Management

We do not have to tell you just how vital any company’s workforce is — after all, it is the workforce that gets everything done. Think of it as the organization’s spine, i.e., without it, one can not operate. Now that we agree about the role of the workforce let’s move on to its management. Workforce management is an absolute must for any company that wishes to grow its business and, along with it, the profits. And exactly how does workforce management help with that? But if one had to surmise, they would say workforce management enables all that by streamlining run-of-the-mill processes. It is by leveraging modern tools in service of the goals mentioned above. And among the many other novel technologies available in the market, it is the Internet of Things that have demonstrated high levels of potential in this regard.

But before we discuss workforce management and IoT any further, let’s take a moment to understand what the latter really is quick. The Internet of Things is best described as a network of interconnected devices that enables data collection, transfer, analysis, and more. It makes use of a vast number of connected sensors, wireless networks, devices, real-time analytics, and more to execute various tasks and achieve a variety of goals. Even this most basic definition offers plenty of insights about the many, many different ways in which IoT can be leveraged. It is about streamlining workforce management and achieve substantially better results. But to help you understand this duo and its potential better, I am sharing some of their benefits in detail below:

1. Access to data via a central platform: IoT can be leveraged to gather data about not only employees but other tangential aspects, including clients, offerings, and more. It is because they are all consequential to the company’s performance and hence, inter-linked. So, IoT not only enables companies to gather it but also collates and channels it into a unified platform from where it can be utilized in an appropriate manner to assist the endeavors to achieve the business’ goals. 

2. Mobile workforce management: This refers to the tools one uses for the management of employees who do not operate from the premises. With IoT in the mix, mobile workforce management can leverage cloud computing, cloud-based communication tools to enable efficient operations even with a remote workforce. So, it can be used to monitor employee performance, check the progress of projects, schedule tasks, send alerts for pending tasks, and so much more. And this is as effective across the entire spectrum of industries, i.e., be it utility workforce management or any other type — the results of this integration are evident and quickly at that.

3. Better visibility: The union of workforce management with IoT also empowers the company with substantially improved levels of visibility since the data isn’t merely collected and dumped into a database. It is also processed to glean insights that help achieve better visibility into the company’s operations. Such levels of visibility can then be leveraged to drive informed decisions aimed at fostering a better rate of growth for the business.

4. Track internal processes: The ability to seamlessly monitor the company’s internal processes is also invaluable and lends many contexts to workforce management and its ability to be efficient. So, say, you can track a given piece of equipment’s performance and start to notice some lags or stats that shouldn’t ideally be there. These insights can then be used to ensure that a relevant technician is assigned. So, that they can take up the task of checking out the equipment and carry out any preventive and corrective measures to ensure it keeps running as intended. It helps companies save much precious time.

Recipe for Success: How to Improve Time Management Skills

At least 89% of people waste time every day. 

With only 24 hours in each day, we don’t have time to waste. In fact, wasting too much time could lead to missed deadlines and impact your professional and personal life.

Keep reading to find out how to improve time management skills.

Create a Plan

We waste the majority of our time because of a lack of planning.

To avoid this, use a schedule maker to organize your day-to-day tasks. With this simple tool, you can be at ease knowing that your tasks will be efficient and structured.

It will help you prioritize your work, personal life, and appointments. You’ll know what is urgent and shape your other to-dos around those tasks.

Start by creating a list of everything you need to accomplish in a week. From there, write down deadlines and important dates that you can’t miss.

Keeping the end goals in mind, break down each task into small steps. For example, if you have to turn in a report next Tuesday, you can segment your schedule into researching, writing, and editing throughout the previous week.

That way, you don’t have to tackle the entire task at once and you won’t procrastinate. 

Set Healthy Goals

Setting goals helps build your motivation. Plus, it allows you to allocate a reasonable amount of time to get a job done.

It doesn’t have to be daunting. Start with setting small goals for your day. For example, you can set a goal of waking up 10 minutes earlier to enjoy your morning coffee without feeling rushed out of the door.

For work-related goals, create small steps rather than expecting yourself to accomplish something big. This keeps you from getting burnt out on what you’re working on, allowing you to tackle each part as you feel energized and focused.

Give yourself a small reward each time you’re successful. This can be as simple as taking a break and going outside.

By getting in the habit of setting small, healthy goals for ourselves, it becomes easier to accomplish what we’re setting out to do. As the old saying goes “if you wish to climb the mountain, you must do it one step at a time”.

Manage Stress

Another reason we waste time is that we’re stressed about everything we need to accomplish.

To overcome stress, focus on one task at a time rather than trying to do several at once. Studies show that 98% of people don’t multitask well, meaning that we aren’t able to focus on and complete anything we’re working on. 

Another way to prevent the daunting feeling of stress is by getting a head start on projects. This gives you a buffer in case of unforeseen circumstances. By starting ahead of time, you can take charge of your day and feel more self-empowered. 

