I work with a lot of terrific remote volunteers and consultants here at TechSoup on a variety of different projects. We're finding that we're really in need of a more robust project management solution to keep track of it all and keep our sanity in the process! The main features I am looking for is:

• Free or inexpensive
• Web-based for use on Mac/PC users on remote team
• Simple to use
• Easy to incorporate Google Docs

There's a lot of good info. from some past discussions here on TechSoup. In particular I found these suggestions:

DotProject: free & open source

Mingle: agile project management

Using a community site to manage projects and volunteers: a number of different options for collaboration

What project management tools would you recommend? I'd love your suggestions.

Best,

Megan

Looking forward to what people have to say.  There's so many tools out there and it's hard to invest the time to check them all out and figure out what's best.  Thanks for the post!

I have used Basecamp most extensively with some Zoho use, along with hundreds of google docs & integrated google tools.

Basecamp is the cleanest and most professional of the bunch with fairly easy updates via email (mobile integration unknown but should be easy to do).

For me a mobile solution is ideal, something that can be accessed via phone or web so I'm looking for low cost tools that are easily navigated through mobile apps.  All suggestions welcome!

There is a similar and very interesting discussion on Judi Sohn's blog: Frustrated with online project management tools.

Personally I like Manymoon. They are on the Google Aaps Marketplace.

Tal

Great blog link Tal.  Has anyone tried http://www.projectinsight.net/ 

From what I can see her requirements and insight on bootcamp are very good.  Most need to track what you have done for future reference but primarily need the tool to focus on what's left to do.

This one just came in via twitter:

 check out http://tomsplanner.com if you are looking at pm tools. Free & very easy to use.

Have any of you tried this tool with success?

Looks like Tomsplanner is more of a schedule management tool than a full project management tool.  Adding notes to different projects is fine but essentially this doesn't look to be anything more than a better looking google spreadsheet.  Has anyone used it and feel differently about it?

Wouldn’t Office Live Workspace work for this?

If not that, there are also online collaboration/doc-sharing sites like Zoho and ThinkFree that have sharable applications, though neither are open source as far as I’m aware.

I've personally used Basecamp quite a bit and it's worked well, but it can require a bit of training to get all folks on the team up and ready to use it the right way (like you need to agree to which things you list as To-Dos and which things are Wishlist and who has access to what abilities to complete tasks and whatnot). Definitely a lot of flexibility, but it may be more robust than some teams need.

Between using any one of these tools (or in combination) along with Skype or Google Talk/Voice & Video, I think teams could work remotely without needing much of anything else.

There was an article not too long about sharing files with distributed workforces. There are probably some other suggestions there too. And we did a webinar last summer with Microsoft on the Office Live Worspace (OWL) functionality... once Office 2010 launches in the next couple of months, there will be an online app set that can be used to integrate with your desktop Office software using OWL.

I like Pro Work Flow for its visual ease. Not sure if it works with google docs as it was not around when i used it last. (2 1/2 yrs ago).   Also last time I used it was when it was about $10 per month per license, so very reasonable priced at that time. It give a nice overview with immediate dig down ability. Works well stand-alone, especially if not concerned with using it for associating with finance elements or inventory. Just projects where you want to track information, contacts, and next actions, and such. and they were always working to improve it. They were a little slow with updates, but they were consistently working to upgrade it.   I think they are a smaller operation at the time.

http://www.proworkflow.com/

also, has a free trial you can try out, and it is pretty easy to learn. worth a look.

Doug

I asked @thecommunityguy , Darren Lancaster, who co-founded the Groupery, for his recommendations and this was his response:

Re: project management tools, I have to say that we've experimented with a few and not liked most of the solutions we've found. We balked at Basecamp after a couple weeks of usage. So here's what we use now and mostly like: 5pmWeb for task management, Google Docs as our shared repository space and real-time document sharing, The Groupery for group communications, forums, archives.

Just found this on another site:

If you’d like a tool for managing your time and projects, you can use this application inspired by David Allen’s GTD:

HyperOffice Collaboration Suite is a good option. It scores highly on the first criteria. It is low cost, very easy to use, and compatible with PC, Mac and even mobiles. It does not integrate with Google Docs however, but is suitable for people who use MS Office.

I've used 5pmweb successfully across very virtual organizations and projects, works very well for our needs.  (and yes, that's a referral link, but I'm not affiliated with the company, just a user that always likes a discount if I can get one)

Thanks.

--David

Hello Megan. I want to share a few references of Saas-based PM software systems (at varying price levels) that I’ve researched.
 
·         Vertabase, http://www.vertabase.com/
·         VPMi, http://www.vcsonline.com/
·         ClientSpot, http://www.myclientspot.com/index.html
·         Project Drive, http://www.project-drive.net/
·         ProjectInsight, http://www.projectinsight.net/
·         Simply PM, http://www.simplypm.com/
·         Project Manager, http://www.projectmanager.com/ 
 
Please understand that references of this nature may be of value but they also may lead you and others on wild goose chases. Identifying (searching for, researching, and definitely finding (selecting and writing the check)) the “right” software for your business needs is time-consuming and at times a hassle. If you feel I can help – individually or collaboratively to your responders – let me know as I have already researched many of these systems at various levels, plus I specialize at Needs Analysis services (most buyers fail to document). Much of my career has been selling and/or servicing software to nonprofits, so I know how challenging things can be for both buyers and sellers. However, now as a business owner, I am vendor/product independent - i.e. I have no direct affiliation to any specific product line, including those listed above. All the best to you and your subscribers!

Central desktop was nice, but a bit too complicated. My personal favorite is Wrike.com, have been using it for a couple of months already. It has a bunch functions, but everything’s simple to use. Kudos for integration with Google services!