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Task Management Software

Task Management software allows teams to plan, prioritise, and manage tasks to execute projects efficiently. Task management systems enable businesses to segment a project into corresponding and sequential tasks to be distributed, scheduled, and monitored individually. Organisations benefit from task management software to streamline their project lifecycle, reduce roadblocks, and facilitate cross-team collaboration, saving time and resources. Typical features of the best task management software include alerts and notifications, task progress tracking, sub-task creation, task tagging, and time tracking. Task Management software is related to Project Management software, Collaboration software, and Workflow management software. Compare product reviews and features to help find the best Task Management Software for your business in the UK.

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Ninety is a platform of essential tools your team needs to focus, align, and thrive. Learn more about Ninety
Every organization has an operating system. The only question is — how well-designed, comprehensive, and effective is it? Ninety is the world’s leading cloud-based Business Operating System platform. Thousands of companies leverage its concepts, tools, and disciplines to help them focus, align, and thrive. Ninety enables you to upgrade your existing operating system from a series of disconnected tools and spreadsheets into one simple, smart, and powerful application. Learn more about Ninety

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Jira is a fully-featured task management tool for every team that helps plan, build, support, and market great products. Learn more about Jira
Jira is the task management tool for all teams planning, building, and supporting great products. Thousands of teams choose Jira to organize work, assign tasks, follow team activity, and deliver their biggest ideas together. Jira is the #1 tool recommended by agile teams to get the job done. Learn more about Jira

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Improve Task Management with Asana AI. Tackle your complex workflows, get better insights and elevate teamwork efficiently. Learn more about Asana
Asana transforms Task Management with AI-powered features that streamline your workflows, deliver insights and enhance teamwork. Manage tasks, track performance and adapt quickly to changing priorities. With project templates, goal management and automated progress tracking, Asana ensures your team achieves its goals faster. Plus, you can use AI-driven insights to optimize resource allocation. Whether managing campaigns, onboarding or product launches, Asana empowers your organization to work smarter. Learn more about Asana

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
With monday.com, easily plan, track, and allocate resources efficiently, ensuring smart decision-making and timely project delivery. Learn more about monday.com
monday.com empowers teams to streamline task management and boost productivity. It simplifies workflows, fosters communication, and ensures deadlines are met. It helps identify bottlenecks early, prioritize tasks effectively, and allocate work more efficiently, resulting in smoother operations. With powerful monitoring tools, monday.com tracks task progress, budgets, and resources, allowing teams to make smarter decisions throughout the entire project lifecycle. This level of visibility ensures tasks are completed on time, within scope, and with greater precision, significantly improving project execution. By providing advanced tracking and insights into budgets, timelines, and resources, monday.com supports data-driven decisions, enabling teams to stay on track and deliver results faster. Learn more about monday.com

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
United Kingdom Local product
OPX software lets businesses manage & automatically allocate tasks based on employee's skillset, oversee their productivity & more... Learn more about OPX
OPX is a modular software that lets businesses manage and allocate tasks based on employees' skillsets, Simultaneously it provides tools to overview employees' productivity and identify training needs. OPX allows to schedule work, foresee the changes in capacity and volume of upcoming work. We pride ourselves in taking a custom approach for each of our clients. We make sure that implemented system is tailored to your business' needs, and can grow together with your company. Learn more about OPX

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Wrike is an enterprise task management software with prebuilt templates, time tracking, Gantt charts, Kanban boards, and more. Learn more about Wrike
Wrike is an award-winning task management software for enterprise teams. It includes advanced security and full scalability. Project managers, product managers, and program managers can especially benefit from its one-click Gantt charts, Kanban boards, easy-to-use reporting, and automated task assignment and file sharing. Explore tailored solutions for your team, including specific industry-led templates, workflows, and features. Do the best work of your life with Wrike. Learn more about Wrike

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Construction management software enables the smooth, efficient delivery of large, complex construction projects. Learn more about EIDA Solutions
EIDA is a powerful software platform that digitises, connects and streamlines every facet of complex construction projects for the pharma and technology sectors. A specialist, flexible solution that helps to streamline projects and reduce the risk of delays. EIDA delivers complete, hands-on, tailored solutions. We set up the software exactly as you need it and guide all stakeholders through the process. An easy-to-use, intuitive platform that can be set up, ready to go in less then two weeks. Learn more about EIDA Solutions