Managing your stress helps you manage your time better. As a result, you’ll end up having more energy to focus on what’s important on your to-do list, since you’ll complete tasks quicker and more efficiently.

That’s How to Improve Time Management Skills

With these tips on how to improve time management skills, you can make the most of every day.

Create and stick to a plan, set healthy goals, and manage your stress so that you can be a master of time.

Keep reading our blog for more ways to improve your life.

7 Reasons Why Your Business Needs a Risk Management Plan

Over 5,000 fatal workplace injuries were recorded in 2017. It’s why a risk management plan is essential to employee safety.

Even with a risk management plan, injuries can still occur in the workplace. But a risk management plan helps reduce any potential danger to employees.

A risk management plan is having a plan to avoid dangerous risks in the workplace. There is an emphasis on protecting the employee, the undertaking project, and the entire business.

One of the most important reasons for risk management is to protect customers and your brand. If your customers feel safe buying from your business, it creates a lifelong customer.

If you don’t have a risk management plan for your business, consider these 7 most important reasons why your business needs one.

1. Have a Contingency Budget

A risk management plan is not always about employee safety. It’s also about budgeting on unforeseen circumstances.

Business needs to stay within a budget on projects. A risk management plan assesses how likely a project will go over budget or the cost if a part of that project breaks.

A contingency budget is preparing for the cost of damages. Managers need to figure out how much to put aside in case a project does extend beyond its budget or if something goes awry.

2. Increase Return of Investment

Risk management also increases your return on investment in the workplace. As a business, you can reduce the risk of losing profit by preparing for unforeseen circumstances.

Risk management ensures that a project is finished on time. But it also assesses how much profit is lost if the project extends past the deadline, goes over budget, or if something breaks.

Every business wants to know how to make a profit with the products and people they are investing in. Bv lowering the risk of how long it takes to complete a project, the business is increasing its return of investment.

3. More Consistent and Efficient Workplace

People are the most important part of the workplace. When you eliminate potential danger and increase safety measures, employees work more efficiently. Projects are completed on time.

Risk management is concerned with employee safety. They want to create an environment where the employee and the customer feel safe. But risk management also looks at every system in the organization and sees if there is any risk that could damage the relationship with the customer.

An example would be if a company relies on a key instrument from a specific source. The company now is at risk because if the specific source dries up, that company is at risk of losing profit and, worse, the customer.

4. More Satisfied Customers

Customers are the lifeblood of a business. When you have happier customers, you create lifelong customers who believe in how your business operates.

Risk management helps create an efficient and safe workplace that gives the customer a better experience and product.

But this is why risk needs to be identified in how it takes a customer to get a product and what pitfalls exist from a person first seeing a business to that person becoming a lifelong customer.

5. It Clarifies Roles

Creating roles in the workplace avoids confusion among employees. There is less confusion if a problem arises and who’s supposed to report to who.

When everyone works together and understands their role, it creates efficiency in the workplace.

Everyone knows who to report to and what their assigned roles are on a project. There’s less risk of a project falling apart because everyone knows what to do within their roles.

Examples of roles can be board members, the CEO, and the Operations Group that implements plans.

The board must create policies and an appropriate risk management system. The CEO must ensure that these policies are executed.

You can find more information on this security consultant and how it helps your business reduce risk.

6. Employees Know What to Do in Emergency Situations

A business needs to know what to do in case of an emergency situation.

Risk management helps to assess if it’s a minor or major emergency and what employees of the company need to do.

There should be a management or response plan in case of an emergency disaster. It can help mitigate loss and prevent injury to employees.

An emergency plan can help prepare employees on what to do.

Risk management can also help your business change strategy if they think there is a major risk that could hurt the business.

7. A Healthier Business Brand

Every business has a story to tell its customers. It’s the brand of the business.

A risk management team helps a business tell its story. They help ensure that your business is staying compliant, and is implementing proper security measures.

Risk management also makes sure you are staying within a budget on projects and other costs. They make sure that you have a safety net in case something goes wrong.

While risk management is there to maintain employee safety, it’s also just as concerned about customer safety.

If a customer slips and falls and blames your business, your brand may take a hit. You may lose profit. You may have legal issues.

These are issues that risk management is there for, protecting your brand and your customers.

A Risk Management Plan Prepares for Success

A risk management plan is about preparing for intentional success. Businesses who hire risk management companies want to eliminate any risk that can hurt their business.

Identifying risk in a business is about being aware of the pitfalls that can hurt customer relationships. It’s about creating a system that takes your customer from A to Z seamlessly. It’s not just about having a product released as quickly as possible so your customers can be happy.

It’s about creating a business system that’s built on backup budgeting, employee safety, and ultimately a business brand.

You can find more information on risk management on our website.

