Thursday, June 25, 2020

Best Workflow Management Software

Workflow management software has been quickly growing in popularity over the last few years. It’s an excellent way for businesses, teams, and individuals to streamline routine business processes.

By leveraging a workflow management solution, businesses can benefit from automation and improved efficiency for daily tasks, one-off projects, and ongoing work.

Without workflow management software, teams waste time on redundant tasks and inefficient processes. There’s no way to analyze areas that need improvement with real metrics.

Maximizing productivity is the ultimate goal of any workflow management tool. This means something different to nearly every type of business, which is why finding a workflow management solution can be tricky.

Fortunately, I’ve identified the top eight workflow management solutions on the market today. Use this guide to find the best one for your specific needs.

The Top 8 Best Workflow Management Software

Check out our in-depth reviews to learn more about the features, benefits, pricing, use cases, and potential drawbacks of each solution on our list.

#1 – Monday.com — Best Overall Workflow Management Software

• Starts at $39
• Code-free workflow automation
• 50+ integrations
• Custom workflows
Start for free

Monday.com is one of the most popular workflow management solutions on the market today—and for a good reason. The software is robust, easy to use, and can accommodate the needs of any business size.

More than 100,000 businesses across 140+ countries rely on Monday.com. It’s used in over 200 different industries and trusted by big brands like Walmart, Costco, GE, Uber, PayPal, Hulu, and more.

Monday.com boards are fully customizable for managing workflows, projects, and day-to-day tasks.

It’s also extremely easy to add code-free workflow automation to any boards. This helps minimize human error and makes your entire process more efficient.

The software is flexible to work for a wide range of use cases, including project management, remote work, marketing, human resources, sales, media and production, IT, software development, and more.

Monday.com seamlessly integrates with 50+ tools to help streamline your workflows in just a couple of clicks.

Here’s a quick look at the plans and price points for this workflow management software:

  • Basic — Starting at $39 per month
  • Standard — Starting at $49 per month
  • Pro — Starting at $79 per month
  • Enterprise — Custom pricing

The rates above include five users billed annually. Month-to-month rates are available as well.

Benefits increase at each plan level. For example, the Basic plan has a one-week activity log and 5 GB of storage. That jumps to a six-month activity log and 20 GB of storage at the Standard level.

Since there aren’t any plans for individual users, I’d only recommend Monday.com to teams of at least five people. But the software is built to scale for organizations with users in the hundreds. Try it free for 14 days.

#2 – Hive — Best For Custom Workflow Views

• $12 per month
• 1,000+ integrations
• Automated workflows
• Multiple viewing options
Start for free

Hive is another well-known and reputable solution for workflow management. It’s trusted by companies like Google, Toyota, Starbucks, IBM, and more.

The software is versatile and can be used for various business needs. Hive is a popular choice for agencies, marketers, startups, operations managers, project management, and educational organizations.

One of my favorite parts of Hive is the ability for each user to customize their own workflow space. Team members can switch between Gantt, kanban, calendar, and table views, based on project or preference.

Other top features and benefits of Hive include:

  • 1,000+ integrations
  • Automated workflows
  • Project summary views
  • Action templates
  • Forms
  • Proofing and approvals
  • Integrated communication tools
  • Analytics

Pricing is simple as well. Hive costs $12 per user per month, billed annually. The month-to-month rate is $16. The plan comes with basic features, but you’ll have to pay extra for premium add-ons. Try Hive free for 14 days.

#3 – Integrify — Best Drag-and-Drop Process Builder

• Easy-to-use process builder
• Customize by industry or department
• Automate workflows
• Lots of “unlimiteds”
Get a free quote

Integrify has been providing workflow management solutions for 15+ years. Over that time, the company has evolved to meet the changing needs in the market.

The software can be fully customized based on industry or department for specific use cases.

Arguably the top feature of Integrify is its drag-and-drop process builder. You can use it to design custom workflows without any code. Anyone can use this tool to streamline processes and increase productivity, regardless of technical skill level.

You can build workflows as simple as or a complex as you need. Integrify has the capability to handle as many steps that are required. Build fast, accurately, and leverage automation.

Integrify has a custom form designer, custom self-service portal, process reporting tools, and API process integrations.

