I primarily use the solution for project planning.
Head of IT at ssofin
Easy to use, great for project planning and very reliable
Pros and Cons
- "It's an easy solution to set up."
- "We'd like the solution to have better integration with other third-party and open-source solutions."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
The product is very easy to use. It makes it easy to present projects as well.
It's an easy solution to set up.
The solution can scale.
It is stable.
What needs improvement?
We'd like the solution to have better integration with other third-party and open-source solutions. We have trouble importing and exporting to other tools.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for two to five years.
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Microsoft Project
January 2025
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It's a stable solution. It's reliable. We haven't had any problems with it. There are no bugs or glitches, and it doesn't crash or freeze.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution scales well. It is very easy to extend it.
We have about five to ten users on the solution. At this point, we do not have plans to increase usage. We might in the future.
How are customer service and support?
I have not used technical support. I've never needed assistance.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have used a different solution previously.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is very simple and straightforward.
It is quick to set up. It took about an hour to deploy.
We have five people that are able to handle deployment and maintenance tasks. Typically, we have two or three available.
What about the implementation team?
We handled the deployment in-house. We did not need any outside assistance.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We pay a monthly licensing fee for the solution. I'm not sure of the exact cost of the product.
What other advice do I have?
I am not sure if we are using the latest version of the solution.
I'd recommend the solution to others.
I would rate it eight out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Student at a university with 5,001-10,000 employees
Good for project management, easy to work with, and straightforward to implement
Pros and Cons
- "The solution is stable."
- "It has a bit of a learning curve since there are a lot of features in it, and we haven't really gotten a chance to train through the whole product."
What is our primary use case?
I'm using it to prepare a project schedule, budget the project, and handle resource allocation. I'm checking on if the resources or the tasks are completed and if they're on time and to see if I have any backlogs with tasks.
What is most valuable?
I'm using it just for my academics, and it does the job as far as I'm concerned for this use case. We are just using what is relevant to the course, and that's it.
The setup is straightforward.
Once you understand the solution a bit, it becomes easy to work with.
The solution is stable.
It can scale.
What needs improvement?
It has a bit of a learning curve since there are a lot of features in it, and we haven't really gotten a chance to train through the whole product.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've used the solution for just two months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is quite stable. There's no huge amount of data that is being used on it and even the simplest of computers can use it. It doesn't consume much data. There are no bugs or glitches and it doesn't crash or freeze.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Scalability isn't a problem with Microsoft Project. It's just a scheduling tool and the only people who will be using this tool will be the managers, and there are not many managers. There's not much data processing on it.
You can share the dashboard too, so the number of users doesn't really matter. You create a project and you schedule it. You can share it with others and scalability is not an issue.
How are customer service and support?
I've never dealt with technical support. My college provided me with the solution, and I haven't had to troubleshoot anything.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is straightforward. You download, install, and use the product, and you get set up your projects. That's it.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I'm using the solution for free via my college. I can't speak to the pricing or aspects of the licensing.
What other advice do I have?
I haven't used it extensively. If I had used it in the environment where I was working, and I was responsible for the task I was doing, I would've experimented more on it and figured out something. However, that's not the case.
We are aware of how to install certain processes exactly and how to use those processes in Microsoft Project. However, you'll have to spend at least a week or two days at minimum to see how everything works and what kind of allocation works best. There are a few things that you need to be specific about. With Microsoft Project, it becomes easy to use when you know what you're doing.
Using the product will not be a big challenge if you are comfortable with project management.
I'd rate the solution nine out of ten as it was easy to learn and a very useful tool in general.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Project
January 2025
Learn what your peers think about Microsoft Project. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2025.
832,138 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Independent Consultant at perspektis
Reliable with the ability to link sub-tasks but can be expensive
Pros and Cons
- "The setup is pretty simple."
- "What could have been better is the integration with Office 365 so that if you're discussing a project on Teams or there's an email related to the project, it can be tagged to the project in Microsoft Project. That functionality is currently not there."
What is most valuable?
The most useful feature is to link sub-tasks to the main group.
The setup is pretty simple.
