The objective of this comparative analysis is to provide information regarding Microsoft Project & Workep applications, this will aid your organization’s decision-making as it relates to the purchase or use of Microsoft Project or Workep.

MICROSOFT PROJECT – OVERVIEW

Microsoft Project is a robust project management tool with cloud-based and on-premise options. With integrated planning functionalities, it helps to organize and keep tab of projects, including daily tasks and overall direction of the project.

The software consists of three main modules:

  1. Project Management – MS Project has built-in templates, standard scheduling tools and is accessible from desktop and mobile devices. It includes Gantt charts and pulldown menus, which simplify the planning phase.
  2. Portfolio Management – The portfolio management module helps model various scenarios to chart the best project path. It helps prioritize tasks and projects based on urgency or other factors. The module integrates with Power BI Pro, Microsoft’s business intelligence system, to help you consolidate data for in-depth analysis.
  3. Resource Management – The resource management module provides full visibility on shared resources and teams can enter updates anywhere for real-time data.

PROS – MICROSOFT PROJECT

  1. Project integrates seamlessly into the overall Microsoft ecosystem. All project planning activities can be kept within one platform, thereby increasing efficiencies.
  2. Project also does a good job of allocating and scheduling resources. Furthermore, identifying critical paths for a project is relatively straight forward. It also has the Earned Value Analysis functionality which is used to determine the performance of projects.
  3. Another element to highlight is the tool’s management capabilities, which help to capture the resource requirements at the beginning of the project’s life cycle and all the programmed activities, providing visibility, certainty and assertive predictions about the tasks and resources.
  4. In general, the graphs and diagrams can be used to measure project performance and make sound decisions. MS Project provides a wide range of out-of-the-box reports that are useful for strategic decision-making.
  5. The Gantt Chart provides a graphical overview of the whole project, combined with the reports and striking graphs which makes it easier to understand and evaluate the planning strategy.
  6. Because it is a Microsoft product, the user interface is like most Microsoft products, so learning how to navigate around Project should not take a lot of time.
  7. It can be used to manage projects of any kind, calculating the estimated duration and planning the activities to be carried out, as well as having a large number of customizable templates.
  8. MS Project is based on a standardized and accepted methodology (Waterfall) owned by PMI and this methodology is well embraced across many industries – pharmaceutical, construction & healthcare, unlike the Agile methodology that is popular and embraced within the IT industry.
  9. There’s always the undo button.

CONS – MICROSOFT PROJECT (BLIND SPOTS)

  1. While creating initial project plans seem easy, there are so many features of project that not only go unnoticed – but also can be incredibly cumbersome to learn and master.
  2. The software is designed to track and manage really big projects, which is good. But, sometimes, the functionalities can appear too many and complex to manage simple projects.
  3. Sharing project information can be tedious – as recipients must have MS Project installed on their own device.
  4. It is a very expensive solution, for which not all companies are willing to invest, not only in the platform but in the hours of training that the team must use to manage it, maintain it and work on the platform.
  5. A strong background in PMI’s concepts (critical path method, evaluation techniques and so on) are required to master Microsoft Project and smoothly use all the features and capabilities of the software without having a complex learning curve.
  6. There are features and options that are not at first intuitive, so having some dedicated MS Project Training is usually required.

OVERVIEW – WORKEP

Workep delivers a project management experience for cross-enterprise collaboration, in a platform that’s flexible, easy to use, and fully integrated with G-Suite.

Workep provides a variety of project management methodologies to best suit any kind of project, including; List: Organize tasks in lists and never lose track of an important task. Kanban: Visualize work, identify any issues, and test out changes to improve workflow. Gantt chart: Visualize tasks scheduled over time, identify bottlenecks and critical tasks that could affect the rest of the project. Agile: Break projects into iterations, release project segments, evaluate project success, and adapt to avoid major failures. In-app features include: Gantt chart, Time tracker, Budget tracker, Templates, Roles, Voice notes, and External collaboration. Workep also offers external integrations with Slack and GitHub.

PROS – WORKEP

  1. The integration of the Google Apps allows users to keep files organized in Google Drive, tasks synchronized with the calendar, have video conversations with Hangouts. Additionally, it automates tasks, uses a comprehensive search bar and easy to read Gantt chart.
  2. Workep has three PM methodologies: Lists, Kanban & Gantt, which makes it adaptable to different types of projects, especially IT projects.
  3. Integration with Google Drive, makes it possible to view and edit files that are developed in real time. It also makes it possible to keep project documents within one environment. All the files that belongs to that project will be stored in its own cloud-based folder.
  4. It does not require long hours of formal training.
  5. Gantt chart comes with a feature that creates automatic reports and export them into a Google Spreadsheet.

CONS – WORKEP

  1. It is only available in mobile and web applications; desktop version of the application is not available. Internet connectivity is required to work effectively. Consequently, it does not run-on Windows OS.
  2. The Percent-Complete functionality have pre-defined ratings that make the determination of the project’s percent-complete less precise. In other words, the percent-complete of sub-tasks cannot be quantified as 20% or 25% , but only 100%.

CONCLUSION

There is no one-size-fits-all perfect software application. Each organization depending on its size, budget and business needs should consider the following features in making the right business budget.

  1. Workep has many features that help simplify and centralize project documentation.
  2. Workep project management platform provides beautiful and easy-to-use interface while it centralizes and automates the use of a variety of tools from G-Suite as part of the experience.
  3. Workep should be adopted if the your priorities are Document Storage and Version Control, Team Collaboration & Ease of Use.
  4. MS Project should be adopted if your priorities are Project Scheduling, Reporting & Earned Value Analysis.
  5. Workep should be adopted if you use G-Suite or also willing to invest in G-Suite. Otherwise, you may choose MS Project if you already have MS Office registered licenses.