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You might not think software project management is your responsibility. That’s probably true, but you should still know about it. After all, it’s not a topic you can ignore without paying the price later on. Here’s why – if your company is going to be successful with its software, then be assured that someone has to be in charge of everything related to the project management bundle of things and those someone will have set up a concrete plan for them to follow. Software project management is a crucial element of the wider concept mentioned yours that encompasses everything you need to manage in order to make sure the software gets made and made right.
Zoho Projects
Part of a wide suite of productivity tools from the same company, Zoho Projects has nearly all the standard features you’d expect from a project management app, at a particularly affordable price.
Tasks are viewable in either kanban or more traditional styles, with dependencies able to be set between each task. Tools like issue and workflow management, Gantt charts, and customized reporting mean the tool can handle even relatively complex project requirements. There’s also strong integration with other services, both Zoho’s own suite of apps, and those from major players like Google and Microsoft.
Basic time tracking is built-in, and although it doesn’t replace a dedicated tracking tool, there are enough features included to make it useful. Contacting other project team members can be done via the built-in chat app, which saves jumping out to external tools like e-mail or Slack.
The free tier is limited to three users, with just 10 megabytes of storage and two projects. It’s sufficient for small projects or getting a feel for the software, however, and all of the paid plans are available on a 10-day trial. Other plans which allow for more users, more projects, and more storage start range from $5 per user to $10 per user, and you can save 20% if billed annually. Both Web and mobile versions of Zoho Projects are available.
LiquidPlanner
LiquidPlanner is one of those pieces of software that tries to be many things to many people, and unlike most others with such grand ambitions, it generally succeeds.
In addition to being a powerful way of running traditional projects, with all the features you’d expect, LiquidPlanner performs equally well as a helpdesk-style issue tracker and general resource management tool.
Strong reporting is built in, along with integration with major cloud storage providers. There’s also Zapier support, so you can build your own automated connections with other business tools as needed.
One-off pieces of work can be assigned to any user or group, and the impact of that extra work on the people performing it is automatically taken into account when estimating project deliverables.
With extra features comes extra complexity, of course, and while LiquidPlanner does a good job of explaining some of its trickier aspects and then getting out of the way, it still requires a greater time investment to set up, learn, and master than many of its competitors. For that reason—not to mention the cost—it’s better suited to larger teams and organizations than small, ad-hoc groups.
LiquidPlanner doesn’t offer a free tier, although you can try various plans for two weeks at no cost. Plans start at $29 per month per user (with annual billing) for a maximum of 50 projects and go up from there.
Basecamp
Reasons to buy
+The ability to create group chats+A weighty veteran solution
Reasons to avoid
-Expensive for SMBs
Basecamp is one of the oldest project management solutions, having been around for more than ten years, building a reputation which makes it a highly credible tool for businesses that work on big projects.
The latest version of the app offers a variety of helpful features, including the ability to send direct messages for quick discussions, set up a schedule so you only get notifications within work hours, and show your appreciation for colleagues by clicking an applause button. Basecamp avoids a fragmented workflow, and as the firm says, it keeps “discussions, tasks, files, schedules and chat in one place.”
There are some nifty functions for dealing with clients, too. For instance, you can easily save and track client feedback and approvals, and you can also get reports on how projects are going. And when you want to collaborate with others, you can create group chats.
A free version lets you work on up to 3 projects with up to 20 people, to allow you to try out the software. After that there’s only a single paid-for plan, which includes all features and an unlimited number of users, making this a great deal for teams but not so much for individual users
Teamwork Projects
Teamwork Projects is a great project management software for the project management power user. Teamwork Projects includes all the tools you’ll need to track the development of a project. The app is quite flexible and includes various intuitive features such as Task Management, Milestones (e.g. you can link task lists to Milestones), Messaging, File Storage, Time Tracking tools, and more. Teamwork also helps project teams visualise the project using a marked calendar, gantt chart and set-up reporting. File management support is accessible with DropBox, Google Drive and Box.com.
Pricing: Pricing can range anywhere between $69/month (Small office) to $269/month (Business). They also offer an enterprise package (pricing available upon request).
ProofHub
ProofHub is an online project management app that places an emphasis on simplicity. This project management software is intended mainly for small and growing businesses. Projects are assigned to groups and clients, who are able to discuss, share and edit. Proofhub also offers to create custom roles for users to create Gantt charts. The following are some of the subcomponents of ProofHub: Custom Roles, Task management, Workflows and Boards, Gantt Charts, Reports, Time tracking, Discussions, Chat, Calendar, File management, Notes, and in-app notifications.
