Upcoming Project Management 2.0 Discussion
This year's Office 2.0 Conference is coming soon. I'll be part of a Project Management 2.0 panel, so if you want to ask questions in real time, you are very welcome to join the conference. Other panels and sessions also promise to be interesting. If you have some stories to share for the panel, leave a comment here with your contact information. I may get some discounted tickets from organizers for visitors who can bring the value to the panel.
Wrike is a Google Apps Premier Technology Partner
In June we announced that we were one of the first companies to become a Google Apps Authorized Technology Partner. We are now happy to reveal that we have gone a step farther to become a Google Apps Premier Technology Partner! What does this mean for our customers? As a Google Apps Premier Technology Partner, Google has recognized Wrike as an outstanding tool for project management with Google Apps. Wrike will now be able to: Take advantage of Google Apps API information for future integrations, Participate in Early New Product Access/Trusted Tester programs for faster integration rollout, Work closely with Google technical resources to provide Wrike and Google users with the best experience, and Participate in Google marketing events to spread the word about Wrike further than ever. Current Wrike + Google Apps integrations Wrike has been integrated with Google Apps for a long time. Here's a list of the current Google Apps integrations that you can benefit from today: Attach documents to your Wrike tasks directly from your Google Drive account Use the Gmail Gadget to turn your emails into tasks with just one click Import your tasks and milestones to synchronize your Wrike account and Google Calendar If you're already using the Google Apps Marketplace, install Wrike today to get the Gmail Gadget and benefit from single sign-on privileges for smoother access to your Wrike account. More Wrike + Google News We recently released our patent-pending Wrike Chrome Extension to immediately turn any webpage into an actionable task. Our customers have loved it so far, so check it out for yourself. "I just added this extension and used it to create a task!! WOW...the possibilities are endless!!" — Linda, Wrike User We're glad to be able to offer all our customers great Google Apps integrations, and with our new Google Apps Premier Technology Partner status our continued partnership will be stronger than ever.
Wrike and Zendesk Integration: Get a Code That Turns Your Tickets into Tasks
Update: With Wrike's new API 3.0, this example in this post is no longer possible; but don't worry, you can still connect Wrike and Zendesk via our Zapier integration.If you have questions about the new API or connecting to Zendesk via Zapier, please reach out to us. Improved collaboration for better ticket management Most support tickets require syncing efforts of both the support and development teams. In Wrike, you can put one ticket into several folders so that developers can prioritize it on their to-do list with other tasks, and supporters will be automatically in the loop on all updates. You can quickly engage your marketing or UX team by sharing tasks with them as well; ensuring important feedback won’t fall through the cracks. The result: You’ll have improved case resolution and customers will be blown away by your service! Let’s get started! As a first step, you need to add an email target for all new tickets as well as tickets that were changed. You also need a trigger that will send all data to [email protected]. If you want to send all tasks to a particular folder, simply use [email protected] as an email address, where 123 is the folder ID. Then, install the API code that the ShopWorks team has kindly shared here. It’s possible to add several triggers for adding new tasks in Wrike, updating comments, and changing task status. All tasks will be automatically put in one folder; later you can move them to any folder you need. Now, here comes the long-awaited innovative feature. A ticket in Zendesk automatically turns into a new task in Wrike, and all the new comments to it get added to the task’s Activity stream. And there’s more! Whenever your team changes a ticket status to Solved or Pending, it becomes Completed or Deferred in Wrike accordingly. No good deed goes unnoticed. If you want to thank the ShopWorks team for sharing this fantastic code, tweet it out — and don’t forget to mention @shopworks_nl. We hope this integration will save you time and help you stay on top of all important support issues! Your team can also feel free to contribute to the code published by ShopWorks, if they want to.
