Kantata Reviews - Page 2

Resource planning was made 1000% better by using the Mavenlink product. It is an intuitive modern UI that is feature rich across the board.

There are some gaps in the product and areas where I wish it had been more configurable. For instance, invoicing could use more flexibility in terms of how you build out an invoice (and how you display things on the invoice). Also, time tracking is easy but notes aren't required nor is there a config to make them required which has been a big pain for us.

The reporting functionality Mavenlink offers is extensive and has enabled us to get much better visibility to our project, program, portfolio and resourcing data. Which in turn has allowed us to set/adjust our KPI/KRIs and better inform business decisions with the data we have available. In using Mavenlink how it's meant to be used, not only have we improved our business practices but our PMO has gained valuable insight into important aspects of the business that were previously siloed. The fact that Mavenlink actually continues to improve its platform based on user feedback is a massive plus, as new functionality becomes available to better utilize the platform.

There are some small (very small in most cases) problems we have with some functionality i.e. the naming/categorization of metrics in the reporting suite could be clearer, when approving/rejecting timesheets, adding a comment to a specific entry would be preferable, rather than the comment being published to all entries.

- Integrations and API - An excellent Salesforce bridge is available and can be fully customised (if you know Java!). You also get other connectors for Jira, Slack, and an API that allows you to do virtually anything. - Integrated GoodData reporting - If you are technical enough you can improve your workflows by adding custom fields and creating custom metrics. I used this solution to monitor the performances of the entire Professional Services team at Emarsys. - The software itself is essentially like Microsoft Project but online and with conversations & invoices generation - you can manage anything from a very small and basic project to a massive 2 years project thanks to the versatile task management interface. GANTT charts are available and, of course, if you know how to use GoodData you can dig even further into the project reports. - Resourcing wise it has a Master Planning tool which looks a bit like Resource Guru but completely integrated with the software, so you are really buying the full package with Mavenlink.

I believe the biggest flaw in Mavenlink is the absence of a "real" administrator. Essentially, you can be an admin but if a project is set to "Invitation only" you cannot join it unless someone invites you. So being a Mavenlink admin is not like being a Jira admin where you can do anything you want, you are more of a "open projects administrator". The workaround is to have an integration user creating the projects and a good integration with your CRM that allows you to update fields that would be otherwise not accessible. Mind that you can still remove the integration user from the project, and at that point the only way to re-enter the project is to ask the project lead to invite you. This should clear any security concerns, if your projects require extreme privacy.

From an ease of use standpoint, time entry and project creation is fairly straightforward. It's also nice to have access to so many reporting features, although I imagine that's even more valued by the leadership team rather than staff.

Three major issues stand out to me and my colleagues: 1- the software is very slow at times, and the more time I spend making edits to a project the longer it takes. In some cases, the lag is so bad that a task that should take 10 minutes ends up taking 30 since I wait so long for the system respond. The more tasks and individuals assigned to a project, the worse it is. Customer service suggested I delete my cache, but this was a temporary and fairly ineffective solution 2- It'd be great to have a simple place where I can see exactly how many hours a team member has on a project. Right now, we can only see time assigned to individual tasks, and then need to calculate the total manually 3- When tasks get extended or shortened, it'd be great to have a way to have Mavenlink automatically distribute time accordingly. For example, if I have 1 hour assigned for a 1-week long task, it'd be nice if I could automatically change this to 30min/week if that task were extended to being 2 weeks long. I know time can move automatically if the gantt is updated, but that only works if the task stays the same duration and hasn't started yet. Other systems offer this feature

The features I like most about Kantata are the appearance of the interface, the built in training that's available, & how quickly modified information is updated for reporting and invoicing.

When first introduced to Kantata, I was unfamiliar with the process flow and quickly became confused by the different levels (Opportunity, engagement, scope, element, etc.). There is a bit of a learning curve, but after spending some time using the tool, the process began to make sense to me.

The best feature of Kantata is that is provides a combination of Professional Services Automation (the ability to track time, assignments, tasks, project margins, etc.) along with an end-customer collaboration capability to jointly track project task progress, shared documents, and shared task progress.

The more challenging part of Kantata is the custom reporting aspects. During implementation, we have several custom reports built by the Kantata team. These are working acceptably, but if you want to modify or change those reports it takes a pretty high level of knowledge and experience.

There is a lot to like about the product. Easy task management with lots of capabilities, time and expense tracking that is simple. Extended resource management options for minute details or broad allocations and a really engaged Customer Success team.

Not a lot to write here. I think the only issue is that it is hard to use at a hourly scale where you need to set time deadlines in the day.

Ease of use, Reporting, Project Financials

M Bridge integration platform is a complete failure. Its terrible. Training during implementation was not good. We've learned more on our own in a few classes. Time entry is weak and poorly designed. Lacks subprojects. User permissions are all or nothing in most cases.

I am able to view tasks for current projects, track upcoming projects, add notes and tag team members easily in a very organized way that allows me to save time and resources on a regular basis. My coworkers who I interface with closely have had a similar positive experience and I cannot recommend it enough.

The ability to customize what is viewable and editable in the main menu ( such as projects, tasks, insights) based on user permissions would make it easier tailor the overall product experience to our teams needs.

- So many options and ways to customise each feature - Time tracking tool is very easy to use, our team prefers it over what we have had in the past - Custom reporting, especially weekly project reports, have upped our client communication game. Our Clients appreciate the extra level of transparency and it has helped us prevent a lot of surprises when the invoice is sent out. - Resource Allocation and Gantt chart really help when it comes to Project Planning.

