Smartsheet vs Workfront: Which Project Management Tool Is Best For You
- Project Management Needs: Understand how Adobe Workfront and Smartsheet address different project management requirements and team sizes
- Feature Comparison: Discover the unique strengths of Workfront’s advanced task management and Smartsheet’s user-friendly interface
- Customization Levels: Explore how each platform allows for workflow customization to meet diverse organizational needs
- Collaboration Tools: Learn about the collaboration capabilities that enhance team communication in both tools
- Real-World Use Case: See how a mid-size marketing agency could benefit from choosing between Workfront and Smartsheet based on specific challenges
- Pricing Structures: Get insights into the pricing plans of each software and how they cater to varying budgets
Choosing the right project management software is crucial for efficiently managing projects and promoting team collaboration across departments. Adobe Workfront and Smartsheet software are two such powerful platforms recognized for their ability to streamline workflows, enhance productivity, and improve cross-departmental communication.
Although functioning in the same niche, both tools offer features that cater to different organizations and use cases. This comparison looks at the strengths and shortcomings of each software as well as their key features.
Adobe Workfront software is a comprehensive work management platform used to centralize and streamline planning, tasks, content, and reporting across various teams and departments. The software enhances the visibility and control of project processes by combining project planning, execution, and deliverance.
Workfront facilitates collaboration between departments. This focus, combined with customizable templates and automated workflows, provides a comprehensive experience. Adobe Workfront software is ideal for large enterprises particularly those in the marketing, creative, and project management sectors.
Workfront Key Features
- Centralized Work Management: Workfront can integrate work across teams and applications, providing a single platform for the planning, execution, and tracking of work. Work requests are consolidated through intake channels, ensuring all work is vetted against priorities.
- Workflow Automation: The software automates repeatable work to standardize and accelerate menial processes. It eliminates manual tasks through automated reviews, approvals, and workflows, as well as AI-driven automation, wherein an AI assistant provides quick answers and detailed insights to users.
- Reporting Analytics: Workfront has real-time dashboards and tracking tools that allow users to monitor project progress, identify bottlenecks, and make informed decisions. These custom reports are an excellent feature and can include views like calendars or timelines to provide role-specific visibility. Managers can oversee and control projects from anywhere at any time.
- Resource Management: Resource management in Workfront ensures the right people and resources are allocated to the business’s top priorities to optimize resource utilization. Using estimation and budgeting, the software can accurately determine the availability of resources, calculate capacity costs, and ROIs.
Pros And Cons
Before deciding on Adobe Workfront for your organization, weigh its strengths and weaknesses and compare its features to your specific needs. The following are a few things to consider when making a choice:
Smartsheet software is a cloud-based project management and collaboration tool designed to help teams plan, track, and manage projects. It is best known for its Excel-like user-friendly interface and flexibility in managing various projects.
Not only does Smartsheet work well for users within a wide variety of technical domains, but it also supports a range of project management methodologies such as Agile, Waterfall, or hybrid approaches.
The software is targeted at a broad range of users, from small businesses to large enterprises, across multiple industries. It is particularly useful for teams looking for a flexible and user-friendly project management solution that can be easily integrated with their existing tools and workflows.
Smartsheet Key Features
- Project Planning: Smartsheet has a robust project planning feature that allows teams to establish the scope, schedule, and budget baseline. Project performance is measured against these established benchmarks. The software also provides work breakdown structures and resource allocation features to distribute work evenly
- Task Management: The software allows managers to assign tasks, set deadlines, and track project progress. Smartsheet also provides the option of creating task dependencies to keep track of how individual tasks relate to each other. Teams can also make use of automated workflows and collaboration tools to facilitate teamwork and goal alignment
- Reporting And Dashboards: The platform has features such as roll-up reports and custom dashboards to ensure clarity amongst the team about the work being done. Smartsheet also lets users make custom reports that visually represent project metrics. Integration with analytics tools lets the software create interactive dashboards and ensure that data is always up to date
- Resource Management: Along with time-tracking, the software also lets managers set up availability and allocation settings to monitor how resources are used. Smartsheet supports approval workflows to promote accuracy and compliance with organizational metrics. Tasks cannot move to the next swimlane unless reviewed and approved by a manager
Pros And Cons
Smartsheet is a robust option for project management, but it may not fulfill your specific needs and requirements. The following are a few pros and cons to weigh before making your choice:
Consider a mid-size marketing agency struggling to manage a growing workload efficiently. The team is using a mix of spreadsheets, shared folders, and emails to keep in touch, leading to confusion, delays, and missed deadlines.