Wrike's WorkFlow Release: New Features Clear Productivity Roadblocks
At Wrike, we are obsessed with building the best tools to make your workday easier and more productive. Today, we're thrilled to roll out a set of new features to everyone in an update we call “WorkFlow.” WorkFlow features are designed to support you in a continuous flow of "getting work done." Roadblocks to Productivity If you've ever been on a productive streak only to get yanked out of "the zone," you know the frustration of having your flow interrupted. Waiting for a new application to open or switching to a different tool can break your concentration, and trying to regain lost focus can be maddening. Your tools shouldn't slow you down. You shouldn’t have to jump back and forth between a bunch of separate web tools in order to assign tasks involving separate web services. Neither should you have to communicate with clients and contractors through email and phone, sending status updates and attachments back and forth, and attempting to coordinate feedback while tracking which version they're talking about. These kinds of roadblocks interrupt your concentration and flow. The WorkFlow Release Today, our WorkFlow release publicly launches three key features and integrations to help you remove those roadblocks to collaboration and work faster within Wrike. 1. Chrome WorkFlow Extension The patent-pending Chrome browser extension allows you to instantly push web-based information into your Wrike workspace from any webpage you're on. Create tasks from any URL: bookmark competitors' blogposts, capture screenshots of design inspiration, assign people to review a landing page, assign sales prospects to your team, and much more. You can also clearly see if other tasks have been assigned to teammates using that page. It's a unique extension that can connect all your web services and bring them into Wrike, where the info you've captured can be tasked to others or stored for reference. There’s no other extension with this level of functionality available. 2. Wrike Team Links This feature allows any Wrike user to pull in an outside collaborator (including contractors, clients and customers) so they can join projects and tasks, but includes the right safeguards to ensure project integrity. Agency customers who've tested this feature in beta loved being able to share work with clients for feedback while still limiting the collaborator's ability to create and delete tasks or projects. 3. Zapier integration We are also announcing Wrike’s integration with Zapier, an action automation cloud tool that makes it easy to pass data between two separate apps. You can pull work back into Wrike from other apps such as Evernote, Zendesk, Google Apps, and more. Stay tuned for more new releases coming your way during this summer of WorkFlow. In the meantime, we'd love to hear your comments!
Add Wrike to Chrome App Launcher to Get Started Instantly
If you use the Google Chrome browser, now you can add Wrike to your favorite apps to start work faster. The Chrome App Launcher allows you to quickly launch your favorite apps directly from your desktop or browser tab, and sync your favorites across different devices. Install the Chrome App Launcher on your desktop, or open it from your browser by typing "chrome://apps" in the address bar. Having instant access to your apps will cut down on the time you spend searching for work tools and logging in. Adding Wrike to your apps list is easy — simply go to the Wrike Chrome store page and click "Add to Chrome". Download it now to make it easy to start your day in Wrike, and don't let other sites immediately distract you from a productive workday. Note: You need to be logged into your Chrome browser with the same Google account that you use in Wrike.
Wrike Integrates with Zapier for a World of Automation
Wrike always strives to keep all your work information connected. Which is why there is an ongoing effort to integrate it with all your favorite apps and project management automation tools. Meet our latest great integration: Zapier. Zapier is an action automation cloud tool that makes it easy and effortless to pass data between two separate apps. So effortless that once you set up your account you won't have to lift a finger! You create customizable actions that send information of your choosing from one app to another, freeing you from tedious housekeeping tasks. When paired with the productivity power of Wrike, it means one thing: you get your work done faster. Say you want every new reminder logged in Evernote to create a task in Wrike. You create a "Zap" in Zapier connecting the two. Zaps are automated processes made of two parts: a trigger and a resulting action. In this case, creating an Evernote reminder is the trigger, and creating a new task in Wrike is the action that occurs once the trigger is sensed by the system. Every new reminder automatically becomes a Wrike task, and you didn't even have to think about it. Or you could create a Zap wherein every new Google Calendar event automatically creates a task in Wrike, bypassing the need to go into Wrike and do it manually. It's all about convenience and saving time — which gets our thumbs up. Wrike's integration with Zapier even allows you to fine tune the details of the resulting action, for example: • Choose task type (planned, backlogged, or milestone) in order to differentiate urgent to-do items and goals from reference material. • Set the start and due date for tasks using expressions like "tomorrow" and "next week". If you create a Zap to transfer your support tickets or other date-sensitive tasks to Wrike, they'll be tackled in no time! • Add rich text task descriptions — say a new email is turned into a Wrike task, the text formatting will remain the same. • Select a subfolder so your automated tasks are housed by email sender, originating source, month created, and more. Watch our video to learn more helpful Zaps you can create for your team: Using Zapier with Wrike To create your own Zaps from scratch, simply designate Wrike as either the trigger or the action. But if you're starting out, it may be more convenient to make use of one of the many Zaps that other users have created, and use one as a template for creating your own custom Zap. Step-by-Step Instructions for Using Zapier with Wrike: 1. Sign up or log into your Zapier account. 2. Click the "Make a New Zap" button. 3. Choose Wrike as the trigger or action. 4. The first time you create a Zap with Wrike, you will be asked to log into your Wrike account. 5. Make a Zap or explore pre-made Zaps. Have you already tried our Zapier integration? Tell us about your useful Zaps in the comments! Image Credits: Photo by Chris Isherwood. Some rights reserved.