The oil and Gas industry undertakes massive projects, wherein multiple segments need to be collaboratively regulated. Compliance, risk analysis, site inspection, asset management, license and clearance, finance, suppliers and contractors, and many more operations need to be taken care of.

Managing these segments becomes more complex in the Oil and Gas industry because a large part of the work order involves field service activity, which is to be coordinated, managed, and balanced with back-office operations. Is there any solution that can simplify all these complex jobs?

Oil and gas companies can manage their work order and reap the benefits of automation by leveraging on oil and gas field service software. It is an intuitive and user-friendly solution that has been designed after careful analysis of oil and gas field service requirements. It is meant for reducing complexities, improving efficiency and visibility in the overall management and implementation of projects in the oil and gas industry.

Let’s talk about the asset management feature of oil and gas field service software that helps in the smooth handling of the field workforce and work orders to ensure timely delivery of the services. Following is a brief on how the asset management feature of oil and gas field service software can be utilized to achieve maximum client satisfaction.

Work distribution: The software is highly intelligent in analysing the availability of the workforce and accordingly jobs can be scheduled. The app can effectively be used for scheduling jobs among large workforce working on different roles across different sites.

Using the app, work updates can be sent regularly and as per job-scheduled, day to day tasks can be managed.

Reporting: Oil and gas field service software facilitates real-time reporting on an ongoing basis, which keeps the supervisors informed about the work status through timely updates. Also, timely inspections of the work sites can be scheduled for tracking breaches and progress.

Supervision: Through effective reporting and tracking, the app is extremely helpful in monitoring the field activities of the workforce. This helps in getting an insight into the performance standard of the workforce. Fleets can be tracked in real-time through route mapping. The monitoring elements offered by the software maintain transparency and helps in supervising the whole chain of stakeholders to identify the gaps in the service if any.

Requirement analysis:  The app can be used to record the inventory status of the stocks. The requirements, along with specifications, across departments, can be captured at a centralized location. Accordingly, the coordination with suppliers and contractors can be managed and supplies can be provided on time.

Data Analysis: The system intelligence of oil and gas apps help assist various business analysis. The inbuilt analytics can be used for analysing the cost of the project referring to the past records. Similarly, analytics can provide insights into productivity, profitability and an indispensable demand for work. There is analytics to make an easy estimation of resources based on project details, thus helps in managing work orders more effectively.

Oil and gas management software helps in expense management as well by allowing integration with a third-party system like ERP.

Conclusion

Asset Management features of oil and gas management software not just help in having a thorough understanding of the workforce and supplies requirement, but the system’s intelligence and automation helps in managing those with maximum efficiency. Along with that, effective reporting and tracking processes of the software helps maintain transparency in work.

More to this, when there is a central system to manage all the field-related requirements, managers can easily have a hold of all the operations that are being performed on the field. This helps them manage the resource and their on-field activity while remaining aware of their work schedules on a daily basis.

Blockchain technology has transformed traditional business models in the last few years. It provides a secure, traceable, and transparent network in which two users exchange Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. Its online presence is influencing many industries, including Government, Finance, Healthcare, and more, as it has redefined the way people transact.

Blockchain technology today is doing much more than managing virtual currencies. It supports a wide range of applications such as supply chain tracking, product quality identification, peer-to-peer transaction, and lot more across various industry verticals. Here, we will look at the essentials of Blockchain technology and its impact on the event industry.

Essentials of the Blockchain Technology

Blockchain is about storing digital information (block) in a public database (chain). Since its conceptualization in 2008, Blockchain has been evolving across multiple channels.

Initially, Blockchain technology helps manage Bitcoin, an electronic currency. It uses a distributed database for allowing a safe, quick way to users for verifying vital information and build trust. In simple terms, Blockchain enables users to manage electronic cash without the involvement of a central administrator.

In 2014, a project called Ethereum played a significant role in allowing vast improvements in Blockchain technology. Today, Blockchain provides numerous benefits to different domains, including:

• Digital signature and encryption for a high level of security.
• Banks and clients get convenient and transparent transaction process.
• Maximum fraud control as digital data is stored in various places.
• Different accessibility levels for users in public and permission-based Blockchain networks.
• The need for the cash/credit card payment system is eliminated, which makes the transaction process faster and reduces operational costs.
• A decentralized system makes users worry-free from paying any fees to mediators.
• Participants can quickly check and confirm the validity of the previously made transactions.

How Blockchain Technology Influence Events Industry

1. Prevent Unethical Ticket Sales:

   Many event organizers keep the event ticket price low to attract a significant number of participants. They use multiple platforms and take services from various vendors to sell or resale the tickets. However, such practices sometimes pose a challenge of financial loss.

   Because of the lower ticket rates, automated bots, or even some vendors may buy tickets in bulk and create a ‘sold-out’ scenario. It may result in low participation, which can affect the success of the event, or the participants may have to pay higher prices for the tickets purchased from such vendors.  

