Wrike is a killer project management system that can transform overwhelmed managers into ninja project leaders, and we’ll show you why in this detailed review. In a nutshell, Wrike addresses four critical aspects managers should be able to control to run a successful project:
See the big picture
Save access to details
Share data with relevant parties
Engage users across the organization
The app is intuitive and setting it up is easy. The [Getting Started] in-app guide and video tutorials lead you through the app’s basics. In minutes you can get the hang of the app’s tools, so you can immediately create a project, organize its tasks into subfolders, write down the task details, assign them to team members, and practically get the project off the ground on the same day.
In this review, we will show the top functions that we believe can revolutionize the old-school and problematic practices of project managers, mainly:
Sharing (and losing) files in different locations via email and cloud drive
Communicating with members via IM and email only to dig up discussion threads to search for an important conversation
Going through disparate files to create reports
Monitoring project completion status, where 99% can mean nothing if the 1% is left unresolved.
We’ll also highlight customer experiences that illustrate Wrike’s top benefits. Likewise, we’ll show you the awards granted to Wrike by our B2B software review team and the reasons why the software got these. Lastly, we talked with Andrew Filev, Wrike’s CEO, to give us more insights about the app and the soon-to-be features that we can expect.
What are the highlights of Wrike?
The app gives you great visibility horizontally across projects and vertically down the subtasks
Tag and file items, such as, users, tasks, discussions, etc. in as many relevant folders as you want without duplicating the files; editing the item updates itself in all the folders where it’s located
The simple 3-pane view lets you see the big pictureat once or drill down to task details
@mention allows you to draw specific members’ attention to individual issues or tasks
Manage all tasks and discussions in the Activity Stream, a practical and efficient point of reference for all items
Robust analytics help you to create insightful reports for high- and low-level meetings
What We Like the Most about Wrike
1. 3-Pane project view gives you quick lookups to essential data
One of Wrike’s admirable features, its 3-pane layout lets you see the important information in one screen, giving you and the team clear visibility across the project’s operations. All projects and their details are on one page so you can quickly work on tasks.
In the left pane is the project hierarchy, allowing you to drill down to subtasks or jump from one project to another fast. The project hierarchy works on a folder architecture that you can label according to your workflow and drag and drop in and out of its mother folder to organize tasks.
Meanwhile, the middle pane shows you the project’s task list. You can quickly see who’s doing what and get updates by simply browsing through the list. You can also add a new task in this window.
If you want to dig down to details, the right pane shows task details. Here, you can assign a task, set a deadline, add subtasks, attach files, and post comments, among others. Here are some more tasks that you can do without leaving the 3-pane view:
Ask for updates from your team
Prioritize tasks
Communicate with your team
Monitor and control work progress
We applied a portfolio of ten projects with 3-tiered subtasks each to see how the simple layout would look in a complex setting, and we’re impressed how navigation remained easy and seamless. A project director with an army of project managers and team leaders under his wing will find Wrike an invaluable tool to handle multiple and simultaneous projects. On the same note, the app is intuitive and affordable enough ($49) for small teams. We can confidently say Wrike is one of the few apps that can truly match the stellar growth of a startup.
Wrike’s workspace elements
2. Tags and folders give you ultimate flexibility in viewing and sharing project data
This is one of Wrike’s unique features: the ability to put an item in different folders without duplication.
Why is this important? A project manager who handles simultaneous or overlapping projects needs to view data via hierarchy, dependencies, horizontally, vertically, and other ways across his organization based on his needs. If, for example, I want to check the workload of all my graphic designers across projects, I can easily group them in one folder, while keeping each one in their respective project folders.
On the other hand, if I want to focus on one project, I can view the project folder and see the tasks of that project’s graphic designer. I can also group his tasks with all the other tasks for this week’s deliverables.
Wrike’s tags and folders let you view or sort data by projects, tasks, or any way you want. Because Wrike uses the generic term “folder” instead of fixed names like “project,” “subprojects,” “tasks,” “sub-tasks,” etc., you can label the folders based on how you want to sort data.
Here’s where the magic happens: a task can be grouped in many folders but it is not duplicated. It remains a single file with any change in the task reflected in all its folders.
This ability to group data in different ways gives you an efficient overview of different projects at different angles, while keeping a single and uncluttered structure, which addresses the demands of agile project management.
