Choosing the Right Software for Your Business
By Michael Straughan
Working in a shared office space has always been the standard for project management teams. Only recently have virtual work environments started to become more popular, although they are often found to be less effective. However, amid the pandemic teams do not have the choice to work in an office, all communications and processes are becoming virtual due to COVID-19 restrictions. Many companies may find themselves lost in this transition. How does one go about virtual project management while still maintaining efficiency? The first step in this transition is to choose what tools your organization will use. In order to make a properly informed decision, one must first assess their corporate needs.
There are two main types of software you should consider to manage your team amid the pandemic: business communication software and project management software. Business communication software was developed to resemble communication in an office environment, offering a plethora of tools and features to improve virtual communication. Project management software focuses on the work and team processes, offering scheduling, timeline and task management tools among several other features. During the pandemic, business communication software has become a necessity to communicate with teams, one could use both of these software tools together to aid in virtual project management. Some of this software allows integration with other applications, and some project management software even offers business communication tools (however, these tools are generally less thorough than a dedicated business communication software). There are currently hundreds of possible software applications one could use and all of these choices make it difficult to decide on one virtual project management solution. This article was created to help choose a solution among some of the best options for each type of software.
Business Communication Software
It is likely that you may find your organization transitioning towards a virtual solution amid the pandemic. It is essential to begin using business communication software if your team has started working from home. When choosing software, it is important to have features that will not only simulate an office working environment but also have additional tools that can improve the general communication of the team.
At the bare minimum, business communication software must include communication across the three basic mediums: instant messaging, audio calls, and video calls. After research, we have decided that Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and Slack have the most to offer and vary depending on the complexity and size of the organization, potentially integrated applications, and budget. All of these software solutions share the basic necessary features, as well as other tools such as saving/syncing messages that are searchable at any time, allowing conversation threads, and allowing shared screens. We have made note of the unique pros and cons of each.
For the purpose of these comparisons, we will be analyzing the paid versions
Microsoft Teams
Pros
- Unlimited number of users
- 1 TB of full storage, 15 GB upload limit
- Complete guest access to the team’s resources, they can join group chats and share files
- Video conferencing up to 250 people, online events for 10,000 attendees (inside or outside the organization), can be recorded
- Integrates seamlessly with other Office 365 applications
- Can integrate with several other useful apps directly from the Teams application, such as:
- Github (software development and version control)
- Twitter (social media platform)
- Polly (survey application that can be used within teams)
Cons
- Expensive ($12.50/month per user)
- Needs a Microsoft account
- Free version available but has restrictions
- Storage limit is 2GB per user
- No guarantee of 99.9% uptime
- Cannot record meetings
- No audio conferencing
Microsoft Teams is the software that is most equipped with helpful tools to improve virtual business communication but it is the most expensive option of the applications we are comparing. The unlimited maximum of users, 1 TB of cloud storage, large video conferences and online events, and seamless application integrations make it the ideal choice for complex organizations of any size. Unfortunately, the free version lacks crucial features but if budget is not an issue, Microsoft Teams proves to be the most useful.
Zoom
Pros
- 1000 is the maximum number of meeting participants
- Unlimited cloud storage
- Outsiders can join in on any organization meetings
- Lightweight compared to Teams and Slack
- Several payment plans depending on team size
- Free
- $14.99/month per host
- $19.99/month per host
Cons
- Payment is based on the number of hosts, not team members. You will have to choose who gets host privileges for your team
- Have to pay for additional zoom features
- Maximum upload size of 512 MB
- Free version available but has many restrictions
- Only supports video conferencing features with limited time and limited participants
If you are looking for a lightweight solution, then Zoom is the answer. It makes payments that are based on the number of hosts you have, which can become complicated when deciding who gets the privileges but overall it is cheaper than Teams. It has flexible payment plans where you can choose which features to add, though they come at a cost. It is good for constant use with external collaborators due to its useful guest system. It lacks many of the features that Teams offers but is ideal if you are looking for flexible, affordable, and lightweight software for your team.
