Task tracking has streamlined sprint work but complex navigation still needs simplification
What is our primary use case?
My main use case for Asana at my company is that it serves as our task management software. We use Asana to track our targets, tasks, sprints, and everything related to our project workflow. We use Asana for planning sprints and also keeping track of how the tasks are being done.
In a typical sprint or project, when we have a sprint planning meeting or discussion, after that meeting, our team leaders and management personnel go ahead and add the tasks to Asana. We review them to determine what we have to do, and we provide estimates. They check the estimates and add them to Asana. After that, we mainly use Asana as our tracking tool, and Asana usually notifies us when a task is due. We work on those tasks, mark them complete, and whenever we mark them complete, the next team will pick them up if there are any other work needed. Asana also has features such as task blocking, which helps us to have a good idea of what is happening in the company.
About how I use Asana in my work, if we sometimes forget a task, Asana will notify us that we have an overdue task. It will send an email and a notification. In that way, we can make sure nothing is missed.
What is most valuable?
In my opinion, the best features Asana offers are task management and the options it has, such as blocking tasks, adding subtasks, stages, and comments. Those features are really useful for a company like ours.
Out of those features such as subtasks, stages, and comments, I find myself using subtasks the most. Whenever I start a project or get a task in our working field, there is no guarantee that the task will be very simple. Sometimes it can lead to multiple dependencies and multiple other things that we have to do in order to get the task done. Rather than showing it as a single task, the ability to add multiple subtasks into it gives us an ability to show that these things should be done in order to get this main thing done. I am working on this thing, and it will show that as a separate task. That is a really useful feature.
Regarding the task blocking feature, it is also important. If our work is blocked due to someone else's work, such as someone else not having completed a task and because of this we cannot start our task, Asana offers blocking options. There are start-to-end blocks, end-to-end blocks, end-to-start blocks, and start-to-start blocks. Asana has all of these and we can configure them. The other person who is blocking my task will also see that because they have not done their part, I have a blocked task. They will be prompted to work on it immediately. Those situations are very helpful in Asana.
Asana has impacted my organization positively because it manages all the task management. It acts as our task manager. It has saved a lot of time and made things very efficient. We do not have to call other people and ask how something is going or how long they need to complete a task. We do not have to contact everyone to see who is working on something. Asana has everything we need and presents it in a clear view. It has really made our organization very efficient.
What needs improvement?
Asana's UI is a little bit too complex for me. Sometimes I get confused. Sometimes I mis-navigate. Asana is a very complicated product, but if it could offer a different kind of UI for different types of people, that would be better. This UI is good for a power user, but for a normal user who just comes to see what their tasks are, a simplified UI would be more appropriate.
Sometimes the navigation is a little bit clunky. Sometimes I click back on things that I do not want to click back on. Everything else is good, and the UI is the only part that I see could use a little bit of improvement.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Asana for eight months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Asana is stable. The only time that we have seen a downtime in Asana was during the AWS major outage. We cannot blame Asana for that, as it was an AWS fault. Other than that, it has been completely stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Asana's scalability is pretty good because it is cloud-hosted and I know companies with thousands of employees use it. It is pretty scalable. For our requirement, our company is a startup with less than 50 employees, so scalability is not a problem for us. Based on what I have heard, Asana is pretty scalable.
What was our ROI?
In terms of specific outcomes or metrics showing how Asana has improved efficiency or saved time for my team, one thing is that most of the projects that we collaborate on are available to all of us. Previously, people were sending conversations on our company channels or internal communication media, talking about things through long email threads. Currently, we just go ahead and whenever we complete a task, we mark it complete in Asana. If there are any findings or anything else that other people need to know, we put them as comments. Other people will get notifications and they can come and check it. This has saved a lot of hours, especially for developers. They do not need to tell everything out loud. They just have to go and update Asana. This has made their life very easy because developers are people who do not like to talk a lot. So in that regard, this is saving a lot of time.
Because of Asana, we are not having sprint planning meetings very much. That alone has saved us about 10 hours per week. I would estimate that Asana has saved my team around 30 hours per month.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I chose seven out of 10 because previously, I have used a similar product called ClickUp and it has a lot more features. It has chat functionality and document storage built-in. ClickUp is basically a combination of Asana, Slack, and Notion. It is offering a lot of things. Asana is only for project management. If Asana had other features baked in, it might have reduced the need for going to another product for that purpose. Its features are not limited in scope. In the project management scope, it is perfect, but another product can be integrated to it to make sure things are well connected.