You can also use the tag and folder functions to share tasks with other teams and external audience (clients, consultants, and suppliers). Simply drag and drop the folder over a task to automatically tag and file it inside the shared folder. Alternatively, you can add users to the folder to share task data in four simple clicks (folder>folder info>shared with no. of person>add user). If need be, you can remove or disable sharing with specific users.
Project managers who used to send duplicate files to share information with different people and end up having to dig up an email thread for the original file or using an outdated version will appreciate how Wrike’s tags and folders eliminate this classic dilemma.
You can tag a task by simply dragging the folder over the task (1) or clicking the drop-down menu under the task title (2)
3. Activity Stream and @mention let you engage your team fast and efficiently
You can say Wrike is the Facebook of project management systems; you know who’s doing what and when. As a project manager, you want to see the big picture, but at the same time, you need to micromanage critical project aspects. The Activity Stream lets you do both.
Your and your team’s activities are reflected in the Stream pane and its widget in the Dashboard. Whether a new task is added/edited/completed, a new user is added or removed, or a new comment is posted, you and your team can see all shared activities in their chronological order. Moreover, like in social media, you can unfollow specific activities to unclutter the Stream.
We can see the utility of this feature to manage the day-to-day routine after you’ve set up project tasks, deadlines, and user roles. You’re likely to access data or engage your team (reply, send email, attach files, etc.) via the Stream, in the same manner that you spend more time in newsfeed than in your timeline on Facebook.
There’s a residual benefit of the Stream: when the whole team can see each other’s activity progress, it deters complacency in each member because nobody wants to be seen as the bottleneck.
Similarly, you can @mention a user, the whole team, or a folder/task right inside the comment thread, which is helpful when you want to draw attention to a specific issue. The recipients are notified in their Stream and they’ll be automatically tagged as follower of the task discussion. Also, the task or folder will be automatically shared with them if it isn’t yet. This way, everybody gets to view the full context of what’s being discussed.
The @mention is useful to share a brilliant idea that pops up in your mind in the wee hours or address anything that you need from your team right away.
Wrike also sends automatic email notifications about changes made in the project to ensure no information falls through the cracks in case someone forgets to log in his Wrike.
The Activity Stream gives you a quick overview of the recent project buzz; if you want to drill down to the details, click the task and it will open the details in the right pane
4. Task tool lets you track individual progress and get accurate overall progress, plus more
Seeing that a project is 95% complete can be misleading; what if the remaining 5% is a small but critical task?
While other project management systems give you the overall project status, Wrike lets you break it down into bite-size tasks. Subtasks can be organized into subfolders and dependencies down to the specific activity. Each activity can be marked as complete or not complete (either active, deferred, or canceled) so you get an accurate picture of specific unresolved tasks. It’s also easier to manage, measure, and focus on the progress of smaller subtasks.
Furthermore, troubleshooting bottlenecks is easy with the way Wrike lays down the subtasks. If you keep hearing “95% complete” from your team leaders for weeks, a quick look at the subtasks and their status will reveal where the problem lies. This is where the micromanager in you can easily get down to details to solve a persistent issue on the ground.
You can also set the timeline for each task or calendar it based on urgency. Good but non-urgent ideas can be backlogged for later use, while new emergency tasks can be put forward at once. Again, if you’re working on multiple tasks in an agile environment, the task timeline is very useful.
Likewise, to ensure the task is clear, you can cross-link to other tasks, attach files, show pictures, tables, or any presentation that will further clarify your point or instruction.
Subtasks let you see a clear picture how much work are needed to be done (1), who is in charge of each subtask (2), and the deadline for each subtask
5. Great analytics makes reporting less stressful
Wrike makes it easy for you to report to top company executives and stakeholders about your project’s progress. The app has powerful analytics to create reports, and, immediately, we see the value of two reports during high-level meetings.
You can generate Global Reports to see tasks from all your folders. The report can show project data in eight categories: status, assigned to you, assigned to other team members, due date, completion date, last modification, created by you and created by other team members. However you’re grilled by the big bosses during board meetings, you can show them the right data for the right insight.
Similarly, the Performance Chart gives you a visual look at how your projects’ tasks are performing against their deadline over a time graph. This graph helps you to identify low and peak performance periods of your members and estimate their individual or team work pace. Will you meet the original targets? How far behind are you on schedule? How much time do you need to complete the project? These questions asked by big bosses are easily answered with the Performance Chart details.
