» Project management software

Project management software

August 21, 2011 | Steven McElwee

This selection guide is to help you get started in picking the software that works best for you. Click on the name of the software to get more information about the products.

Desktop Project Management Software

Software Demand Portfolio Schedule Budget Risk Resource Time Perform. Notes
GanttProject • • Open source (free)
Microsoft Project • • •
OmniPlan • • Mac
Open Workbench • • Open source (free)
Pertmaster •
PlanningForce • • • •

 

Enterprise Project/Portfolio Management Software

Software Demand Portfolio Schedule Budget Risk Resource Time Perform. Notes
AceProject • • • • • Hosted or installed
Achievo • • • Open source (free)
Artemis • • • • • • •
InventX • • • • • • • • Web based
Microsoft Project Portfolio Server • • • • • • • •
Planisware OPX2 • • • • • • • •
Vertabase • • • • • • • Hosted or installed

The following table explains the criteria used for comparison:

Feature Definitions

Demand Demand management features for requesting work, collecting requirements, etc.
Portfolio Managing a portfolio of projects, balancing resources across a portfolio of projects, etc.
Schedule Creating and tracking on a schedule with dependencies and milestones
Budget Defining and tracking on project budget peformance
Risk Features for defining and mitigating risks and tracking issues
Resource Tools for defining resource, allocating to projects, and analyzing utilization
Time Features for timesheet entry, charging to project tasks, and reporting
Performance Project performance metrics and analytical tools