Using Project Management Tools to Support Assessment & Evaluation

As I move into Week 2 of PROM05 Research Project Management, I’ve been focusing on how I will assess and evaluate the outcomes of my research project. A key part of this process is choosing the right tools and techniques to help me plan, monitor, and measure progress effectively.

This week we explored several project management and evaluation methods, and one tool in particular stood out as highly relevant for my research: Trello. I’ve decided to use this tool as part of my project management strategy because it supports both project monitoring and evaluation of progress, which are essential for meeting the requirements of my project’s implementation phase.

Why I Selected Trello as a Project Monitoring & Evaluation Tool

Trello offers a clean, card-based visual layout that allows me to structure tasks according to their status: To Do, In Progress, Testing, Completed. This simple workflow aligns well with research project phases and helps me break down a large artefact-based project into manageable activities.

More importantly, Trello includes features that contribute directly to assessment and evaluation, such as:

✔ Checklists

These help me define success criteria for each task. For example, when implementing an artefact, I can break it into steps such as design, build, testing, review, and documentation.

✔ Due dates & reminders

These will help me track whether my project is aligning with the planned timeline I will create later using tools like a Gantt chart.

✔ Labelling system

Labels can be assigned to highlight priority levels, risks, research tasks, data collection tasks, or testing tasks. This supports transparent monitoring.

✔ Activity tracking

Trello automatically records what changes were made, when, and why. This creates a built-in project audit trail that helps me later evaluate how efficiently tasks were completed and where delays occurred.

How This Tool Supports My Research Evaluation

My research project will eventually require a detailed evaluation of both the artefact and the research process itself. Trello helps support this by generating data that I can use for my reflective evaluation, including:

Tracking progress over time

This helps me assess whether tasks were completed efficiently or required unexpected iterations.

Identifying bottlenecks

If certain task cards remain in the “In Progress” column for too long, this highlights challenges or areas where my research methods or artefact design may need adjustment.

Supporting qualitative evaluation

Notes and comments added to each card act as reflective mini-logs. This will help me analyse what worked, what didn’t, and why.

Enhancing transparency and validity

Documenting decisions and iterations strengthens the academic validity of my research process and supports the critical reflection required in my final dissertation.

Planned Use in My Project

I intend to use Trello to support:

• Monitoring milestones

• Tracking the artefact’s development

• Recording progress logs

• Managing research tasks, such as literature reviews, data collection, and evaluation

• Documenting challenges and solutions

Reflection

Exploring Trello this week helped me think more practically about managing a complex research project from start to finish. Although it is a simple visual tool, its flexibility makes it particularly useful for monitoring progress and collecting data about the project process itself.

As I move into the next stages of PROM05, I expect Trello to play a central role in ensuring my implementation plan is structured, realistic, and easy to evaluate.