The Performance Chart helps you to identify the low and peak productivity periods and estimate the project completion date
On the other hand, the Folder Statistics–shown on the right pane of a project folder–visualizes tasks created versus completed, users involved, and a task digest, which shows key task metrics like status and due date, on a weekly basis. In short, this report gives you the big picture of specific tasks and is handy in discussions with your team leaders.
The Folder Statistics lets you see the folder’s (a project, event, department, composite task, etc.) created and completed tasks (1), the people it is shared with (2), and the task digest (3)
Besides the top benefits that we’ve discussed, these two features add to the winning performance of Wrike:
Free mobile apps for iOS and Android – you can have Wrike on your smartphone or tablet during presentations or meetings or whenever you’re out of the office. The mobile platform carries the most essential features of Wrike, including: creating new tasks; reviewing and editing task details; and accessing the Activity Stream.
Comprehensive integration – Wrike bills itself as the command center of many utility business tools that you’re probably using: Chrome Extensions, Google Apps, Zapier, DropBox, cloud storage apps, Salesforce, MS Project, iCal and RSS, Outlook and Mac Mail, XLS export/import, and more. The integration lets you expand Wrike’s functionality and usability across different platforms.
A streamlined version of the web app, the iOS and Android native apps feature the essential of Wrike so you can keep “wriking” on the go
What customers say about Wrike
An analysis of customer testimonials across social media, review platforms, and communities revealed that many users found Wrike to be one of the best project management systems they’ve used. Posts such as the ones quoted below recur with consistency across different online communities:
“Wrike has become the leading software at our company”
“It’s the best PM tool I’ve come across”
“I found it very useful”
One of the more popular testimonials of Wrike, that of the CEO of LaFreak Clothing highlighted the utility of the app as a communication center. He said that every one of his companies before was at the mercy of whoever was managing it at that time. “It’s all in their mind,” he said referring to what the managers were planning. “As the owner of all these companies I couldn’t track any progress. I’d have to look through an email… there’s too many threads.”
He said when his teams started using Wrike’s @mentions to talk about their projects, he got to see a feed of all these conversations. “I can chime in on the task, yeah, that’s approved,” he said citing the flexibility Wrike affords him, especially when he’s away or has some bright ideas he wants to communicate right away to his teams.
Meanwhile, Jeff, a novice project manager from New Jersey, echoed the sentiments of many new managers. “Wrike lets you to start with an app to practice your PM skills,” he said. “The subtasks make it easy to manage deliverables.”
Awards and Quality Certificates won by Wrike
Verified Quality Seal
Wrike was awarded the Verified Quality Seal by a panel of B2B software experts for the strictest quality standards. The seal is a unique trust seal exclusively awarded by FinancesOnline, and it highlights the quality of the software’s features and tools, as well as the reliability of the vendor in his to provide excellent customer support. The seal indicates that after closely scrutinizing the functionalities of Wrike versus its promises, the app passed our quality tests and is guaranteed to meet customer expectations and satisfy their needs.
Supreme Software Award
The award highlights the company’s extensive knowledge of the B2B industry and customer needs. More importantly, it sets the standards of a truly helpful and useful business software that is worth replicating in other industries. After putting Wrike through different project scenarios, we felt the vendor is conscientious even about the little things that matter to project managers. Three features stand out for our conclusion:
The ability to put items in numerous folders without duplication gives project managers great flexibility in organizing data based on the insight he needs
The Activity Stream
The 3-pane view let managers to macro- and micro-manage things at once.
Combined with their great customer support, Wrike’s features merits our Supreme Software Award.
Best Project Management Software
Our extensive review revealed that Wrike is clearly a best-in-class project management software solution, a must-have for projects in different settings and with varying dynamics. The award highlights that the software’s top features, excellent customer service, and track record are the best in its category. When clients use Wrike, we are confident to say they are using the best project management software available on the market today.
Exceptional Customer Support
Aside from its clear and comprehensive knowledge base, intuitive in-app tutorial, and a rich library of webinars about the latest innovation in the product and the B2B industry, Wrike has a proactive customer support to ensure the getting-started stage runs smooth. One of our team members got an unexpected phone call from a Wrike agent, who guided him through the more advanced features of the software. We also sent an email ticket and got a reply that solved our problem on the very same day. This award is given to Wrike for its very fast response time, ability to seamlessly solve any problem encountered by the user and generally positive feeling about the whole experience.
