Workload Management Tools: Best Choices for 2023

What are workload management tools? 

Workload management tools are software solutions or platforms that help individuals, teams, or organizations manage and optimize their workloads in both short- and long-term planning. 

What features should be included in workload management tools? 

Here are some common features and capabilities of workload management tools:

1. Task and project tracking enabling the users to create and manage tasks or projects, assign responsibilities, set deadlines, and track progress. 
2. Resource allocation: Workload management tools help distribute work evenly by providing visibility into employees’ workload, identifying potential bottlenecks, and managing available capacity. 
3. Prioritization and scheduling: These tools allow users to set priorities for tasks or project schedules by scheduling tasks, setting reminders, and managing deadlines to help individuals or teams stay organized.
4. Collaboration and communication: Many workload management tools facilitate collaboration among team members by offering features such as file sharing, commenting, and real-time messaging.
5. Performance analytics and reporting: Workload management tools often provide insights and analytics on individual, team and business performance. These analytics can include metrics like task completion rates, time spent on tasks, and execution of resource utilization plan. 
6. Integration with other tools: These integrations streamline workflows and enable a seamless transfer of information between different tools.

Best workload management tools for 2023: ranking 

There are dozens of workload management tools available on the market. We have selected the best of them - now its time to compare them! 

Workload management tools: comparison

Primetric 

General overlook

Primetric is a workload management tool that specializes in a long-term approach perfect for executives and high-level managers supervising an entire project portfolio. 

With this app, users can find the right people for the job, assign them to the project or their stage and flexibly adjust the assignments as their see fit with just a few clicks. In the same time, they can use the tool to monitor the progress of their operations and their project costs using advanced analytics included in both people and project calendar, as well as advanced and customizable reports for all key fields of work, including capacity, billable hours, and utilization. 

Additionally, Primetric also caters to the needs of employees. Thanks to the system of roles, it provides all the parties with a perfect collaboration space that allows users to exchange information in the real time. The tool can also be connected with other solutions, including but not limited to: Jira, Tempo Timesheets, Calamari, and more. 

Main features

• holistic approach to the business, which includes finances, planning, analytics and time tracking, 
• flexible scheduling with information on availability and capacity,
• project schedule and project portfolio management in a single tool, 
• bird’s eye view of all the activities in the company, 
• financial information, such as wages, costs of work and overheads are automatically calculated based on the time tracking data, 
• different customizable access levels, 
• real-time monitoring with advanced reports that can be tailored to managers’ needs at any time, 
• numerous integrations with leading tools, including but not limited to: Jira, Calamari, Clockify, Harvest. 

Pros and cons 

Pros of Primetric: 

• good for businesses of all sizes, 
• all the information gathered in a single place, 
• simple and adjustable workload management, 
• includes all the key metrics for workload management, such as capacity, utilization, and more,
• security guaranteed by both quality of the tool and different access levels, 
• advanced and extensive monitoring and reporting, 
• easily integrated with other tools. 

Cons of Primetric:

• high entry threshold due to the advancement of the tool, 
• requires extensive amount of data to provide managers with the best quality of services. 

ClickUp 

General overview

ClickUp is a comprehensive workload management tool designed to help organizations streamline their work processes and optimize productivity. It provides a centralized platform where users can plan, track, and collaborate on tasks, projects, and workflows. 

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At its core, ClickUp serves as a hub for organizing and managing tasks. Users can create tasks, assign them to team members, set due dates, and establish priorities. They can also communicate within the system and monitor their progress using simple, limited reporting tools based on time tracking. However, this tool includes no financial information, and its customization options are few and far between. Therefore, it only responds to basic use cases typical for smaller organizations or teams. 

Main features

• task management, editing and creation, 
• gestión de recursos,
• gestión de proyectos, 
• basic communication for individual tasks, 
• basic reporting based on time tracking, 
• seguimiento del tiempo. 