   To avoid this, many event professionals today use Blockchain technology that helps to create entirely secure and authenticated transactions from real users. They can set rules for the ticket purchase, reselling, and setting the limits for the number of tickets that a single user can purchase. A tool powered by Blockchain technology will ensure that once a user transfers Bitcoin amount from his address to another, he/she cannot replicate the purchase.

   Moreover, the Blockchain security allows the attendees to use their digital identification number to register for the event, instead of filling out lengthy forms.

2. Linking Cryptocurrency with Ticket Sales

    Many companies today accept cryptocurrency as a mode of payment. Basis of the various advantages of cryptocurrency as a payment method; its use has become an eternal trend.

    Unlike credit card transactions, which use pull mechanisms, Blockchain uses a push mechanism. This method helps to limit the details passed onto the receivers. Besides, a peer-to-peer network manages the payment system instead of a centralized body.

    Event planners can implement cryptocurrency payment methods in their event ticketing systems, which will make the transactions absolute and counterfeit-proof once done. This feature can become invaluable for them in handling sales.

3. Hassle-Free Venue Management:

   The decentralized transaction system helps event managers to connect with various venue owners and book a suitable space for their next seminar, conference, award ceremony, or any other type of event. The use of Blockchain technology will enable event managers to make fast & secure transactions and eliminate administrative hassles.

   Besides, event sponsors can utilize Blockchain technology to set an automatic search for events as per their interest. Further, they can give additional sponsorship support through value-based connections.

4. Fraud Prevention:

   The security of any financial transaction is an essential aspect of any event planning. Factors such as settlement time, currency denomination differences, the influence of intermediaries, and more may complicate the financial transactions.

   With the use of Blockchain, users can share real-time information and update the transaction records after all parties agree. As a result, event planners can prevent loss due to fraudulent activities even before it happens.

5. Manage Suppliers and Attendees:

   Through the Blockchain-powered tool, event planners can manage different vendors providing services such as catering, audiovisuals, maintenance, security, and more. By confirming the authenticity of these suppliers, event planners can book their services and make payments instantly.

   Further, the Blockchain tools enable to create of a point-based system. It helps event planners to reward attendees for doing particular activities, including taking part in surveys, provide feedback, and more. They can avail of these reward points for services such as free food or accommodation, travel expenses, and others. Such a system will motivate participants to take more interest in events and help organizers to create an interactive event environment.

   Moreover, Blockchain technology helps event planners to centralize the ticketing system that creates a uniform and transparent process for ticket sales. Further, it enables organizers to accept cryptocurrency as a payment for providing various services, including tickets, food, accommodation, and more. As this process is secure and efficient, it eventually lowers costs for multiple operations related to event management.

Conclusion

The proliferation of the Internet, along with a rapid increase in smart devices, has revolutionized the way managers organize and run events. Besides, Blockchain technology helps to build trust, transparency, and security among the entities and people even if they do not know each other. It enables companies to build a robust solution for planning & managing events that improve the attendee experience as well as reduce operational costs.

Although the Blockchain-powered tools are still evolving for the MICE industry, they will soon become the modern industry standards with the potential in offering better control, higher security, and efficient management for small to large-scale events.

Learn How to Chill Out! 10 Tips for Creating a Stress Management Plan

Is stress starting to take a toll on your life? Whether you’re dealing with stress at work or stress at home, it can have a profound impact on you.

Surveys have shown that about 77% of people admit to living with physical symptoms associated with stress. They’ve also revealed that almost 50% of people lay in bed awake at night as a result of their stress.

Coming up with a stress management plan is one great way to get a grip on stress and stop it from ruining your life. Here are ten tips that will help you do it.

1. Figure out What’s Causing Your Stress Levels to Skyrocket

Before you can start ironing out the details of a stress management plan, it’s important for you to identify what’s causing you to suffer from so much stress. Is your stress caused by:

• Your job?
• Your finances?
• Your house?
• Your relationship with your spouse?
• Your political beliefs?

If you don’t know why you’re always feeling so stressed out, it’s going to be almost impossible to manage your stress levels.

2. Eliminate Things from Your Life That Lead to Stress

Once you know why you’re so stressed out, you can start to get rid of some of the things in your life that are causing stress. You can do it by:

• Looking for a new job
• Making a stronger effort to pay down debt and get your finances in order
• Moving to a house that doesn’t require so much maintenance
• Going to marriage counseling with your significant other
• Avoiding political arguments with family members and friends

You’ll be amazed by how much less stressed out you feel when you cut out some of these things from your life.

3. Find Ways to Manage Your Time More Effectively

Everyone gets 24 hours each day to do everything that they need to do. But not everyone uses those 24 hours in the same way.

Are you using your time to the best of your ability? If you’re not managing your time well, that could lead to you dealing with more stress than you should have to.