Core features of the Integrify workflow management software include:

  • Unlimited processes
  • Unlimited forms
  • Unlimited file storage
  • Unlimited audit trails
  • Mobile access
  • Free templates
  • Real-time task management
  • Custom notifications

Integrify will also provide you with a dedicated account manager. The software can be deployed in a standard cloud, private cloud, or on-premise, for those of you who want to maintain your own infrastructure.

There are also different licensing options depending on your team size and access requirements. For small teams of 15 and large organizations of 1,000+, Integrify has a solution for everyone.

Pricing for Integrify is not available online. Contact the sales team to request a free quote.

#4 – ProWorkflow — Best For Individuals and Freelancers

• Starts at $9
• Seamless integrations
• Custom workflows
• 14 day free trial
Try it for free

ProWorkflow is a simple and straightforward way to leverage workflow management software. It’s robust, feature-rich, and easy for anyone to use.

The software integrates with tools that you’re already using, like Google Drive, Freshbooks, Xero, QuickBooks, Zapier, and more.

Since its inception, nearly 2.5 million projects have been managed with ProWorkflow. The software has facilitated 16.8+ million tasks and tracked almost 40 million hours.

Here’s a look at the plans and pricing:

The solo plan is perfect for individual users and freelancers. It’s cheap and comes loaded with features. With the Solo plan, you’ll be limited to just ten active projects, which might not be enough for some of you. However, you’ll benefit from unlimited client access.

Here’s a look at some of the other top features offered by ProWorkflow:

  • Project management
  • Task management
  • Time entry
  • Contact management
  • Invoice management
  • File sharing
  • Built-in communication
  • Custom workflow dashboards

Overall, the software does lack some of the advanced workflow automation that we’ve seen with other tools on the market. But it’s still a great option for solo users. Try ProWorkflow free for 14 days.

#5 – Intervals — Best For Small Teams

• Starts at $29
• Built for small teams
• Time tracking and invoicing
• 30 day free trial
Start for free

Intervals isn’t as well known as some of the other solutions on our list. But the software has an awesome story, which is the foundation for what makes the tool so great.

The software was created by Pelago, which started 20 years ago as a web design and development agency. As the small company scaled and began working on hundreds of projects for hundreds of clients, their task management methodology spiraled out of control.

After years of searching for the best project management software to accommodate their needs, they decided to build their own software.

Enter Intervals—the first workflow management software to accommodate the unique needs of small teams.

There’s an Intervals plan for everyone. The pricing is largely based on the number of active projects that your team is managing. With the exception of the Lite plan, every Intervals package supports an unlimited number of users.

The software is built to scale as your small team or agency grows. It’s easy to upgrade as you add new clients and take on more projects.

Here’s a quick overview of the top features offered with Intervals:

  • Task management
  • Project management
  • Invoicing
  • Time tracking
  • Detailed reports and visual dashboards
  • Document storage
  • Interactive calendars
  • Contact management
  • Client requests and ticketing queue
  • Personalized workflows and branding

Intervals has a great mobile app for managing your workflow on the go.

If you’re looking for advanced automations, this probably isn’t the tool for you. But it’s a great option for smaller teams that are quickly scaling. Try Intervals free for 30 days.

#6 – Automate.io — Best For Complex Workflow Automation

• Free plan basic use
• Paid plans start at $39
• Advanced workflows with multiple apps
• 7 day free trial
Start for free

Over 10,000+ businesses across the globe trust Automate.io for workflow management. The software seamlessly integrates with your existing cloud applications and automates processes.

You can use Automate.io for simple one-to-one automations or syncing data between two apps. For example, if you get an email to your Gmail account with a certain tag, the software can automatically create a card in Trello.

But beyond basic automations, the software is perfect for setting up advanced workflows with multiple apps.

Automate.io connects with 100+ leading cloud and SaaS apps on the market. You can also use the Automate.io REST API to connect with virtually any other application.

For helpdesk software, CRM, ecommerce tools, collaboration software, web forms, marketing apps, and more, you can use this software to automate workflows for nearly any use case.

Here’s a quick look at the Automate.io plans and pricing:

  • Free — $0
  • Startup — $39 per month
  • Growth — $79 per month
  • Business — $159 per month
  • Enterprise — $319 per month

The free plan comes with 250 actions per month and five single-action bots. Paid plans start at 10,000 monthly interactions and 50 multi-action bots. This scales all the way up to 500,000 monthly actions and unlimited bots.

All of the prices above are based on an annual contract. Month-to-month pricing is available for a higher rate. Try any paid plan free for seven days.

