Top Project Management Software Systems Review (Pros, Cons, Features, Pricing)

Before you have a read through the following project management software’s review, other articles which could be used to your benefit such as content around business strategy and project management methodologies can be found on on ProfileTree’s website.

Choosing the Right Project Management Software for Your Business

Before diving into specific software reviews, it’s crucial to understand your business needs and how project management software can benefit you. Selecting the right system can significantly improve your team’s efficiency, collaboration, and overall project success.

This section provides a brief overview of key considerations when choosing project management software:

1. Identify Your Needs: Analyze your current project management processes and any pain points you’re experiencing. Are you struggling with communication, task management, or resource allocation?
2. Consider Team Size and Project Complexity: The needs of a small team handling straightforward projects will differ from those of a large organization managing intricate projects.
3. Prioritize Features: Different software offers various functionalities. Do you prioritize features like Gantt charts, time tracking, or robust reporting tools?
4. Budget: Project management software pricing structures can vary significantly. Determine your budget beforehand to narrow down your options.
5. By understanding your specific requirements, you can make a more informed decision when selecting the project management software that best suits your business.

What project management software system would suit your business?

For many business leaders, project management software systems are a must-have system to improve the overall workflow and management of your business. 

Different software systems are developed to meet different needs. It is therefore essential to review your requirements, analysing which project management system is going to work best for your business and improve how you operate.

From our experience, below lists the ‘best’ project management systems on the market.

Monday.com Review

Monday.com is an effective tool for helping teams collaborate more effectively and is trusted by large businesses worldwide such as Hubspot, Canva and Coca-Cola. With a central hub for communication and an attractive user interface, users can make use of the Gantt charts and other beneficial features to manage complex projects. 

Key Features

1. Customizable boards & columns 

With an option to view your virtual boards, users can manage tasks on either main boards, sharable boards or private boards. Each board is also customisable to suit your business, offering multiple views such as kanban view, chart view or table view.

Each board consists of both rows and columns which can be tailored to your needs. Some columns include:

1. Owner: This is who you wish to assign to the task 
2. Status: This can be set as done, working on it, stuck or awaiting review allowing quick updates of tasks
3. Priority: this can be set as low, mid or high depending on which task should require most attention

2. Automations

Automations are an option with Monday.com which allow you to speed up processes and improve your workflow. 

These automations can be customised to improve your business workflow, helping teams stay aligned and up to date. This is highly effective for those businesses that have repeat tasks and responsibilities. 

3. Integrations

Integrations are a great way to connect all your favourite tools to your project management system. Having all your work in the one place can lead to greater efficiency and improved collaboration.

Pricing 

Monday.com offers different deals on whatever plan you choose and how many users you wish to add. Also, depending on which plan you choose will decide what features will be available to your business. For more information see link: https://monday.com/pricing/ 

ClickUp Review

ClickUp is a cloud-based project management tool developed to suit all organisations and industries no matter the size. Along with its colourful layout, ClickUp allows for effective communication, task management and resource management all in the one place. ClickUp is recognised for its collaborative features which allow cross-functional teams to operate effectively.

Key Features:

1. Broad range of views

ClickUp offers over 15 views on the platform to allow for businesses to view their workload from different angles.

Each view can be filtered to suit how different teams want to visualise their workload. Some of which have been listed below;

• Kanban View
• Task View
• Board View
• Calendar View
• Box View

2. Customisation options

ClickUp’s customisable options can offer opportunities for businesses who wish to be flexible and agile in how they work.

ClickUp offers businesses the opportunity to automate their processes while customising each to suit their needs. There is also the option to create templates based on a particular project being worked on, with the ability to create relationships linking tasks and documents to your project. 

3. Time Management

ClickUp is built to allow businesses to manage their time and resources effectively.

The platform allows businesses to track the amount of time spent across various tasks. Businesses can also set estimates of the time to complete certain tasks and monitor the progress on these, flagging when a task is overdue or completed. With these capabilities, management teams will also be able to report on whether tasks were completed on time.

