A good work management application has the following features; project management, task management, collaboration, and storage facilities.
Our app is designed as an all-in-one application with features you need to manage your projects and business.
The app is integrated with tools like Google Drive, Google Calendar, iCalendar, Dropbox, and soon G-Suite and SalesForce to create a true work management system.
Work management applications are increasingly moving from into PaaS (Platform as a Service) space.
Our work management platform is divided into 5 sections (set of features) as listed below:
- Portfolio Section
- Projects Section
- Personal Section
- Workspace Section
- Miscellaneous Tools
Work Management features
In the paragraphs below, we have explained the primary features/ tools within our work management application. This should give the reader a quick understanding of how the app is organized and how it could be used.
We will update this post as we add more features or improve existing features to our work management application.
1-Portfolio section
When users log in to the application, they are taken to the portfolio section. Your portfolio of projects is shown in different formats in Binfire’s work management software.
The portfolio section has 7 pages which are shown on the blue row on top of the page as listed below:
- Dashboard
- List page
- Boards (kanban Boards)
- Calendar
- Projects
- Conversations
- Events
The user can navigate from page to page using the links on the top row. In the near future, we will add a portfolio Gantt page to the application.
Portfolio Dashboard
The default page when the user logs in is the portfolio dashboard. Here all tasks from all projects are shown in Excel type format.
The user can change the default login page by going to the personal settings page. We will cover the personal setting page later in this user guide.
By default, all tasks from all projects are shown in the portfolio dashboard.
A number of filters (second row) on top of the page allow the user to filter tasks and show only tasks the user wants to see.
Here is the list of the filters:
- Assignee- show tasks assigned to one or all portfolio members
- Projects-Show tasks from one or all projects
- Tasks- Binfire supports both Tasks and bugs (issues). So the user can select either tasks or bugs. In this user guide, we cover only tasks.
- Priority- Tasks could have priority from 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest)
A secondary set of filters placed on the next row under primary filters lets the user filter tasks based on their status. These filters are shown as permanent columns and the user can move from one column to another by clicking on each link. By default “All” column is shown when the user goes to the dashboard. The list of these filters is as shown below:
- All- Shows all tasks
- Due today- Only shows tasks that are due today
- To-Do- tasks which are not started yet (nobody is working on them)
- In Process- Tasks which someone has started working on them
- Completed- Tasks that are completed
- Approved- Tasks that are verified (some projects need this)
- Late- Tasks that are late and their due date is past
The first level and secondary filters could be used together to create powerful filter options. For example, you can filter for tasks assigned to Sue, which are due today, in all projects that Sue belongs to.
In Agile projects, Swimlanes are used to bring order when tasks from multiple projects are shown on one board.
Binfire supports the following options for Swimlanes on all pages including Dashboard:
- Projects (default)-The dashboard shows the task for each project grouped together
- Team Members- The task for each team member in all projects are grouped together
- Custom Status- Tasks are grouped based on the custom status.
- None- Tasks are shown with no grouping
The default for Swimlanes is the project grouping but the user can change the default in the personal settings page to team members, custom status or none.
You can change the Swimlane by clicking on it and choose another selection from the dropdown.
The user can add new tasks or update existing tasks shown on the Dashboard. Task details like the start date, due date, title, status, comments, custom status, and to whom the task is assigned could be easily updated here.
Note that Binfire does allow assigning tasks to multiple people. Most other work management apps allow tasks to be assigned to one person only.
If a task has a new comment, the icon for the comment is painted yellow. You can click on the comment icon to add a new comment or respond to another comment.
You can open the task editor to add more information to the task not shown in the task rows in the dashboard.
When you bring your mouse over a task’s title, two small icons are shown to the left of the task. You can open the task editor or delete the task using these icons.
Figure #1 Portfolio Dashboard with swimlane = projects
Figure #2 Portfolio dashboard swimlane = team
Figure # 3 Portfolio Dashboard swimlane = custom status
Figure # 4 Portfolio dashboard with no swimlanes
Portfolio List Page
In this page like the dashboard, all tasks are shown in the left column. When the user clicks on any tasks, the task’s details are shown in the right pane (window).
Here the user has more options for tasks, like adding a dependency, attaching files, adding followers, adding tags, and more.
All filters mentioned for the Portfolio Dashboard work on this page too.
Figure #5 Portfolio list view page
Portfolio Kanban Board
Portfolio Kanban Board is a new concept that allows agile teams to manage all their projects from one Kanban board.
Most project management apps allow only one Kanban board per project. In Binfire there is no limit in the number of Portfolio and project Kanban boards you can create.
