Best Project Management Tools To Manage Offshore Teams

Worried about failed offshoring experiences? Here are some best project management tools to redefine the way you manage offshoring.

It was a usual workday. James Hills, the president of the U.S.-based marketing firm MarketingHelpNet, opened his laptop to check his emails. No emails. His website didn’t exist either.

It took Hills a few moments to realize what had happened. His offshore web development vendors in the Philippines had simply shut it all down. Because of a dispute.

It’s a real-life story. Not fiction.

Offshoring Horror Stories Do Exist

The James Hills case is an extreme. It is certainly not the only one, though. There are several other horror stories easily available in the public domain. Of offshoring gone bad

So much so that Google readily offers you the keywords “outsourcing failure stories”. Check it for yourself if you must.

Do You Give Up Offshoring, Then?

That – we believe – is the other extreme. It is a typical knee-jerk reaction that throws the baby out with the bathwater. Cliches are cliches because they are true, you know.

If you respond rather than react, you will be able to retain the advantages of offshoring without suffering its cons.

Use these tools and enjoy a great offshoring experience.

7 Ways to Manage Offshore Teams With Clever PM Tools

You need these sets of tools to reap the benefits of offshoring without having management nightmares:

Project Management Tools
Communications Management Tools
Team Management Tools
Online Storage and Sharing Tools
Time Tracking Tools
Invoice Management Tools
Security Management Tools

There are smart tools and techniques to effectively handle each of these areas. However, do remember that in the ultimate analysis, how well you utilize the tools depends on several human actions.

1. Project Management Tools

There are several highly popular ones: Jira, Proofhub, Slack, Trello, and so on. Choose the one that you and your offshoring partner feel most comfortable with. Create a project roadmap using the tool, focused on the Agile approach.

Jira

Jira from Atlassian facilitates the application of the Agile approach. Users mention several preferred features of this tool.

Key Features

It helps in project task prioritization and bottleneck identification.
It allows a wide range of options to customize workflows with project milestones.added. A 2018 Jira Infographics informs that Jira customers use 400 different workflows on an average.
Advanced reporting, search, and filtering options, with historic business data consolidated in one hub.
Advanced security options with a wide range of tools for developers to track bugs and issues.
Easy applicability across devices as it supports both android and OS mobile apps.
Easily scalable as per project need. As per the Infographics, Jira’s largest customer had more than 4,200 projects.

Pros

Usable for both tech and non-tech projects
Highly customizable
Great roadmap support
Easy integration with third-party tools
Particularly good for Agile

Cons

File upload limit of 10 MB
The mobile app is not as good as the web version
Graphical reports lose clarity when downloaded and it is not possible to reuse reports.

Pricing

Proofhub

Apart from project tracking and task management, Proofhub also enables chats, discussions, and collaboration for proofing. It facilitates time-tracking for each task even during multitasking. It can also generate custom reports in addition to default reports. Its wide capabilities make Proofhub one of the best project management tools.

Key Features

All-in-one workstation. It allows planning, organizing, and collaboration. It allows assigning projects in private workspaces.
Workflows and dashboards with to-do lists, time-tracking, events, and milestones.
Delivers Gantt charts and reports.
Customizable file upload options.
Proofhub’s built-in browser facilitates group chats.
Proofing is a special feature that facilitates providing feedback on different file types.
Mobile and tablet compatible.
Advanced search options.
Solid security options.

Pros

Advanced PM features
Easy to use
Easy integration
Good mobile optimization
Strong customer support

Cons

Too many notifications with no option to customize or limit them.
The interface is not too good and the UI can become problematic at times.
Some users with large teams and complex projects are not happy.

Pricing

Trello

This one is an easy-to-use project management software with a strong collaboration feature. However, it does not offer reporting and time-tracking features.

Whichever PM tool you choose, the important point is to stick to it. Make sure that all project communication gets reflected on this platform.

Discourage your offshore project manager to pick up the intercom and issue an instruction to three other team members. Get them into the habit of issuing instructions on the project management tool.

Key Features

Efficient task management and project tracking, complete with progress meters
Fast and detailed overview of the front and back of cards
Easy and appealing visual organization tools
Easy drag-and-drop function and in-line editing
Power-ups and email integration
Option to invite an unlimited number of members and voting features
Easy file attachment and other attachments upload
Issue identification and bug fixing
Efficient mobile optimization

Pros

Easy to use
Strong reminder system
Functions in real-time
Mobile and tablet friendly
The robotic assistant named Butler in Trello power-up can perform a number of tasks and takes commands in simple English.

Cons

Limited storage space
No option to edit posted comments
Not too efficient for large and complex projects

Pricing

2. Communication Management Tools

Team meetings are necessary, whether your team is in-house or offshore. Even with the adoption of the most sophisticated and efficient project management tools.

The special need for an offshore remote team is that you cannot have it in any of your office meeting rooms. You need to create an online platform for the meetings.

