To assist your problem-solving skills while in charge of assignments you may like to take a look at Microsoft (MS) Project.

This application can provide a great backbone to the organisation of your workplace initiatives, particularly if they have tight schedules and limited resources. All managers have their own way of running projects and dealing with issues that may crop up over the duration of tasks. This software can help you hone your problem-solving skills by alerting you to problems and indicating ways in which these can be solved.

MS Project aims to break assignments down so you can clearly see all the elements involved in making it a success. The overall objective of the initiative is referred to as the Baseline Project and is made up of key elements, such as costs, deadlines, resources and smaller tasks that make up the larger goal.

However, the software does not stop analysing this inputted data here, in fact it can perform a whole series of calculations that show you how your initiative is progressing. Training courses are available if you wish to know more about the ins and outs of this application.

For example it can calculate the resources that have been used such as the workers involved in the project. In addition, many other outcomes of your project can be forecast by using the application's in-built calculator and formulas. To put this in context, it may be your job to ensure that a cattery is constructed and open for business in a set time.

The Project Baseline may be the successful launch of the animal centre, and within this objective you will have tasks that you can allocate resources. A task may be to order cages and bedding for the animals, the responsibility of which can be given to a member of staff - your resource in this case. Once you have decided on the tasks making up the greater goal, have set deadlines, decided budgets and divided out your resources, it would be nice to sit back and watch all your project planning come together.

However, this is generally not the case with most assignments and this is where MS Project can be one of the most important work-place tools you can own as a manager. Ingrained in the application is the ability to analyse many outcomes of your assignment based on a series of formulas that look at the data you have inputted. For example, MS Project can work out how much each individual task will costs depending on factors such as the resources and the time given to complete the task.

Referring to the previous example, you may have allocated one person the responsibility of advertising the cattery's services, via the press, the internet and other means. By using data connected to your resources, such as the hourly wage of the employee and the time taken to complete their job, you can see how much this task will cost.

However, if this task takes longer than necessary or needs to be extended so more interest is generated in the cattery via advertising, this will result in the employee spending longer on this task, which can eat into the budget you have prepared for their wages, or even the worker's time spent on an additional project within this initiative. MS Project can give you an idea how much this figure exceeds your initial budget regarding resources so you can make arrangements to keep the assignment on track financially.

Ways to rectify this kind of outcome include changing the work pattern of employees, re-distributing workloads, or bringing in more staff to cope with the demands of your project.