It is stable, and the performance is good.
It can scale well.
What needs improvement?
What could have been better is the integration with Office 365 so that if you're discussing a project on Teams or there's an email related to the project, it can be tagged to the project in Microsoft Project. That functionality is currently not there.
The solution is pretty expensive. However, you pay for what you get, and it is worth the cost.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been working with the solution for more than ten years now.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is stable and reliable. There are no bugs or glitches. The performance is good. It doesn't crash or freeze.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is absolutely scalable. It's not a problem to expand the product.
We are a small consulting firm. We have only four users at the moment.
How are customer service and support?
I've had no issues with the level of service provided by support. They are helpful and responsive. We always get an immediate response.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We have worked with Jira.
We always knew that Microsoft Project is the most comprehensive option. Although our clients are using multiple different platforms, we tend to integrate all those outputs into our Microsoft Project installation.
How was the initial setup?
The product has a simple, straightforward implementation process. It's not overly complex.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The pricing is pretty high. I'd rate it two out of five in terms of affordability.
What other advice do I have?
We are customers and end-users.
I'd rate the solution seven out of ten.
I would recommend it for companies that have a large number of projects and diversified teams. When I say diversified teams, I mean geographically spread and working on multiple projects. Those are the kind of people who could make use of Microsoft Project very well.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Project Manager at 9mobile
Helpful in tracking projects but not a user-friendly solution
Pros and Cons
- "The daily tracker is valuable."
- "Could be more user-friendly, and forecasting could be better."
What is our primary use case?
Our primary use case for this solution is to track our projects. The solution is deployed on cloud.
How has it helped my organization?
The solution has allowed us to monitor our projects in real time because it is tracked based on what has been prepared and executed.
What is most valuable?
The daily tracker is valuable because once you set it up, the dynamic teams can go and implement the project. Additionally, we can track the progress of what is being done. We can know the dates of tasks, when, and if there are deployment issues.
What needs improvement?
The product or service could be more user-friendly, and forecasting could be better. For example, a few things were added to the Microsoft Office standard software and the project online standard software. It screwed up our forecast and implementation, and we advised them to revert to the standard to fix the issue. Microsoft made some changes, and we're trying to figure out what was implemented and how to use it. We don't use the focus anymore, and we use Microsoft Project to try and drive it.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using this solution for over 15 years and are currently using the most recent version.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is very stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is scalable. There are over 300 people currently using it in our organization, and we intend to increase future usage.
How are customer service and support?
We have not had any contact with customer service and support.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I cannot comment on the licensing costs for this solution.
What other advice do I have?
I rate this solution a seven out of ten. I advise new users of this solution to understand what their company needs. I think it's better to implement the standard software when you've understood what is required, as it is scalable and can be gradually adopted.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Systems Engineer at Ortho Clinical Diagnostics
Easy to use, extremely stable, and able to handle large-scale projects
Pros and Cons
- "The solution is very useful for project planning."
- "If Project had a better mechanism to allow those who are not the project manager to see their own work tasks, that would be of help or of value to us."
What is our primary use case?
My primary use case is mainly to get down on paper the steps for our project - including who's responsible for them. We use it as a communication tool and then we (on a regular basis) review progress against the laid-out project plan or schedule.
I tend to step in and create schedules when project managers are too busy or oftentimes I'll create the initial schedule due to the fact that I know all the stuff that needs to go in it, and the project manager may or may not know that.
What is most valuable?
The solution is very useful for project planning.
The solution is extremely stable.
The solution can handle large-scale projects.
I'm totally confident that somebody that uses it more frequently and more deeply than I do certainly is aware of the features and functions in it that I just don't use. It's user-friendly, rudimentarily. I'm just creating tasks, linking tasks in terms of predecessors and successors, adding duration to the task, adding resources to the tasks, and coming up with the logical flow and the end dates. That's how I use it. And, in that sense, it's very easy to use.
What needs improvement?
One of the things that we struggle with is that we do a lot of smaller projects that end up using the same resources. We have difficulty managing or balancing workload across resources that are on multiple projects.
