When it comes to setting up your team for success one of the first things you need to do is make sure you have a project management system in place that will allow everyone to keep track of what needs to be done.
With so many to choose from it can be difficult to figure out which one is the best way to go, but we’re going to help you by comparing two of the top options available. We’re going to look at Matchware and Instagantt so you can figure out just which one is going to give you the quality and the features that you’re looking for to help your team.
Matchware is a mind mapping system that allows you to lay out your thoughts in an organized and cohesive way. Designed for what they call ‘creative minds’ this software is used by companies like Volkswagen, Intel, and Allscripts. The key is a software option that lets you create visual representations of your thought process as you’re working on creating new ideas or executing different plans for your team and your business. It has a number of different features and gives you a lot of control over your process.
- Microsoft Office integration
- Gantt charts
- Visual learning
- Intuitive user interface
- Windows and Mac compatible
- Clipart and icons
- Multiple views
- Custom designer
- Online drive
- Cloud integration
- Costs and management services
- Upgrade options
- Timelines
- Dependencies & milestones
- Tasks & subtasks
- Drag & drop
- Baselines
- Critical path
- Multiple projects & workspaces
- Diverse export options
- Public snapshot sharing
- Team collaboration options
- Custom view & fields
- Custom color options
- Risk & priority
- Estimated & actual cost
- Gantt & workload views
- Ready-to-use templates
There are plenty of great things to really like about Matchware and we’re going to take a closer look at just what some of those are so you can decide if this system is the right one for you. The fist thing that you’re going to want to look at is just how it works for mapping out information. With MatchWare you’ll have a number of different mapping choices. The system offers several views including left/right, top down, outlines, timelines, Gantt charts, and an actual mind map. All of this lets you create a system that really works for you and lay it out in a way that you can read and understand.
Another benefit is the fact that you get a whole lot of customization options. For one thing, MatchWare allows you to customize your style so the look of your system is exactly what you want it to be. For another, you can use clipart and icons to highlight different areas of importance to you. Add in the fact that you can use sub-maps and even pen mode to make your own additions and you’re definitely going to have a lot of customization. You’ll be able to do just about anything you want with this system.
On top of that you can easily export to Microsoft Office, no matter what type of files you’re creating. That includes exporting to Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Project, and Outlook. On top of that you can export to pictures, PDF, HTML, and XML. You also have the ability to share and save any documents that you want so you’re always able to come back to the files and information that you create. This is definitely important if you’re working with any type of business service because you want to know how to refer back to important information whenever you need it.
You’ll even find services that are entirely separate from your mind mapping needs like project management services. This includes scheduling, resource management, tracking, calculation, and even things like essay writing services. All of this means that you’re getting a whole lot of features and you’ll be able to do a whole lot more with MatchWare than you might think. The entire service is designed to make sure you have as many features as possible and are ready to dive right into anything that your business may need along the way.
These are only a small sampling of the things that you can do with MatchWare, but there are a few things to keep in mind that are not-so-great as well. For one thing, you’re going to have different options when it comes to using the online version versus the Mac version or the Windows version. If you’re looking for all of the features you’ll need to use the Windows version in order to get there. But if you want to be able to access your files more easily then online might be your choice, and that means losing out on some of the options.
You should also take into account the fact that this system involves upgrade options as well. If you’re looking for the best of the best you’ll want to look at the subscription service and the upgraded capabilities of the platform. Not to mention you need to be using Windows in order to get it all. That means you’re going to be spending more for the service and you could end up spending even more as you continue to add more features and capabilities. You want to be aware of the costs that you’re getting involved with before you jump in.
Overall, the main drawback seems to be that this platform is rather expensive compared to similar options. It does offer a lot of features a lot of variety, but when it comes to specialization it may not offer quite as much as what you’re looking for. Of course, that depends on whether you’re looking for a system that’s designed to give only a single feature very well or a series of features at a good or moderate level. With MatchWare you’re going to have the latter, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it's not the ideal option for your business.
If you’re not quite sure that MatchWare is the system that you want to go with it’s a good time to start looking at a few other options. This is where you’ll want to start looking at Instagantt because this service will provide you with plenty of features and options while focusing on the one area that’s most important to you, Gantt charts. We’re going to take a look at some of the top features that you’ll find with Instagantt and the Gantt charts that are offered here so you can make sure you’re choosing the right platform for your team and for everything that you need to keep track of.
First, Instagantt is all about Gantt charts. If you’re looking for one of the top platforms in the way of Gantt charts you definitely can’t go wrong here. Instagantt provides you with everything that you need for these charts including letting all of your employees or your entire team set up their own accounts and be linked together to have access to the projects that they need. You’ll also be able to set up several different projects, tasks within each project, subtasks, and even who is assigned each of the different tasks for your projects.
With this platform you can also customize everything that you’re doing to make sure that you’re getting the features that you need and everything looks the way that you want it to. If you’re interested in making the most out of this platform you can absolutely create a system that you prefer. Your team can all color-code everything that they’re doing or customize the way that the system is arranged so it’s comfortable and easy for everyone to work with. That’s going to make it a whole lot easier for you and more convenient as well.
Instagantt allows you to easily pay for only the individual team members that you have working on your platform. If you only need three people to have accounts you can pay for those three. If you need 21 you can get that number of accounts. There’s no reason to pay for accounts that you don’t need, which you’ll find with many other platforms that offer accounts for 20-30 people or 50-70 people. You pay by the individual user when you’re working with Instagantt and it only costs you $5 per month, per user if you’re getting a multi-user plan.
Next up, you can integrate a number of different features with your Instagantt profile. That way you only have to add information or update content once and it will automatically be transferred across different platforms. That makes it even easier for you and your team to use Instagantt and to make sure that you’re making the most out of all of the features. You don’t have to worry about which platforms have been changed already or where you need to make updates. You can do everything once and then spend your time on other things instead.
When it comes to any team there are always going to be those people who aren’t quite as good with the technological aspects. That’s where Instagantt shines yet again. This service is designed to be easy to use, no matter who is using it. You don’t have to worry about your less technologically advanced team members struggling with the platform. Instead, you can feel confident that this system is very user friendly and everyone will be able to get what they need out of it. You can quickly and easily get everyone on the same page and ready to go in no time.
With Gantt charts you’re going to have a lot of options. And with Gantt charts through Instagantt you’re going to have even more. You’ll be able to set up all of the features and tasks that you need including subtasks and individual projects. You’ll be able to color code everything, communicate with your team directly in the platform and more. That means everything you and your team could possibly need is going to be right there, ready to go, in your Instagantt project. You’ll be able to immediately jump to doing what you need every time.
When it comes to creating your projects you also have the ability to create dependencies that will let you show what tasks need to be completed first and which ones need to be completed after. If you need to create multiple dependencies for different tasks it’s easy to do. All you have to do is set and drag and drop everything. You’ll be more than happy with the functionality and the way that this platform gives you all of the control you need in order to get from one task to the next and to keep track of everything that your team needs along the way.
So, which platform is going to be the best one for you? That depends on what you’re looking for. Instagantt will give you unparalleled options and features when it comes to Gantt charts. You’ll be able to take care of anything and everything you need with these. But if you’re looking for additional features and different areas of work you’ll want to take a closer look at MatchWare to see what you can do. You may find a host of different reasons to go with either of these platforms, but you will definitely find something that works for you.
Start managing your projects efficiently & never struggle with complex tools again.
Start managing your projects efficiently & never struggle with complex tools again.