#7 – Workfront — Best For Businesses With Multiple Departments

• Enterprise workflow management
• Multi department support
• Project management tools
• Strategic planning tools
Request free quote

Workfront is an enterprise workflow management software. It’s designed to help align teams across multiple departments, improve productivity and manage tasks at scale.

More than 3,000 brands, including ADP, T-Mobile, and Under Armor, rely on Workfront to manage workflows at scale.

Top features of Workfront include:

  • Project management
  • Demand management
  • Strategic portfolio planning
  • Resource management
  • Reporting
  • Worker experience tools

The software integrates with other software like Jira, Salesforce, Google Drive, Microsoft Teams, Adobe Experience Manager, and more. Workfront has enterprise management features as well, to help you control security, access, and collaboration within each department.

Pricing is not available online. But here’s a quick glance at what the plans can accommodate:

  • Team — For single teams
  • Pro — For one department
  • Business — Up to 10 departments
  • Enterprise — Unlimited departments

Workfront is commonly used by agencies, marketers, IT departments, and professional services. But with that said, it can accommodate any large business.

#8 – Backlog — Best For Workflow Management Software For Developers

• Free for one project
• Starts at $35
• Bug tracking
• 30 day free trial
Start for free

Backlog is a workflow management solution designed for project and code management. It has everything development teams to manage projects in a single platform.

More than 10,000+ businesses and 1+ million users across the world use Backlog, including Amazon and Adobe.

Backlog has exceptional features and benefits for workflow management, such as:

  • Gantt charts and kanban style boards
  • Bug tracking
  • Push notifications
  • History of issue updates
  • Task management
  • Version controls
  • Team collaboration tools
  • Task hierarchy

Here’s a quick look at the plans and pricing for Backlog:

  • Free — $0
  • Starter — $35 per month
  • Standard — $100 per month
  • Premium — $175 per month

You can save 16% with an annual contract. The Free plan includes up to 10 users for one project. The Starter plan accommodates up to 30 users and five projects. The Standard plan and Premium plan both support unlimited users. The Standard package accommodates up to 100 projects, whereas Premium is unlimited everything.

For a private server and unlimited storage, contact the Backlog sales team about a custom enterprise solution.

Try Backlog free for 30 days.

How to Find the Best Workflow Management Software For You

Which workflow management software is the best? Generally speaking, there is no “best for everyone” solution.

There are certain factors that must be taken into consideration as you’re shopping around and evaluating your options. This is the methodology that we used to narrow down the top software on our list.

Coding Requirements

The first thing you need to figure out is how you’re going to set up and manage your workflows. If you and your team aren’t very tech-savvy, you’ll want to look for a no-code or low-code solution.

Some software offers visual workflow builders or drag-and-drop functionality to set everything up. Other solutions are a bit more technical and require basic coding knowledge to set up. Most of the software on our list is very user-friendly and offers workflow management without coding.

Automation

The whole idea behind workflow management software is to improve efficiencies. One of the best ways to do that is by automating certain tasks or processes.

Look for software that allows you to leverage automations. Some solutions offer basic automation features, while others offer complex workflow automation with multiple apps and software.

Don’t assume that every workflow management solution has automation tools. Some of the software geared for smaller teams and projects lacks in that area.

Integrations

In order to fully take advantage of your workflow management, the software needs to integrate with other tools and apps that you’re already using. If the software isn’t compatible with your existing tools, then you should probably look elsewhere.

Depending on the software, it could integrate with 50+, 100+, or even 1,000+ third-party apps. Some solutions offer REST API access for custom integrations with virtually any tool.

Project Management

Workflow management and project management are technically two different things. With that said, lots of workflow management software comes with project management tools.

I’m referring to things like kanban boards, Gantt charts, team communication tools, and more.

So if you’re looking for an all-in-one workflow and project management solution, make sure the software you select does both.

Conclusion

Monday.com is our top pick for workflow management. It’s the best solution for the vast majority of teams, projects, industries, and use cases.

With that said, there are plenty of other great options to consider.

For individual users, freelancers, and small teams, try ProWorkflow or Intervals. If you want drag-and-drop process building, check out Integrify. Hive is a great way to give your team members the ability to customize their own workflows.

If you want to automate complex workflows, use Automate.io. For businesses with multiple departments, try Workfront. Backlog is our top pick for development teams.

Regardless of your workflow management needs, you can use this guide to find the best solution for you.



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