“Meetings are boring. They are tedious, unengaging, and dry. Second, and even more important, meetings are ineffective. The most justifiable reason to loathe meetings is that they don’t contribute to the success of our organizations.” ~Patrick Lencioni, author of “Death by Meeting: A Leadership Fable About Solving the Most Painful Problem in Business”
Not a fan of meetings?
You aren’t the only one. Lencioni is right: In many cases, meetings are both boring and unnecessary — a double whammy. They don’t necessarily help your agency accomplish its goals and drive growth.
That’s why we recommend replacing all of your meetings (okay, maybe not all, but most of them) with a project management app instead. A smooth project management system helps your agency work efficiently and effectively. And with many of your employees likely relying on smartphone apps to help them get things done throughout the workday, a system that translates well to a mobile device is even more important.
Are you considering taking your agency’s project management solution to the streets — or rather, to the smartphones? In this article, you’ll learn about six of the best project management apps and their features, pricing, and pros and cons so you can decide which one is best for your team’s needs — no meetings in sight. Let’s get into it!
1. Teamwork
Teamwork is a project management software built for agencies and businesses dealing with client work and billables. It has all the power you need without the complexity or technical interfaces you can get with similar tools.
Teamwork also has a mobile app available for both Android and iOS. It includes all of the same great features you get with the desktop version, making it easy for team members to manage, track, and complete their tasks while on the go. Reviewers say the app’s interface is easy to use and works well to connect their remote teams.
With Teamwork, your employees will be able to work more efficiently thanks to features like file sharing, internal chat, time tracking capabilities, and calendar events. Plus, you can plan out your team’s workload in advance and maintain visibility throughout the process, so you can tweak operations to avoid obstacles. What’s not to love?
There’s no time like the present to improve your project management systems — learn more about how Teamwork helps you get there.
Key features
Use resource and workload management to map out your team’s daily work.
Stay on top of project health with snapshot views.
Powerful integrations covering numerous business-critical tools, including Gmail, Chrome, Office365, Slack, and many more.
Advanced reports to give you detailed, real-time insights into project health, account profitability, resource utilization, and beyond.
Pros
Ideal for client work.
Scales and grows with your agency.
Mobile app makes it easy to work on the go.
Customizable templates to get your team up and running straight away
Cons
New users may need extra support as they learn to use Teamwork’s more advanced features.
Onboarding tutorials are still being added to the new Teamwork Academy.
Pricing options
Free Forever: Up to five users
Starter: $5.99 per user per month
Deliver: $9.99 per user per month
Grow: $19.99 per user per month
Scale: Custom quote
2. monday.com
Credit: monday.com
monday.com is a cloud-based, open platform that has multiple functionalities, including project management. By providing all aspects of work in one complete solution, monday.com helps you plan and collaborate on any project in one centralized location — regardless of where your team is physically located.
Although some reviews say the app needs updating, monday.com’s mobile app still enables you to create a board or a workspace just as you would on your computer – accessing whatever projects are currently in progress.
Key features
Create custom dashboards with your team to keep everyone on the same page.
Map out high level goals and strategy before drilling into specific tasks.
Get requests and approvals on client projects.
Pros
Visual interface makes it easy to see project status at a glance in real time.
In-app messaging, file sharing, and comments improve collaboration.
Easy way to store and retrieve information.
Cons
Mobile app is somewhat limited compared to the desktop version.
Doesn’t offer many educational tutorials.
Limited options for customization.
Pricing options
Free: Up to two users
Basic: $8 per user per month
Standard: $10 per user per month
Pro: $16 per user per month
Enterprise: Custom quote
3. ClickUp
Credit: ClickUp
ClickUp describes itself as one app to replace them all. The mobile app allows you to assign projects and tasks using pre-made templates, or create your own. The app is even available for Apple Watch, and lets you utilize voice commands to create reminders and tasks or check notifications.
ClickUp is highly customizable: You can switch back and forth between views, looking at your projects in either a list format or on a Kanban board. Plus, ClickUp has a forever free plan so you can work with team members at no cost long-term. This software also has thousands of integrations; time tracking capabilities; and cloud storage.
