05 Nov Project Management Tools to Keep Your Remote Team on Track

Now that you’re working with your teams remotely, project management tools are more important than ever. Each takes a different approach, so here are some of the key differences to help you choose the best one for you.

Trello: Trello uses the Kanban Method, which lets you visualize every step of your process. Cards on your Trello board represent your team’s various tasks, so team members can tell at a glance which to-dos need to be done, which ones are in process, and which ones have been completed.

Basecamp: With Basecamp, everything you need for a particular project can be found in one place. That means team members will find tasks, files, schedules, and all communications in a central location, so you don’t have to search through your in-box for that critical email, and there is less need to schedule meetings to update team members on the latest developments.

Microsoft Teams: With a focus on collaboration, Microsoft Teams lets you choose between chat, conference calls, or videoconferencing to make sure you are on the same page with team members. If your office already uses Microsoft software, Teams lets you share and edit Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files in real time.

Airtable: Part spreadsheet, part database, Airtable allows you to organize data in a way that goes beyond numbers and text. Team members can share attachments, leave comments, and collaborate in real time so everyone is always aware of new developments. When a lot of information needs to be collected across different platforms, this may be the tool to use.

Instagantt: If you’re a visual person who likes to work with charts and graphs, you might try Instagantt, which uses charts to show where you and your team members are on the road to completion. You can also see each user’s tasks and progress throughout the life of the project and initiate changes to balance the workload.

Slack: Slack gives you a space to communicate with key members of your team. You can also share files and create separate spaces called channels for everyone collaborating on a specific project. “Depending on your team size, you’ll want to make use of channels,” says Mary Lee Gannon, an executive coach based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Otherwise, the chat room can get too noisy if too many people are in the same virtual space. For example, you can section colleagues off in channels dedicated to engineering, marketing, and even watercooler gossip.