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Operto Teams simplifies cleaning, task management, and maintenance operations. Learn more about Operto Teams
Operto Teams is a comprehensive property maintenance management software that simplifies cleaning, task management, and maintenance operations. It allows you to save time by automating scheduling, optimizing task assignments, tracking maintenance issues, and simplifying communication across your entire team. With extensive automation and customization, Operto Teams enhances operational efficiency and team collaboration—no matter the size or type of your property portfolio. Customize workflows and automate daily, weekly, and monthly tasks to ensure nothing is overlooked. Tailor checklists by task, region, property, or unit, and let schedules automatically update through seamless integrations with your Property Management System (PMS). Learn more about Operto Teams

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
The issue tracker designed for agile teams. An agile project management tool that can be customized to your business processes. Learn more about YouTrack
Developed by JetBrains. YouTrack is a tool to manage your projects, configure agile boards, use reports and Gantt charts, dashboards and time tracking. Track tasks and issues, support customers requests, plan sprints and releases, create workflows, and never force your process to fit the limits of a tool again! YouTrack speaks your language, supports markdown and emoji-reactions. YouTrack is flexible enough to follow your exact process! Cloud or Standalone. Free for 10 users. Learn more about YouTrack

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
United Kingdom Local product
Beautifully simple, powerful and customisable team and project management. Perfect for any team in any enterprise, large or small. Learn more about Flowzone
Flowzone is a cloud-based team, work and project management system. Perfect for your team in any business, non-profit or public-sector setting. Beautifully simple yet powerful. Whether your focus is on projects, jobs, documents, activities, statuses, categories, workflows, timelines… Full customisation capabilities make it suitable whatever you do. Share easily across your team and create portals for clients or third parties. Manage all your project documents, with built-in approval and annotation. Request your FREE trial today! Learn more about Flowzone

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Upwave is a visual collaboration platform that helps modern businesses thrive. Organize, plan, track, collaborate and get things done. Learn more about Upwave
Upwave is a visual collaboration platform that helps teams manage their projects, initiatives, and daily tasks. With Upwave's flexible boards, you can customize them to fit your specific needs. Easily toggle between board, table, timeline or calendar view to get the complete picture. The intuitive and user-friendly interface makes it easy for your entire team to get started - no extra training needed. Learn more about Upwave

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Task Management Tool for Agile Project Management, Test Management and Issue Tracking with Timesheet, Audit log and Reporting. Learn more about Juno.one
Juno.one is an all-in-one task management tool that helps teams stay on track and accomplish their goals. With its intuitive interface and customizable workflows, Juno.one makes it easy to organize, assign and track tasks across multiple projects. Its real-time updates and collaboration features allow team members to work together seamlessly, while its advanced reporting provides insights into project progress and team performance. Keep your team focused on what matters with juno.one! Learn more about Juno.one

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
We’ve designed task management with hospitality at the forefront. Manage tasks across departments, right from your phone. Learn more about Unifocus
We believe that less technology is better for hotels. Our cloud-based solution streamlines the management of labor, schedules, time and attendance, tasks, and surveys, all in one easy-to-use platform. Our AI takes all of your business inputs into account to deliver everything from schedules to housekeeping task assignments - optimized for your hotel. Simplify your point solutions with one platform and do more. Learn more about Unifocus

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Bitrix24 is a free team task & project management solution used by over 15 million teams worldwide. Cloud, mobile, open source editions Learn more about Bitrix24
Looking for best free team task management software? Prepare to get impressed by Bitrix24. Yes, you get free unlimited teams and free unlimited tasks. Still not impressed? How about if we throw in free time tracking, subtasks, task templates and task roles. You want more? OK, Gantt charts, shared calendars, task delegation, task reports, supervisor view are all yours. Do you want super simple team task management? You got that. Are you a power user? Not a problem. 15 million teams use Bitrix24. Learn more about Bitrix24

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Over 1,000,000 teams use Trello worldwide as a task management tool to plan, organize, and accomplish goals from any device.
Tools rarely celebrate the journey that teams take to tackle tasks and hit their goals, but Trello does by bringing reward and ease into the task management process. Teams can celebrate their achievements with fun and flexible features that are intuitively simple and encourage a personal touch. Teams can store and track information transparently, run better meetings, and automate repetitive tasks with an intuitive interface that makes it easy for anyone to onboard, all from the same platform. Learn more about Trello

