Project Scheduling Software: Best Tools

What is the best project scheduling software for your needs?

In the level of project management, scheduling is the core of PM responsibilities. The project scheduler allows the project manager to define different tasks (and dependencies between them) and required resources plus their time availability.

Nowadays, there are many powerful on-premise, online and cloud-based project schedule software tools that allow you to coordinate cost and resources, track project schedules, and budgets in real time.

To find which one is the best solution for you look deeply on your business needs, goals and size of projects.

Some PM tools are simple project scheduling apps (that fits small business) with main features such as task scheduler, resource pool, and some graphs and dependencies. Others all-in-one programs with bar charts, milestones, network-based schedules (ex. CPM), Gantt chart style timelines can cover the needs of a large enterprise with high-level project portfolio management.

Here you will see some of the best PM software solutions with advanced and very powerful scheduling features.

Project Scheduling Software: Some of the Best Tools with Gantt Chart

Wrike

In the field of project management, Wrike is one of the best solutions. And it is also one of the easiest and efficient online project scheduling software.Their visual dynamic timeline gives you a real-time, birds-eye view of the project. The core points and capabilities functionalities of scheduling are:

• It is incredibly easy for you to schedule and adjust plans.
• You can schedule plans on an interactive timeline, track changes in real time, optimize the team’s schedules easily and update schedules with a couple of mouse clicks.
• With this web-based project scheduling software, you are able to review schedules on the Gantt chart, track schedule changes in the Activity Stream and via e-mail notifications, share project schedules with teams, clients and partners, create task constraints and dependencies, manage multiple projects’ schedules, integrate emails with your schedules and much more.
• Wrike has high ratings and hundreds of positive reviews on major review sites and blogs.
• Extremely flexible software tool that can be used to manage a wide spectrum of activities and companies – from small businesses to large enterprise.
  www.wrike.com

LiquidPlanner

LP works with a world-class scheduling methodology. When it comes to project management scheduling software, no doubt that LiquidPlanner is one of the best. At the core of LiquidPlanner is a unique scheduling engine capable of predicting when an entire portfolio of projects will be completed based on a few key inputs. Main scheduling features and functions:

• With its Priority Based Scheduling, this software provides task prioritization not only for one single project but across an entire portfolio of projects.
• Ranged Estimates function allows each team member on a project to estimate the amount of effort necessary to complete each task within a project.
• Schedule Bars allows you to get visibility into project statuses and risks at a glance.
• Resource Leveling – if there is any change in the availability of a resource or any change in the task prioritization, the schedule is adjusted automatically to compensate.
• Helps project managers deal with changes quickly. You can see the impact of changes on the full project schedule, and clearly communicate to all stakeholders the impact of the scope change on every project.
• Gantt Chart program with an automatic update with every schedule change, such as: hours logged, priority changes, estimation, and completion date updates to name a few.
• These features make LP one of the most popular and top project scheduling software out there.

ProWorkflow

This project management software allows you to spend less time mentally managing the process. ProWorkflow makes it a breeze to schedule and reschedule projects, assign staff, track time. It is a simple, easy online task management tool with great scheduling capabilities and features for your team:

• Powerful sub-task and dependency features. You can easy assign work to clients and contractors.
• Tasks can include start & due dates, time allocations, assigned staff, statuses, files, messages and more.
• Recource management with view scheduling and assignments at a glance. You are able to allocate tasks and adjust timings quickly.
• View Projects and Tasks on an easy to use Gantt Style Timeline.
• Drag & drop on the Timeline to reschedule work easily. The drag & drop interface makes rescheduling easy and color coded bars identify completed, overdue Projects and Tasks.
• Generate Custom Timelines via multiple filtering options and much more.
• https://www.proworkflow.com

EasyProjects

Easy Projects allows project managers to plan every aspect of their projects with ease, using a clearly defined timeline and simplifying scheduling their job. Easy Projects is a cloud-based project planning software with tools tailor-made for easy planning and scheduling. Some of the key features and scheduler points are:

• Through time-savers like Gantt chart and Project Calendar, you can manage your tasks in minutes with this project scheduling software.
• All your projects and activities lined up clearly on a timeline!
• Critical path and multiple dependencies – you can set up multiple links between tasks to further simplify scheduling your jobs. The Critical Path feature allows you to easily identify and display all tasks, which may affect project deadline.
• Resource Loading Simulation – The Resource Loading Simulation is a unique tool available in Easy Projects to help with your project planning process. It can answer questions like “If we do this project, how will existing projects schedule be affected?” and more.
• Personal, Team and Project Calendar modules that allow you to have a complete view of the tasks, milestones, vacations, and events for you or your entire team. You have a clear and easily understandable overview of your schedule and more.
• http://easyprojects.net

Teamwork Projects

This project management software is known as one of the most powerful and simple ways to collaborate with your team! You can keep every task involving your team in one place. Using Teamwork Projects, your team will know what they have to do, when it must be done and who needs to do it. But also, this software provides very powerful scheduler features such as:

• Task Management with task lists; tasks & subtasks, the ability to assign to multiple people; start and due dates, attachments on tasks, tasks estimates & progress, tasks dependencies and more.
• Powerful Gantt Charts to record the progress of your projects with Gantt Charts.
• Milestones. Main features here are: link tasklist to milestones, milestone reminder and calendar, ability to add multiple milestones and others.
• Calendar with a snapshot view of the important upcoming Milestones, Events, and Tasks using the Calendar.
• Log Time Spent on Each Task, Start and End Time, Log Time on Project and more.
• https://www.teamwork.com

Planio

Planio is based on Redmine, an awesome web-based project management software. Its extra features are easy to use for everybody. Planio makes online project management and team collaboration more efficient and productive. Major scheduling features include:

• Building a Roadmap – provides summary information via an intuitive dashboard that contains a list of all milestones and conveys.
• Milestones and auto-generated Gantt Chart – each task is linked to a date or milestone and appears on the chart. The Gantt chart is mapped with the Roadmap and gives you the ability to see task progress at-a-glance.
• Each task can be assigned with a start & due date, percentage done, and estimated completion time.
• Configurable and flexible task: Define status, priority, assignee, spent time, subtasks, and customer-facing templates and more.
• https://plan.io

Hub Planner

Hub Planner is the complete resource management solution, designed for small, medium and Enterprise level businesses. Includes resource scheduling, timesheets, project planning, approval & dynamic reporting. Key scheduling capabilities are:

• Bookings Grid – an intuitive drag and drop interface allows you to book your teams of resources easily and quickly. It allows you to add booking tasks to any booking in the Resource Scheduler. The bookings grid gives you a perfect birds eye view of your companies resources so you can easily identify if there is any availability to take on new projects, plan ahead and keep your team busy.
• Time Sheets – gives you the full picture of scheduled time versus actual time. Watch your project plan go full circle.
• Dynamic Reports – Create powerful multi-level reports on utilization, progress, availability, billability and much more!
• This resource and project schedule software is packed full of great resource planning features to help you plan your entire teams of people.
• https://hubplanner.com

Conclusion:

Each of these project scheduling software tools has different strengths and main points, but they offer some of the best solutions for planning and scheduling and can provide businesses with successful ended projects in time.

Before choosing your scheduler software carefully check if it covers your project management, scheduling and other specific needs. Compare their main features with your most important requirements.