What other advice do I have?
My advice for others looking into using Asana is to use it. Whenever someone new joins who does not have experience in Asana, maybe give them a proper introduction or show them some videos because Asana can be too much for a beginner who is starting up. Just guide them on how to use it. I would rate this review a seven out of 10.
Great for Team Planning, But Integration Needs Work
What do you like best about the product?
Ease of use in planning and organizing team projects
What do you dislike about the product?
not the best implementation of flow between jira and asana, it's buggy
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Project management work
Asana all in one place using AI to work faster
What do you like best about the product?
Asana stands out for its clarity in task ownership, which is critical in a manufacturing environment where accountability drives efficiency. Having worked with tools like Monday.com in smaller setups, I’ve seen how shared responsibility can create confusion. Asana’s approach of assigning a single accountable owner for each task, while allowing others to collaborate, ensures there’s no ambiguity about who is responsible for completion. This structure has significantly reduced internal miscommunication and improved workflow in our production and support processes.
What do you dislike about the product?
For new team members, Asana can feel overwhelming because of the multiple views and options available. Some features are tucked away in menus, which takes time to learn. Additionally, built-in reporting and time-tracking could be more robust without relying on third-party integrations, especially for manufacturing projects where tracking time and resource utilization is key. That said, these are minor drawbacks compared to the overall benefits Asana brings to our organization.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
In our manufacturing operations, Asana has helped overcome two major challenges: fragmented communication and lack of historical project data. Now, when we start a new initiative, whether it’s a system upgrade or a process improvement, we can easily reference similar past projects. Templates eliminate repetitive clerical work, so I don’t need to pull my team into discussions about basic details. This means meetings focus on critical decisions and technical issues, while I have all the context needed for planning and execution. It’s streamlined collaboration across IT and production teams.
Customization Powerhouse with Room for Streamlined UI
What do you like best about the product?
I like that Asana has customizing options, such as having multiple display views. It's helpful that our team is able to assign tasks to one another, and the feature to view my own individual tasks instead of as a group is particularly valuable.
What do you dislike about the product?
I find the inbox and my task interface a bit overwhelming and would prefer it to be more simplified. Also, it would be helpful if it could work with Microsoft.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
I use Asana for project workflow management. It keeps track of my daily assignments and lets our team assign tasks to each other. The feature to view my own tasks instead of as a group is really helpful.
Easy Project Organization
What do you like best about the product?
It works, is fairly simple to use. Also it actually does what it says, and helps organise projects etc.
What do you dislike about the product?
Some things could be better explained or more intuitive. Could also make it more feature rich on free tier.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Helping keep all info on all projects in one place, east to see, understand, and ise.
Great Features, Mild Learning Curve
What do you like best about the product?
I use Asana for project management and organizing workflows. I like all the features and possibilities it offers. The integrations are great too, especially multihoming, Google Drive, and Slack, because of their ease of use. I think Asana is really great because it is not overly complicated, so it doesn't overwhelm me like ClickUp does.
What do you dislike about the product?
I find there's a learning curve with Asana. On a scale from 1-10, I'd say it's about a 6, which means it takes some effort to get used to, but it's worth it in the end.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Asana helps my team stay on the same page, enhancing project management and organizational workflows.
Great Automation for Deadlines, But Collaboration Needs Work
What do you like best about the product?
Automation features in determining task deadlines
What do you dislike about the product?
Collaboration features and notifications features
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Allows us to streamline projects and work
Smooth Team Communication with a Clean Interface
What do you like best about the product?
I use Asana for workflows and managing team workflows and I like the easy team communication it offers. It has a good interface and project portfolio feature, with AI updates. Asana provides a clean interface and AI updates and offers connected integrations, which enhance team communication.
What do you dislike about the product?
I find that it could be more colorful, with options to change colors and backgrounds.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
I use Asana for easy team communication and managing workflows. The clean interface, project portfolio features, and AI updates enhance communication and workflow management.
Keeps Me Organized, But Interface Can Be Overwhelming
What do you like best about the product?
it helps me to keep everything organized and keep me on schedule.
What do you dislike about the product?
the interface can be a bit overwhelming at times.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
asana solves the workflow problem. i am able to see what the people above me and below me in the company are doing.
Easy to Use, But more unicorns
What do you like best about the product?
I like how straightforward it is to use, and communicate with my team.
What do you dislike about the product?
I don't like when I complete a task, and there is not one of the little unicorn characters. I look forward to those.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Our manager is able to address her internal staff more directly, rather than getting lost in external emails