Invest in a daily, weekly, and monthly planner and start taking back control of your schedule. By managing your time better, you’ll start to feel some of your stress melt away.

4. Work More Exercise into Your Daily Schedule

About 80% of Americans don’t get enough exercise each week. This has led to a dramatic increase in the country’s obesity rate.

There is also a direct correlation between America’s lack of exercise and the increase in the country’s collective stress levels. So many people could benefit from exercising more as far as beating stress is concerned.

Start jogging, lifting weights, or playing recreational sports more often. You’ll feel less stressed out when you make exercise a bigger priority in your life.

5. Make Sure You’re Eating Healthy Meals Every Day

In addition to getting more exercise, you should also eat healthier meals to combat weight gain and defeat stress. If you’re constantly stuffing yourself with unhealthy fast foods, it’s going to impact your physical and mental health before long.

You may also want to start taking supplements and even consider using the best CBD oil as part of your diet. When used properly, CBD oil has been shown to help those battling stress.

6. Get More Than Enough Sleep Each Night

A lack of sleep can impact you in so many different ways. It can cause you to gain weight, make you very forgetful, and even put you at an increased risk for cancer.

You’re also going to notice that you have a hard time working your way through stressful situations when you’re sleep-deprived. It’s why any good stress management plan should include lots of sleep.

7. Take Time to Take Part in Hobbies

Do you spend your days dealing with one stressful situation after another? It’s no wonder why you’re so stressed out all the time!

Rather than trying to keep up with this routine, take time out of your busy days to take part in hobbies and any activities that make you happy.

Some people enjoy putting together puzzles or doing crosswords. Others enjoy skydiving or flying planes.

Whatever you like to do, do more of it! It’ll be very beneficial to you if you suffer from stress.

8. Avoid Using Alcohol and Drugs to Battle Stress

Far too often, people turn to alcohol and/or drugs as a means of coping with stress. These things help them escape their stress for a few hours and make them feel good about their lives.

The problem, of course, is that alcohol and drugs eventually wear off and send stress running right back in your direction. This will force you to decide what to do next:

• Deal with the sources of your stress head-on
• Use more alcohol and/or drugs to get rid of stress for a little while longer

Sadly, many people go with the second option since it’s the easiest way to handle stress. That sometimes leads to substance abuse issues and addiction.

9. Spend More Time with Family Members and Friends

The simple act of socializing more with other people is enough to bring your stress levels back to earth. After spending a few minutes on the phone with your mom or hanging out with friends for an afternoon, you’ll almost always feel better.

Find time to pal around with your family members and friends more often. You’ll be blown away by how much better it makes you feel.

10. Adopt a More Positive Approach to Living Your Life

Many people who have dealt with stress for a long time don’t know how to live without it. They are so used to being stressed out that they’ve pretty much tricked their brains into thinking that there’s no other way for things to be.

Breaking this cycle is difficult to do. But you can do it by taking a more positive approach to life.

By smiling more and thinking positive thoughts, you can put up a heck of a fight against stress. It might take a while to see your stress disappear completely, but it’ll happen over time.

Use Your Stress Management Plan to Stop Feeling so Stressed out

It’s going to be almost impossible to live a long, fulfilling life when you always have stress hanging over your head. Stress will literally kill you before it’s your time to go if you don’t do something about it.

Use the tips found here to create a stress management plan for yourself. Stick with it and see first-hand how beneficial it can be to live a stress-free existence.

Check out our blog for more helpful articles relating to stress.

What Is PRINCE2? Your Guide to the Project Management Methodology

Successful project management skills have been required for longer than we realize. But nowadays, we’re able to specialize in the field. 

Now, you can choose project management specifically as a career and then specialize in a field of your choice. 

This is where PRINCE2 comes in. 

If you’re managing a complex project, you’ll need to follow a methodology. But what is PRINCE2? Learn more about this methodology here.

What is PRINCE2?

In 2013 the then PROMPT II (Project Resource Organisation Management Planning Techniques), developed by the UK Office of Government Commerce (OGC) was commercialized and became PRINCE2 (Projects in Controlled Environments).

It is a process-based methodology for project management that provides an easily customized and scaled method for the management of all types and sizes of projects. It has been adopted in many countries worldwide, including the UK, Western European countries, and Australia.

PRINCE2 wraps itself around six aspects, seven principles, seven themes, and seven processes.

The six aspects in PRINCE2 form the basis for the goals of the project and are set out with tolerances:

• Scope
• Timescale
• Risk
• Quality
• Benefits and
• Cost

Each of the six aspects is reviewed at each stage and may be subject to updates. The PRINCE2 teams at all level are measured against these aspects.

Corporate and Programme Management are measured against Project Tolerance; the Project Board against Stage Tolerance, the Project Manager against Work Packages and lastly the team is measured by issues, although this is thought to be onerous and often tailored out.