Break Free from Your Browser with Wrike for Windows & Mac
Now you can escape the chaotic mess of assorted tabs with our award-winning desktop app. With Wrike for Windows & Mac you can break free from your browser, enabling you to better focus on your work and more easily access Wrike.
10 Free Productivity Apps for Getting Things Done
There's nothing quite like the feeling of checking off your to-do items at the end of the day, knowing you were able to combat distraction and accomplish tasks assigned to you. But if you're like me, the distractions come a mile a minute, so the struggle to fight them off and focus solely on work becomes exhausting if you're not using the right tools. Fortunately, there is a great variety of free tools available for the picking. After having tested and used a bunch of them over the course of months (some even for years), I've distilled them down to these 10 distraction-killing apps that will help you: quiet down, avoid needless browsing, write without distraction, use audio to focus, and organize your work. Try them out and tell me if they work for you! Quiet Down! Hush (Mac): temporarily silences your Mac’s system alerts so you can work without getting distracted by popup windows or chiming notifications. This one's great for quieting your machine when presenting a deck at a meeting or for silencing the Mac for 30-minute work sprints. Shush (Android): does the same thing for your Android phone. Set the timer for 15 minutes or 2 hours or indefinitely, and when the timer runs out, your phone goes back to its default sound settings. No Browsing! TabZolo (Chrome extension): allows you to focus on only one Google Chrome tab, while temporarily hibernating every other open tab. One click restores everything you had open once you decide your work is done. It's a perfect tool if you work within your browser a lot and need to cut out the temptation to check Facebook or Gmail. Fluid (Mac): is a downloadable tool that can turn a web app such as Wrike (or Gmail, or Evernote, etc.) into a standalone OSX desktop app that you can place in the dock. It's almost like an internet shortcut in that one click launches the web app. This cuts down on the possibility of getting sucked into your Twitter feed (though you could always make a Fluid app just for Twitter). Tip: hide the status bar and the toolbar, so you forget you're actually using a browser — fewer chances of typing in a new URL. Write now! OmmWriter (Mac): is a beautifully-designed fullscreen word processor with built-in audio tracks and keyboard typing sound effects. (If you don't like the new-age music or sound effects, turn them off and use your own music.) While the older version was freeware, the current version is now pay-what-you-want (they do have suggested amounts). Although, you can still find the old free version via your favorite search engine. Dark Room (Windows): is a no-distraction writing app for Windows whose appeal lies in having absolutely no bells and whistles. Though, you better enjoy having green text on a black background a la The Matrix. FocusWriter (Mac/Windows/Linux): is an open source (free) writing tool available for Mac, Windows, and Linux! It can do everything Dark Room does, and pretty much everything OmmWriter does (no audio however and it isn't very appealing graphics-wise). But hey, stop complaining: after all it’s open source, and multi-platform. Headphones on! Coffitivity (Mac/Android/iOS): is a simple app that allows you to play three different versions of coffee shop ambience (basically the background sounds of a coffee shop). Some people swear it helps you focus and block out distractions. But if music is more to your liking, read on...8tracks (browser): is a website for listening to (or assembling) playlists of audio tracks of every genre of music imaginable. Do a search for playlists with tags such as "focus+work," "study," or "productivity" to find curated music that may get you in the flow. Or check out our two favorite playlists: Relax to Infinity and Welcome to the Grind. Organize it, process it! Wrike (browser/Android/iOS): our work management tool that can hold everything from your grocery lists to more gargantuan projects involving people from different departments, regions, and even countries. Organizing your work means your tasks can be prioritized, delegated, and assigned. It's also the best place to log all your ideas, and schedule all your project plans. making it the central hub for everything you have to do. What about you? Which apps boost your remote work productivity? Share your suggestions in the comments.
