At the start of the new year, I switched from my beloved Basecamp over to My Intervals for managing projects and teams.  Why if it’s so “beloved”, did I switch you ask?  For starters a lot of the subcontractors that would need access just weren’t “getting it”.  Basecamp can be tough to learn, but it’s a great tool once you figure out its full potential.  Here is a good post title Three Ways to Leverage the Power of Basecamp.  Don’t mind that it was written for Virtual Assistant’s; there is some very good information in there.

Intervals was a bit different for me, and after 9 months of full-time use I can say that it’s an extremely powerful tool for small companies who need to manage multiple projects and work with subcontractors.  There are some things that really bother me about it as well, which is why I’ve been on the lookout for another program that just might do it all (a girl can dream, right?)  If they could fix those nuisances I describe in the Cons section below, Intervals would be perfect for me.

About Intervals (from their website)

Struggling with tracking time? Drowning in a sea of task and project details? You are in the right place.  Intervals is web-based project management software that marries time tracking and task management in a collaborative online space with powerful reporting.  Intervals is ideal for small businesses — including designers, web developers, consultants, creative agencies, IT services firms, and communications companies that bill on an hourly or per project basis.  Fully hosted online service, no software to install—be up and running in minutes.  » Try Intervals Free for 30 Days

The Home Page

Pros:  At-A-Glance ease that lets me see how much billable time and unabillable time I’ve recorded for the week, a calendar view with upcoming milestones, projects, tasks, etc., a Milestones 30-day calendar (which I don’t think I’ve ever looked at), the ability to filter, right-click capabilities that I find very powerful; I love not having to click through too many screens to make a small notation of something or add time to a project.  Can see overdue tasks, and as the owner I can see if any time sheets need to be approved.

Cons:  Not too many, but I want the bar graph on the homepage to show ALL billable time for myself and any subcontractors that log in.  I want to see at a glance EXACTLY where we are at in the scope of a project on the homepage.  I often access Intervals from my smart phone, so I want it to be RIGHT THERE.

The Time Tab

I like being able to see if anyone has a timer running (most of my subcontractors bill hourly, so this is helpful).  I think this whole area could be more streamlined and easier to read.

The Tasks Tab

Pros:  This section is the heart and sole of my business.  I like to break things down to the tiniest task, and this is where I get to do that.  Let’s say the task is to set up a new Facebook Fan Page.  I would break that down into about 20 very distinctive steps in order to make sure I don’t miss a step.  All of the steps together then would be categorized as a Milestone so that I can track it as a whole.  Another huge plus?  I can create a group of tasks that are done often (such as creating a Facebook page) and upload it all at once.  Love that feature and it’s saved me a TON of time.

Cons: I want my overdue tasks to be INMYFACE so I feel really bad about not taking care of them.  Seriously.

The Milestones Tab

I pretty much covered these in with Tasks.  I don’t use them as much as I should, but when I do I love the I can see at-a-glance just how much progress we’re making.

The Projects Tab

Hmmm.  I’m probably using this part wrong, but it works for me.  I don’t have pros or cons because it just is what it is.  I think this could use some redesign.  Clients who are on a monthly retainer for a large range of admin support are on a project that is connected to the month.  A new project is started each month so that I can track their retainer properly.  Clients who have purchased a specific package or we are doing project type work for will have on project set up for each item and it is then tracked from beginning to end that way.  I am pretty freaking anal about all of this because I have to be.  Again, I really think this part should just be easier.

The Clients Tab

I use this section when I set up a new client and then I never look at it again.  I wish we could combine Clients & Projects.

The Invoices Tab

Pros:  I can easily create invoices.  Sometimes I bill in the middle of the month, so I like being able to select “since last period invoiced” as an date range.  It’s the ONLY one I use.

Cons:  This is the main reason I am searching for a new system.  Every other aspect of invoicing not listed above pretty much suck.  People who work online like to be paid online, so why not integrate with Paypal?  Why not have the ability to pay via an emailed invoice?  Why is it SO confusing in there?  If Interval married Freshbooks they’d have a pretty cute kid, and I wouldn’t have to do double entries.  I purchased Quickbooks to fill this gap, but their QB integration is difficult at best, and I LOATHE entering information twice.  I’m scared to find out how much money I’ve left on the table by having so many loose ends in the invoicing process.

The People Tab

Pros:  It contains people and their information, and allows you to set their individual access levels.  Useful.

Cons:  I think this tab and the Clients tab could be rolled up together, and we could simply categorize “people” as either clients, subcontractors, employees, vendors, etc.

The Reports Tab

I {heart} the Reports section; it’s the main reason I haven’t jumped ship.  No other PM program tracks SO MUCH useful information.  I can easily run any number of customizable reports to see exactly where my business is in any point in time.  I am extremely visual, so the colorful charts and graphs really help me to see our overall progress and company growth.

Cons:  I’d like a report that tells me when to fire a client who is literally sucking the life out of me.  Apparently I don’t notice until it’s too late.

The Documents Tab

Because I can upload and later view a document while in the tasks section where I hang out the most, I rarely (like never) visit this tab.  If it were to disappear tomorrow, I’d never know.

Ooh, I just saw a Pro though since this may be my first time on this tab:  there is a cool tag cloud where I could just click on a client’s name or other tag that I’ve used.  This again just proves how visual I am.

Other Stuff

I like being able to customize different pay scales for different clients, and specifically for different types of work.  I don’t do this very often, but it makes a huge difference when I do.

They have a lot of helpful videos so when a client or vendor needs access, I don’t have to take the time to mediocre-ly train them; I let the experts take care of it.

I’d like for Intervals to track my payments to subcontractors and vendors.  I forget, I have to triple-check and I don’t like doing that.  Just track it already!

I want a system that tracks every aspect of my business and makes it EASY for me to collect money.  I like money, and I like receiving it for all of the hard work that I provide to my clients, but that doesn’t mean that I can keep track of all of it in my head.  Like most entrepreneurial types, my passion lies in my craft and the amazing things I can do for my clients, not in my accounting abilities (because I don’t any).

The bottom line:  if you have a lot of clients or projects to track, you work with vendors and subcontractors, are detail-oriented, like colorful charts and graphs and already have a strong accounting system in your business, Intervals is an amazing tool.  If you’re looking for one program to do it all, I’ll let you know as soon as I find it.

What project management system do you use?  What are the pros and cons of using that particular system?  What else have you looked at using in its place?