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When your organisation controls project administration to perfection, you work faster, more accurately, efficiently and effectively. The tighter the control over schedules, processes and budgets, the easier it is to meet deadlines and targets.
These are no mean promises. No wonder companies from all kinds of industries continuously invest a lot of time, money and energy in optimisation.
What does it take? A rock-solid organisation, crystal-clear processes and smart digital tools that reinforce each other.
❯ This is why project administration is so important
❯ Proven successful in a wide range of industries
❯ Cost management for project management
❯ What project administration tools are there?
This is why project administration is so important
Whether you call it project administration, project management or project accounting, it ultimately comes down to the same thing: you want to achieve your goals, KPIs Ticking off and delivering quality. Within schedule. Within budget.
Thanks to solid project administration, you get a better overview of the financial elements of projects. As a result, you know exactly what you need and can manage more proactively and effectively.
In summary, it revolves around skillfully planning, controlling and accounting for:
- project costs and expenses;
- invoicing following project activities;
- time and money spent on deliverables;
- reporting and analysis;
- assets used and necessary for the project.
If you get your project administration right, offers many operational advantages. And financial teams also benefit:
- You can accurately track the progress of individual projects from a financial point of view;
- You avoid mixing up multiple projects and always keep an overview;
- You can make timely adjustments, for example to the amount of working hours or the project budget.
Ultimately, project administration is a strategic tool. Because it shows the progress and potential of each initiative. It keeps resources where they are needed most and helps identify bottlenecks and opportunities quickly.
The crucial success factor? Control. On the cost of the project. On participants' time and tasks.
In-depth knowledge of project administration and the best-suited tools for your organisation will help you get and stay firmly in control.
Proven successful in a wide range of industries
A focus on project administration has already proved its worth within all kinds of industries. Especially in organisations that work on multiple projects simultaneously, operate with changing teams and/or are active in different locations.
Construction
Whether commercial, civil or industrial projects: construction projects require meticulous project administration. They may occur in multiple locations and require the coordination of multiple teams.
Logistics
For logistics companies the success of projects depends on controlling multiple moving parts. They work with hubs and mobile workers. In addition, managers must continuously anticipate changes and quickly provide needed resources.
Transport
The transport sector relies on hubs and mobile teams. The teams drive vehicles between nodes. While challenges are similar to logistics, the complexity of transport projects is often even greater.
Media production
Film and TV productions require meticulous organisation. Large teams are often needed and projects can take place both in the studio and on location. Costs are diverse and difficult to predict, such as equipment rental, transport and accommodation.
Cost management for project management
Of course you want to complete projects within agreed deadlines, but cost control is at least as important. Budgets must not be exceeded. Ideally, you want to stay under them.
This will only succeed if you are financially tight-lipped. Because projects often require significant investments, and employees may need advances to do their jobs. There are several ways you can provide money to them.
Distribution of cash
You can just give employees some cash to project costs with it. Sounds like the easiest solution, but it turns out to be rather outdated and inefficient in practice.
There are simply risks in working with cash. The risk of loss or theft is considerable and project administration is a lot of hassle. You have to keep everything neatly in cash books, for instance.
Large organisations in particular should therefore question whether cash is still desirable. For example, it takes a lot of time to manage cash stocks at different branches. In addition, keeping track of who spent what and when on what is becoming an ever greater task.
Individual bank cards
Bank cards are a good alternative to cash. They are much easier to carry than cash, and employees can also use them for online purchases. Cards that are lost or stolen can be blocked quickly.
However, due to strict requirements from banks, it can be somewhat cumbersome to arrange bank cards for individual employees. This applies to small, medium and large organisations alike. Even directors and top managers often have to wait for some time for the documentation and approval processes to be completed.
In many cases, companies do not manage to arrange enough payment cards for all key people within the project. Even if they succeed, you are already wasting a lot of time and energy on the applications. And then the project has yet to begin!
Employee advances
Employee advances are loans that organisations provide to employees to cover expected business expenses. It is then up to employees to prove what actual expenses they have incurred.
They get a lot of money upfront and may not need everything. Therefore, they have to keep very precise records of how much money they spend and on what. Money they have left over, they have to pay back. Usually within a year.
This system not only creates unnecessary liability for employees, but is also a burden on finance teams.
Indeed, these have to make a lot of cash available for advances, reducing the company's free cash flow.
The additional administrative tasks involved in managing disbursements and refunds are yet another burden for finance staff.
Business prepaid debit cards
Prepaid cards are a simpler and better solution for managing project costs. They offer exceptional flexibility for on- and offline payments.
They also give financial managers optimal control. Because they can easily set budget limits and add extra payment credit in a few clicks if needed.
The use of prepaid cards reduces reliance on cash. This improves employee safety and reduces the risk of fraud.
With SimpledCard, organisations easily issue their own bank-independent Maestro and Mastercard prepaid cards to employees. The cards are registered by name, but can also be assigned to a new cardholder very easily.
The app tracks in real time when a transaction is made with a prepaid card. In addition, finance managers can easily enable or disable the option to PIN at ATMs via the online platform.
For employees, claiming expenses has never been easier: within seconds, they upload an image of the receipt and explain the expense.
What project administration tools are there?
There are all kinds of tools that let project managers work more productively by streamlining processes. You can deploy them at three levels: company-wide, project-based and operational.
Accounting software & ERPs
By aggregating accounting data from different projects and departments, this type of software provides control over an organisation's costs, resources and processes. Accounting software provides secure and better informed decision-making ERPs, which are valuable to senior management.
Task management software
This software allows you to improve direction at team and project level. The main focus? Organising and prioritising the tasks that make up each project. For middle management, the software provides a framework and organisational structure within which projects can be completed effectively.
Expense management software
Enables organisations to easily track and control costs of employees, teams, projects and departments. Where certain declaration systems focus primarily on fees, a number of platforms also include payment options.
Contact us about your project administration
Wondering how to easily implement SimpledCard within your organisation, so that employees arrange declarations more easily and your finance department always has a grip on project administration?
Our financial experts will be happy to work with you to see which solutions fit your organisation, wishes and ambitions.