How the Wrike & JIRA Two-Way Sync Streamlines Cross-Team Communication at wiGroup
We spoke with wiGroup, a mobile transaction solutions provider, about their experience with the new Wrike & JIRA Two-Way Sync. Learn how they were able to cut down on update meetings and admin work by integrating JIRA with Wrike.
Go Off the Grid with the New Offline Mode for iOS
With Offline Mode for the Wrike iOS app, you can free yourself from your desk without losing access to your work. So go ahead and switch your phone into airplane mode to avoid angering your flight attendants, we’ve got you covered.
Wrike and Box: a File Collaboration Match Made in The Cloud
When you are fully focused on a task, it’s important to have all the relevant documentation at hand so you don’t have to spend time searching unnecessarily. Today, Wrike is announcing a new and powerful integration with Box, which also includes the launch on Box’s OneCloud, the large mobile cloud platform for the enterprise. When you are fully focused on a task, it’s important to have all the relevant documentation at hand so you don’t have to spend time searching unnecessarily. Today, Wrike is announcing a new and powerful integration with Box, which also includes the launch on Box’s OneCloud, the large mobile cloud platform for the enterprise. Now you can attach files from your Box account right to the tasks in Wrike! Combine that with the existing Google Drive and Dropbox integration, and Wrike becomes your file collaboration paradise. margin: 5px The second part of this feature will especially excite Android users who rely on Box for their work; while working with your documents in Box on your mobile phone, you can easily attach any file to a task in Wrike! Note that if you're an iPhone user, you'll be able to use the new integration a little bit later, when Box releases an updated version of its api. Here’s how it works from Box’s mobile app: Simply click on “open with” on the needed file and choose “Wrike” from the list of apps. You can easily attach it to an existing task or create a new one. This way, you can collaborate simultaneously with your files and tasks right in the cloud!
Synchronize your Google Wave with Wrike Both Ways
Those of you who already tried connecting your Wrike and Google Wave accounts already know how easy, fast and convenient it is to turn your Wave discussions in to tasks with due dates in Wrike. You don’t have to store your project-related information in two different systems. Wrike’s extension to Google Wave seamlessly turns your wave into a task, and your project management software automatically keeps track of all the changes. The feature turned out to be so popular that it also caught the attention of Google Wave developers. They’ve given us a few very helpful tips on how we can make Wrike’s integration with Google Wave even handier. Recently, we added a few enhancements to this feature and are happy to share them with you. Setting task parameters right in the wave We made it simple for you to specify the task details as soon as you turn you wave into a task. When you add Wrike to your new wave, you see a panel, where you can edit your task start date (1), due date (2), status (3), priority (4) and the responsible party (5). 2-Way Synchronization All your task details are synchronized in Wrike and Wave. So if you change something in your wave, the edits are immediately visible to your team members in Wrike. Vice-versa, when you edit your task in Wrike, (for example, add a comment) your comment appears as a new blip in the wave. Easily find your task in the workspace Your wave now has a link to your task in the Wrike workspace, so that you can instantly find it and go directly to this task, if you need to. When you click on the link, you’re automatically redirected to your task in Wrike. These enhancements will save you even more time when you collaborate with your team by using both systems, Wrike and Google Wave. We hope that you enjoy them.
