Which is the best cloud-based project management software?

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Thescalers
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With so many remote project management tools in the market, choosing the best tool can significantly impact how your remote team operates. The right tool should be able to enable efficient two-way communication, organise tasks and deadlines, and positively impact the success of your IT project.

Keeping these parameters in mind, we’ve compiled a list of the top 5 cloud-based project management software that can help you collaborate with remote teams all across the globe.

1. Zoho Projects

Zoho Projects is a cloud-based project management platform that is designed with one primary goal — to make your IT project more productive. With five different subscription plans ranging from a free program for freelancers to an elaborate plan for large teams, Zoho is a comprehensive remote project management tool.

On a basic level, you can organise tasks, sub-tasks, and milestones on different Kanban boards by displaying them on square tiles for a more visual appeal. However, what sets the platform apart from similar remote project management tools is the in-built service level agreement (SLA) automation module that tracks and monitors the project status to make sure that it achieves the right level of customer engagement.
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Another admirable feature of the platform includes an integrated business and analytics software that can create dashboards in minutes from raw, aggregated data. You can then use the dashboard to track key business metrics, see long term trends, determine outliers, and discover hidden insights.

2. Clarizen

Clarizen is a cloud computing tool that is changing how organisations approach remote project management. It focuses heavily on customizable solutions, especially in larger organisations that work on complex projects. While the basic subscription starts at $45/user/month, the unlimited plans are over $60/user/month.

Clarizen automatically prioritises projects, resources, tasks, and budgets so that all the key resources are managed the right way during the project. You also get access to a standard set of templates, workflows, dashboards, personal calendars, and approval processes.

However, the USP of this software is the built-in collaboration feature that includes integrated social engagement tools, presence awareness for team members, and resource management between teams.

3. Trello

Trello is one of the most famous cloud-based project management tools, known for its simplicity and generous free tier. The free tier allows unlimited users, Kanban boards, and cards with a few restrictions while the paid plans start at $9.99/month.

The simplified kanban card-based system allows individuals or small teams to build a ground-level project management framework. They can also track tasks, attach files, images, or hyperlinks to the board, set-up custom dropdowns, and archive boards that you may need at a later point.

4. Basecamp

With a strong market presence over the last decade and over 2 million customers, Basecamp is a veteran of the cloud-based project management systems world. Basecamp offers a free 30-day trial for teams that want to test out the software, but their subscription plans are $99/month irrespective of the team size.What sets basecamp aside from the dozens of project management systems is the simple, uncluttered, and powerful interface. Straightforward instructions, e-mail integration, visually appealing task boards, and a strong reporting suite makes using the platform a smooth and hassle-free experience. You can share tasks and notifications with people outside the organisation and even customise them, including turning them off outside office hours.

5. Wrike

Wrike is a cloud-based project management tool with a plethora of useful functionalities that work for both co-located and distributed teams. The paid subscription to the platform starts from $9.80user/month.

A stand-out feature of Wrike is the real-time visibility feature that allows you to track the status of a particular task, identify problems early on, and monitor the progress of your teammates without having to ask for updates every other hour.

Wrike also has other functionalities such as task prioritization, an interactive timeline, predefined project templates, request forms, Gantt charts, and workload management. By optimally using the many features of the platform, you can shorten the planning time, improve hand-offs, and eliminate unnecessary meetings.

Today, more and more organizations are rooting for cross-functional and decentralized teams that are a combination of local, remote, and offshore talent. To make these teams work, each team member should be able to share information, collaborate efficiently, and access critical documents whenever and wherever they need to. And that should be the primary goal of any cloud-based project management solutions that you decide to use.
JaneKing
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Trello is one of the most famous and also one of the best project management software. We have been using it for a long time and not planning to switch to something else. In combination with employee monitoring software and other time tracking applications, the results are excellent for employees and the company as a whole.
"Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately, it kills all its pupils."
Mishal21
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I've worked with a few start-ups, and the response varies depending on the type of company.

Jira is famous for IT creation, Asena for marketing, and Trello for small-scale projects. It's unnecessary to use Microsoft Project.

Please don't waste your time with advanced Project Management software if you're a small start-up team... Trello is sufficient.

In the beginning, even an Excel Online / Google Doc will suffice to get you started.
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dhaughey
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Agree, Mishal21. There is no need to buy expensive project management software. I use a combination of Trello, Evernote, Excel and Teams.
Megan Wale
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I totally agree with Mishal21.

Project management tool depends on size of the project. Zoho is widely used project management and task management tool in IT sectors.

Being a project manager I have a medium sized content-based company. I used Trello for some time and now switched to smartsheet. Along with it we use slack also to communicate within the virtual team. Smartsheet is best task management tool for medium scale company specially to manage tasks with offshore team.

Features you will love in smartsheet like -
  • You can easily add attachments.
  • Sharing and giving access to sheets is very simple and easy.
  • You can easily import some of your spreadsheets or project plans.
  • The pricing is very economical.
If budget is serious constraint than you can always go for project management templates. You will find many templates on web.

Thanks,
Regards,
Megan Wale, PMP
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