There are several options for you to choose from.

Skype

Skype remains one of the most preferred online video conferencing platforms. In 2017, there were 1.33 billion Skype users all over the world, informs Statista. The estimated number of users by 2024 is 2.27 billion.

Key Features

Audio and HD Video Calling
Diverse call options: Skype to Skype, Skype to Landline, Skype to Mobile, etc.
Chat/messaging options
Easy screen sharing
Recording and live subtitles option
End-to-end encryption option to keep messages private

Pros

Easy to install and use
Allows group calls with no need for any extra features
Offers a secure calling experience
Even the paid plans are inexpensive
Adequate file sharing options
Excellent audio call quality

Cons

Not as good on mobiles as on laptops
Video quality can improve
Poor customer support

Pricing

Slack

Slack is mainly a messaging platform, which also allows the integration of third-party apps like Google Drive, ZenDesk, etc. It allows both public and private messaging and archiving of documents. However, some users feel it works better as a communication platform in combination with a project management tool like Trello.

Key Features

Option to create one team with multiple channels or multiple teams with multiples channels
Easy to integrate with other tools.
Slackbot is a special feature which is a great automated reminder tool.
Efficient task-tracking.
Easy note-taking option to collaborate through posts.
Efficient search options.
Customizable shortcut and slash commands.
Supports audio and video calls.

Pros

Easy to use
Customized channel options
Easy to integrate with a wide range of apps
Useful for both big and small projects
Flexible enough to be adapted for different industries and needs
Good mobile optimization

Cons

Limited file storage
Conversations get deleted after 14 days
Too many notifications.

Pricing

Zoom

Zoom has emerged as a tough competitor to Skype. In January 2020, Zoom had 12.92 million active users, says CNBC. That is a 21% increase from where it ended in 2019.

Key Features

HD Audio and video call facilities
Group video conferencing
Easy screen sharing
Accessible across devices
Recording option
Chat option available if meeting organizer allows it
Whiteboarding, polling, and remote control

Pros

Easy to install and use
Highly versatile and scalable
Good audio and video quality
Easy webinar setup option
Integration option with other tools like Slack and Zapier

Cons

Can be expensive for large teams
Time limit on the free version is 40 minutes only
Recent security issues that have revealed automatic forced video when you have the app installed in your device

Pricing

User Consensus on Skype and Zoom

Zoom works better for teams that need to have frequent video conferences.
Skype works better for teams more oriented towards holistic business solutions.
As per the TrustRadius rating, Skype scores 7.9 out of 10 while Zoom’s score is 8.9.

Some Other Communications Tools

While Skype and Zoom are the most popular tools for online team interfaces, there are several other tools that you may want to check out:

Please note that the arrangement is alphabetical. It’s not a rating.

3. Team Management Tools

All the tools we have been speaking about facilitate team collaboration. In this section, we present some team collaboration tools for special tasks.

InVision

This is an online team collaboration tool created by designers for designers.

Key Features

Fast prototyping.
Quick and easy mock-ups that you can share with team members and/or clients when you want to.
Real-time design meetings, whiteboarding, and collaboration.
Customizable design sharing and presentation. It is like looking at the actual website, which is very different from a jpeg or pdf version.
User testing and feedback.
High-quality mobile optimization.

Pros

Very good for prototyping
Allows interactive designs with advanced transitions and animations
Designer can control and improve the presentation quality
Facilitates design collaborations
Version history, sync, and live share options

Cons

Can be expensive
Long learning curve
Limited customer support

Pricing

GitHub

This is one of the most popular team management tools for software development.

Key Features

Automated workflows with built-in CI/CD
Development security
Efficient collaborative code review
Useful apps and extensions
All codes and documents in one place
Hosting

Pros

Simple to learn and easy to use
Excellent team collaboration options
Solid security and reliability
Seamless GIT integration
Availability of code history and versions

Cons

Difficult to reverse bad merges
No mobile app component
Search options can be improved

Pricing

This section presents the best tools you can use for the online storage of your project documents. With sharing facilities, of course.

Google Drive

Google Drive continues to be one of the most popular storage and sharing online apps. Statista informs that in October 2019, Google topped the list of “most visited multi-platform web properties” in the U.S. It had nearly 259 million unique visitors from the U.S. alone.

An average of 1.7 billion people across the globe use Google on a daily basis.

Key Features

You can store whatever you need
Easy sharing
Synced with other Google apps like Gmail, Google Drawings, Google Forms, Google Photos, and Chromebook
Powerful search options
15 GB storage free on Google with a Gmail account.
Upgrade option for more storage space
Document scanning
Offline working facilities

Pros

Simple and easy to use
Multiple collaborators can work on the same document or spreadsheet
Real-time collaboration
Collaborative communication features like comments and messages
Easy integration with all other Google apps
15 GB free space

Cons

Images embedded in other documents cannot be more than 2 MB.
There is room to improve the spreadsheet functions.
No backup for deleted files.