Wrike, Now a Google Apps Authorized Technology Partner
We're honored to announce that Wrike has been named as one of the first Google Apps Authorized Technology Partners. This will enhance our presence in the Google Apps Marketplace. In addition, as Authorized Technology Partners, we'll receive a range of product/technical, marketing, sales, program, relationship, and support benefits from Google. These benefits will ultimately help us provide more value to our mobile users. We're looking forward to working with Google on two fronts: to drive richer product integrations with Google Apps services that create value for our users, and to reach new potential users through the Google Apps Marketplace and other joint go-to-market efforts. We talked to two customers to ask them about how Wrike’s integration with Google Apps has positively affected their workflow: Crescent Sock Company, the oldest operating hosiery mill in the U.S., has been knitting socks for over a century. Using Wrike integrated with Gmail and Google Drive has virtually eliminated the previous hassle of e-mailing dozens of attachments to other team members. Now they just attach the Google Doc to the task. “We’ve had many opportunities to collectively create project plans in a few short hours with Wrike when it previously took several e-mails and days waiting for responses to accomplish similar tasks,” says George Ervin, Business Tech Consultant at Crescent Sock Company. Imaginamos, a web and software development company in Bogotá, Colombia, uses Wrike's integration with Gmail to manage multiple simultaneous projects with ease. "Without leaving our inbox, we can create and assign Wrike tasks directly from email,” says Simon Borrero, Director of Business and Strategy at Imaginamos. "In this way, we can make sure every message is addressed and nothing gets left behind." As a Google Apps Authorized Technology Partner, we’re looking forward to hearing more stories like this, and enabling more organizations to efficiently leverage email and file storage with work management.
Project Management 2.0 for Kindle Users
Many of you probably have already bought a Kindle, Amazon's original wireless reading device, or at least heard about it. I personally love the idea of this device. You don’t have to buy and carry along tons of books you want to read. It’s all there inside of a single gadget, and it is available anytime, anywhere. I’ve already ordered Kindle DX, and I’m in great anticipation of it. Recently, Amazon came up with Kindle Blogs, so now you can subscribe to your favorite blogs for a small fee. I’m excited to announce that the Project Management 2.0 blog is now available though the Kindle Store. So if you already own a Kindle, my thoughts on the latest trends in Enterprise 2.0 and their influence on project management may be auto-delivered wirelessly to your device. Do you have a Kindle? Do you find Kindle Blogs convenient? Please let me know in the comments.
Project and Task Discussions Can Now Be Added Via Email
Project and task discussions are a feature frequently requested by many of our users. We worked hard to create a neat solution that will let you add comments to tasks not only online but also via e-mail. This is a big step forward in project communications, enabling you to leverage the benefits of email and the web interface at full power. Let’s look at the details. Tasks in Wrike' project management workspace now have a special tab called "Discussions" (1). There you can leave your comments (2) with images (3) and attachments (4) to the task and view messages of other team members (5). When you update a task via email by adding [email protected] to the task recipients, Wrike intelligently identifies your comment (6) and adds it to task’s discussions (7). All attachments to the comments are also visible from the "Files" tab (8). This lets you access important project information from both places. How much does the useful upgrade cost you? Nothing! The feature is added to your subscription for free.
Android App Gets New Push Notifications
Wrike has gotten some great new updates to email notifications lately, and we've extended that to our Wrike app for Android™. Enable push notifications for Wrike on your Android device to be instantly notified of task changes. You'll never lose track of project progress. With the update, the Wrike app for Android now gives you more detailed push notifications. It tells you: 1) When a task is assigned to you 2) When you are @mentioned on a task The additional information means you can instantly spot these important changes when scrolling through your task updates. You stay up to date with your workload at all times, and can immediately provide feedback on tasks when you are @mentioned. Stay productive on the go; enable push notifications for your Wrike app for Android and never miss another update.
Wrike iOS App Updated with Dashboards & Starred Folders
Real-time access to your work while on the go has always been the goal of mobile work apps — it's become a necessity with organizations demanding agility and workers using their own mobile devices to get things done. Today we’re happy to announce an update to the Wrike iOS app which will assist you in staying productive from any location.