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Basecamp is a team collaboration system designed to be straightforward, easy for teams to adopt, and perfect for team managers.
The Basecamp Way of working is used by thousands of teams that like to get work done without distractions and inefficiencies. Basecamp is opinionated about how work should flow, making it easy for teams to adopt and perfect for managers who want to get everyone in sync. Basecamp includes all tools that teams may need to collaborate, including file sharing, messages, chat, to-dos, and Card Table. Don't just take our word for it - see what people are saying, and give it a try with a free trial. Learn more about Basecamp

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Bring your teams work together, and unify your workflow. Create, collaborate, and store information all in one place.
Evernote Business brings your teams work together. Create documents, collaborate on projects, and store information all in one place. Teammates can access, edit, upload, and share notes and files from any device--even if theyre offline. Cut through the noise, and quickly find the information you need with powerful search capabilities and integrations with tools you already use. Unify your workflow with Evernote Business. Learn more about Evernote Teams

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Our simple, no-code design makes it easy for anyone to create workflows in minutes, freeing up IT to spend time where it matters.
Empower your users and teams to automate repeatable work their own way. Our simple, no-code design makes it easy for anyone to create workflows in minutes, freeing up IT to spend time where it matters. A flexible interface and range of powerful capabilities help you automate both simple tasks and sophisticated processes. The result: better workflows such as streamlined content review, standardized employee onboarding, and accelerated contract approvals. Learn more about Box

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
ClickUp is the world's leading task management tool with fully customizable and proprietary features that make it a must-have
With features like tasks, subtasks, Reminders, task priorities, time tracking, custom views, Goals, dependencies, and custom statuses, ClickUp has everything you need to manage tasks for any project or team! ClickUp is the perfect task management tool that brings all of your task needs into a single app and has been used by over 3 million teams. Built for personal use and teams of all sizes and industries, ClickUp is a must-have tool for task management Learn more about ClickUp

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Customer relationship management solution that helps businesses organize, track, and build relationships with leads and customers.
HubSpot customer relationship management (CRM) tool is built for companies that want to spend less time logging data. It keeps all contacts in one centralized, customizable database. And teams can see everything about a lead in one place; no more digging through inboxes to find information. Learn more about HubSpot CRM

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Smartsheet is an online work execution platform empowering organizations of all sizes to plan, manage, automate, and report on work.
Smartsheet, an online work execution platform, empowers organizations to plan, track, automate, and report on work. Over 80,000 brands rely on Smartsheet for project and work management because of its easy-to-use interface, real-time Gantt charts and dashboards, and work automation features. *2018 Awards: Named a Leader in Enterprise Collaborative Work Management by Forrester Research, Selected to Deloittes Fast 500 List, Recognized for Technology Innovation & Vision by 451 Research Learn more about Smartsheet

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Task management app that allows users to share to-do lists among themselves, set reminders, and add notes.
Microsoft To Do is an app that enables users to capture, organize and share daily reminders and tasks in one place, facilitating management of work and personal life without having to switch between apps. Microsoft To Do integrates with Outlook Tasks so as to manage both in one place. Add due dates and reminders to tasks, as well as attach relevant files from OneDrive. Users can also collaborate together on shared projects through chat, comments and polls. Learn more about Microsoft To Do

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Todoist is the world’s #1 task manager and to-do list app, simplifying life for both you and your team.
Todoist is the world’s #1 task manager and to-do list app for organizing your life and work. With a simple tap, you can add tasks, set reminders, enjoy multiple views such as calendar, list, and board, filter tasks by work and/or personal life, collaborate with your team on projects, and achieve peace of mind. Trusted by over 42 million people, Todoist simplifies task management for both individuals and teams. Learn more about Todoist

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Notion is the only task management software that connects your notes, tasks, and wiki in one tool.
Notion is the only task management software that connects your notes, tasks, and wiki in one tool. Tens of thousands of teams and companies around the world use it to keep their employees informed and working together in one place. By bringing all work and knowledge together and making it highly customizable, Notion creates focus and transparency, while consolidating tools, saving time, and driving more productivity for teams of all sizes. Learn more about Notion

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes
Airtable is the no-code app platform that empowers people closest to the work to accelerate their most critical business processes.
Airtable is the no-code app platform that empowers people closest to the work to accelerate their most critical business processes. Across every industry, leading enterprises trust Airtable to power workflows in product management, marketing operations, project & portfolio management, and more – all with the power of AI built-in. Central IT leaders deploy Airtable as a citizen development platform that empowers business users to build their own AI-powered applications. That’s why more than 500,000 organizations, including 80% of the Fortune 100, rely on Airtable for collaborative work management and citizen development to help transform how work gets done. The result? Faster innovation, happier customers, enterprise governance, and a modern work experience for teams and departments. Get the free edition today at airtable.com Learn more about Airtable

