One of the next steps in selecting project management software is to determine your target software category. There are literally hundreds of project management software packages in the market. If you simply start searching through them all, it can be very time consuming, not to mention confusing and overwhelming!

That is why it is very beneficial to know what you are looking for first. In addition to identifying some of the objectives, you want to hone in on the right software category. Some software solutions will be too low-end, some too high-end, etc.

I am not going to spend much time defining the categories because we have already done that for you. Let me link to some previous blog posts and to our Project Management Software Buyer's Guide, both of which define these for you:

Previous blog posts:
Project Management Software Categories: Introduction
Project Management Software Category #1: Simple / Stand Alone Tools
Project Management Software Category #2: Collaborative Tools
Project Management Software Category #3: Mid-Size Tools
Project Management Software Category #4: High-End Tools
Project Management Software Category #5: PPM Tools
Project Management Software Categories: Wrap-up

Click on the following link to download our Project Management Software Buyer's Guide:

http://www.teaminteractions.com/bg1.aspx

You will then want to prepare some criteria so that you can quickly judge the categories of the software packages at which you are looking. Here are some sample questions that you could ask:

Is the software web (or network) based (it is designed for multi-user access)? Or is it for one person running it on their desktop? -- This will determine whether it is stand-alone tool or not.

Does the software contain a full scheduling engine (typically in something like a Gantt View) that allows for tasks, subtasks, and dependencies at a minimum? -- If not, you may be looking at a collaborative tool instead of a full project management tool.

Is the software focused on core project management features (scheduling, task management, resource management, cost management, etc.) or collaborative features such as blogs, notes, etc. -- Again this is an indication of a collaborative vs. full project management tool.

What types of clients does the organization have? Are they large clients with thousands of users? Or are they smaller clients with tens (or may a few hundred) users. If they are thousands of users, you are probably looking at a high-end solution. If they are tens (or a couple hundred) users, you are probably looking at more of a mid-size solution.

Does the product focus on portfolio management features? If so, you may be looking at a higher-end PPM tool (or a high-end tool, period).

That is not an exhaustive list, but it should get you started.