Item: Workzone
Rating: 10
Author: Elena Reul

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We used the program to manage marketing campaigns and materials and in design of packaging. It was primarily used by my department and was used to a lesser extent across several other departments.
Prior to implementing WorkZone the company was using Excel spreadsheets to manage their projects.

Pros and Cons

Unless you have the resources to create a proprietary project management software WorkZone was the best "off the shelf" software that I could find. It is also web based so it was easy to implement.
It is easy to use and easy to train users on how to utilize the software.
I was specifically looking for Project Management software for marketing purposes. Many of the software that is out there has been built for larger construction and software projects that may have a lot of dependencies. These types of software are too cumbersome for marketing projects and aren't user friendly. Although you could use WorkZone for these types of projects if you wanted too.
Like BaseCamp you have the ability to share documents and post messages but in addition, you have easy to use timeline capabilities. It was also important to be able to build different types of reports for campaigns, projects and resources.

I researched numerous project management software programs before deciding on WorkZone. WorkZone had all of the capabilities that we needed, ie web based, ease of use, reporting, resource allocation, cost effective. I felt that this was the best off-the-shelf software on the market. Unless you can create your project management software in-house, you will not have every thing that would like from the software. Off the shelf --- they are designing for the masses and every company is unique in their processes and procedures.

Return on Investment

Increased productivity and improved resource allocation.
Projects completed in a more timely manner.
Improved customer satisfaction with internal customers.
Insight by leadership into resourcing needs and reporting.

Alternatives Considered

Basecamp,Microsoft Project,Project Insight

I selected WorkZone based on several criteria: 1. It is web based 2. It has more robust reporting capabilities 3. the price was right 4. It was easy to use and easy to train people 5. Timelines are easy to update.

Likelihood to Renew

It is working really well for our company. Since we implemented WorkZone we have improved communication and streamlined processes.

Likelihood to Recommend

When you are selecting your project management software you should first determine your lists: "must have" vs "nice to have". For our company it was important to have reporting capabilities across multiple projects, which many project management programs do not do. It also needed to work for smaller projects that do not have a lot of dependencies. If I was only working on one very large project I would select MicroSoft Project or something similar. Working in marketing, you may have over 100 projects going at one time and you need to be able to manage your resources and change timelines daily, WorkZone worked well for this.

Great web-based project management software.

Overall Satisfaction