Pricing

Dropbox

A Forbes article states that at the end of the first quarter of the U.S. financial year 2018, Dropbox had 11.5 million users.

Key Features

Comes with both free storage and paid extra storage options
Secure storage and encryption security
Accessible from any device
Good backup
Efficient sharing options across different operating systems
Commenting on files
Retraceable earlier versions
Customizable notifications

Pros

Simple to learn and easy to use
Efficient file sharing
Access to different file versions
Can store photos etc. also
2GB free space

Cons

App administrators can delete inactive accounts
Serious security concerns
Limited search options

Pricing

OneDrive

This is a Microsoft product. It is a good fit for Windows users, naturally.

Key Features

Accessible from any device
Easy sharing also with those not using Windows
Real-time collaboration possible on all devices using all the Microsoft Office programs
Microsoft Graph application to quickly find files
High-end security
File restore options
Recycle bin
Data Loss Prevention
Customer-controlled encryption

Pros

15 GB free storage
Good synchronization across devices
Easy to use drag and drop uploads
Real-time co-authoring
Efficient backup
Seamless sync with Microsoft office

Cons

Sync functions can improve
Link sharing is clunky
Too many access options

Pricing

Box

Favored by small businesses and enterprises, Box comes with 10 GB of free space. Its paid plans start from US$ 10 per month.

Key Features

Easy sharing and collaboration
Permission setting to secure file sharing
Workflow automation options
Interaction using Box view
Compatible across browsers
Data security, privacy, and compliance options
Easy offline access

Pros

Easy to access, use, and share
Ease of organization
Unlimited space
Regular updates
Strong customer support
Value for money

Cons

Issues appear when syncing with external hard drives
Folder thumbnail image needs to be customizable
No metadata display for photos

Pricing

5. Time Tracking Tools

Your timezone will be different from that of your offshore remote teams. That is why time management tools are handy.

Toggl

It is one of the most popular time-tracking tools

Key Features

One-click timers
Reminders for tracking time
Easy integration with more than 100 online apps
Manual time entry option
Calendar sync
Time comparison on project dashboards
Billable time calculation and reports

Pros

Simple and easy to use
Stays on the screen – no need to switch screens
Generates comprehensive reports
Good Chrome integration
Easy to edit time entries
Good memory for phrases used to describe tasks

Cons

Only a week’s time readily visible on the summary tab
No integration with invoicing
More hotkey functions

Pricing

Clockify

Another popular time-tracking tool that comes with several useful features

Key Features

Project-wise time tracking
Auto tracker and manual time entries
Bulk edit options
Tracking reminders
Mobile time tracking
Sync options for member profiles and time tracking
Detailed or weekly reports

Pros

Super easy to use
Free to use for an unlimited time
Neat interface
Possible to set a default billing price
Accurate time calculation per project

Cons

Sometimes the software lags when switching between projects/clients
You have to manually start and stop. If you forget either, your time calculations will be inaccurate.
Doesn’t allow import and export of data

Pricing

6. Invoice Management Tools

Maybe your offshore partners need these tools more than you do. However, the use of these tools improves your offshore remote teams’ productivity. We feel you need to know the most popular one.

Scoro

Deloitte names it among its fastest-growing companies in 2018.

Key Features

Tracks both actual and billable time
Transfers billable hours to invoices
Automated recurring and scheduled invoices.
Automated reminders for late invoices.
Email invoices to clients on the basis of the hours spent on a project
Generates report on work and budget management

Pros

Easy to use
Compact, fast, and informative platform
Allows you to see the big picture
Efficient invoice reminding system
Fast and effective customer support

Cons

Expensive
Takes time to sync with Outlook
Doesn’t sync contacts with Gmail

Pricing

7. Security Management Tools

We are listing some preferred data security tools that businesses use. It is important to ensure that your offshore remote team uses sound data security tools. We present the features of one of the most used tools here.

SolarWinds Security Events Manager

This is one of the most popular cloud-based security information and events manager (SIEM).

Key Features

Equally usable for small, medium and large businesses
SIEM security and monitoring
Threat intelligence
Log correlation and analysis
Network and host intrusion detection
Can also add value to existing security products of any other tool

Pros

Provides easy visibility to any changes in an active directory environment
Has a convenient searchable audit feature
Flexible and customizable as per business needs
Prompt notification for locked out email accounts
Great customer service

Cons

Some features are not fully integrated into HTML 5 and are slow to access
More graphic options needed to display data to non-technical persons (maybe senior management)
The number of email alerts can prove overwhelming

Pricing

(Note: Informatica security is available as a component of their cloud integration packages.)

End-note

Treating your offshore dedicated team as a business partner rather than a vendor is one of the best strategies you can adopt. With a long-term relationship comes trust and dependability. Both of these are important factors in giving you a rewarding offshore experience.