The app has a default Portfolio Kanban board called Standard Board that uses the work progress status flags (backlog, to do, in process, completed, approved) as lists.
All tasks from all projects appear on the standard board, unlike user-created boards which show only tasks that the user wants by using custom status fields.
The user can create an unlimited number of portfolio Kanban boards. The lists are the same as custom status. So if a task has a custom status called Dev and in the board, there is a list called dev, it will show up on this board under the dev list.
Figure #6 Create unlimited portfolio Kanban boards
Figure #7 Portfolio Kanban Board
Portfolio Calendar
Portfolio Calendar lets you view, create and edit tasks, bugs, and milestones in a calendar format. You can also add holidays, vacations, and events to this calendar.
The portfolio calendar plus the project calendar are the only pages in Binfire that let you view and work on anything the application supports.
Just click on any date on the calendar and an edit box opens which lets you add a new item to the calendar.
If you click on any item present in the calendar, the edit box opens to let you change its details.
You can use drag and drop to adjust tasks’ start dates.
Figure #8 Portfolio Calendar
Projects
The project overview page shows all your projects in your portfolio and their status.
Inbox shows the status of each project in your portfolio using text on top and numbers and graphs.
The project could be on time, falling late and late. Falling late means there are more tasks hours left in the project than hours left until the due date to finish the project successfully.
Using the context menu (…) on each project box you can perform the following actions on each project.
- Add members- You can add new members to your project
- Edit project- Change project name, description, and other details
- Duplicate project- Use this project as a template for new projects
- Archive project- When a project is completed you can archive it so it will not show in the dashboard and other pages, but you can access later it if you need to refer to it. You can un-Archive projects
- Put a project on hold- If you have to stop a project for any reason you can put it on hold. Later you can resume the project and all due dates are adjusted for the duration of time the project was on hold.
- Delete project- If you don’t need a project anymore you can delete it.
- Project Report- You can download in PDF format all data and stat on a project. Great for taking to project meeting.
- Project History- This feature is under development. It enables you to see the complete history of the project from start to finish. Every member’s work is recorded and could be viewed and downloaded for further analyses.
To go to a project click on the project name or the link “Go to project”
A link in each project box opens the Burndown chart for that project. The Burndown charts are a great way of showing the progress of the project compared to the plan during the project life cycle.
There is no limit To the number of projects you can create or archive.
Figure #9 Manage projects
Conversations
Binfire has a built-in conversation page for team communication. It is similar to Slack but much safer and protected.
You can create multiple channels and add members to create communication streams relevant to your project’s work.
You can create private channels that and add only a few team members or create public channels where everybody in your workspace is added.
There is no limit to the number of channels you can create. This page will be updated soon with new features.
Figure #10 Conversations
Events
Binfire has its own event manager. If you have to create events for your team or for the projects, the event page enables you to plan and manage events internally or externally.
2-Project Section
When you click on a project on the project page or use the left navigational column, you go to the project section of the app.
Here you have many of the pages you saw in the portfolio section, but only for that project.
In the project section, there are features not available in the portfolio section. All project pages are listed below:
- Dashboard- Project dashboard for managing tasks of one project
- List- Same as above, only tasks from that project are shown
- Boards- Unlimited Kanban boards for a project
- Calendar- Project calendar, only items for one project are shown
- Gantt Chart- Tasks from one project are shown. This is an interactive Gantt and you can grab and move and change other details for each task including adding dependencies. We are working on Portfolio Gantt which shows tasks from all projects in one Gantt chart.
- Files- Project files. All documents for a project are kept in the project folder. Binfire keeps all versions of the files you upload and you always have access to all versions.
- Settings- Project setting which lets you manage the project by changing the project name, adding description, adding project members, and assigning rules to them. In Binfire you can create your own rules like the quest, freelancer, etc.
- More->project stats- Shows all stats for your project. The stats are shown in a stunning graphic format and could be used in project meetings or project reviews. You can download the stats.
- More->Resource Loading- To view the workload for each member of your team. You can download this data.
- More->Whiteboard- An interactive whiteboard for team collaboration when people on your team are in multiple locations.
- More->Activity Stream- All actions that are taken in this project from day one to today. You can download this data.
Figure #11 Interactive Gantt Chart
Figure #12 Interactive whiteboard
3-Personal Section
The personal section is a protected area that only you can see. No one else has access to the data or information you store in this section. This section is the only section that is private and not part of work management features.
The Personal section has the following pages
- Files- You can store files here which could be accessed by you. No one in your team has access or can gain access to files in this section. All files are encrypted and secure. You cannot use personal files for sharing as mentioned in the project files.
- Timesheet- If you use the built-in time tracker in Binfire, all your hours are shown here. You can also manually add the time you have spent on tasks and projects here.
