We are looking for a project management or ERP solution for our documentation and consulting company. The focus here is on PM software, as our core business is the handling of documentation projects. There are always around 100 to 150 projects actively in progress. A quick overview is important. A typical project consists of 3 to 6 subtasks and has a budget of EUR 5,000 to 10,000, with 1 to 3 employees working on it.
The future PM software should meet the following requirements.
- Project management:
- Creation of projects with any number of subtasks
- Generation of project reports and evaluations
- Creation or transfer of project framework data such as addresses, order numbers, etc.
- Time recording:
- Recording of pure working time
- Documentation of working time (time sheets)
- Booking of vacation and sick leave
- Vacation requests and approvals
- Booking of working time to projects or subprojects
- Calendar functions
- Master data for employees, customers, suppliers, and materials:
- Employees: Working time models, internal costs
- Management of different working time models for employees, if possible automatic recalculation of remaining vacation time, etc. when the working time model changes
- Customers: All relevant customer data, customer price lists
- Storage of internal fixed costs
- Authorization logic for different users
- Creation of invoices based on
- recorded times on projects
- material costs created in projects
- travel expenses
- Dunning, payment reminders
- Mail client
- Sending information to customers and employees via email
- Direct sending of invoices via email
- CRM
- Management of customer communication from the initial inquiry to the projects
- Management of contact data
- Outlook contact data import
- Creation of quotes
- Conversion of quotes into projects
- Storage of files for customers or projects, such as quotes, quotes, orders, receipts
- Communication:
- Configurable dashboard
- Employee chats
- Video conferencing with customers and team members
- Email (see above)
- Reports:
- Overview of all projects with target/actual comparison and project status (budget overview)
- Evaluations at customer, project, and employee level (sales, gross profit, etc.)
- Forecasts, e.g., booked hours x hourly rate = anticipated sales or gross profit
- Project receipt, invoice receipt, payment receipt, etc. on a customer basis, period basis, etc.
- Interfaces:
- Accounting to DATEV
- Calendar data to Outlook calendar or Kerio mail server
- Ticket system (not priority 1):
- Ticket management
- Booking times on tickets
- Multi-client capability
- Management of 2 locations, if necessary
License models/framework conditions:
- License purchase (+ maintenance)
- Alternative: scalable monthly rental
- Maintenance and 1st level support from Germany or in German
- Prefer installation on our own IT (due to communication via email, interfaces, etc.)
- MS Windows clients and Windows Server and SQL database
- Kerio mail server
What is NOT important:
- Detailed resource and capacity planning
- Mapping complex projects with Gantt charts
- Multi-project management
- Project management according to Scrum, etc.
- (our projects are very diverse and are largely triggered by our customers; detailed project planning is not feasible)
And one more note: Our translation projects are handled in the Plunet Business Manager software. An interface for this is not planned. The software is also not to be replaced.
Between 30 and 40 software workstations are planned.