In a 2018 Gartner survey of small business technology trends*, small enterprises identified “productivity improvements” as the top factor that triggers investment in new technology.
One of the most popular types of tools to enhance employee productivity is kanban tools such as Trello. This is a popular task management solution with a 4.5 out of 5 rating on Software Advice. Trello’s visual kanban dashboard helps businesses gain visibility on project progress.
However, task management is just one facet of improving team productivity. Your business may be facing challenges in team communication, for which you need an internal chat tool. Likewise, if your team is struggling to meet projects deadlines then you may need time tracking tools to help them stay on schedule.
Small businesses shouldn’t expect generic project management software to handle all their unique challenges in improving team productivity. The only way to fully utilize their valuable resources and budget is by using the right tool.
Though Trello is a popular tool for improving team performance and tracking projects, it may not be suitable for every small business. This report lists five alternatives to Trello that have unique use cases when it comes to enhancing team productivity.
Read on to learn about how these tools are similar to and different from Trello.
Airtable: Track Tasks, Bugs and Barcodes
Airtable is a collaborative database solution that allows teams to track tasks and capture data on Excel-like spreadsheets or kanban dashboards.
Airtable is designed for collaboration between teams that need a tool, such as Excel, which can be used for not just tracking tasks but also recording and analyzing data sets.
Airtable and Trello are useful for collaboratively managing projects. Both tools allow users to share documents, visualize task progress on kanban boards and communicate via online workspaces.
The difference is that Trello is a specialized kanban solution, while Airtable is a multipurpose collaboration platform. With Trello, teams can create project workflows, interact via shared activity dashboards and track task deadlines. Meanwhile, teams can use Airtable to improve data tracking, whether it’s a list of tasks, product catalogs, inventory items (with barcode scanning) and more.
Check out the below graphic to understand what users like about Airtable and what they feel is missing:
Glip: Boost Team Interaction via Online Meetings
Glip is a team collaboration tool with features such as file sharing, team calendars, task tracking, videoconferencing and team chat.
Glip is suitable for projects where team collaboration is a priority, as it allows businesses to collaborate with different project stakeholders in real time.
Trello and Glip are similar when it comes to task management. They help businesses track task deadlines on a team calendar, share files and discuss project details in collaborative workspaces.
The key difference is that Trello is primarily a task management solution that helps businesses organize, plan, track and visualize project tasks. On the other hand, Glip is a collaboration solution that offers features such as videoconferencing capabilities and instant messaging, which allow teams to collaborate in online meetings.
The following graphic presents the views of Glip users, particularly what they like and what features they feel are missing.
Google Docs: Engage in Real-Time Document Collaboration
Google Docs (part of the Google Drive family) is a documentation and file sharing tool that helps teams collaboratively manage and track project documents. It offers advanced functionalities, such as voice typing, built-in research tools, detailed version control, commenting and templates, which help teams collaboratively work on project documents.
Owing to its real-time document collaboration features, Google Docs is suitable for small businesses that have teams spread across different time zones and locations.
Both Trello and Google Docs serve as a single solution for different teams to store and share project-related documents and discussions. This saves the time that teams usually waste on searching and organizing project-related information.
As for differences, Google Docs is a stand-alone tool for document management, with features such as version history, real-time editing and in-document commenting. On the other hand, Trello helps teams improve their productivity by making task tracking easy with a visual kanban dashboard.
Check out the following graphic that lists the top reasons why users like Google Docs and some improvements they would like to see.
Slack: Improve Team Communication With Real-Time Chat
Slack is a combination project management solution and internal message board for organizations. It lets users set up their own public and private discussion channels for different projects.
Designed like a social media platform, Slack is a suitable solution for businesses that want to improve team communication.
The similarity between Trello and Slack is that both tools serve as centralized repositories for tracking project-related information. They offer shared workspaces where teams can share details about tasks and communicate with one another.
However, there are some key differences. Trello helps teams become productive by automating task management with features such as task labels, activity logs, email notifications and deadline alerts. On the other hand, Slack facilitates team conversation by letting members directly reach out to a colleague or group using mentions (@ and #).
Explore the following graphic to understand the features of Slack that users like and some of the improvements they seek:
TimeCamp: Track Employee Time to Evaluate Performance
TimeCamp is a productivity tracking solution that helps businesses evaluate the efficiency of teams by analyzing the hours employees spend on tasks. Teams can use this information to create better project deadline estimates.
TimeCamp is a suitable solution for businesses working on client-based projects, where they need to create billable hour reports.
TimeCamp and Trello offer team calendars, where businesses can view project progress and the status of ongoing tasks. Both tools help in tracking the performance of teams in projects.
As for the differences, TimeCamp is a tool for tracking employee time and attendance. The tool offers advanced features such as the ability to track how much time employees spend on a particular website or application. On the other hand, Trello is a visual task management tool, allowing businesses to track and organize tasks.
Check out the graphic to understand the key features of TimeCamp that users like and some improvements they would like to see.
Next Steps
This report looks at the top alternatives of Trello when it comes to improving team productivity. To learn more details of the products listed above, you can visit their profile pages by clicking the links below:
That said, there are many different tools and solutions that can enhance team performance and productivity. We have categorized these tools based on the software category they fit in best. You can check out some of these categories below:
- Project management software
- Task management software
- Document management software
- Time tracking software
- Collaboration software
If you’re currently evaluating tools that can boost team productivity, you can call us on (844) 680-2046 for a free and no obligations consultation with a software advisor who can help you make the right software choice for your business.
*Information on Gartner’s survey on technology trends:
The Gartner survey was conducted online between July and September 2018 among 715 small business leaders in the U.S. Respondents held a position of manager or above, and were screened for their involvement in purchasing decisions regarding technology for their organization. Companies were screened for company size ranging from 2-249 employees and revenue less than $100 million.