Pros and cons

Pros of ClickUp: 

• extensive task management, 
• good resource management for short-term approach, 
• communication features in the system, 

Cons of ClickUp: 

• suitable for individual teams, not companies,
• majority of features are very basic and they do not provide in-depth information on the project timeline and its execution. 
• lack of features for long-term planning; total focus on sprints and short-term project schedules, 
• difficult to set up and introduce to the team,

Trello

General overview

Trello is a popular and user-friendly workload management tool that uses a visual approach to help individuals and teams organize, track, and collaborate on tasks and projects. It is based on the concept of Kanban boards, which provide a visual representation of work progress through customizable lists and cards.

At its core, Trello revolves around boards, which represent projects or workflows. Within each board, users can create lists that represent different stages or categories of work. For example, a software development team might have lists for "To-Do," "In Progress," and "Completed." These lists can be easily customized and adapted to suit the specific needs of the project or team.

Main features

• task management in a form of Kanban boards, 
• easy short-term planning, 
• a variety of simple automations for resource management. 

Pros and cons

Pros of Trello: 

• easy task management, 
• perfect for planning a few days ahead, 
• many customization options. 

Cons of Trello: 

• only suitable for small teams or individuals;
• limited planning options based on a Kanban board, 
• lack of finances and reporting, 
• no time tracking,
• no overview of project progress or resource planning as a whole,
• very prone to schedule conflicts, 
• doesn’t include any analytics or key project metrics. 

Monday

General overview

At its core, Monday.com offers a visual and customizable workspace where users can create and manage tasks. Users can create boards or project spaces tailored to their specific needs. Within these boards, they can create tasks, assign responsibilities, set due dates, and establish priorities. 

Monday.com also offers a variety of views to visualize and organize work. Users can choose from different formats such as boards, timelines, calendars, or Gantt charts to suit their preferred working style. However, the tool does not offer any financial or reporting features, making it difficult for its users to control the work and make data-driven decisions for long-term planning. As a result, it is best suited for small teams or companies that are only focusing on a few days ahead. 

Main features

• customizable boards with lists of tasks and their details, 
• motivation tool, 
• deadline tracking and reminders, 
• some customizable fields.

Pros and cons

Pros of Monday: 

• highly visual approach to workload management, 
• good overview of the work of individual people with no bigger picture. 

Cons of Monday: 

• very complicated implementation,
• only reports for basic metrics are available,  
• lack of general overview of work - the tool is mostly team-focused, 
• limited customization

Trabajo en equipo

General overview

Teamwork provides a centralized platform for teams and organizations to plan, track, and collaborate on tasks and projects. In this tool, users can create tasks, assign responsibilities, set due dates, and establish priorities, ensuring clear accountability and streamlined workflows. 

The tool offers various views, such as task lists, boards, and Gantt charts, allowing teams to visualize their work and progress at a glance, and some collaboration features. Teamwork also provides robust project management capabilities, including resource allocation, time tracking, and milestone tracking. Still, the tool lacks a more general perspective, its data only allow for basic billing, and its reporting capabilities are limited, making it difficult for managers to get a bigger picture of the operations in the company. 

Main features

• resource and project planning, 
• collaboration features, 
• Gantt charts and Kanban view, 
• build-in time tracking. 

Pros and cons

Pros of Teamwork: 

• best for a single team or a single project, 
• extensive task management capabilities. 

Cons of Teamwork: 

• limited reporting features, 
• only suited for short-term planning, 
• limited financial information in the system, 
• limited template design. 

Wrike

General overview

Wrike is a workload management tool designed to help individuals and teams streamline their work processes and optimize productivity. Users can use it to create tasks, set deadlines, assign responsibilities, and track progress, all within a centralized platform. 

The tool offers customizable workflows, allowing users to adapt it to their specific needs and align with their existing work processes. It also provides collaboration features and reporting and analytics functionalities, enabling users to gain valuable insights into project performance and resource utilization. Still, the tool’s main focus remain resource and task management that might not be sufficient for those wishing to acquire some more advanced data for decision making processes. 

Main features

• gestión de proyectos, 
• task creation, 
• build-in time tracking, 
• progress monitoring, 
• role-based access. 

Pros and cons

Pros of Wrike: 

• workload management features for mid-range managers, 
• Kanban and Gantt view, 
• numerous integrations. 

