Project Management software that Just Works?

July 15, 2010 12:12 PM

I have tried a big number of PM software packages: OpenGoo, OpenAtrium, ProjectPier, Merlin, OpenProj, Project.net, Basecamp and have never found anything that had all the features I really need and that was easy to work with. Can you help?

I have tried a big number of PM software packages: OpenGoo, OpenAtrium, ProjectPier, Merlin, OpenProj, Project.net, Basecamp and have never found anything that had all the features I really need and that was easy to work with. Budget? Pretty small, or free preferred. I have a Mac w/ Virtual Windows, rest of office is PC. Team size of about 10.

I'm looking for either cross-platform PM software or web-based software (not SAAS, but installable on our servers) that has the following features:

Google Calendar integration
Risk register
Issues tracking
Task tracking
Gantt styling (but not strictly necessary)
Document uploading versioning/tracking (nice to have)
Email integration?
Easy to use: I find the millons of clicks required in eg Project.net and ProjectPier extremely frustrating. Is anything as easy to use as Google Calendar?

Thanks MeFi!

posted by wingless_angel to Work & Money (5 answers total)

I find that for small groups, not relying on software to manage projects, but delegating and keeping in communication with people that have good project management skills is best.
posted by parallax7d at 12:44 PM on July 15, 2010

Change your paradigm! You will never find a piece of software that does all of these things really well. Use simple tools that work well and work together instead of one tool that simply does a lot of things adequately. I would point you towards PivotalTracker along with some custom extensions for the calendaring etc. (this product has a great API)
posted by drewgillson at 12:46 PM on July 15, 2010

I noticed that activeCollab wasn't listed, maybe give it a try.

From their website:
activeCollab is a project management & collaboration tool that you can set up on your own server or local network. Work with your team, clients and contractors in an easy to use environment, while keeping full control over your data.
posted by axismundi at 12:46 PM on July 15, 2010

Take a look at the Zoho Business Suite or Basecamp.
posted by goblinbox at 6:27 PM on July 15, 2010

AxisMundi, ActiveCollab is the for-pay fork of ProjectPier, which the OP has listed.
posted by Happy Dave at 1:17 AM on July 16, 2010