The Smart Way to Manage a Large Research Project

Setting up a system to manage your project, to help you keep on the path while roaming through the forest, is as critical to success as your analytical capabilities. Unless you have experience in project management, this skill is something you will learn while working as a researcher.

We don’t want you to learn only by trial and error. This is why we give you some tips on how to manage a large research project and take your research onto the fast lane.

While there are seemingly as many methods to manage a large research project, the general ideas of a solid system are the same.

Split And Plan Like A Sir

One of the most important aspects of managing a project is splitting it up in doable tasks and managing their timing. Planning consists of the following subtasks:

A large research project, like a PhD or a project that will last several years, should be split in smaller research projects. For each research project, the main tasks typically are: literature review, development of theory, experiments,analysis of results and verification of theory and then reporting the results.

For laboratory experiments are: preparing the setup, ordering the required elements and products, preparing the measurement, setting up a system to check and process these measurements, carrying out the experiments, cleaning up and dismantling the setup and finally storing all raw data in an organized way.

Quantifying the amount of time you need for each subtask, is difficult in the beginning. For a first overview of the project and the main tasks, you can think in terms of weeks/months. Once you narrow down to the level of subtasks,experience and personal circumstances will determine how many hours you need for each small subtask.

Juggling tasks is an essential part of managing a large project.

If you want to do laboratory experiments, you can’t walk into the lab on the very day your planning says you start your experiments without any previous planning, ordering of materials and negotiating your lab space and time. Similarly, reporting your results can start early on, by writing overviews, summaries and critiques of the literature you processed.

Which other subtasks are affected when something early in the chain is delayed? Can you move something forward in your planning while a delay occurs? How much extra time can you spend on a subtask without missing aseries of deadlines?

From an engineering point of view, safety factors are always necessary on your time and cost budgets. A rule of thumb is to consider 20% of extra time for your tasks. We are all human and we make mistakesBy the same token: make sure you plan time off for your holidays and to recharge your batteries.Keep in mind as well that minor tasks will come along the way: teaching responsibilities, supervision of students, preparing for conferences,…

Checkpoints To Evaluate Progress In Your Research Project

Continuing the ideas to manage a large research project, regular checkpoints are an important aspect of a successful planning. You need to check regularly if you are doing good progress and if you are still running on schedule. This will keep you motivated.

These checkpoints can take different shapes, depending on the characteristic of the project: for a solitary PhD project these help to keep you motivated, while for a large European research project checks help to keep the whole team on track.

A few examples of checkpoints you can build into your planning are the following:

• meetings with your supervisors
• gatherings with a group of fellow students (for example intervision groups, or “shut up and write” groups)
• progress presentations for your funding body
• progress presentations for a small group of peers
• paper deadlines
• due dates of reports
• personal deadlines for subtasks

Exploring Your Data Jungle

Besides the amount of time that needs to be planned and scheduled to manage a large research project, you will also have to deal with a large number of files: both on your computer and in your physical archives (unless you managed to go completely paperless).

To find your information when you need it, it is necessary you start structuring your files (digital and analog) early in the process. The worst you can do is to keep all files on your desktop, and to keep all prints on piles on your desk. Don’t pile your information, structure and file it!

Here are some ideas on how to keep your information searchable:

• have a clear tree structure for your files and folders
• arrange your printed papers in alphabetical order by first author
• keep a digital archive for your papers
• add project codes to smaller projects and keep an overview file
• store calculations, figures and text used in a paper together for later reference
• just dump everything in Evernote

Useful Tools To Manage a Large Research Project

As a scientist 2.0, you are a tech savvy researcher, ready to implement these ideas by using the right tools for it. These are your essential tools:

• Evernote for science is a must-have,
• Paper management software, for example Endnote, or Mendeley.
• Google Calendar or another app that allows long-term planning as well as scheduling appointments. An advantage is that Google Calendar can be synced over all your devices since it is in the cloud.
• To get a first rough planning, you can use the fun and visual Finished in Four (aimed at PhD students)
• ManicTime to track and tag your time,
• RescueTime to keep an eye on how you spend your time,
• Shared drives, for example Google Drive, DropBox or SharePoint portals,
• Diigo archives as an alternative to Evernote Web clips,
• A smart To Do list program, which allows you to prioritize and use different levels of tasks: Evernote, Google Tasks, Remember the Milk,Wunderlist,
• Understand how to search digitally in your library archives, for example through tools as the Engineering Village
• Trying to understand technical German? Use BeoLingus!
• A tool for applying the Pomodoro technique, such as Focus Booster or a smartphone app (these apps drain your smartphone battery quickly though!)

With these tools and ideas, planning, managing and moving forward in a project become easier, because you know where to find your information and what you need to work on to keep the entire project on track.