Pricing: ProofHub pricing ranges from $45/month to $99/month depending on the number of projects and storage needed.
Podio
Reasons to buy
+The option of in-app purchases+Useful IM function
Reasons to avoid
-Premium plans are expensive
Podio has been designed for professionals who are always working on multiple projects and generating new ideas. More than 400,000 businesses and teams from across the world are using it, including the likes of Sony, Volvo and the NFL.
With the Podio app, you have the ability to create tasks and customize them based on your workflow, taking into account deadlines and responsibilities. There’s also a built-in instant messaging function which you can use to share ideas and see how others are getting on with delegated tasks. Additionally, there is a handy tool for getting quick feedback without having to send several emails.
There are integrations with third-party services such as Dropbox and Google Drive, meaning you can share content quickly and easily. Podio is available in a number of additional languages, including French, German, Danish, Chinese, Spanish and Russian.
On the web, there is a free tier with a limit of up to five employees.
Microsoft Project
Microsoft Project has been around since 1984 in one form or another, and it’s still the preferred tool of many experienced project managers. With its higher pricing and steep learning curve, it’s very much aimed at those responsible for very large, complex projects who have the expertise, time, and budget to get the most out of this comprehensive tool.
MS Project looks and feels like other Microsoft Office apps, but with few tutorials or hints, it can be daunting for newcomers to the project management space. Trained professionals, however, will appreciate the extremely granular detail available for each task and resource, whether that resource is a specific person, role, physical material, or something else.
Reporting is similarly powerful, with both pre-built and customizable reports that can be quickly exported to Microsoft PowerPoint for those inevitable management summaries. Integration with non-Microsoft tools is limited, however.
MS Project can be tacked onto an existing Office 365 subscription, at a couple of different price points, or purchased as a one-off piece of software to be installed on a single computer.
In 2021, Microsoft dropped the tiered naming convention of Essentials, Professional, and Premium and replaced it with Project Plan 1, Project Plan 3, and Project Plan 5, leaving the majority plan features unchanged. Features differ between tiers, but subscription prices for Plan 3 (formerly Professional) start at $30 per month per user.
Trello
Based around the kanban card-based management system, Trello’s simple interface and generous free tier makes it the ideal place for individuals and small teams to get started with basic project management.
Rather than traditional tools designed for managing resources and tracking progress towards a specific end date, kanban-based apps like Trello are more free-form and flexible.
You can manage both individual projects and ongoing workflows equally well, and the board and card metaphors are easy to understand. There’s plenty of power under the hood, with cards able to include images and attached files, hyperlinks, custom dropdowns, due dates, and plenty more.
Once you’re finished with a particular card or an entire board, it can be archived to hide it from daily view while still being accessible if needed in the future.
The basic free tier includes unlimited users and cards, up to 10 boards, and just one “Power-Up” (i.e., integration with other services) per board. Its unlimited storage is restricted to 10 megabytes per file. Paid plans start at $10 per month, with fewer or no limitations.
There’s very limited reporting built into Trello, and although third-party extensions add more options, you’ll likely still need to look elsewhere if detailed reports are a major requirement. For everyone else, however, Trello is a great place to start with project management. It’s available on the web, mobile, and desktop.
Asana
Reasons to buy
+Handy tracking functions+Cloud-based+Team-oriented
Asana is a project management solution you may have heard of – even if you haven’t used the service in the past. While it offers a ton of handy features to boost productivity, there’s a bigger emphasis placed on tracking.
The app lets you create to-do lists and reminders so you always meet deadlines, plus you can add due dates, colleagues, instructions to tasks, and comment on items. You can even share images from other apps (like Google Drive) directly to Asana. And more importantly, you can actually track everything you and your colleagues work on in a bid to ensure the project is running smoothly and to schedule.
If you’re concerned with who is working on certain projects, then you can bring up a list of teams and individuals, and there’s also a search functionality so you can find completed tasks easily.
Asana offers a free Basic tier, with limited functionality and dashboards. Step up to the Premium tier, Business, or Enterprise tiers and you unlocked additional features, as well as administration and management options.
Conclusion:
There are several similarities between project managers and software developers out there. First, both are the go-to person when it comes to making sure things are being done right in the workplace. Also, they use several tools that make their jobs easier. However, while tasks vary, there are aspects of this profession that should be common knowledge to every software project manager.