We are glad to introduce some small features today. We hope these will help your team to simplify work and help you manage your projects better.

Make this page my starting page:

Now you can make any page within DeskAway your starting page. Working a lot on one of your projects? Simply set that page as your starting page so that you are directly taken to the project overview section whenever you log in. Scroll down to the bottom of your DeskAway account (the footer section) to set your starting pages.

Sort Tasks:

Earlier we could only sort tasks manually from the task re-order page. Now you can automatically sort your task by Deadlines or by Priority.

To make it easy to sort through the team members with in a project we have added new filters on the project team page. The default ‘Team’ view within a project only shows active people. Earlier, it listed everyone that were in your DeskAway account.

Add time on task details page:

Previously you could only add time to a task from the Task List page. Now the time spent can be also added from the Task details page. We hope this improves your work-flow without clicking the ‘back’ button everytime you want to add time to a task from the task details page.

Manage this team link:

A tiny enhancement. We have added a new link called “Manage this team” on the Project Overview page below the list of current team members within the project.

Hope you enjoy these features!

Another really good article from Terry Starbucker, on teamwork and project management. He stresses on leadership training for supervisors who are managing the team and hence also the project.

All too often I see new supervisors struggling mightily with the idea of actually “managing” a staff – setting priorities, communicating the company vision, motivating,  holding people accountable,  and delivering the necessary coaching and corrections. Delivering such training can be expensive, because this is typically the largest management group in most organizations. Read More.

Even though the training may take time, it would however enhance the work a lot more afterwards. Its always great to work with a person who knows how to go about stuff and what to expect, rather than someone who is just fiddling around without having the necessary know how.

One of the ways we tackle this at DeskAway is by having frequent meetings where the work processes are walked through, thus if any particular step seems onerous or too difficult then solutions can be sought for that. Through these meetings we can also figure out if someone is struggling over something.

How do you’l ensure that the people in your team know what their job responsibilities are and that they have the necessary skills to manage the work?

We have released a revamped version of the Docs Section. Some of the changes are as stated below:

1. Chronological listing of Docs.
2. Older Docs show up after the “Browse Older” button is clicked.
3. After adding a new Doc you are taken to the edit window automatically.
4. Updated Doc editor
5. The editor opens up on the same page. Earlier it opened up in a popup.
6. Allowing you to create a template out of a Doc. Earlier, you could only add templates to a Doc.
7. Cleaner interface and formatting of items.

You can also check out the FAQ’s for this section.

Lot of times I find myself introducing a new software to a team and see it received in a very lack-luster way. To make it popular and get everyone in the team to use it can be a task! These are some of the tips I find helpful:

Personalize the introduction: Make an introduction and pep the team to use it. Add some personalized info about the product like “these people are based in San Diego or they have an interesting blog or I had an email chat with their founder, Bob” The team should feel connected to the product over time.

Get the net wiz: Ask the net wiz in office to give the tool a whirl and generate some excitement about it. He can give a small 101 talk about how to use the tool to get the team started and troubleshoot simple queries.

Create a support process: The team should know where to go when they face a problem. So set up a clear process about who they can contact for help within office (the net wiz?) or on the companies support page as the case maybe.

Benefits & Value: Explain to the  team how they will benefit from the software and what specific value it will provide the business. If the tool saves time, then, show them how. By actually experiencing the benefits, adoption will be a lot more smoother!

Are there any other method you use for adopting a new tool in your workplace?