Pros

• Efficient visual dashboard offers valuable insight 
• Friendly and colourful layout makes it easy to navigate
• Low in price compared to competitors
• A range of customisable options 

Cons

• User interface could be improved
• System can be overwhelming at the beginning where onboarding may be required
• Its complexity means businesses may need to introduce the system with a trail and error approach

Pricing 

Plan	Personal use	Unlimited	Business	Business Plus	Enterprise
Price	Free forever	$5 per member per month	$12 per member per month	$19 per member per month	Contact ClickUp

For more information on which features are available for each plan visit: https://clickup.com/pricing

Asana Review

Asana is a web and mobile platform which allows businesses to manage projects, allowing teams to plan, track and organise their work in one place. Asana focuses a lot on task and workflow management where the platform is a highly effective platform for collaboration, helping teams to easily keep track of projects and tasks. 

Key Features:

1. Workflow Builder

Asana gives you the ability to build your own workflow customised to suit your business. This visual tool allows team members to connect easily and organise their work. 

With the ability for team members to streamline projects in one place Asana allows you to automate tasks to speed processes and integrate tools. 

2. Timeline 

Asana’s timeline functionality allows businesses to stay on track to meeting deadlines and any customer needs. The tool will allow you to connect tasks with deadlines, ensuring you stay on schedule by solving problems before they occur. 

The timeline feature is highly flexible allowing you to adjust team members tasks based on customer needs while allowing you to keep on track with the goals of your project. The functionality will also allow businesses to convert spreadsheets into visible timelines instantly. 

3. Goals

Asana is an effective tool for aligning your businesses strategic vision and keeping all team members informed of the business goals. This feature will also allow businesses to see which teams are on track to achieve their goals.

Asana gives you the ability to set goals at the company and team level, ensuring the whole business is moving in the right direction.  This will allow for greater business efficiency, where measuring results can boost teams performance.

Pros

• Efficient for collaboration 
• Effective for managing projects and workflows
• Easy to stay on schedule
• Effective platform for boosting team productivity and motivation 

Cons

• Lack of resource management tool
• Lack of budgeting and expense tracking 
• No time logging ability
• High in price compared to competitors

Pricing

Plan	Basic (Individual)	Premium	Business
Price	Free forever	£9.49 per user per month	£20.99 per user per month

For more information on which features are available for each plan visit:  https://asana.com/pricing

Forecast Review

Forecast is a platform which focuses on project and resource management through intelligent AI features which allow you to execute projects effectively. The system will allow you to visualise and map upcoming projects, auto schedule your workload and view projects from a holistic perspective, allowing flexible collaboration within your business.

Key Features:

1. Team collaboration

For those businesses who have multiple teams working on projects, Forecast’s AI aims to increase teams productivity through implementing visual agile ways of working.

Forecast will support businesses in keeping all teams aligned through the ability to follow the progression of tasks while being notified of any updates. The platform’s integrated AI features learns from previous tasks, offering suggestions to scheduling time for projects based on past activity. 

2. Business Intelligence

Forecasts built in digital features allow you to analyse, report and improve business through actionable insights. This will allow businesses to keep ahead of competitors through making smarter decisions based on data feedback.

Forecasts advanced analysts (AvA) will allow businesses to monitor performance through the creation of fully customisable dashboards, highlighting profitable projects or areas which are slowing you down. The platform also uses both planned and actual data to offer real-time insights allowing you to take action to improve your business.

3. Integrated Intelligence 

As mentioned, Forecast is an AI powered platform and aims to make decision making, planning and resourcing easy for your business. Its built-in AI offers assistance and makes recommendations based on projects, quickly viewing projections on tasks and budgets. 

 

Through powered AI insights Forecast will also allow businesses to deal with risk in its early stages. Forecast will also offer insight to particular tasks and projects, allowing businesses to improve efficiency through planning and scheduling appropriately. 