Slack
Pros
- Unlimited number of users, even on the free plan
- 1 TB of full storage
- Can integrate with several useful applications
- The applications can be integrated with specific team workflows, thus you can adjust your workspace with tools your colleagues use
- Zoom
- Google Drive and One Drive
- Google Calendars
- Ability to automate routine actions
- Free version has most of the features, though they are limited
- Doesn’t require Microsoft or Google account, but can be integrated with both Microsoft and Google applications
Cons
- Expensive ($12.50/month per user)
- Maximum upload size of 1 GB
- Maximum voice and video call size of 15 people
- Limited number of guests
- Doesn’t support call recording
Slack has several unique features but has restrictions on features found in the other two software applications. Its ability to integrate applications in specific workflows is a useful feature that allows even greater customization than Teams. No specific Microsoft or Google account is required. Also, it allows users to automate routine actions, this feature is only available via an extension in the other two applications. It has a usable free version, though it is restricted even more than the paid version. These restrictions on call size and number of guests make it ideal for smaller organizations that are still willing to pay the premium price.
Project Management Software
Virtual project management is an extremely complicated process and in order to ensure you succeed it is important you select the right software to support your organization. Business communication software can only help so much, it is mainly used to improve the communication of teams. Project management software will allow you to manage your work processes and review essential information so you can maintain efficiency and organization while working away from the office.
When choosing project management software you need to emphasize an easy-to-use interface with effective scheduling, timeline, and task management features. We have chosen 4 highly rated applications that have these features: Microsoft Planner, ProjectManager, and Trello.
For the purpose of these comparisons, we will be analyzing the paid versions
Microsoft Planner
Pros
- Integrates seamlessly with other Office 365 applications (most notably, Teams)
- Gannt charts and automatically visualizes tasks into pie and bar charts
- Easy and informative chart review
- Planner Hub, the main page provides a central location to organize different projects
- Useable with mobile devices
- Flexibility and organization of tasks
- Limit of 2500 users
Cons
- Need a Microsoft account
- Doesn’t allow non-team members to participate
- Limited number of checklists and checkboxes per task
- Expensive ($25.60/month per user)
- Minimal flexibility in task management
Microsoft Planner has several valuable features on its own but is more useful in a complete Microsoft environment with other integrated applications. It automatically provides useful charts and other ways to analyze work processes, as well as supports Gantt charts. The Planner Hub is perhaps its most intuitive feature, it provides a central location where one can overview all work processes and team members. Unfortunately, it limits task checklists and checkboxes which in turn limits the potential complexity of tasks. It is ideal for most team sizes that use a Microsoft environment and have simpler tasks.
ProjectManager
Pros
- Built-in team live chats and discussions based on projects, departments or any topic you choose
- Not reliant on Microsoft or Google accounts
- Gannt charts, kanban boards, task panels with advanced reports for deeper insight
- Award-winning project management system
- Useable with mobile devices
- Can manage timesheets
Cons
- Complex scheduling system
- Expensive ($25/month per user), need the most expensive option to access advanced features such as reports and overview dashboards
- No free option
- Limit of 15 users until you pay extra
ProjectManager is the most complex of all the three we have reviewed. This complex system can be hard to use at first but is better for organizations that have complicated processes. Unlike the other two options, it does require the most expensive option to access the most valuable features. However, these features touted as some of the best available. It provides advanced reports that make the management of work processes much simpler. This is ideal for smaller teams with complex work processes that are determined to increase efficiency and productivity.
Trello
Pros
- Not reliant on Microsoft or Google accounts
- Can integrate several applications
- Kanban boards with drag and drop features
- Activity feed with an overview of all boards
- Allows non-team members to access, though clients do not have a specific client portal
- Useable with mobile devices
- Relatively cheap($17.50/month per user)
- Simple
- No user limit
Cons
- No built-in tracking or calendar
- No detailed reports or summaries
- No Gantt charts
Trello is the most lightweight, simple and easy to use of the project management software applications. It is relatively cheap but offers far fewer functions than the other two options. It is possible to integrate some applications that have these missing features but that is less than ideal when you are wanting to implement a system easily and quickly. Trello is suitable for teams of any size that are willing to sacrifice useful features for cost, it is the best option for the lower price point.
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