

Keeping track of all these lists can become cumbersome, but you can use any free online task management tool to track of all your tasks.

3. Budget like a boss

Hosting a party can be stressful business. Your social standing may depend upon the success of your party, so the temptation to overspend is intense.

Crush that impulse.

Carefully plan your party budget. Cut down on excess expenditures. Can’t afford custom decorations? Make your own. Bargain hunt if you have to, and keep everything within your pocket.

Again, you can use task management software such as nTask to keep track of your budget. Using this software, you can even assign a certain percentage of the budget to each respective category to figure out how you will be spending your money beforehand and where corners need to be cut.

4. Invitations are crucial

Not only do your invitations let people know what, when and where the event is; they also help people identify what kind of party it is going to be.

For example, birthday invitations are colorful and fun, and thus you expect a fun-filled bash.

Bridal shower themes can range from elegant to frivolous, and thus the invitation sets the tone of the event in everyone’s mind.

5. Present a clean front

If you are hosting the party at your place, then clean-up can creep up on you. Most people have the tendency to overlook this important aspect of throwing a successful party.

Chances are that you are so concerned with finalizing all the lists that you shoved cleaning to the back of your mind and now it is staring you in the face.

This being said, there is no need for you to douse your house in antiseptic nor devote whole days to the task. Set aside regular intervals each day to clean small sections of your home. Before you know it, your house will be clean and guest-ready.

6. Study up

Most of us equate having a good time with good food and good company. To make your party a success, you need to study what type of food your guests prefer. Does anyone have allergies? Does anyone only eat vegetarian food? Has one of your friends recently joined the fitness brigade?

Your spread should be lavish enough to accommodate everyone’s preferences without breaking the bank.

7. Expect the unexpected

No matter how much you plan, the unexpected will rise up. Whether it’s in the form of uninvited guests or an unexpected expenditure, it pays to be prepared.

Set aside a portion of your budget for unexpected expenditures and do not touch it. Solicit the help of your responsible friends in making sure they help you deal with whatever crops up.

8. Don’t take on more than you can handle

This is the most important item of them all. While going over and perfecting all the lists, you might end up taking on more than you can handle.

This can happen in many ways. Maybe you made one flower for décor then suddenly your home is covered in flowers and everything else still needs to be done.

Make sure you set realistic expectations for yourself and ask for help if you can’t finish everything on your own. Ask friends or hire a student to cater to lift some of the burden off your shoulders.

9. “Have an ice breaker, why don’t you?”

Your party is likely going to include people from all parts of your life — people who do not necessarily know each other.

For this reason, it is important that you have a strategy in place to encourage people to mix and mingle. Think beforehand which of your friends would pair nicely together.

Do you have a perpetually curious friend? Introduce them to your entomologist friend. Place chairs around the sitting area so people are forced to interact.

10. Stock up

This sounds like a given, but building up your supplies is vital. Whether it’s cleaning supplies or food, make sure you have enough stocked up to face anything.

This little tip will also make sure that you do not spend your last minutes before the party rushing around to gather supplies, instead of getting ready for the party.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise when we find ourselves disagreeing with each other. The world is multifaceted and complex — just when you think you know everything, you find out there’s still more out there to comprehend.

This is why we evolve in the ways we perceive the world. Our opinions differ and evolve over the course of our lives.

Conflict is inevitable, especially in the workplace. We spend as much as 35% of our waking hours at work. Work takes up an enormous part of our daily lives.

For this reason, it is important to make the best of our work environments, and this often means mediating conflicts to maintain peace. Below are a few simple ways to begin doing so.

1. Take prompt action

Avoiding conflict can seem like the best option, especially at workplace — but this is not usually best. The tendency toward avoidance can stem from all kinds of fears including job security, mistrust in the leadership, or simply, not being taken seriously.

Studies show that only 46% of employees claim to trust their managers.

Unfortunately, conflicts don’t dissolve on their own. Sooner or later, if not managed properly or acknowledged, they may even escalate into severe political ramifications.

For this reason, it’s important to take immediate action to resolve a conflict, no matter how trivial it may seem. The sooner you acknowledge it, the better your chances of finding a solution.

Mike Myatt, Chairman of N2Growth, suggests actively seeking out potential areas of conflict and taking necessary measures before they actually become conflicts. This way, if a disagreement does sprout up, you will be completely prepared.

2. Listen and understand

Another of the most important ways to mediate conflict is to communicate effectively.

When you think of conflict, the basic picture that comes to mind is of two people speaking at the same time and neither listening to the other. In such events, people are so keen on imposing their own ideas that they undermine other parties by not listening.

This leads to a build-up of a tension, which only grows worse without proper intervention.

It is important to learn to stay calm and listen. Research has shown that, just by hearing out a different point of view, you may be able to completely revert tensions.

Listening also helps to understand your own ideas in light of a new perspective. Even if you stick to your opinion, it is probable that you will be able to look at it from a different angle and better understand your own thought processes.

3. Be impartial

No matter your personal opinion, keep an impartial demeanor during conflict resolution.

Stating your observations about a conflict early on in a conversation can come across as choosing sides. Instead, encourage all parties to communicate their concerns and have them listen to each other.

By being unbiased, you can gain trust as a problem-solver, and your coworkers may be more willing to share their concerns with you.

Be the moderator and encourage the group to engage in a constructive discussion. By helping them communicate their problems with a structured approach, they may be able to resolve issues on their own without the need for intervention.

4. Focus on value

Every cloud has a silver lining. Encourage your team to focus on the positive side of a disagreement without letting negative emotions consume them.

During disputes, human beings tend to let their negative emotions, such as anger, take over. This clouds our ability to make sound judgments and highlights weakness in sustaining a professional front.

Lianne Lyne, of PLP Coaching, LLC, suggests helping your team to assess their actual intent to have the conversation. Moreover, you can encourage them to take a different perspective on the conversation.

5. Encourage a “pick your battles” mentality

Open and honest communication is always the first route to take. However, the perceptions of problem severity vary from person to person. And, sometimes, it is better to not waste time on issues that can be let go.

Amongst the numerous disagreements that are bound to happen on a daily basis, it is wise to only fight for those that are actually worth it.

This can also avoid unnecessary political battles, which can immensely impact employee productivity.

Ask questions such as “how important is this issue for me?” or “is this important enough for me to spend time on it?”.

This will help your team prioritize their problems.

If letting go is a healthier option, choose that. If the issue is important enough, your team will most likely opt for communication and resolution.

How do you manage conflict in your workplace? Share your tips with us in the comments below.