Features

  • Deadline Management
  • Time Tracking
  • Resource Management
  • Assignment Management
  • Collaboration Tools
  • Dependency Tracking
  • Workflow Management
  • Project Tracking
  • Task Editing
  • To-Do List
  • Prioritisation
  • Commenting/Notes

Task Management Software Buyers Guide

Task management software tools are applications that enable groups of professionals to work together as part of teams to complete projects. They help automate task allocation, monitoring, and progress reporting, minimising the workload for both team members and their leads while also ensuring that there is transparency and accountability throughout the organisation.

Task management tools benefit many corporate professionals, including project managers, program managers, and product managers. They are well suited for use in collaborative environments like web development, property management, healthcare administration, advertising, finance, construction, and engineering work. But also in field sales, market research, and political and NGO canvassing endeavours.

At its core, a task management application helps team leaders orchestrate project work and boost team productivity, making full use of the available talent and resources to achieve project goals in as little time as possible. It usually features a calendar-based display with colour-coded tasks, manual and automatic input options, deadline reminders, and automated progress checks. Bringing the team's objectives, checklists, and task files together on a single dashboard enables team members to synchronise, track progress, and collaborate on measurable Objectives and Key Results (OKRs).

These applications are essentially task tracking and progress reporting tools, and share some of their functionality with Project Management Software, Workflow Management Software, Idea Management Software, and Remote Work Software tools.

But there's also a budgeting aspect to them. Seeing as they can often be used in time, talent, and resource allocation and monitoring, they often cross over into categories like Time and Expense Software and Requirements Management Software. This enables corporate professionals to opt between using several specialised tools or a single, more comprehensive one across multiple projects.

While many companies in the UK continue to rely on Excel spreadsheets for task management purposes, most use a combination of tools to manage their projects, tasks, and resources. In fact, according to a Capterra study, 56% of British SMEs use project management software, 24% use time trackers, and 13% use task management tools.

Task tracking software tools vary in design and functionality, depending on their target users. Some were created for very specific industry verticals like engineering, web development, and healthcare. But most come with cross-industry capability out of the box and will work in virtually any team environment because they all come with a few basic features:

  • Capture objectives and organise projects
  • Create new and recurring tasks and subtasks
  • Match tasks with talent and assign them
  • Follow team activity and project progress in real-time
  • Collaborate with team members on files and tasks from the same dashboard
  • View team member engagement and coordinate to cover activity gaps
  • Identify bottlenecks and challenges, updating tasks as needed
  • Tally work hours and compare with initial forecasts

What is Task Management Software?

Task management software is designed to assist professionals in the UK to carry out their work as a team by scheduling tasks, reporting their progress, and tracking their time spent on projects. Part of project management efforts and essential to their success, task management enables business managers to segment their projects into actionable and quantifiable tasks, organising them sequentially to ensure the smooth flow of duties and information within teams.

Using task and team management software, project managers can plan, distribute, schedule, and monitor individual tasks and team member engagement. As mentioned in the Capterra blog post titled What Does It Mean to Be a Project Manager? this applies to many fields, including healthcare, engineering, translation, property management, software development, market research, security administration, and insurance. As such, team leaders in charge of task management can have a variety of roles, including project managers, ward managers, program managers, contract managers, property managers, product managers, or virtually any other type of managerial position within the business.

While some tools are designed for specific industry verticals, most will try to align with the needs of an eclectic user base. So, the UI is usually code-less, developed to accommodate the needs of people with varying degrees of IT skills. Task management applications are often web-based, but many developers will also offer Android and iOS apps to facilitate data entry and monitoring for distributed teams and in-house teams.

While some companies can develop proprietary task management tools as part of their software stack, most will opt for cloud applications made available through SaaS type subscriptions. Others will choose the hybrid model, making full use of the features available within the application they buy but choosing to store sensitive data on company premises.

Depending on the type of project, team leaders may use their task managing software tools for features specific to this type of application, including Gantt charts, Kanban boards, Scrum sprints, burndown charts, and other frameworks and methods that can automate their work and ensure that their projects reach fruition. For those interested in learning about these methods, Capterra offers a variety of resources online, including free Gantt chart templates on the official blog post.

What are the benefits of task management software?

