How is LiquidPlanner different from the rest?

It works just like you work. For starters.

Real people, not software programs, complete projects. Today’s dynamic business environment requires workers that adapt and schedules that flex, just like life does. And it calls for a project planning tool that looks real-life uncertainty in the eye and puts it in its place.

We searched, but we couldn’t find any such tool. So we created it.

LiquidPlanner is the only online project management software that gives teams the power to manage change and uncertainty. It does much more than this, but this is what we think is most important.

Why? Because this is what your projects need the most.

The LiquidPlanner Difference.

Managed uncertainty.

It’s hard to know exactly how long a task will take to complete. Priorities shift as projects evolve. The nature and scope of tasks often change over time. This is the kind of inevitable uncertainty faced by project teams today.

Now here’s the catch.

If you can’t see the uncertainty in a project plan, you can’t manage that uncertainty. And without management, uncertain tasks get delayed and uncertain schedules become unreliable.

By allowing you to see the uncertainty in your project schedule, LiquidPlanner allows you to manage it. Dealing with uncertainty head-on is the key to meeting commitments and delivering on time.

Ranged vs. single-point estimates.

Traditional project management and scheduling software relies on single-point estimates for task scheduling. This forces team members to choose a single point in time by which to complete a given task. But most of us don’t think that way; we think in ranges.

The point is, a single-point estimate acts like a promise. If you don’t deliver as promised, you let down your team and throw off the entire schedule.

LiquidPlanner uses ranged estimates that allow for best- and worst-case scenarios, thereby capturing inevitable uncertainty. The result is a more realistic project timeline, and happier and more efficient team collaboration.

Most scheduling software determines a project completion date by simply adding up all the single-point estimates of the tasks in the project. Everyone knows the “end date” is not realistic, and that it will likely change, but until LiquidPlanner there hasn’t been a way to do it better.

LiquidPlanner gives you a schedule you can trust even though you don’t know for sure how long each task will take.

Here’s how it works:

1. You enter a new task along with a ranged estimate of how long you think it will take to complete.

2. LiquidPlanner applies behind-the-scenes statistical math to tell you the likelihood of finishing that task by certain dates. The timeline for each new task automatically impacts all subsequent tasks in the project schedule.

3. Every time you update progress on a task, the uncertainty of that task’s schedule, and therefore the overall project schedule, narrows. Since each individual task estimate is more accurate, the overall schedule is more accurate.

4. LiquidPlanner tells you how likely you are to hit your project deadline, as well as any major milestones along the way.

 

Probabilistic scheduling gives you the power to:

• Make critical decisions. Choose to ramp up contract staff, delay certain tasks, or reorder priorities in order to deliver on time.


• Prevent delays late in the game. Knowing ahead of time that you’re not going to meet a promise lets you make changes well before delays have a chance to ruin your entire schedule.


• Trust your schedule. Period.