The challenges faced by such a company include a lack of visibility, inefficient communication, and time-consuming manual tasks that hinder productivity.
If your marketing agency is struggling primarily with workflow visibility and resource management, Workfront could be the right fit.
Its centralized platform, real-time reporting, and automation of repetitive tasks allow teams to reduce errors and save time, offering a more structured approach to managing large-scale projects. Workfront's advanced reporting tools make it ideal for teams needing in-depth visibility into resource allocations and project performance.
On the other hand, if customization and seamless collaboration are your priorities, Smartsheet might be a better choice. With its flexible templates and integration capabilities, Smartsheet allows teams to create personalized workflows and connect with third-party tools for a more adaptable setup. Its visually intuitive interface is excellent for agencies looking to boost collaboration across teams while managing multiple projects simultaneously.
Ultimately, your decision should be based on whether your team needs more visibility and structured automation or customizable workflows and flexible integrations.
The following are a few categories to consider when comparing the functionality and usability of Adobe Workfront and Smartsheet software. All sections for both software will be discussed comprehensively to determine which one takes precedence over the other;
1. Pricing Plans And Scalability
Workfront
Adobe Workfront pricing is quote based, which means that organizations need to engage with the sales team to get a tailored pricing plan. The cost of the software depends on the number of users and the required feature set. The software has three distinct tiers, but their pricing is less transparent.
Smartsheet
Smartsheet offers various paid plans and a free plan that includes two sheets, two editors/viewers, and Gantt, calendar, and card view. Users can also access dashboards and make reports of project progress.
Winner: Purely based on the availability of pricing plans, Smartsheet takes this round due to it being more transparent. This does not mean Workfront does not offer great custom plans built for the needs and preferences of your organization. Teams may need to reach out to both software’s customer support to get a better understanding of their service charges.
2. Customization For Use Cases
Workfront
Workfront stands out for its highly customizable workflows, dashboards, and templates. Users can build tailored workflows that align closely with specific project requirements, automate task assignments, and configure dashboards to display key metrics most relevant to their roles. This makes the software ideal for catering to large businesses that need robust workflow automation and standard business practices.Workfront is also well-suited for internal management and resource allocations. The ability to deeply customize forms also helps streamline data collection and integrate workflows across departments, ensuring efficiency and alignment across teams.
Smartsheet
While customizable, Smartsheet is generally more template-driven and less flexible when it comes to intricate customizations. Although it offers solid customization options, the software is more focused on adaptability across various use cases. Users can quickly modify project templates, task layouts, and forms to match their project’s needs. Smartsheet’s level of flexibility, however, does not match Workfront’s customization capabilities.
Winner: Workfront takes the win in the customization category. Its ability to offer highly specific workflow options, advanced dashboard controls, and deeply customizable templates makes it a superior choice for teams that need tailored solutions. While Smartsheet is adaptable and suitable for many scenarios, it lacks the depth and flexibility in customization that Workfront provides, especially for enterprises managing large-scale projects or requiring specialized templates.
3. User Interface
Workfront
Workfront’s interface is feature-rich, offering a variety of views and customization options. However, its complexity can lead to a challenging learning experience for users. Conversely, teams managing large projects and enterprise-level work greatly benefit from this intricacy, as it provides enhanced control and precision.
Smartsheet
Smartsheet is famous for its spreadsheet-like interface. It is highly intuitive for users who are familiar with tools like Excel. The software has a simple and clean layout that allows users to get started quickly without extensive training. Smartsheet is ideal for teams wanting to jump into project management with minimal setup.
Winner: Smartsheet wins in this category. It is known for its user-friendly interface which resembles a spreadsheet, making it intuitive for users, especially those new to project management tools. While Workfront is a powerful tool, its complexity may pose challenges in navigation for new users.
4. Collaboration and Communication Tools
Workfront
Workfront has advanced collaboration capabilities, including built-in charts, custom forms, and approval processes. Project members can communicate directly on the platform, share documents, and review each other’s work. Workfront also has approval workflows that are ideal for teams needing formalized signoffs and feedback loops across departments.
Smartsheet
Smartsheet offers strong collaboration tools that enable team members to share documents, attach files, and leave comments in real time. While it caters to a broad range of businesses, its collaboration features are somewhat less advanced than those of Workfront. Smartsheet prioritizes simplicity and ease of use.
Winner: Workfront excels in this category because, while Smartsheet emphasizes basic collaboration tools like task assignments and real-time updates. Workfront offers advanced collaboration features that are ideal for large organizations needing sophisticated communication capabilities.
