When you are the project manager of a team there are many different things that you need to handle in order to make sure that your project work faces no difficulties. Keeping the project finance in check is one of the major tasks that a project manager does. Usually, a Budget is drawn before a project is commenced and members are told to stick to it as much as possible. The project manager needs to see to the fact that the resources are well optimised and are well allocated because at the end of the day he or she is accountable for each penny spent to the higher authorities.

In this article, we will be sharing 6 tips that will help you keep the budget in check and not deviate from it.

1. Stick to the original plan-

   When a project is first commenced there remains an original idea or plan that was decided. According to the original plan the budget is drawn and resources are allocated. Sometimes one has to deviate from the original plan, but by doing so you might also deviate from the original budget plan. We know it is not always possible to stick to the original plan. Try your best to stick with the pre-existing plan. Doing so you will avoid any future money crunch.

2. Use frisky project management techniques- There are some projects that are very risky and thus are subjected to frequent changes. Management projects or software project where the market structure matters or where user feedback is taken into account are risky ventures and thus needs to be very carefully handled. Make sure that you are frequently reviewing the market before you make important decisions involving a lot of money.

3. Consider outsourcing- Some niche roles that require some special skill sets should be outsourced. If you have some important part of the project that will require some special set of skills that none of your team members has, try to outsource that particular work to a professional firm. If you try and train your team members it will take enough time and money for you to both deviate from the budget and the deadline. Hiring a professional will have the work done in less time and will save quite a huge amount of money that you would have spent on training.

4. Start with a realistic budget- Before you start off with the project draw a budget that you will think will suit your purpose well. It is advisable that you chart the budget with a little extra funding in cases of emergencies. One of the most efficient ways to create a budget is to look at the expenses of the previous year and determine the budget structure. Of course, you cannot expect the budget will be exactly the same yet some similarities will be found between projects of the same type.

5. Tracking the staff time- Manual labour is one of the most valuable assets of a firm and it needs to be put to good use. Before choosing a team what you can do is give some work to all the candidates available and track the time in which they are able to finish up that task. Now you will exactly know how well your team members can perform. This will also in return help you with your budget.

6. Effective bill rate- If you know your bill rate it becomes easier to accurately price jobs and thus it becomes easier to draw a budget chart. Avoiding the non-billable hours will help optimise the budget decision.

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