In design studios, advertising firms and marketing agencies, resource portfolio management (RPM) is an important way to keep projects on track. Where marketing agencies are eager to use the latest software for design, website build, animation, etc., they often still rely on less sophisticated tools like Excel spreadsheets for managing and scheduling their resources.
This older method is prone to error and can be hard to manage. By adopting more powerful and specialized marketing agency resource management software to manage their projects, agencies can gain full visibility of the projects they are working on, their available resources, and manage their teams’ workload more effectively.
Nothing kills creativity like a deadline
Business leaders in organizations across all industries need to make the most of the resources available to them. This is even more of an essential practice in creative industries, where marketers and advertisers are often stretched for time and talent. By making improvements to resource allocation, distribution, visibility and other aspects to resource management, agencies can ensure their staff have a more manageable workload and can give more of their creative selves to a project instead of worrying about deadlines.
Marketing agency resource management software that works
Here are two ways that using the right resource management solution for your team can help improve the production quality and speed of your work.
Easier timesheets with resource tracking
The fundamentals of project management, regardless of the size of the project, are always the same: figuring out the most efficient way to organize tasks given the time and resources available to you. One essential aspect to this, then, is resource tracking.
Resource tracking is the process of logging time on tasks to form an understanding of how long it takes to complete them. That way, the allocation of resources to tasks can be done in the most accurate way.
For a manager or senior creative in charge of a team or even the Creative Director themselves, getting this accurate picture isn’t always easy. While it sounds straightforward, getting people to fill in timesheets is harder than you might think. It’s usually a tedious task that most of us simply put off until Friday evening – and then trying to remember what we did from 9:30-11AM last Monday is suddenly quite difficult.
How resource management software can help
Software specifically designed for resource management should include a timesheet element to it. And one that makes logging data super easy. That means a timesheet app that can be opened on any device, with preloaded profile information and repeat task templates so data can be entered in a couple of clicks, which is then automatically synced to the resource management tool.
Preparing for inevitable changes in creative projects
Creative marketing and advertising are perfect examples of the kinds of businesses that must respond quickly and effectively to changing circumstances, both with every project they work on and within the industry/market itself. Client requirements change, so you inevitably end up having to move people between projects.
How resource management software can help
Resource management software like Tempus Resource helps you get a better view of your team’s workload. It provides visualization of your resources across all teams and projects, allowing you to make quick adjustments to cover any shifts in project expectations. Resource planning that can be created with a click of a button makes it easier for you to stay on track, keep your teams’ workload balanced and complete your work on time without compromising quality. It also enables better planning for future projects that are coming down the line, so you can be ready to hit the ground running.
Be orderly with your resources so they can be wild in their work
Tempus Resource is a sophisticated resource management tool that can help you with all your resource management techniques. Included in the solution is a timesheet feature specifically for resource tracking, which helps you understand the realities of how long staff take to complete tasks. Along with this, the solution provides cutting-edge visualization, allows sophisticated resource planning and syncs with your organization’s current project management tool. That way you can concentrate more on coming up with the next great idea for your client.
For those in the creative industries, there is often a conflict between artistic integrity and the commercial needs of the business. What this translates to in simple terms is time. We could all use more time to get our work done, but because of the demands of the enterprise, time is at a premium and your business needs to deliver or otherwise lose out to the competition. The real benefit of resource management software is that, when used correctly, it gives your employees time. Ask any creative professional and they’ll tell you: that is hard to put a price on.
To learn more about how specialized marketing agency resource management software can help your agency go further, get in touch with us today.
