92% of U.S. employees really feel that they might collaborate higher with their colleagues.
Managing a number of initiatives without delay, delegating duties, and collaborating throughout groups is troublesome on an excellent day — however can develop into downright inconceivable when unexpected obstacles get in the best way. The information proves that challenge administration isn’t any stroll within the park for many of us.
When that impacts the enterprise, it turns into a good greater drawback. Miscommunication and inefficiencies in your challenge administration course of can result in complicated and hectic experiences to your workers. It could hinder your organization’s potential to fulfill your purchasers’ wants or hit end-of-year objectives.
Fortuitously, there are many free challenge administration apps to maintain your group on monitor with out breaking the financial institution.
Challenge Administration App
A challenge administration app is a software program that’s used to plan initiatives, monitor duties, create to-do lists, automate workflows, allocate sources, assign challenge managers, and set up challenge timelines and deadlines in a single unified, collaborative interface.
In a free challenge administration software, you’ll sometimes have the ability to create varied initiatives, come-up with to-do lists, assign duties to group members, and monitor a challenge’s progress till completion. Paid challenge administration instruments provide extra storage, extra initiatives, and extra seats for the group. However for small groups, a free challenge administration software will do the trick.
The low buy-in makes it a pure selection. With free challenge administration software program, your group can collaborate significantly better, lowering the danger of miscommunications and retaining everybody on top of things on team-wide initiatives. It’s additionally useful for particular person group members. They’ll use it to spice up their productiveness and guarantee they’re on monitor.
To streamline your course of and guarantee everybody in your group is on the identical web page, check out these distinctive free challenge administration instruments.
Free Challenge Administration Software program
- Challenge.co
- Toggl Plan
- ClickUp
- nTask
- Teamwork
- Freedcamp
- Asana
- Monday.com
- Wrike
- Paymo
- Trello
- Todoist
- MeisterTask
- Bitrix24
- Airtable
- ProofHub
1. Challenge.co
Challenge.co is a client-facing challenge administration system that connects your group together with your purchasers’ groups in a single place. Each bit of labor you do will be arrange as its personal challenge, with its personal dialogue feed, notes, duties, group, and funds. You too can document time spent on every challenge.
Quite a lot of completely different activity and challenge views can be found, together with calendar, scheduler, and Kanban view — to provide you an outline of the work that is taking place inside your group.
Options embody:
- Capability to shortly add/invite each inner and exterior customers
- Dialogue feed for every challenge — with electronic mail alerts (and the flexibility to answer by electronic mail with out logging in)
- Number of activity views — which will be filtered — giving your entire group, every division, and even particular person customers their each day/weekly activity lists
- Reporting instruments that measure your most and least worthwhile or environment friendly initiatives
- Capability to combine cost options and shortly, securely take card funds by way of the system
Pricing: Free for 14 days; $10/person/month
2. Wrike
Wrike stands out as an distinctive challenge administration software for groups who need the choice to customise workflows and edit and revise initiatives from inside the platform itself. The software presents the flexibility to paint code and layer calendars, and its cell app permits colleagues to replace challenge info on-the-go. You’ll be able to add feedback to sections, movies, or paperwork, and create customized fields to export knowledge most related to your organization.
Options embody:
- Safety measures to make sure solely approved personnel can entry info
- Exercise Stream to permit challenge managers to micromanage small duties, see actions in chronological order, and tag group members
- The choice to unfollow actions to declutter your individual private Stream
- E-mail and calendar synchronization
- Constructed-in modifying and approval options
Pricing: Free; $9.80/person/month (Skilled); $24.80/person/month (Enterprise); Customized (Enterprise)
3. Toggl Plan
Toggl Plan is an efficient challenge administration software to automate your activity delegation course of and visualize which challenge duties have been accomplished, and which have not. In case your group typically collaborates with different departments on initiatives, this may be a useful gizmo for you.
Options embody:
- Gantt-chart visualization to trace vital deadlines and initiatives
- Integrations with Slack, Github, Evernote, and others
- Crew collaboration choice by way of shared calendars and activity notes
Pricing: Free for 14 days; $8/person/month (Crew); $13.35/person/month (Enterprise)
4. ClickUp
ClickUp supplies just a few spectacular options to customise the all-in-one challenge administration software to fit your group members, together with the choice for every person to decide on one in every of three alternative ways to view their initiatives and duties relying on particular person desire. In case your advertising group overlaps with gross sales, design, or improvement, that is an efficient resolution, because it supplies options for all of these 4 groups.
Options embody:
- Integrates with HubSpot (Might require a paid account)
- The flexibility to prepare your initiatives based mostly on precedence, and assign duties to teams
- The choice to set objectives to remind groups what they’re aiming to perform
- Google Calendar two-way sync
- A straightforward solution to filter, search, kind, and customise choices for managing particular duties
- Exercise stream with mentions functionality
- Picture mockups
- 57 built-in apps
Pricing: Free; $5/person/month
5. nTask
One other free software program that comes with quite a lot of options for challenge and activity managers is nTask. This program has a few free-range instruments for anybody trying to work as a person or an expert challenge supervisor.
nTask helps a number of initiatives and activity creation. Customers can even outline group chief roles, funds, milestone and time monitoring standards which are particular to related initiatives. Understanding the wants of superior challenge managers, nTask additionally presents an interactive Gantt chart function. It may be personalised by a easy drag and drop mechanism to align the challenge to ongoing real-life adjustments.