Why You Should Choose PRINCE2

Although PRINCE2 can be customized and scaled for the organization and project size, it has seven core principles which cannot be tailored.

Continued Business Justification

The business case is the most important document and is revisited and updated if necessary at every stage of the project to ensure that the Business Case remains to be valid.

In cases where the Business Case has gone stale or has become outdated project cancellation will occur.

Learn From Experience

Each project maintains a lessons lo, PRINCE2 projects refer to their own and to previous and concurrent projects’ lesson logs continuously to avoid repeating mistakes.

This process MUST induce changes in organizational practices and delivery of future projects.

Defined Roles and Responsibilities 

PRINCE2 says that a role is not a person, in fact, a person may and can have more than one role or share a role within a PRINCE2 project. In PRINCE2 roles are found at four levels (Corporate or Programme Management, Project Board, Project Manager, and Team).

The Project Management Team does not include Corporate or Programme where business, user and supplier (the primary stakeholders) are represented.

Manage by Stages

This principle is based on the concept of ‘shifting reality’, things and situations change as time goes by.

By planning and controlling a project in stages and introducing a review of the business case, risks, overall plan, and detailed next-stage plan affords stakeholders the opportunity to more frequently consider the validity of the project investment.

Manage by Exception 

It is said good news travels fast but bad news travels faster. Typically Project Managers prefer to report what has gone well and been achieved as opposed to what has not and what was not achieved in a stage.

When planned and established PRINCE projects have tolerances for every project objective. This establishes the terms and levels of decision making (delegated authority) the Project Team has for the project.

If the Project Team feels that any of these agreed tolerances may be exceeded, PRINCE2 dictates that this be escalated to the next management (usually Corporate or Programme Management) for a decision on how to continue or not continue.

Focus on Products 

PRINCE2 projects are highly focused on the definition and delivery of the products (read deliverables), especially the agreed quality statements and acceptance criteria.

Tailor to Suit Project Environment

PRINCE2 is tailored to suit the project environment, size, complexity, importance, time capability, and risk. Tailoring is the first activity in the process Initiating A Project and reviewed for each stage.

What Are The Seven Themes of PRINCE2?

There are seven themes within PRINCE2 that need to be covered. Each of these seven themes related directly to one of the principles discussed in the previous section. 

They are:

1. Business Case
   – Ongoing Business Justification
2. Organization
   – Roles and Responsibilities
3. Quality
   – Roles and Responsibilities
   – Product Focus
   – Lessons Log
4. Plans
   – Ongoing Business Justification
   – Manage by Stages
   – Manage by Exception
   – Roles and Responsibilities
   – Lessons Log
5. Risk
   – Ongoing Business Justification
   – Manage by Stages
   – Manage by Exception
   – Roles and Responsibilities
   – Lessons Log
6. Change
   – Ongoing Business Justification
   – Roles and Responsibilities
   – Lessons Log
7. Progress
   – Manage By Exception
   – Manage by Stages
   – Ongoing Business Justification
   – Lessons Log

A PRINCE2 project is constructed around seven processes:

• Starting Up A Project: in this process, the project team is convened and accepts the appointment. This includes an executive and project manager. The primary product coming form the Starting Up process is the project brief.
• Initiating A Project: here is where the original business case is revisited and updated if required. The Project Initiation Documentation is also drawn up as part of this process
• Directing A Project: the Project Board convenes and agrees on how the members of the Project Board will oversee the project
• Controlling A Stage: each individual stage has to be controlled, in this process, this is agreed. In this step of the PRINCE2 processes, the way in which work packages are authorized and distributed has to be agreed
• Managing Product Delivery: PRINCE2 projects have to be managed. The relationship between the Project Manager and the Team Manager(s) is a critical success factor. To achieve these formal requirements on accepting, executing and delivering project work have to be agreed
• Managing Stage Boundaries: as previously discussed PRINCE2 project is constructed in stages. Each stage has a formal review, the terms of these reviews are agreed and adhered to here.
• Closing A Project: including the formal closing of the project, and required follow-on actions and evaluation of the benefits. It may also be that this process has to close an unfinished or incomplete project, the terms of must be agreed and acceptable to all parties.

PRINCE2 Management Products

As with all projects PRINCE2 projects are supported with documentation, in PRINCE2 terms ‘Management Products’. Some examples are:

• Business Case
• Project Brief
• Checkpoint Report
• Communications Management Approach
• Change Control Approach
• Risk Register
• Issues Register
• Daily Log
• Lessons Log
• Quality Register

In order to Lead and or Implement PRINCE2, it is mandatory for certification.

• PRINCE2 2017 Foundation
  • To obtain sufficient knowledge to work in a PRINCE2 organization
• PRINCE2 2017 Practitioner
  • Confirms the holder of this certification has enough knowledge to tailor the method

PRINCE2 exams are not too difficult to find and can be easily accomplished while still maintaining full-time work. 