Wrike Deepens Microsoft Office 365 Integration With Outlook Actionable Messages
work with Wrike projects and tasks without having to leave Office 365, by way of Outlook Actionable Messages. Just officially announced at Microsoft Build 2017, actionable messages enable users to take actions on external applications from within Outlook emails.
51 Chrome Browser Extensions to Amplify Your Productivity
As more and more knowledge work gets done within a browser, and more work tools migrate to the convenience of the cloud, it makes sense to enhance your browser with extensions that help you get work done faster. We've listed these 51 extensions for Google Chrome that will help amplify your productivity.
4 Remote Working Productivity Tips With Microsoft Teams and Wrike
Keeping remote teams connected and productive is more critical than ever during these unprecedented times. Here's how integrating a cloud-based collaboration management platform like Wrike with Microsoft Teams can help.
Accelerate Your Work with New Wrike iOS App
Gaining realtime access to your work from anywhere is a necessity as our companies sprint toward success. Which is why today we're happy to share several big enhancements to our iOS app to help you stay productive and keep work moving forward anytime, anywhere. Visit the App Store today and see it for yourself. Improved speed and performance We've completely rebuilt our iOS app from the ground up to make it both faster and more reliable. If you used the prior version, you'll notice an immediate difference in the performance. Easily manage your work wherever you are We've made it easy to access your to-do list, quickly add new tasks, find existing tasks, add attachments, and read files so you can stay on top of your work from your phone or tablet. A few of the new additions in this release are: My Work: Stay on top of all of your personal to-do items for the day, week, and the coming week, so you never miss an important deadline. Streamlined Task Creation: Create action items on the go, faster. Filters: In addition to powerful search, we've added filters so you can quickly find the tasks you need. Attachments: Need to capture whiteboard diagrams from your brainstorming session? Take a picture directly from a task in the app. The photo will automatically be added as an attachment. You can also attach existing pictures and files from your phone. Improved communications Our new app includes several improvements to help you stay connected with your team. First, it's now easier to see the notifications that matter. With so many app notifications to contend with, it's easy to miss important updates. But we let you control which types of notifications you want pushed to you. Secondly, you told us you wanted more space in the task descriptions and we heard you loud and clear. The new design gives you more space for taking notes or writing detailed project briefs. Added Custom Workflows The iOS app now also includes Custom Workflows*. Any new statuses or workflows you've enabled for your account will be reflected in iOS, so your team will have a consistent experience across the web, Android, and iOS. Beautiful new iPad design This update includes an elegant redesign of the iPad app including the three-pane view you're used to on the web. Plus, the improved navigation lets you easily toggle between folders, tasks, and subtasks, so you can efficiently maneuver through your work. Improved commenting and editing makes it faster to capture notes, update descriptions, and respond to coworkers. Try Wrike on your iPad today — you'll love it more than ever. There's more to come! We're excited to share that this is just the beginning. Over the next few months we'll be adding many more enhancements to the iOS app, including some of our most popular web features, such as Dashboards. Get the Wrike iOS app today! Get our new iOS app today in the App Store. For all of our Android users: get our top rated Android app in the Play Store. *Feature is available for Enterprise users.
Attach Your OneDrive Files Directly to Wrike Tasks With the New Integration
When all your files are in one place instantly accessible for your team, editing and reviewing them becomes much easier and faster. To facilitate your document collaboration Wrike integrates with many well-known cloud storage solutions such as Box, Dropbox, and Google Drive. Today, we've added one more on this list - OneDrive. OneDrive is a popular cloud storage service by Microsoft to keep all your files and pictures online. With our new integration, you can now browse and attach files from OneDrive from any Wrike task saving you time connecting your files and tasks. The new option is available from any Wrike Task when you select the "Attach files" icon. First time you're using this integration, you'll have to connect your OneDrive account to Wrike and grant access. We keep connecting Wrike to your favorite tools so you can manage all your work data in one place. More integrations are coming soon so stay tuned!