Options embody:
- A robust in-app collaboration system
- Integration with Slack and plenty of different third-party apps
- The flexibility to ask stakeholders to view ongoing initiatives
- Useful resource administration
- Crew administration by way of an admin-controlled course of
- A number of workspaces devoted to completely different initiatives and duties
6. Teamwork
Teamwork is a challenge administration software program and collaboration platform that helps in-house and distant groups keep organized and productive. Every challenge allows you to simply add recordsdata, assign duties and deadlines, and chat with teammates. By centralizing your challenge info, you’ll be able to assist remove extra misunderstandings and missed deadlines.
Options embody:
- Simple integration with HubSpot (Might require a paid account)
- Teamwork Chat Prompt Messenger that will help you keep in your workflow and be best
- Time monitoring to grasp capability and the place a group spends their time
- Dashboards, Substasks, and Milestones to assist monitor progress of initiatives
Pricing: Free; $10/person/month (Ship); $18/person/month (Develop); Customized (Enterprise
7. Freedcamp
Freedcamp is a feature-rich challenge administration software that is designed for private {and professional} use. Every challenge has its personal duties, milestones, recordsdata, discussions, and timelines, in addition to a problem tracker and calendar. The dashboard offers you a transparent, concise overview of what is going on on in your group, together with exercise, initiatives, and duties.
Options embody:
- Message-board dialogue feed, with the flexibility to create and perform discussions on any matter
- Highly effective calendar view that lays out all upcoming occasions
- Third-party integrations together with Google Drive, Google Calendar, Dropbox and extra
8. Asana
Asana, some of the well-known challenge administration options, has a clear and user-friendly interface. The all-in-one software allows you to create boards to visualise which stage your challenge is in, and use reporting to maintain monitor of completed duties and duties that want your consideration.
Options embody:
- The flexibility to create templates to automate mundane duties
- The flexibility to collaborate and share info throughout the group, privately and securely
- The choice to set safety controls and designate admins
- Over 100 integrations for a extra environment friendly start-to-finish course of
- The flexibility to create customized challenge fields, share paperwork, and filter duties
- HubSpot integration for seamless syncing of workflows and call exercise
9. Monday.com
Monday.com, a challenge administration software that additionally presents HR and IT instruments, lets you create group member standing updates so your distant and versatile groups know their coworkers’ schedules. It lets you simply entry challenge updates at-a-glance in order that nothing falls between the cracks.
Options embody:
- Customizable workflows to prioritize your group’s wants and care for menial duties
- Gantt chart for visualizing due dates and challenge timelines
- Integrations with common instruments similar to Slack, Microsoft Groups, and Google Calendar
- Crew member standing updates for distant or versatile group members
- HubSpot integration so that everybody can collaborate on contact and deal administration (Might require a paid plan)
10. Paymo
Paymo’s free model solely permits entry for one person, however in the event you’ve acquired a small group otherwise you’re a freelancer, this might be an environment friendly choice for monitoring billable hours and invoicing purchasers. Together with monitoring funds, Paymo additionally lets you arrange challenge timelines, create to-do lists, and keep on high of your budgets for a number of initiatives without delay.
Options embody:
- Kanban boards for straightforward, at-a-glance challenge updates
- Time monitoring to maintain everybody on the identical schedule
- File sharing and Adobe CC extension for straightforward sharing of belongings
- Timesheet reporting to maintain stakeholders within the loop
- Challenge templates to jumpstart initiatives with a click on
Pricing: Free; $9.95/person/month (Small Workplace); $15.79/person/month (Enterprise)
11. Trello
Trello is a drag-and-drop software that allows you to transfer initiatives — private, or skilled — by way of workflow phases, all the best way to completion.
You outline what these phases are — whether or not it is work challenge statuses like ‘On Maintain,’ or private challenge classes like ‘Issues to purchase!’ — with duties represented as ‘playing cards.’ Every card will be given a reputation, assigned to a person, given a due date — and have recordsdata, similar to pictures, connected to it.
Options embody:
- Templates for a variety of various challenge sorts, from enterprise to training to private productiveness
- Capability so as to add attachments similar to pictures to any card on any board
- Customise your workflow phases to replicate your precise course of
- Easy drag-and-drop motion of playing cards by way of workflow phases
- HubSpot integration for syncing advertising, gross sales, and repair workflows into to-do lists (Might require a paid plan)
Pricing: Free; $10/person/month; Customized (Enterprise)
12. Todoist
Todoist is an easy however highly effective software that allows you to create highly effective, interactive to-do lists. To-do objects will be assigned precedence ranges, assigned to individuals in your group and flagged — with customizable reminders (though these are a premium function). Actionable objects may also be categorised into completely different initiatives, making a easy, simply comprehensible construction the place every ‘record’ has a title (challenge identify) and a collection of actions. This all makes it an especially versatile, customizable software to get work carried out.