Pros:

• Powered AI can prove very beneficial to improving business workflow
• Offers high level birds-eye view of projects
• Highly effective for managing budgets 
• Good way to visual workflows and track projects

Cons:

• Limited project management functionality 
• Very expensive compared to competitors 
• No mobile application 

Pricing

Plan	Lite	Pro	Plus
Pricing	£25 per seat/month (minimum 10 seats)	Contact Forecast	Contact Forecast

Forecast has three plans to their pricing structure, however only one is visible on their website. To see more visit https://www.forecast.app/pricing 

Teamwork Review 

Teamwork is a platform developed to allow you to easily manage both simple and complex projects. Its built in time management, communication and scheduling functionality aims to allow you to deliver projects on time and on budget. 

Key Features:

1. Teamwork Chat

Teamwork has its own built in chat functionality which allows businesses to communicate with team members instantly. Also beneficial for businesses who complete cross functional work, teamwork chat will allow you to set up project chat channels for effective collaboration. 

Source: Teamwork Features

2. Time Tracking 

Teamwork is designed to allow business to track where time is being spent most on a project, allowing you to make decisions to improve the workflow of the business.

With a detailed breakdown of time spent on each project, businesses can offer better time estimates to customers with accurate billing. Also, with access to each staff member’s time log, you will be able to make better use of your resources as well. 

3. Resource Management 

You will be able to manage your resources and time better with the workload planner or scheduling function. This will give you a complete view of all staff’s capacity, allowing you to allocate time appropriately.

Teamwork’s resource management functionality will allow you to plan in advance, assign the correct people to certain tasks and refine for future forecasting.

Pros

• Built in chat function effective for communication
• Efficient time management functionality 
• Ability to easily track time spent on projects and particular tasks 
• Variety of automations and integrations 

Cons:

• Lack of reporting options 
• Scheduling functionality can be detrimental 
• Teamwork support could be improved

Price:

Plan	Free Forever	Deliver	Grow	Scale
Price	£0 / month (Up to 5 users per plan)	£9.99 user / month	£17.99 user / month	Contact Teamwork

For more information on Teamwork’s pricing and features available for each plan visit: https://www.teamwork.com/pricing/

Other effective project management tools which are worth investigating are;

• Trello
• Wrike
• Jira
• Smartsheet
• Basecamp

GanttPRO Review

GanttPRO stands out as a project management solution and a prominent Gantt chart maker that focuses on the effective planning and monitoring of projects through Gantt charts. Tailored for teams and enterprises of varying sizes, it caters specifically to those who favor project management approaches that are visually oriented.

Key Features:

1. Gantt Charts updated in real-time

Central to GanttPRO is its dynamic Gantt charts, which enables users to get a graphical representation of their project timelines. These charts facilitate meticulous planning, establishment of task relations, and online progress monitoring. 

Through a straightforward drag-and-drop interface, users can effortlessly modify timelines and links, ensuring flexibility and ease of use.

2. Straightforward Task Management and Collaboration

GanttPRO facilitates comprehensive and transparent task management. It allows to build a clear WBS with assignees, prioritize work and get reminders of deadlines and other project issues. 

Users also speak well of its collaborative features such as task comments, file sharing, and instant notifications, that significantly increase productivity.

3.Resource and Workload Management

GanttPRO also gives a boost to resource management. It provides tools to oversee team workload, deal efficiently with resources, see when costs are going up, and allocate tasks based on availability and skill set.

Pros:

User-friendly with a minimal learning curve 

Highly visual powerful Gantt charts

Effective task and resource management capabilities 

Effortless team collaboration 

Cons:

Primarily focuses on Gantt charts

Short list of integration options 

Pricing

Plan	Basic	PRO	Business	Enterprise
Price	$7.99 / month	$15.99 / month	$24.99 / month	Upon request

Summary

Above highlights the top 5 project management systems based on our experience around digital transformation. Finding the best project management systems can be overwhelming with so many best options on the market. Consider the size and needs of your business, the type of projects you typically handle, and the features most important to you. Do you prioritize collaboration, robust reporting, or powerful automation? Many software systems offer free trials, so take advantage of these to test-drive a few options and see which one best suits your workflow.

ProfileTree currently use Teamwork project management software due to its effective communication and resource management capabilities. However, different systems will suit different businesses and its important an analysis is conducted to understand your needs/requirements.

SEE ALSO: What is Scope Creep in Project Management?