For example, in project A we'll schedule Joel to do something in a certain timeframe. And then next day we have project B's schedule up, and he's scheduled to do something on that project in the same timeframe, and we don't have a way to expose those conflicts. We have to basically rely on Joe to say, "Hey, you've asked me to do different things. There's only one of me. I've got to manage my time. Either you give me twice as long to do both of those things, or you tell me which one to do first, and then move the other one."
It would be ideal if the solution itself could expose such conflicts.
One of the reasons that we have some projects using Jira as well as Microsoft Project is that we have to be able to access the project schedule to see, as an individual contributor, what the tasks are. It's not a great way to distribute that. In terms of Jira, where we create the Jira records, an engineer can go into the Jira database and search for his or her name, find all the tasks with the due dates on them, and anything assigned to them. If Project had a better mechanism to allow those who are not the project manager to see their own work tasks, that would be of help or of value to us.
For how long have I used the solution?
I dabble in the product. We have actual project planners that are the experts in it, however, I've been using it for seven years at this point. It's been a while.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is extremely stable. It's rock solid. I've never had a problem with not working. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Some people in our organization do keep super detailed, large project schedules in Microsoft Project. I'm not working on such a large project at the moment. I'm working on many small ones. I can't comment from direct experience, however, I'm confident that we are doing that within our organization and that it can scale to handle quite sizable projects.
How are customer service and technical support?
I've never dealt with technical support. I cannot speak to how helpful or responsive they are when they receive queries.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I do not recall the company using a different solution. Certainly, when I started in the organization, I was using this product and not something else.
That said, we do have some projects using Jira as an agile approach to project management. With Jira, what they'll do is we'll have a project schedule, and then they'll break down the individual line items on the project schedule even further into Jira tasks in two-week bites. That's how they're managing projects there.
How was the initial setup?
I did not handle the initial setup. Our IT team handled that part of the process for the company. I just open it up and create a new project schedule. Therefore, I cannot speak to how difficult or straightforward the process is.
What about the implementation team?
Our IT team did the initial setup.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I don't deal directly with sales or licensing. I can't speak to the exact cost or licensing structure of the product itself. It's not an aspect I deal with directly.
We likely have a support contract for the product.
What other advice do I have?
We are customers and end-users.
I'm not sure which version of the solution I use. I don't use any advanced features. I basically put in tasks and assign resources, and assign predecessors, and successors. That's about the level I use it at. I don't do tons of work resource balancing, or Gantt charts out of it or anything like that.
I would rate the solution at an eight out of ten. It more than meets my needs for what I'm using it for. What a real project manager may rate it might be different.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Project Manager at a government with 10,001+ employees
It's pretty straightforward to use. It integrates nicely with Microsoft Project Server.
Pros and Cons
- "It's most useful feature is that it interfaces with Project Server so we can, from my perspective, from a portfolio perspective, we can see across the organization."
- "The scalability is co-dependent on the stability of the product. We have 4000 users, and at times the product is slow."
- "The packaging of Microsoft Project Professional is pretty simple as a product. But, the end-to-end enterprise is complex."
What is our primary use case?
My primary use case is to take advantage of Microsoft Project Server to plan and track program project work at an enterprise level. Particularly, to enable tracking of actual project and program costs across multiple business lines.
What is most valuable?
The look and feel is familiar for users of the Microsoft Office Suite of applications. It is pretty straightforward to use. If you are not from a professional scheduling background, you could open it up and you would see how to do some pretty basic things without too much training.
It's most useful feature is that it interfaces with Project Server which enables a whole portfolio or enterprise perspective across the organization.
What needs improvement?
Project Professional is a powerful tool with many features and functions available for an experienced scheduler with advanced scheduling knowledge and skills. One primary problem that we have is that users that are new to project management and scheduling find it a little overwhelming when they are first introduced to the tool, particularly when they are introduced to features required to enable enterprise level planning and reporting.
To address this, we are creating a trial of custom views that mask some of the complexity involved to enable project cost estimates, effort records and resource assignments to be consumed at an enterprise level. Some people find having to fulfill enterprise level task and resource assignment rules a little overwhelming and frustrating when all they want to do is a simple project plan.