- It's really difficult to see WHO is responsible for a task if multiple people are assigned to it. This is a problem when you are looking at a project and want to see who is responsible for what from 30,000 feet. Instead, you need to go to that specific task and read through the comments to see where it stands. There are a few workarounds for it, but then all involved extra work and monitoring to make sure everyone using the system is doing so correctly. - There doesn't seem to be a way to edit a comment once you post it - You can't customise the status options for the different tasks, so something is either in progress, not started, needs information, or completed. It doesn't really let you customise it to follow your workflows.

Flexible, provides the ability to set up multiple templates for different types of projects, supports T&M and Fixed Fee contract types, integrates to SalesForce, provides multiple views toward project status, continually adding new features and capabilities

Gantt charts are still in need of a lot of work and help. Still buggy, no user-defined view preferences can be saved.

Very robust. And I like that time tracking is integrated into the software.

For the price, and for what we THOUGHT we could do, very disappointed with the tool to date. Good chance we're moving away from Mavenlink before the next renewal.

We are sorry about your disappointing experience and appreciate your feedback. Our CSC is working with your team to help provide more support and training to help with your utilization/capacity hardship that you are facing. We hope that this will help resolve and make things better. We always strive to do better moving forward. Please feel free to reach out to us directly if there's anything else that we can assist you with. You can reach your CSC here at 800- 860-9544 or our support team at support@mavenlink.com. Thank you. Tiffany Nguyen Senior Manager, Customer Advocacy

The product is easy to use, and it provides capabilities that with the right onboarder, can implement the tool strategically into the company, to meet the companies needs.

With a tool this sophicasticated I think the integration team could provide more support, without a cost attached to it. With the price tag, the team is forced to learn it and integrate it themselves which in turn results in improper use of the tool. Project management function, it's tedious and doesn't provide the support needed. There is room for improvement here.

One of the things I liked most about Kantata software was its powerful and comprehensive feature set. It offered a wide range of functionalities that catered to various aspects of software development, including code management, version control, and collaboration. The seamless integration with popular development tools and platforms made it easy to streamline the development process and improve productivity. Additionally, the robust reporting and analytics capabilities provided valuable insights into the project's progress and performance.

While Kantata software had many positive aspects, one thing I liked least was the learning curve associated with its advanced features. Some functionalities required a bit of time and effort to master, especially for users who were new to the software or had limited technical expertise. Additionally, the software's user interface, although functional, could benefit from some improvements in terms of visual design and intuitiveness. However, these minor drawbacks did not significantly affect the overall performance and functionality of the software.

The best thing about Kantata is the ability to see project burn rates at a glance. The time-tracking system is a huge part of that being accurate as well. There are multiple options for our team to track their time so that we can see project burn rates.

There are several things that haven't been improved at all in the 6+ years that we've used this software. For example, basic things like not being able to customize your task statuses (or at least new options being added), being able to mark a task as complete even when none of the checklist items have been checked off, and not getting a notification when a due date is coming up to remind a team member of a deadline before it is missed, etc. The mobile version is pretty much useless which is sad now that the working world is mostly remote.

Robust reporting, integration to NetSuite, hierarchical team management, Activity feed

Ease of use needs significant improvement. Needs user configurable workflows and fields. User roles and security have no flexibility. Interface and reporting designed by someone who never has to use the application to run their day.

Mavenlink is a great way to keep track of everything you need for multiple projects across various areas. Budget burn is clear to see, it's easy enough to add and message people on a project. Easy enough to track time, develop timelines, break projects down into tasks, etc. Good for very type A people who like to extremely organize everything.

It creates a lot of work for project managers. A lot goes into designing a project and filling it out, which is very time consuming. There is also a steep learning curve, especially if you are adapting to Mavenlink after being used to different systems. The trainings were somewhat helpful, but long, boring and repetitive. While it does keep everything in one place, it is difficult to adapt to using it where you would have used email, Skype messenger, google docs, etc. especially if you're working with colleagues who are not so technologically savvy.

Customization of task lists, project fields, etc.

Gantt Schedule (hard to display), Reporting (albeit powerful, application for creating reports is not user-friendly in the slightest)

We are new to having a PSA and PM tool. So it was great to go from each department having their own spreadsheets to one point of truth and full visibility across the project. But as well - all the in built finance management and integrations we setup has streamlined so many additional administrative elements of managing our work. And the real time visibility to project performance (timelines and finances) is great.

Navigating some of the integrations has been a little longer than I would have hoped for the roll-out. The support to get things implemented was not as timely as we would have hoped.

Kantata has revolutionized our approach to budgeting and task management. The opportunity to centralize all of our initiatives in one place and provide individualized reports that tracked our development in relation to our key performance indicators is something we are really grateful for. We also take pleasure in learning where we may be under- or over-allocating our engineers, so that we may swiftly adjust our course.

As far as we can tell, employing Kantata does not come with any major drawbacks. Reports are not sorted alphabetically or numerically, however these are minor issues.

No pros were added to this review

No cons were added to this review

We needed a unified system that did: task tracking, budget tracking, project schedules, time entry and resource management. MavenLink nails it in those arenas! Finally we have a tool that doesn't require another 15 tools!

There are a lot of features and options for how to do things, and not enough "how to" videos that their competitors have.

Project task management is a huge improvement over our legacy product. The user interface and the various task types have made this my go-to tool, no longer needing MS Project on the side to replicate our task tracking efforts. I like that Mavenlink has included issues into their task types, not just tasks and milestones. Best of all is the user interface to make changes in the GANTT view and for contributors to self-assign a task and log time to it. As a PM, I am spending far less time making in task management activities, instead able to monitor what others have permission to do on their own.

Still waiting for the golden feature of copy/paste similar tasks to save me even more time.