- Settings– Personal setting which allows you to personalize the app the way you want to use it. In the personal setting you can do the following actions:
- Set your time zone. Why is that important? Binfire Syncs the due time such that everybody in your team regardless of where they are located sees the same due time. Assume you have set the due time for 8:00 PM EST, anybody on the east coast sees the date as 8 PM but your colleague in London sees the due time as the 1:00 AM next day
- Change your first name and last name
- Upload a new avatar so your teammates can see your tasks/comments shown with your picture and not text.
- Choose your home page. The default home page is the portfolio dashboard, but you can set any of the following as your home page. When you log in you always taken to your home page
- Select the start of the week. Not everybody starts work on Monday. You can choose one of the following for the start of the week
- Saturday
- Sunday
- Monday
- Select default swimlane. You can choose one of the following:
- Projects
- Team members
- Custom Status
- None
- Enable browser notification
- Enable Google services integration. As of now, the following Google services are supported
- Google drive (we also have integration with Dropbox)
- Google Calendar (we support all iCalendar apps)
- Soon we will be supporting G-Suite including Gmail
Figure #13 Top of the Personal settings page
Figure #14 Bottom of the personal settings page
4- Workspace Section
In addition to controls on top of each page, the user can use the left column navigational bar to move from each section of the application and switch between projects.
When you bring your mouse over the sandwich menu icon on the top left of the page a dropdown menu opens up.
Figure #15 Left Navigational Bar
In the left menu column, you can access a few pages which are otherwise not accessible from top controls seen on regular pages.
A list of actions/pages you can access from the left column and not anywhere else is shown below:
- Logout
- Upgrade
- Help- You can send an inline message to Binfire support. We get back to you via email. Soon we will add live chat so you can talk to a Binfire support representative 24/7.
- Workspace- Here you access admin pages for your workspace. If you belong to more than one workspace you see both workspace one after the other. Under each workspace, all projects in that workspace are listed. You can click on any project to go there. You can also create new projects by clicking on the + NEW link to the right of the project heading.
By bringing your mouse over the workspace name in the left navigational column a sub-menu opens which show the following options:
- Manage workspace- view and manage projects. Most of the functionality found in this page is also present on the Project page. Manage workspace page will be updated soon with new features.
- Mange teams- Add and remove people from your workspace. You can add or remove people as Admin. An Admin has the same rights as the workspace owner. The only limit on Admin is that an admin cannot remove the owner from any project in the workspace. In Binfire’s work management app, all new users are added as an admin to have full control. To change this please visit the manage team page.
- Manage categories- We have added project categories. Here you can manage categories. The project category is a work in progress and will be updated in the next versions of the application.
- Calendar- This is your workspace calendar. You can define weekends and holidays here. This page will be removed soon and its functionality will go to portfolio and project calendars.
- Resource loading-The workload for every member of your workspace is shown here. Using this data you can balance the work of your team. The data here could be downloaded and be used in spreadsheet apps if needed for further analyses.
- Timesheet- Manage timesheet for every member of your workspace. You can add new times spent on tasks, edit times if needed, and download the data in Excel format for further processing.
5-Miscellaneous features
Binfire has additional features to make collaboration and managing tasks easier in a work management environment. A list of these features is shown below:
- Timer- Each user can track the time they spend on tasks or projects. All numbers are collected and shown on the timesheet page. The time is always shown on the top row of each page to the right of the sandwich menu icon. To start the timer click on the clock icon and select the task which you are working on. The timer starts and the clock’s handles start moving. Click on the clock again to stop the timer when you are finished.
- Inbox- Binfire’s inbox collects all internal notifications in the app. If someone invites you to a project or posts a message on the message board, you will see that in the inbox. Inbox is going through a major upgrade and will be updated in future versions.
- Desktop notification-When you log in for the first time, the app asks you if you want to turn on the desktop notification. If you press yes when any action taken in your projects by your teammates you are notified.
- Live chat- Binfire has its own live chat. It enables individual chat in addition to group chat. This feature will merge into the conversation page soon.
- Keyboard shortcuts- On any page in Binfire, if you press the letter H on your keyword, a context menu opens that shows all shortcut keys for that page. One important shortcut key is the ALT + A which lets the user create a task in most pages within the application.
We strive to make the best work management software even better. We will update the software and this user guide often.
Binfire is the only work management app in the market that supports most project management methods like Agile, Waterfall, and Hybrid method.
If you are planning to use remote workers or want to take your business remotely completely, I highly recommend reading the guide to remote work.
If you find any issues or mistakes with this document or have suggestions regarding work management, please contact us at
su*****@bi*****.com
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