For how long have I used the solution?
More than five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I haven’t experienced any stability issues with Project Professional client – problems can however occur on the server side depending on the number of custom fields used, and number and nature of dependencies created by multiple users in a single master schedule with links embedded in multiple project records.
Some users can create some very convoluted inter-dependencies and schedule conflicts that can impact performance of reporting at an enterprise level.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have around 700 active projects and over 4,000 users, at times the product is slow – this is often a result of insufficient server capacity.
How are customer service and technical support?
At present, we have in-house tech support. We really on Microsoft Partners with Project Server and Sharepoint Server experience for support occasionally.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have had experience using Primavera and Open Plan Professional previously. I personally find Project Professional to provide the same functionality from logic and scheduling perspective.
How was the initial setup?
The packaging of Microsoft Project Professional for enterprise use is relatively straight forward. The end-to-end enterprise implementation with Project Server is complex. Most of the complexity is on the people and process side of set-up for an enterprise rather than for a single project.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I am not involved with this.
What other advice do I have?
My suggestion is to do homework and compare what other products are out there and how well they will fit with your organisation. This one's okay. I've personally used a range of different products, all potentially good choices, it just depends on the operating context and culture of the organization whether it's going to fit, or not.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
IT Group Supervisor at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Useful for project planning and milestone tracking but needs integration with AutoCAD
Pros and Cons
- "The tool helps us to check milestones. After doing tasks, our team updates them. Regarding functionalities in Microsoft Project, the number one feature is reminders. With so many projects, sometimes you forget; some projects might slip up or disappear. This feature is very useful."
- "I would like to see a direct integration of Microsoft Project with AutoCAD. It will make client presentations easy."
What is our primary use case?
Our company uses Microsoft Project primarily for project planning and milestone tracking.
What is most valuable?
The tool helps us to check milestones. After doing tasks, our team updates them. Regarding functionalities in Microsoft Project, the number one feature is reminders. With so many projects, sometimes you forget; some projects might slip up or disappear. This feature is very useful.
Additionally, we can track the tasks we can do within a particular project, which is another feature we use. Lastly, we use the tracking function to set deadlines and see what is being accomplished and what remains. The design team uses these features.
The tool's integration was easy and seamless. We also use it to get a summary of the entire business.
What needs improvement?
I would like to see a direct integration of Microsoft Project with AutoCAD. It will make client presentations easy.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with the product since 2015.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I rate the tool's stability a nine out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I rate the solution's scalability a six out of ten. It's a bit complex to ask some new users. In terms of scalability, for example, if you have two projects or departments you want to merge, you might face challenges. You might have to type them in manually and do manual merging. So, if something could be done to simplify this, it would be great. My company has around 15 users.
How was the initial setup?
The tool's deployment is easy.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I rate the solution's pricing a three out of ten.
What other advice do I have?
I rate the overall product a seven out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Last updated: Jun 25, 2024
Flag as inappropriateSoftware Affiliate at a pharma/biotech company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Offers good status reporting features and has a user-friendly UI
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature of Microsoft Project is status reporting."
- "Microsoft Project should include more visualization, queries to filter out data, and more reporting structures."
What is our primary use case?
We use Microsoft Project for application lifecycle management (ALM), use case definition, follow-up, and project management activity.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature of Microsoft Project is status reporting. Microsoft Project is easy to use and has a user-friendly UI.
What needs improvement?
Microsoft Project should include more visualization, queries to filter out data, and more reporting structures.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft Project for two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Microsoft Project is a stable solution.
I rate Microsoft Project a nine out of ten for stability.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Microsoft Project is a scalable solution. Around 50 to 60 users use the solution extensively in our organization.
What about the implementation team?
We implemented the solution through an in-house team.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Microsoft Project is an expensive solution.
What other advice do I have?
Microsoft Project is deployed on the cloud in our organization. I would recommend Microsoft Project to other users.
Overall, I rate Microsoft Project a nine out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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