Managing a company or a project is not an easy task. It involves having into consideration multiple factors such as project planning, team coordination, resource relocation, productivity, meetings, holidays, budgets, etc. Therefore, having a clear and organized strategy and owning the tools to effectively communicate the information is key to making success in business.
However, there are so many management software available in the market nowadays. Choosing the right one can feel a little bit confusing and overwhelming. That’s why we have gathered in this article the top 10 planning tools so that you can make the right decision and grow your business organically.
Toggl Plan is a planning tool with a clean and intuitive interface and a really great design. It is designed to help managers plan and track projects focusing on a project view, project timelines and additional checklists for every task. It also allows you to integrate in their software different third-party applications, turning this tool into a really flexible and adaptable program. It is easy to use not only for managers but also for every team member and it’s free for up to 5 team members. Premium plans start at $8/month per user.
Asana is one of the most popular management tools in the market as it allows you to structure work, set priorities and deadlines, stay on track of multiple projects and create visually aesthetic project plans to see how every step maps over time. Hence, team members are able to give real-time updates on the project through a user-friendly drag-and-drop dashboard. It is available on web browsers and smartphone devices and on top of that it is free!
nTask is also a free online project management tool designed for freelancers, professionals and businesses that help managers to set the basis for a successful project development cycle. Their interface is quite simple, clean and easy to use and incorporates powerful and sophisticated features to keep track of different tasks in all stages of the project.
10,000 Ft Plans is a tool created for various business and design based companies. It allows managers to simply and effectively allocate resources, accurately planning a project and easily tracking time by creating a dynamic report of the data. Therefore, it is a really great option for managers who want to collect information and construct reports from a number of supported operational data. They offer a free trial and then it is priced at $10/month for each user.
Mavenlink is a modern collaborative platform that helps managers elevate the operational and financial performance of services businesses. It offers a unified solution and a real-time availability prospect, and it is considered one of the best softwares for professional services automation, project management and resource management. The scheduling tool allows managers to create a workweek schedule and define the availability in an automatic way. Although, their monthly plan is a little bit pricey – starts at $20 – it is totally worth the price!
Float is a resource planning tool that allows advertising businesses to quickly plan a project, as it offers easy assignment delegation, editing and also live informational news about each project. This tool provides every member with a weekly notification that contains important business updates about the projects, even for users that are not regulars of the project. Float also supports other third-party softwares and offers a 30-day free trial. After that, it is also quite accessible as it only costs $5/month.
Basecamp is more than just a project management tool as it helps teams to be more productive and be better organized remotely. They offer great communication tools so your team requires less meetings and it becomes more efficient. The program provides every team member the ability to preview current projects and files as employees are working on them. Their fares start at $29/month but depending on the size of your business it can reach until $3,000.
Podio is a planning tool that enables managers to easily keep track of tasks and events that are associated with every project. Their intuitive interface makes deployment straightforward and it is adhered to the most rigorous security standards. This software offers an accessible system supported in mobile devices that will allow managers to administer multiple projects at once and have fluid communication within team members. The basic plan is quite cheap as it is priced at only $9 per month.
LiquidPlanner is a management tool ready to use on the cloud! This planner helps team members to increase their efficiency while working on a wide variety of tasks. It allows you to create schedules with an easy drag-and-drop tool and get a real-time insight of the project. This program is also available for smartphones and it’s free for the first 30 days and after that it is priced at $9.99 per user.
Lastly, ProjectManager.com is an online planning management software that helps teams to organize and delegate tasks within a simple and easy dashboard. This tool is specifically designed for planning projects, progress timelines and work with employees in a collaborative way. This program is also free and therefore it is the perfect tool for any small business.
This wraps ups our list of the top 10 management tools for managers. In today’s world, with the increase of remote positions, technology and companies need to go hand to hand. The better your team communicates, the better the information flows and, hence, the more successful your company will be. As a manager, these planning tools will offer you the possibility to assign tasks easily, keep track of progress and be more efficient. So it is crucial that you research which software suits better the necessities of your team and your projects, and start using them to increase the business results of your company.
Ainhoa Canales is a freelance graphic designer and artist from Valencia, Spain. She specialises in creating and elevating lifestyle brands through brand identity, digital and print design, while creating minimal artwork inspired in nature and soul connections. You can find more about her and the work she does by visiting noadesignstudio.com