5. Project Templates
Workfront
Workfront provides customizable project templates designed for complex workflows. Each template can be adjusted to fit different project types and can help users streamline repetitive tasks. Large teams that need to adhere to industry-specific standards also benefit from this customization.
Smartsheet
Smartsheet has a wide variety of templates, including Gantt charts, calendars, and task lists to support various use cases. Although complex customization is not an option, the software has a broad range of ready-to-use templates that are ideal for teams that want to get started on projects right away.
Winner: While Workfront's templates are customizable, Smartsheet wins this round due to its extensive range of pre-built templates. Smartsheet enables quicker setup and is well-suited for various project types.
6. Comprehensive Agile Reporting
Workfront
Workfront excels in reporting, with customizable dashboards and advanced filtering options being made available to users. Teams can create detailed reports based on key performance indicators (KPIS), resource usage, and project timelines. Agile teams can depend on Workfront’s robust reporting features to track progress and make data-driven decisions.
Smartsheet
Smartsheet also has strong reporting features, but they are not as detail oriented as Workfront’s. The software has basic functions such as generating reports and exporting data and aims to provide clear overviews rather than highly customizable insights.
Winner: Workfront takes this round too, as it excels in advanced reporting and has robust analytical capabilities. The software is better suited for organizations that require detailed Agile reporting. Though robust, Smartsheet’s reporting features are not as comprehensive.
7. Expense Tracking
Workfront
Though Workfront is not exclusively expense tracking software, it does provide features that offer advanced financial management. Teams can manage budgets, track costs, and compare project expenses against estimates. Implementing these systems provides teams with complete visibility into project costs, helping them maintain financial control across all projects.
Smartsheet
Smartsheet does not focus heavily on expense tracking or finance management features and offers basic tracking capabilities. The software lets users create budget sheets and track costs manually, but the platform does not have the same capacity for financial management as Workfront. This feature in Smartsheet is better suited for smaller projects that do not require extensive expense tracking.
Winner: Workfront provides features for financial tracking and resource management that make it more suitable for organizations that need to monitor expenses closely. Smartsheet does not, making Workfront the winner in this category.
8. Integrations
Workfront
Workfront supports native integrations with other Adobe applications and integrates with third-party tools such as Jira, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Google Drive, and Dropbox. These integrations allow teams to work seamlessly across platforms.
Smartsheet
Smartsheet integrates with popular platforms like Google Drive, Microsoft Office, Box, and DocuSign. These integrations provide essential connections for businesses that use these tools for document management, collaboration, and workflow automation.
Winner: Smartsheet’s integrations are seamless and extensive, making it a versatile tool for various business environments. Workfront offers integrations too, but they’re not as extensive as Smartsheet is, and so the latter takes the win in this category.
9. Security
Workfront
Workfront has AES 256-bit encryption and HTTPS TLS v1.2 data encryption to protect documents and assets; its security features are built for enterprise use, with role-based permissions and comprehensive encryption to protect sensitive information.
Smartsheet
Smartsheet has provided more information about what kind of security measures it takes with its data. The software offers role-based access control, data encryption, and two-factor authentication pertaining to GDPR guidelines. However, its security offerings are usually more suited to smaller organizations or those with less stringent regulatory requirements.
Winner: With security features catering to enterprise-level requirements, Workfront takes this round. It has features such as identity and access management which are crucial for large organizations.
10. Customer Support
Workfront
Workfront has a range of support options, with 24/7 customer service, extensive documentation, and an active user community.
Much like all enterprise-focused software, it offers dedicated account managers for enterprise clients to ensure businesses receive personalized support when needed.
Smartsheet
Smartsheet also offers solid customer support including live chat, email, and phone options. It also has comprehensive online resources, including a knowledge base, webinars, and community forums.
Winner: This category also comes down to preference. Workfront has a vast range of support options, but the interface is complicated. Smartsheet has a straight-forward and has been commended on its responsiveness even though it does not provide all the resources offered by Workfront and does not have dedicated account management available. Therefore, this category is a tie.
With a score of 6 to 3 and a tie in one category, Workfront seems to win this comparison. However, the discussion of which software is better is incredibly subjective. Both software have their unique strengths, weaknesses, and areas of focus.
Adobe Workfront is ideal for large enterprises that require preliminary advanced training. Smartsheet is better suited for teams looking for a user-friendly interface, pre-built templates, and robust integrations.
The choice between the two largely depends on the specific needs, preferences, and size of an organization. List your requirements and cross-reference them with the feature list provided for each option. If you are unsure about the two software discussed in this blog, you can explore more project management software options on our site.
