Google Project Management? Is There Such a Thing?

But, What About Project Management?

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Is there a tool or an app built by Google that is used to manage projects? Short answer: no.

It’s a fact: many project managers assume that, because it’s so popular, Google has its own project management tool. But it doesn’t. At least not a specialized app. Some people turn to Google Sheets when they need to create simple Gantt charts by enrolling tasks and deadlines. But the truth is, managing projects require several different things, such as being able to identify and mitigate risk, keep track of hours and resources, collaborate with team members, and communicate effectively at every project step. And you will only find these options in project management software. 

Project management software can be customized to fit exactly what you need. Because, when it comes to managing projects, you want to be sure that you have the best possible management tools to help you along, after all, projects are subject to sudden changes and you need to be able to analyze, take action, and finalize your plan on time and within budget.

So, what are the main areas you should focus on when choosing the best project management tool out there? Two things:

Timelines. Shared project timelines make it easier to organize, schedule, implement, and execute all of your project steps. Also, these types of tools commonly give you the option to assign custom colors to tasks, which simplifies things, even more, when you need to visualize and filter relevant information. Your team can quickly monitor project status and stay on top of their deadlines.

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Gantt charts are commonly used for tracking project schedules, and they are especially useful in project management. These are powerful tools for visualizing your project’s tasks and deadlines because they allow you to know what needs to be done when it needs to be done, and most importantly, who is working on what. Gantt charts Software will help you to plan, schedule, and assign work, as well as to share information and regularly update people regarding the progress of their tasks.

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If you’re curious as to how it would be like to use Google Sheets to build both a Gantt chart and a project timeline, well, you’re in luck. We have created a template and you can learn how to use it, here. ‍

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However, you would be missing some of the most crucial project management features that you would only be able to find in dedicated software. For instance, some of these key features are:

• Project timelines and drag & drop options
• Dependencies and milestones
• Task and subtasks
• Automatic project scheduling
• Baselines and critical path scenarios
• Option to create multiple workspaces for your projects
• Diverse exporting options: Excel, image, and PDF
• Timeline sharing options
• Team collaboration options: notifications and task assignment
• Custom view and custom fields for your Gantt charts
• Custom color options for progress bars
• Risk and priority assignments 
• Estimated and actual cost
• Workload view and Kanban board
• Dashboard & analysis 

So, What Now?

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Okay, so Google doesn’t have its own project management software. But if you need to keep track of your tasks in a quick, simple way, then Google Sheets might just work for you. But if you need something more, you’ll soon realize that Google Sheets lacks some of the features that you will most certainly need when managing large and complex projects. If this is your case, you will probably need features like dependencies, milestones, resource management, automatic scheduling, task prioritization, and more. 

And this is where choosing software that specializes in building professionally looking Gantt charts in minutes will make a genuine difference in your work. Instagantt is the perfect online Gantt chart software for project management. With Instagantt, you can very easily create timelines, schedule tasks, manage your team, your resources, and store project information, all in one single place. 

So if you’re ready to take the next step towards project management and team management, Instagantt is pretty much the perfect place to start.