Blog Assignment: Estimating Costs and Allocating Resources

          My first web resource is Mind Tools, Project Management section, whom I should have gone to in the first place while trying to get a grip on PM. This section of Mind Tools contains articles, tools, and a self-assessment quiz for some good self-learning of PM. There is whole section on scheduling, which includes Gantt Chart and Estimating Time Accurately articles I am taking advantage of for my project.

          Onto my second resource; again I wish I would have looked these up at the beginning of this course! I went searching for project management software. Duh!, I should have known plenty of free options already existed to help me get a grip on project management and its deliverables. I first downloaded and tried 2-plan. I found it very simple, yet would be a good place to start for me with my limited PM experience. It is a desktop application that is small and does not require an install. Just unzip the contents to your desktop and run the EXE. 

Another product I tried is ZOHO Projects that I found through a PC Mag article byFenton (2011). A fully online piece of software that seems capable enough, but I am sure I would eventually need to pay for something left out of the free version. The linking to Google Docs and being able to add collaborators (including clients) made it really appealing if I was a free-lance project manager. I am going to try to load all my data I have so far and use it to help rework my Project Schedule and Resource Allocation Plan (especially the Gantt chart!) for Sunday.

Resources

2-plan GmbH. (2013). 2-plan management software. Retrieved from http://2-plan.com

Fenton, W. (2011). The best free online project management software. PC-Mag.com. Retrieved from http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2380448,00.asp

Mind Tools Ltd. (2013). Project Management. Retrieved from http://www.mindtools.com/pages/main/newMN_PPM.htm

ZOHO Corp. (2013). ZOHO Projects. Retrieved from https://www.zoho.com/projects/