Teams | Collaboration | Customer Service | Project Management

April 2024

How to accomplish big things with long-term goals

Long-term goals are objectives you want to achieve months or years down the road. Setting this type of goal gives your work purpose, helps you make better decisions, and offers a hefty dose of daily motivation. In this article, we explain how you can use long-term goals to accomplish big things over time, with examples. When you think of an ideal future for your work, what do you see?

Visual project management: Tools, templates, and strategies

Visual project management allows you to see your project tasks and workload displayed in a visual format. When you can see your work, it’s easier to streamline efforts across your team, stay on track, and avoid potential bottlenecks. Often, this is done as a project timeline, calendar, or Kanban board. Learn more about the most common visual project management tools and how to use each (with examples).

Work Innovators Live: The science of tech overload

How are executives tackling the challenges of technology-induced friction in the workplace? Our esteemed panelists shared pivotal research from, "The State of Collaboration Technology" and "The State of the IT Leader" reports to discuss actionable strategies for overcoming tech overload. Gain insights that will transform how technology is leveraged within your organization, fostering a more efficient and less stressful work environment.

Guide to waterfall methodology: Free template and examples

Waterfall project management is a sequential project management methodology that's divided into distinct phases. Each phase begins only after the previous phase is completed. This article explains the stages of the waterfall methodology and how it can help your team achieve their goals. Project managers have many different types of project management methodologies to choose from. There's Agile project management, Kanban project management, Scrum, and many more iterative processes that you can use.

Smooth product launches are simpler than you think

When launching a new product, organizations are faced with many challenges. For example, issues like fragmented communication, lack of visibility, and unclear goals are common. Learn strategic solutions to streamline processes and enhance team collaboration for successful product launches. On paper, product launches seem deceptively simple—you brainstorm a great product, set a game plan and, with a few adjustments, set a successful launch in motion.

What are OKRs? A guide to objectives and key results

OKRs stand for objectives and key results, a goal-setting framework that can help your team set and track measurable goals. Originally pioneered by John Doerr, this framework pairs the company-level objectives you want to achieve with the key results you’ll use to measure progress—so your goals are tied to your team’s day-to-day work. In this article, we explain how the OKR process works and share examples to get you started setting OKRs for your company, team, or personal life.

Fix these common onboarding challenges to boost productivity

The data doesn’t lie—a good onboarding process leads to happier, more productive employees. But while onboarding can increase retention rates by 82%, only 12% of employees strongly agree that their organization does a great job of onboarding new hires. Creating a smooth onboarding process is challenging, so it’s not surprising that some organizations fall short. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

Understanding dependencies in project management

A project dependency is a task that relies on the completion of a different task. This article breaks down key terms associated with dependencies and the different kinds of dependencies you may see in project management. Much like a relay race, projects are often completed by passing tasks from one team member to the next. Unlike a relay race, some project tasks require other tasks to move forward before they can be started. This relationship between tasks is known as a dependency.

How Asana uses work management to optimize resource planning

Initiatives can’t succeed without the right resources. Nobody knows this better than Rita Khayat, Asana’s Head of PMO for Strategy and Operations. Khayat is responsible for keeping business-critical goals on track—which she does by allocating the right resources, at the right time, to the most important work. Khayat’s team is responsible for four main business areas within the CIO org: Resource management is essential for each of these areas.

How Asana uses work management for organizational planning

Rita Khayat is an expert at managing complex, company-wide programs. As Asana’s Head of PMO for Strategy and Operations, Khayat is responsible for keeping business-critical goals on track. She does this with clear processes, 20+ years of experience, and a knack for using Asana to its full potential. Khayat’s team is responsible for four main business areas within the CIO org: Together, these responsibilities span many different teams and require a high level of cross-functional coordination.

How to create a cross-functional team in 4 simple steps

A cross-functional team is a permanent or temporary group of people with different types of experience working together to achieve a common goal. Cross-functional teams benefit companies because when team members with multiple skill sets work together, they can pursue company goals more efficiently. In this piece, we’ll explain what a cross-functional team is and provide tips for how to build one.

Program manager vs. project manager: Key differences

You may know what project management is, but have you ever heard the term program management? While the two sound similar, you might be surprised to learn there’s a lot that sets them apart. Whether you’re searching for the right role for your team or want to improve your work management processes and methodologies, we’ll help you understand the differences between a program manager vs. project manager.

What's new in Asana | April 2024

Welcome to the April edition of What’s new in Asana. First, create status updates faster with smart status. Asana Intelligence will start a draft status for you, pulling real-time work data in portfolios and goals and highlighting any risks, questions, and roadblocks. Next, save time by quickly duplicating entire sections of tasks within the same project. Finally, use today’s date in a custom field formula calculation to track the duration of progress or time spent on a task.

30-60-90 day plan for new hires (template and examples)

A 30-60-90 day plan outlines the first 90 days of a new team member’s employment and familiarizes them with company policies, teamwork, and goals. This action plan helps your team members check off essential items as they adjust to their new work environment. In this piece, we’ll outline the key components of a 30-60-90 day plan and explain why having one is beneficial.

How to create a work schedule template (with examples)

Use a work schedule to clarify which team members are working, when. A work schedule is a simple document—but you can take this document to the next level by adding project timelines and task assignments. In this article, we’ll dive into the different types of work schedules, how you can create one, and how an online tool gives you the flexibility to change your work schedule and collaborate with team members across projects.

Don't let your digital tools sabotage the employee experience

This article was originally published on Reworked. Great companies don’t just value the employee experience (EX) — they’re fanatical about it. In the past, this obsession translated into office spaces that resembled adult playgrounds, boasting features like climbing walls and bean bags, baristas serving up artisanal lattes and serene meditation spaces for decompression.

How to prioritize tasks in 4 steps (and get work done)

Tired of your never-ending task list and watching your priorities get pushed to the side? Learn how to create a task list, choose a prioritization strategy, schedule your tasks, and communicate with your team to increase productivity and get things done. If you’re like most people, you usually start your workday with the intention of being as productive as possible. Yet, as the day rolls on, you find yourself fielding multiple urgent requests and watching your task list grow.

Solve your tech overload with an intelligent transformation

This article was originally published on Inc. Over the past decade, the corporate world has obsessively chased digital transformations. But now, surrounded by a clutter of apps and incessant digital notifications, it's become painfully clear: we've been duped. Our workplaces have become dense jungles of digital clutter, leaving workers frazzled and exhausted. It's time to cut through the chaos.