communication

Following up on our latest WHY series on why PMs suffer from a communication problem, we discovered that having many tools is the reason information is scattered and lost. We decided to break down the lost and see which tool is best at what.

‍Tools used by PMs:

‍

Slack is one of the most favorite tools for PMs. The reason why they like it is that they can create different channels depending on what they want to discuss. They can send @channel messages to notify everyone in the group or they can tag them separately. And just like facebook’s reply-to-comment, you can create threads under a certain comment without flooding everyone. You can send private messages, share photos and documents, and you can even call people! How awesome is that!

 

Trello is your best friend. Just as much as it is your worst enemy! It is your simple board where everyone can have their to-do list, and add cards (tasks) post-it style. Each card has a priority/frequency label, contributing members, and deadlines. You can add links, start checklists, tag people under each card. The ONLY tricky part is getting people to update their Trello. No matter how hard you try, there will always be that someone who will forget to keep his list up-to-date. Before you know it, you’re back to micromanagement! So, use it carefully to get the most out of it.

Asana:

Simply put, it is a web-and-app based tool that helps you track your progress. You get to assign, schedule, and discuss tasks while tracking their completion, all in one place.The good thing is that everyone can have their tasks in the form of a to-do list which makes it easier to track priorities and get them done on time! Here’s a preview.

Jira:

Jira is your in-between tool. Meaning that it works for both the business and the dev team. It helps you plan, track, and release your product while keeping an eye on the overall process thanks to reports provided by the app. Here’s a little demo of how it all works and what are the specific features you can benefit from.

GitHub:

As described by the company: “GitHub is a development platform inspired by the way you work. From open source to the business you can host and review code, manage projects, and build software alongside millions of other developers.”It allows you to collaborate and manage chaos and so you end up with a better more organized code. Sounds like a good deal, right?

‍

Bitbucket is the Git solution for professional teams. It offers flexible deployment models, unlimited private repositories (depending on your subscription package), and LFS (Large File Storage). It also integrates with Jira, HipChat, add-ons built by Atlassian Connect.

PM tools exist for a reason which is to make communication run smoothly. However, they can become overwhelming at some point. Imagine either having one box where you store everything, regardless of size, type, or function, or many little boxes where you get things organized.Either way, you will still forget where you put bits of information and before you know it, you’re back to chaos. Organized chaos. I think what you really need is someone with a photographic memory to refer to every time you’re looking for something and forgot where it was posted. Or maybe you need to find a way to use your tools more efficiently. You know, make them work smarter, together.