Key features
Agile reporting.
In-app video recording (only available on mobile).
Workload management.
Advanced automation.
Pros
Free forever plan allows unlimited members.
Templates to cut down on time and effort for duplicate tasks.
Advanced flexibility and customization options.
Cons
Calendar isn’t as customizable as some users would like it to be.
Mobile app can be slow.
Lack of advanced task options makes it challenging to create and visualize more complex projects.
Pricing options
Free (unlimited members)
Unlimited: $5 per user per month
Business: $12 per user per month
Business Plus: $19 per user per month
Enterprise: Custom quote
4. Wrike
Credit: Wrike
Wrike is a project management software designed to help boost your team’s productivity. Use the department-specific templates, and benefit from the integrated time tracking that works on both desktop and mobile.
The dashboard also lets you view who’s working on which project and how it’s going: No need for everyone to sit through meetings when you can simply see the information at a glance.
Key features
Native time tracking capabilities. Define and trigger automated workflows.
Plan out projects and allocate resources efficiently.
Pros
Enterprise-level security.
Integration options enhance efficiency.
Eliminate repetitive work using project blueprints.
Make resource allocation easy.
Cons
User experience is somewhat clunky.
Most valuable features are limited to the most expensive Business-grade accounts.
Steep learning curve for new users.
Pricing options
Free
Team: $9.80 per user per month (2-25 users)
Business: $24.80 per user per month (5-200 users)
Enterprise: Custom quote
Pinnacle: Custom quote
5. Jira
Credit: Jira
Created by Atlassian, Jira is a project tracking software that helps your entire agency be more agile at work. Use Jira to create interactive roadmaps where everyone can view what tasks need to be done to complete a project. Then manage your work with Scrum or Kanban boards. Jira also offers critical insights to help your team succeed.
You can download the Jira app on iPhone, iPad, or Android. The app allows users to create, update, or edit any aspect of a project; update work items with files or other relevant information; and get push notifications with critical information about project activity.
Key features
Multi-project automation.
Roadmaps help with project planning.
Project boards and customizable workflows.
Pros
Free version includes unlimited project boards.
Over 3,000 apps and integrations available.
Secure, private, and safe.
Cons
Reviewers report that the app can be somewhat buggy.
The app is not as feature-rich as the desktop version.
Pricing options
Free: Up to 10 users
Standard: $7.75 per user per month
Premium: $15.25 per user per month
Enterprise: Custom quote
6. Nifty
Credit: Nifty
Nifty is a remote collaboration hub where you can manage projects and people. With features like Gantt charts, custom development workflows, and more, Nifty is a one-stop-shop to help your entire team be more efficient.
Nifty apps for Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, and Chrome platforms let you oversee projects from anywhere. Start by setting a visual, big-picture timeline. Then move on to daily tasks using Kanban, list, timeline, calendar, and Swimlane views. Discussions, docs, wikis, and forms let all team members share knowledge. And automated reporting gets everyone on the same page agency-wide.
Key features
Align your team with visual roadmaps.
Create project portfolios to improve organization.
Choose your favorite view (Kanban, list, timeline, etc) to assign daily tasks.
Pros
Excellent organization and interface.
Flexible task management.
Document management system saves time and effort.
Cons
Slow, unhelpful customer service.
Not always intuitive to use (particularly the calendar).
Pricing options
Free (unlimited members)
Starter: $5 per user per month
Pro: $10 per user per month
Business: $16 per user per month
Enterprise: Custom quote
Mobile app project management made easy by Teamwork
It’s clear that the project management tool you use makes a huge difference in how quickly and efficiently your project team can work. Your goal as an agency leader is to streamline project progress, improving team collaboration and productivity so your development team not only meets due dates but delivers truly top-notch, high-quality work.
The best software to help achieve this outcome is Teamwork. Teamwork’s features will take your development process to the next level, helping with high-level resource planning, granular project tasks and to-do lists, and every other step in the project life cycle. Best of all, everything happens on an easy-to-use mobile app so you can keep your projects in your pocket!
Get started with Teamwork to see why more agencies are choosing us to help streamline client work.