Options embody:
- Template lists to encourage and information you
- Recurring due dates for recurrently recurring duties
- Productiveness visualizations and ‘Karma’ factors for accomplished duties and streaks
- Labels, notification and dialogue feeds to maintain you organized
- Integrates with HubSpot (Might require a paid account)
Pricing: Free; $3/person/month (Professional); $5/person/month (Enterprise)
13. MeisterTask
MeisterTask is a challenge administration software that lets you create Kanban boards, set recurring duties, monitor challenge occasions, and create customized fields. You’ll be able to robotically import knowledge from different instruments similar to Trello and Asana, permitting you to get instantly to work with out dropping time.
Options embody:
- As much as 3 initiatives on the free model
- File attachments for initiatives
- Customized challenge icons to make duties stand out
- Time monitoring in order that no deadlines fall by way of the cracks
Pricing: Free; $8.25/person/month (Professional); $20.75/person/month (Enterprise); Customized (Enterprise)
14. Bitrix24
Britrix24’s challenge administration software program contains Kanban boards, Gantt charts, activity counters for straightforward prioritization, and reviews for analyzing the time intensiveness of various duties. You too can create to-do lists inside duties.
Options embody:
- Recurring duties for straightforward activity creation and automation
- Integration with Billable Hours, which is very helpful in the event you work with freelancers
- Process statuses to simply preserve monitor of progress
- Month-to-month reviews on time spent on duties
15. Airtable
Airtable is a customizable spreadsheet and database app that can be utilized to create a challenge administration software to your group. Its challenge tracker template lets you simply handle initiatives in a well-known spreadsheet-like setting, making it perfect for Excel and Google Sheets lovers.
Options embody:
- Subtask creation inside duties
- Capability to assign duties and set up time estimates
- Further templates for retaining distant groups aligned, similar to a group hub and asset tracker
- Extremely customizable for various groups
- Integration with common instruments similar to HubSpot, Asana, Dropbox, Google Workspace, and Slack
Pricing: Free; $10/person/month (Plus); $20/person/month (Professional); Customized (Enterprise)
16. ProofHub
ProofHub is a challenge administration and group collaboration software program that enables challenge managers to take care of full management over their duties, groups, initiatives, and communication. Managers can assign duties and deadlines to group members and simply maneuver between easy to-do lists and agile kanban boards which are customizable.
ProofHub has a notes function and a devoted discussions part to retailer your vital info and perform real-time conversations together with your group members. Get real-time notifications every time somebody makes an replace to a ticket.
Options embody:
- On-line proofing software to overview recordsdata and annotate design recordsdata utilizing markup instruments
- In-built chat utility to attach with group members
- Numerous challenge views together with Kanban boards, Desk View, and sturdy Gantt charts
- Time tracker and timesheets to maintain monitor of your group’s timelines
- Challenge reviews with an in depth overview of total challenge progress
- Me-view and an exercise tracker to maintain monitor of your duties and group actions
- Challenge calendar with occasions, milestones, and deadlines
Pricing: $45/month (Important), $89/month (Final Management)
Challenge Administration in HubSpot
If you happen to’re a HubSpot person, you could have already got what you’ll want to handle your groups and to-do’s.
For instance, our free CRM contains activity administration software program that Gross sales and Service groups can use to trace, handle, and report on ongoing actions.
Options embody:
- A customized dashboard with an outline of duties, conferences, and contacts.
- Sync your calendar and contacts inside your CRM.
- Add new duties proper out of your to-do record, electronic mail inbox, or workflows.
- View insights on exercise progress– together with metrics like calls made, offers created, and actions accomplished.
Get Began with the Process Administration Device
Entrepreneurs with Advertising Hub Skilled or above can use the Campaigns software to do comparable administration geared towards advertising duties. You’ll be able to create duties, share feedback, and monitor your work in a calendar view. The software can be utilized to handle your campaigns, adverts, occasions, and different customizable initiatives all from one place.
It could additionally assist align your Gross sales and Advertising groups by giving each entry to real-time reporting on marketing campaign efficiency.
Lastly, a lot of your favourite challenge administration instruments can combine with a CRM like HubSpot. (Relying on the software, this will require a paid account.) This may supercharge your Gross sales, Service, and Advertising groups by robotically connecting your buyer knowledge to your initiatives and duties.
Some ways in which HubSpot customers do that embody:
- Routinely creating new duties or occasions off form submissions
- Producing follow-up reminders after dwell occasions
- Handing off initiatives between groups based mostly on deal stage
Streamline Workflows with a Challenge Administration Device
Utilizing a challenge administration app will empower your group to work extra effectively and collaborate extra seamlessly. With hurdles out of the best way, you’ll be able to assure that your group can deal with what issues: bringing in additional leads, promoting to extra prospects, and empowering extra prospects to develop alongside what you are promoting.
Editor’s notice: This publish was initially printed in August 2018 and has been up to date for comprehensiveness.
