One of the things we asked ourselves when we founded Planview AdaptiveWork is why was MS Project so popular and so commonly used? The answer is simple; it’s available, affordable, and includes a very necessary set of Project Management features.
The next question we asked was, “why is Excel even more popular and commonly used in Project Management practice than even MS Project?”
Excel is available, affordable and relatively simple. Everyone can use it to keep the list of required tasks, even though it does not include even the most basic Project Management functionality.
So what type of solution are people really looking for? What type of solution can be available, affordable, simple and include all of the Project Management functionality a project manager needs?
Before the era of SaaS, there were only two tools that could solve these needs: MS Project and Excel. I do not intend to do a feature by feature comparison of Planview AdaptiveWork and MS Project. Planview AdaptiveWork provides all the indispensable functionality a project manager needs and if we are missing something, it is probably on its way.
Here, I will discuss the more fundamental differences between the platforms that demonstrate the strengths, flexibility and direction Planview AdaptiveWork is taking the field of project management.
Approach – Planview AdaptiveWork User Centric.
How many projects fail because they lack User Participation? Can our business succeed without user participation?
NO!
Only by a whole team working together and collaborating on their tasks can we get work done. How do we gain team participation?
We need to make them a part of the process and provide the tools that helps them understand the cause and effect of things.
Traditional Project Management tools, including MS project, tend to be complicated, hard to use and cumbersome. MS Project is a file based solution that does not support multiple users access and therefore does not encourage user participation or collaboration.
What people want is a simple, usable yet robust solution that can help them to get their work done faster and more efficiently, leaving more time for the things that really matter. Our vision is to “Bring The Power of Cloud Work Management to Every Corporate Employee”.
Planview AdaptiveWork empowers every employee in the company with usable, intuitive tools that will help him in performing the work and will make the daily routine more dynamic, exiting and effective.
Concept – people need Beyond Project Management solution.
Over time life has became more dynamic where we are expected to do more in less time. Projects deadlines have become tighter although not less demanding or complex. Multitasking is the new reality.
Managing projects is no longer limited to management tasks within the strict framework of the project tasks. Work Management is a natural expansion, or even evolution of Project Management. Work Management reflects the complexity that comes with modern business processes and is part of the new reality.
People need a solution that will solve the whole gamut of activities that they need to plan, execute and monitor, including project management, time tracking, change management, risk management and others. Planview AdaptiveWork incorporates and streamlines all these process in a single platform improving visibility and efficiency across all business processes.
Business Model – it is Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)
Planview AdaptiveWork is accessible anywhere and anytime for the whole project team. Project team can collaborate and communicate on the plan is real time.
For maximum productivity, a project manager needs to delegate the planning and execution of a project plan. Having an online platform with permissions based access gives project managers that ability to empower employees at every level to live and breathe the project. This type of flexibility and visibility is the only way that an entire organization can commit to the deliverables and demands that make modern business successful.
Dynamic companies move beyond the boundaries of their physical office and invite their customers, vendors and suppliers involvement in project activities. The success of the companies depends strongly on how effective they can structure the communication with these external resources.
Clarizen’s cloud project management allows companies to collaborate across offices to get the most out of their resources.
In an age that depends so heavily on information and communication, we must adapt and use the tools that will encourage collaboration and interaction. We can’t hide away from visibility but instead we must trust that the sharing of information at all levels of an organization will deliver best results.
