When you decide to take a vacation, you have to manage a lot of different details. You need to book a flight and find a time and a fare that work best for you. You have to plan to take off from work and let your bosses know how long you’ll be gone. And then comes the most fun part of planning: You have to create an itinerary.
While some people like to see where the day takes them on vacation, many people want a plan for where they’re going and what they’ll be doing — and how to make it all go as smoothly as possible.
The same goes for project planning. You have to put all the pieces in place — and monitor them as you’re working — in order for your project to be successful. And to do that, you need the right programs at your side.
Two of the best systems for all of your project planning needs are OpenProject and Redmine. But in the battle of OpenProject vs Redmine, who wins? Let’s break down the features of each and check out what the tools offer and how they work to make your project planning simpler.
Tracking your issues and your time
OpenProject
Being efficient means having an awareness of where and how you’re spending time on your projects. OpenProject offers time and cost tracking as well as project budgeting capabilities. You can plan the cost of each phase of your project and generate reports after each phase to stay on track.
What’s more, you can also track bugs and issues you encounter to classify and filter them. Having all of this information in one place — instead of trying to remember a problem you faced a few weeks ago — can make a big difference in moving everything along.
Redmine
Redmine’s speciality is issue tracking. Designed to catch your bugs before they bite you, the platform helps you track your progress and guide your projects every step of the way.
It’s best for small and medium-sized businesses and allows for management of multiple projects at once. Plus, Redmine’s built-in Gantt charts organize any issues you encounter in an easily digestible format.
Open source
OpenProject
When you examine OpenProject vs Redmine, you’ll quickly discover that both are open source, which means users can offer solutions and provide code for the platform. As users encounter issues with the platforms, they can add code and offer patch solutions.
OpenProject’s source code is readily available, and it exists as a constantly evolving platform. Plus, if OpenProject fails to identify a bug on its end, its users can catch issues that might otherwise fall through the cracks. That means you can connect with like-minded project managers to workshop solutions to internal problems.
You can also create plug-ins within the software, giving you the keys to unlock full project planning capabilities. OpenProject is extremely secure as well, so you don’t have to worry about your information getting into the wrong hands.
Redmine
With Redmine, anyone can download its source code or rewrite it around their needs. Redmine is free of charge, and its community is vast and collaborative. So far, users have established workarounds for role-based project access as well as custom fields for projects and issues.
Collaborating
OpenProject
With OpenProject, you can outline your project objectives and assign specific tasks to your team members with ease. You can also create a project plan before you launch to provide a high-level overview. Plus, since OpenProject allows for shared timeline views, you can visualize what each of your team members will be doing and see how far along they are once your project begins.
Redmine
The ability to work together internally is another similarity between the two tools. With Redmine, you can use team chats to easily share ideas with your team and conduct virtual huddles about any problems that arise. Since Redmine is compatible across mobile devices, you can work across any system and respond quickly to a crisis — even if you’re not at the office.
Arranging your information
OpenProject
OpenProject has tons of different options to view and organize your project workflow, including Gantt charts, calendar views (which you can share with your team), and task management breakdowns so you always know what’s ahead.
You can prioritize tasks, assign them to team members, and keep a running log of comments and version histories. Plus, with OpenProject’s different task boards, you can make sure everyone understands where they’re supposed to be and what they’re supposed to be doing.
Redmine
Redmine also has a calendar view that arranges your existing projects and puts organization in your hands. All of your active projects are listed on a project page, so you’ll have a centralized location to toggle between one workflow and another.
And in terms of OpenProject vs Redmine, it’s good to know that Redmine also has Gannt chart and kanban capabilities, so you’ll have similar options for the way you view your projects.
Connecting with Jotform
OpenProject
OpenProject doesn’t have a direct integration with Jotform, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of Jotform’s power. With Jotform Anywhere, you can bring the capabilities of Jotform to any web application, so you can use Jotform’s drag and drop features to add a form builder inside OpenProject.
OpenProject users can then pair the platform with Jotform to create their own forms. Any web application that lets users create forms — as OpenProject does — is compatible with Jotform Anywhere, so you can perform edits and shape its features around your needs.
Redmine
You can connect Redmine with Jotform through a Zapier integration, which means you won’t have to jump through hoops. You can create new projects and triggers when you add new problems, assign priorities, and add new users to your project.
Pairing Redmine with Jotform’s numerous form templates allows you to streamline your workflow and tailor your business practices toward individual projects and your overall goals.
Stacking up
In the OpenProject vs Redmine debate, the features you’re looking for will determine which tool wins out. Each platform has similar capabilities, but the ways you access them — and how you carry out actions within them — are the things that make the difference.
Think carefully about how you and your team work together to decide which project management application is best for you. Choosing project management software is like making a new friend — in your relationship and in project management, trust, communication, and collaboration are the bedrocks for a partnership that, if all goes well, will last for years to come.
Photo by ThisIsEngineering
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