PRINCE2 is Right for You

You asked us, “What is PRINCE2?” We hope that you’ve received enough information in this article to arm you with the knowledge to move forward and get certified. 

Head on over to our business section if you need further resources on anything career-related!

What to Look for in a Property Management Company Before You Hire

Data shows that there are around 48.5 million rental units in the U.S.

If you own one of these rental units, you might find yourself struggling to cope with the responsibilities of being a landlord.

If that’s the case, you may want to think about hiring a property management company. In doing so, you can enjoy the benefits of being a landlord, without having to deal with the stress that comes with managing tenants.

This post will provide you with some tips on how you can find a reliable management company. Use these tips, and you’ll be able to lower the amount of stress you experience as a landlord.

Let’s begin!

Verify Their Reputation

Before working with a management company, you should try to learn as much as you can about the experiences of their clients.

One way you can do this is by reading the reviews posted by past and existing customers.

Perhaps the easiest way to find such reviews is by typing the name of the company into a search engine. You might even want to see if the management company has a presence on dedicated review sites such as Trustpilot.

Check Their Policies

When speaking to management companies, it can be a good idea to ask about their policies. In doing so, you can work out the steps that they’ll take, should any problems occur.

Such policies might describe how they’d deal with a tenant that’s taking a long time to pay rent. The policy might also describe how the company will keep the property in good condition. 

You also want to find out what the management company will do should an emergency occur outside of traditional office hours. 

When reviewing their policies, you should also inspect the rules they have in place when it comes to hiring.

It’s vital that you work with a company that provides their staff with sufficient property management training. Failure to verify this might lead to you working with a company that’ll cause a lot of problems down the line. 

Be Careful When Signing Contracts

You often have to sign up to a contract before you can use the services of a management company. However, it’s vital that you read the contract carefully before you sign anything.

This is because you might have to sign up for three to six months of service at a time. If you’re not aware of the terms of the contract, you might find yourself stuck with a management company, even if you’re unhappy with the service on offer.

That said, you can also use contracts to protect yourself from large, unexpected bills. The best way to do this is by including a clause that describes how much the company can spend without having to seek permission from you.

Time to Hire a Property Management Company?

If you use the tips in this post, you should find it easy to hire a property management company that’ll provide a good service.

You might be under a lot of stress, and so you might want to hire a management company as soon as possible. However, it’s critical you take your time, as hiring an incompetent company can create more problems than solutions.

Doing things this way will probably add a couple of months to the entire process. But if you want to work with the best, this approach is the right way to go about things.

Did you enjoy this post? If you did, make sure you read some of the other content on our blog!

Social Media Management for Realtors

Are you using social media to promote your real estate business? Do you know if your efforts are actually working?

A good social media management strategy will help you stay on top of your online profiles. It will also ensure that your messages are reaching the right people.

Ready to grow your business and online presence? Read on for some great tips on social media management for realtors:

What Is Social Media Management?

Social media management for realtors (or any businessperson, for that matter) is all about networking and monitoring your online presence. It involves building relationships and replying to the messages you receive online.

It’s not just putting up a Facebook post once a day. You need to make sure you’re engaging your audience and sharing posts that help boost your bottom line.

Why Is Social Media Management for Realtors Important?

If you’ve been in the real estate business for some time, you know that word of mouth is key to success. A good reputation can help you sell more homes and bring in new buyers.

Social media takes word of mouth to the next level.

When you have a solid social media strategy, you can tap into what’s being said about you and your brand. Plus, it’s a great way to learn about your competitors and your industry.

Good social media management helps you build credibility and increase brand awareness. It can also bolster your other digital marketing efforts and improve your search engine rankings.

Social Media Management Tips

Social media management for realtors is a pretty labor-intensive process. Some of its key aspects include:

• Creating a variety of content for your blog
• Monitoring views
• Approving and responding to comments
• Scanning social media sites and choosing which conversations to join
• Research to stay on top of the latest marketing strategies
• Checking Google Alerts to see who’s talking about your business online

As you can see, there’s a lot to keep track of. This is why so many realtors struggle with these things.

Luckily, we’re sharing our best tips for social media management for realtors below.

Build Your Brand

First, make sure your brand is consistent across all your profiles. This will strengthen your brand and make it easier for clients to spot it.

Use the same headshot or photograph for Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and other platforms.

You’ll also want to pick and stick with a consistent color scheme for your website, social media pages, and promo materials.

Establish Yourself as an Expert

If you want to make it in the real estate world, you need to set yourself apart from your peers. Build your reputation and become an expert in your field.

Don’t just talk about the homes you’re selling. Share information that your clients and potential clients want to know.

Write blog posts that give people a peek into what the industry is like behind the scenes.