The benefits of task management software stem mainly from the fact that they help businesses in the UK streamline project lifecycles. Whether it's enabling communication across the company, facilitating simultaneous collaboration on multiple projects, or identifying bottlenecks and challenges before they escalate, a task management tool's capabilities translate into savings. More specifically, we could classify the benefits of task management applications as:

  • Increased productivity: Enabling team leaders to break up a project into smaller sections— apportioning tasks to specific teams, allocating subtasks to team members of their choice, and distributing resources to cover every task—means companies can bring workers on the same page, minimise waste, and improve overall efficiency. They can match tasks with workers instantly, sending project updates in real-time, to ensure that everyone in the team understands their role and their order in the queue.
  • Optimised workflows: Like other work management software, task manager tools are very adept at pointing users to tasks that need special attention, are time-consuming or harm other projects. Rather than chase up employees and request progress reports, staff task management software can access all the information they need instantly. With these tools, project managers can reallocate or prioritise other tasks to lighten the workload, find workarounds, or reassess their options. Also, as project information is available to all stakeholders anytime, colleagues can proactively step in to help one another and reduce backlogs.
  • Realistic budgeting: Having a permanent, accurate, and easily accessible record of the time, talent, and resources spent on each project, task management software makes it easier for the company to budget for current and future projects. While not all enterprise task management software will enable users to log their expenses and requirements, most will, at the very least, accept work hour input. This information can be shared with accounting, payroll, and finance departments to forecast overheads and salaries, and make necessary invoice adjustments.
  • Centralised management: Keeping everyone in the loop in large companies with distributed teams is made easier with enterprise task management software. Colleagues can access it remotely and securely—viewing only the information they are authorised to view—and collaborating in real-time so that cross-regional projects reach their goals without time zone limitations.

What are the features of task management software?

The features of task management software are as varied as the applications themselves. But all online work management tools, from the most rudimentary to the most complex, will come with at least eight basic attributes. The most common features of task management software are as follows:

  • Task editing and updating: Edit and update tasks based on project requirements and resource availability. This can be done using drop-down menus, drag-and-drop tools, manual entry, automated input, and other such tools that minimise workloads for team leaders and do away with programming expertise requirements.
  • Subtask editing and prioritisation: Divide tasks into actionable subtasks to manage them at a micro-level. This enables users to view them at a glance, understand the dependencies between them, and prioritise them based on urgency and importance to speed up project completion.
  • Task scheduling: Schedule and assign tasks, allocating time and resources to each subtask. With this feature, team management software users can set time-frames for their projects, establish deadlines, match tasks to users, and estimate the number of hours each worker should dedicate to each task. The software might include Kanban boards, Gantt charts, Scrum-type sprints, custom request forms, automated task assignments, and shared workflows on the same dashboard.
  • Task tagging: Tag and label tasks and sub-tasks to organise them. This feature enables users to categorise and sort them, often using colour-coding based on priority levels. Tags and labels also allow users to add information to tasks assigned to them directly through URL links and email notifications, rather than searching the entire calendar for their tasks.
  • Task and project tracking: Track project progress over its entire lifecycle, from initiation through closure. Job tracking software can cover most of a project's phases, including planning, execution, monitoring, controlling, and completion. With this tool, managers can keep track of key performance indicators, especially as many tools come with built-in analytics and reports. Using techniques described in Burndown Tracking: Agile Task Management, team leaders can also estimate the time needed for completion compared to the initial estimate.
  • Alerts and notifications: Track milestones, deadlines, and updates notifying team members and other stakeholders in real-time. Task tracking tools should be able to alert users in real time when a new assignment is created, an update takes place, a milestone is reached, or there is an error in the system. This can be via email, browser pop-ups, push notifications, and/or in-app alerts.
  • Recurring task management: Copy tasks and schedule them at specific times of the day, week, month, or year. In fields like marketing, healthcare, property management, accounting, and engineering, some tasks are repetitive and mandatory. Rather than build up a project management scenario from scratch, team leaders can automate project creation and schedule tasks to avoid redundant work.
  • Time tracking: Track time spent by all team members on their tasks. This enables team leaders to track resource allocation, employee development and engagement. Over time, a task tracking tool may even be able to point out patterns in employee activity levels, compare project participation across teams, and identify individuals who excel or lag behind their colleagues in terms of performance.

Capterra's software directory includes task management tools with these and many other features. Readers interested in tried-and-tested applications are welcome to browse the directory for the ideal task management application for their business, filtering results and distilling them so that only one contender remains, ticking all the right boxes for their business.