Cons of Wrike: 

• complex, but also complicated workload view, 
• high entry threshold, 
• limited financial features, 
• not suitable for larger companies, 
• unintuitive interface. 

TogglPlan

General overview

TogglPlan is a visual platform where tasks can be created, assigned, and scheduled, allowing users to gain a clear overview of their workload. The managers can use it to create, rearrange and manage the task to the best of their ability. 

TogglPlan also offers collaboration features, allowing team members to communicate, comment on tasks, and share updates, fostering seamless collaboration and ensuring everyone stays aligned. With its simplicity and focus on usability, TogglPlan is an effective tool for individuals and small teams looking for an intuitive way to manage their workloads. However, it is significantly lacking in terms of long-term planning and providing is users with a more general overview of their operations. 

Main features

• la planificación del proyecto, 
• planificación de recursos, 
• task management. 

Pros and cons

Pros of TogglPlan: 

• project scheduling based on availability of resources, 
• simple edit mode. 

Cons of TogglPlan: 

• no connection to the finances, 
• limited long-term planning features, 
• basic scope of features, 
• no build-in time tracking, 
• no reporting features. 

ResourceGuru

General overview

Resource Guru is a centralized platform for managing and organizing resources, such as team members, equipment, and facilities, to ensure efficient utilization and allocation. With Resource Guru, users can view and manage the availability of resources in real-time, as well as their calendar views. Additionally, Resource Guru provides intuitive scheduling capabilities, enabling users to assign resources to specific projects or tasks and adjust schedules as needed.

Resource Guru simplifies communication and collaboration among team members by providing a centralized platform for resource management. Unfortunately, the tool only focuses on its main feature and it fails to provide its user with any additional value, such as finances, advanced reporting or HR tools. 

Main features

• resource planning and scheduling, 
• gestión de las vacaciones, 
• room booking system, 
• informes de capacidad, 
• simple forecasts. 

Pros and cons

Pros of ResourceGuru: 

• office management features, 
• complex resource management feature. 

Cons of ResourceGuru:  

• no connection with finances or time tracking, 
• very granular perspective only suited to smaller teams, 
• very limited reporting mostly focusing on capacity management,  

Planificador de tiempo

General overview

Tempo Planner is a popular JIRA resource allocation solution for capacity planning, resource allocation, and team coordination. Using Tempo Planner, teams can visualize and allocate resources effectively, ensuring that workloads are balanced and aligned with available capacity. They can also communicate withing the tool and work on their task while monitoring their progress. 

However, despite its integration with Jira, Tempo Planner also has its flaws. It does not contain any financial information and it is definitely not the right tool for getting a bigger picture of all the operations through reporting or monitoring. Additionally, numerous users claim that the tool has numerous bugs and issues, and it is very slow at times. 

Main features

• overvier of plans and resources, 
• proritizing workflow, 
• seamless integration with popular tools, including JIRA. 

Pros and cons

Pros of Tempo Planner: 

• integración con JIRA, 
• large number of planning and scheduling features. 

Cons of Tempo Planner: 

• reported bugs, 
• slow loading, 
• no financial features, 
• información básica, 
• only suitable for smaller teams and projects. 

Ruddr

General overview

Ruddr is a centralized platform where users can create tasks, assign responsibilities, set deadlines, and track progress. It offers various task views, such as lists, boards, and timelines, allowing users to visualize their work in a way that suits their preferences. 

Additionally, Ruddr offers advanced resource management capabilities, allowing users to balance workloads, allocate resources efficiently, and ensure that projects are executed smoothly. However, it mostly focuses on workload management as a part of project portfolio management, which may make it difficult for those focusing on the former feature. 

Main features

• tracking projects and customers, 
• time and expense monitoring, 
• reporting, 
• invoicing. 

Pros and cons

Pros of Ruddr: 

• includes financial features, 
• resource management is easy to manage and adjust. 

Cons of Ruddr: 

• the tool mostly focuses on project portfolio management, 
• complicated interface, 
• limited customization, 
• problems with copying the assignments and bulk scheduling. 

Still not sure which tool to choose? 

Experience Primetric first hand - book a demo now and start your journey with a leading workload management tool!