For instance, you can share tips on how to obtain a new Florida mortgage. You may even want to consider publishing an e-book or hosting a webinar to set yourself apart and build credibility.

Stay Engaged

Make sure your engagement goes beyond just posting articles or photos on social media.

Communicate with your followers, answer their questions, and find out what they want to know more about. Never pass up on an opportunity to build relationships.

Even if someone isn’t looking to buy or sell right now, if you take the time to reach out them, they’ll remember you in the future when they are ready.

Post Consistently

Make sure you’re posting on social media regularly. This helps you establish credibility with your followers. It can also improve your search engine rankings and help people find you online.

Aim to post at least once a day. This can be tough at first, especially if you find yourself struggling to think of what to write or share.

This is why so many people rely on a content schedule to help with their social media management efforts.

Spend some time brainstorming post ideas. Then, create a calendar and plan out what you’re going to post each day. This helps make the posting process more efficient.

A content calendar also makes it easier for you plan ahead. You’ll be able to align your posts with upcoming events or holidays.

Keep It Local

When it comes to social media management for realtors, don’t forget that your content needs to have a local focus.

Your target audience consists of people who live in your area, or who want to live there, so make sure you talk it up.

Promote other local entrepreneurs or talk about your favorite coffee shop or restaurant. Your audience and potential clients will appreciate these posts, and which will help set you apart from your competition.

Join the Conversation

Make sure you pay attention to what people are saying on various platforms. Are people talking about local real estate on Twitter or in certain Facebook groups?

Turn on your Google Alerts for certain phrases. Dedicate some time each day to scanning various platforms to find out what people are saying, and jump in when you think it’s appropriate.

Measure Your Success

What’s the point of putting all this effort into social media marketing if you’re taking the time to measure your efforts?

Check in with your metrics once a week to see where you’re traffic is coming from. Use Facebook Insights and Google Analytics to track post engagement and find out what your followers like and don’t like.

This gives you great insight into your audience. It also helps you avoid wasting time or other resources on posts or ads that aren’t effective.

Work with a Professional

If you’re still struggling to keep up with your social media accounts, team up with a professional social media manager.

Look for someone whose sole job is to promote your business online. He will pay attention to what people are saying, which can help lighten your load. This way, you’ll have more time for other aspects of your business.

Looking for More?

If you need help creating content, we’re here for you at Article City.

Sign up today for a free account, and get connected to our team of talented professional writers.

We can’t wait to assist you!

5 Ways Everyone Can Improve Their Restaurant Management

They say to work smarter rather than harder, and the restaurant industry is no exception to this rule.

Clinging to outdated management processes while the competition continues to innovate will only put you one step behind in the long run.

As a manager, you’ll know that customer experiences hinge on both the food and the service. Recent studies of Yelp customer reviews have even shown that customers react to bad restaurant experiences with signs of mild trauma!

No one wants to be responsible for that, so here are five ways you can help improve your restaurant management.

Gather customer feedback

Collecting customer feedback is, and always will be, the best place to start when you’re looking to improve.

By asking them to fill out a short survey, leave a review online or fill out a comment card, you can see the areas you’re excelling in and areas that might need improvement.

Remember to stay impartial when reading your feedback–hard as that may be! Some things may be more useful than others, but it’s crucial not to discard feedback because you don’t like it.

Bookkeeping software

Is your outdated restaurant bookkeeping software holding you back?

Time is money and efficiency is always key, so you need to look to save time wherever you can.

New, more up-to-date software will allow you to manage your inventory, look at the cost of your menu, digitize your invoices and expenses.

You can even send checks to vendors in just a few clicks, bringing management admin time right down while maintaining the high level of transparency and efficiency.

Give your team the tools they need

This seems simple but really can make all the difference.

Being fully stocked with linens, trays, cutlery, glasses and pads means your team will have all they need to do a good job.

Making sure you’re properly fitted out isn’t just helpful for the team, it also helps to maintain a high level of quality and consistency for customers.

Ratty old linens and mismatched cutlery won’t do your reputation any favors.

Incentivise your team

Even if you’re lucky enough to have a team filled with compassionate, enthusiastic individuals with a natural tendency towards hospitality, incentivisation goes a long way to maintaining high service standards.

Set goals based on your KPIs and customer service targets and reward the staff members that hit those markers.

You can even make it into a competition to help stoke the fires of participation!

Hold a monthly team meeting

It’s not just the customers who have important business insights to share.

Try holding a team meeting every month or every quarter and collect the feedback that the whole team has to offer–chefs, kitchen porters, waiting staff, and hosts.

There could be processes that are causing friction across the teams or slowing down service, so bring the issue out into the open and try new ways of doing things.

It’s important for staff to feel like they have a voice, so let them speak!

Try implementing a few of these ideas and see the difference they can bring to your restaurant efficiency.