What should be considered when purchasing task management software?

When purchasing time tracking software, selections should be less a matter of aesthetics and more practicality. As noted in The Most Common Project Management Challenges Solved by Software, an application's worth lies in its ability to address three major project management challenges: communication, visibility, and scope. To that end, there are three things business owners should consider when purchasing task management software:

  • Does it meet business needs? Depending on the type of business, a simple, no-frills task tracker may not be enough to satisfy requirements. Leaders interested in growth may opt for scalable, SaaS-type software that can either integrate with existing tools or provide API linkage so that they may develop their software stack on the go and evolve in complexity. UK businesses may be able to find tools that meet their expectations, within the limits of their budget, by comparing pricing plans and features side-by-side on the Capterra directory.
  • Is this software market-specific? While most task management applications can cater for a broad audience, certain industries require market-specific tools. For instance, users in healthcare, logistics, construction, or translation may find that only a handful of applications meet their requirements in terms of convenience, functionality, compliance, and legality. When it comes to enterprise task management software, this is all the more important as labour and privacy laws differ from one country to the other.
  • Does it facilitate transparency? Communication and visibility are the underpinnings of project management. Online work management tools that don't facilitate real-time collaboration, at-a-glance visualisation, and instant data access for stakeholders don't meet these basic requirements. With access to Kanban boards and Gantt charts in real-time, workers can view the impact of their work instantly while also staying abreast of changes and seeing what their colleagues are working on. Finally, offering multi-lingual and multi-device content is as important as granting users access to data in real-time, sending push notifications when there are updates, and distributing deadline reminders.

The most relevant task management software trends reflect a shift from conventional Excel spreadsheet-based project management to more sophisticated business-specific technology. As this software automates and streamlines many phases and tasks involved in project management, it stands to reason that more and more businesses across the UK will adopt it. While some may develop proprietary tools, many will subscribe to service providers who can quickly adapt to these emerging task management software trends:

  • Reliance on Artificial Intelligence (AI) is growing: Nowadays, artificial intelligence is part and parcel of task management tools. It stems from the ever-growing demand for faster and more efficient work, which drives competitiveness. As they integrate it with their business processes, businesses across the UK are automating their workflows and ridding themselves of waste and redundancy. But while machine learning and bots can automate and speed up complex operations, they can let non-tangible indicators fall through the cracks. Machines cannot quantify the meaningfulness of human interaction, favouring workers who are fast and efficient over those who may be slower but more effective. They overlook soft skills and interactions with indirect results, which may make up the larger part of the workday for those involved in healthcare. AI tools are only as good as their programming, and the weak point of many task management tools is that their programming is not visible or accessible to regular users.
  • Growth of the Internet of Things (IoT): In industries like construction, logistics, healthcare, and sales, users rely on input from IoT devices to determine when to initiate certain tasks or execute a project. For instance, workers are assigned to fixing a sensor or approaching a shopper who uses a help desk terminal. According to a Gartner study cited in Digitalisation's Impact on PPM Practices and the PMO, IoT is gaining traction in data collection, analysis, and reporting. As project managers and companies set out to find tools that meet their needs in terms of team size, collaboration, layout, features, and adaptability, it's easy to become wrapped up in trends and media coverage instead of focusing on key features for specific companies or projects.
  • Mobile readiness is a must: Mobile access has been a key requirement for some time. Mobile-ready task management software enables users to keep track of their assignments, collaborate, report, and communicate from anywhere and at any time. Mobile apps are essential to remote workforces, who need access to project dashboards around the clock from the first moment they are on board. But as mobile devices evolve, with dual-screen, foldable, and bendable models taking the spotlight, this key trend may present more challenges for task management apps.
  • Chatbot usage is the next big thing: Users are growing accustomed to having chatbots on virtually every application they access. Bots can help automate tasks, workflows, reporting, notifications, and virtually every other aspect of task management. They can also help guide new users through different sections of the dashboard, suggesting ways to automate their work. Likewise, they can help link the task manager with other in-house tools, such as customer databases, knowledge bases, and report archives. But the quality of their work is directly proportional to the quality of their code, and they are vulnerable to social biases.
  • Tighter deadlines: For competitive businesses, speed is a given, and deadlines are stricter with each passing year. As they integrate more software and automate more of their tasks, companies expect their project time-frames to fall in line, shortening the risk management and integration phases of project lifecycles. But businesses should also factor in change management and the challenges it brings, budgeting and allocating time for the implementation of new software.