Expert’s Choice Award
After our experts closely investigated what Wrike has to offer feature by feature we’ve decided to highlight its top performance with our Experts’ Choice Award. We have put Wrike through a series of tests by our reviewers to specifically evaluate the efficiency of this project management software. The tests involved scrutinizing its folders, tasks, discussions, and visibility, which the app passed with exceptional ratings. Results of our extensive testing make us confident that Wrike clients can expect to be using one of the best project management and collaboration tools in the market today.
An Interview with Andrew Filev, CEO of Wrike
Andrew Filev, CEO of Wrike
We asked Andrew Filev, Wrike’s CEO, what he thinks are the unique features of Wrike that set it apart from the competition. He cited three major characteristics of the app, namely:
The fact that it’s highly customizable
Patented email integrations
Multiple views of your work.
Filev also shared some insight on specific problems faced by project managers, which Wrike can solve for them.
Unique features of Wrike
Noting that every team has unique needs, Filev said that Wrike lets them have their own way oF how team members prioritize work or monitor activities. “Our users have created thousands of unique fields,” he said, citing the flexibility of tinkering with Wrike to match your workflow. He said that Wrike’s Custom Fields are as easy to use as adding a column to a spreadsheet and they enable you to tailor the information you track on a project.
Likewise, Wrike’s patented email integration with Outlook and Apple Mail brings the full power of the app into your inbox. When you open an email about a Wrike task, the preview pane in Outlook or Apple Mail opens directly into the task in Wrike. “You can see and modify in real-time the description, attachments, comments, dates, and status of the task and you’re always viewing the latest information including any changes that were made after the email was sent to you.”
Moreover, the CEO undelines that fact that Wrike’s multiple options to view task make the app entirely unique. He noted that the best way to visualize tasks depends on your personal preference and what you’re doing at the moment. While other apps limit task visualization to a few options, Filev explains that in Wrike you can switch between multiple project views such as a task list, spreadsheet, Gantt chart, workload, activity stream, and analytics charts. “These views represent your work in convenient ways for managing tasks, planning a project, distributing workload, creating reports, or checking up on the latest updates.” he said.
Specific problems addressed by Wrike
Filev stressed that Wrike helps to promote accountability and visibility of the work progress among teams. Traditionally, work is spread across different tools that people use to get the job done, and monitoring all these tools to see the overall picture is difficult. “Wrike consolidates all that work in one system and provides a clear picture of where everything stands,” Filev said. Visibility also means leaders and team members are more transparent and accountable to their deliverables.
The CEO also noticed that with Wrike miscommunication, duplicates, and rework (all can cost you real money) can be avoided. “Think about how often people get added to or dropped from email threads or can’t find the email at the moment they need the information.” IDC reported that knowledge workers spend 25% of the day just looking for information.
Another confusing problem is reviewing documents and managing different versions, and ensuring that feedback is consolidated, and changes are made. According to Filev Wrike consolidates all updates, files, and discussions in the context of the task being done. “Everyone working on that task has the full context and history.”
Moreover, Wrike streamlines the review process through a real-time online editor, auto versioning, revision history, image preview, and approval workflow. “Wrike improves team communication and eliminates time wasted on duplication and rework,” Filev said.
The CEO also pointed out that Wrike solves the difficulty of coordinating tasks across teams. “As the speed of business increases and work becomes more collaborative it can result in a gridlock where everyone’s projects are dependent on someone else who doesn’t have time to work on them.”
With Wrike, this problem is solved by providing a real-time view of project schedules, individual workloads, and dependencies between tasks. You can easily spot bottlenecks from overtasked team members or teams. Likewise, teams are automatically notified about any changes or updates on their deadlines. “Organizing team’s work in Wrike helps to keep everyone in sync, increase personal productivity, and get more things done in time,” Filev concluded.
Wrike SmartScore and Customer Satisfaction
Our B2B experts conducted a full review of Wrike functionalities, user experience, customer support and other key elements of the service. Final results as summarized by the SmartScore system gave Wrike a score of 9.8/10 while the results provided by the Customer Satisfaction Algorithm place the overall user satisfaction rating at 98%.
If you’d like to have your product considered for any of FinancesOnline awards or quality certificates please contact us.
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