Good task management software for a small business should show what needs to be done, who is responsible and where decisions have been recorded. For a team of 5-15 people, ease of day-to-day use, access control and a predictable pricing model are just as important.
A team of 5-15 people needs order, not complex administration
Imagine a company that started with five people. The owner knew about every current matter, and all decisions fitted into a spreadsheet and a few conversations. After hiring more people, the company now runs several projects at once, tasks move between departments, and one person's absence makes it difficult to find past decisions.
This does not mean such a team needs a system with dozens of forms. The software should shorten the path from decision to completion. When employees open the application, they should be able to find their tasks, due dates and new messages.
Example: nine people work at the Nord company. Ola is responsible for marketing, Marek for sales, and Magda prepares website designs. Each of them should see their own work, but the owner also needs an overview of the available projects. This is a useful scenario to recreate when testing a tool.
1. A task should contain all the necessary information
A task name and due date alone are not enough. A task should include a description, responsible people, a priority, a status and a conversation about its completion. This prevents the question “where did we agree on those changes?” from leading to a search through emails and messaging apps.
In Task Manager, a task can have one of four states: no status, in progress, done or cancelled. You can assign people, set a priority and a due date with or without a time, and have a conversation below the description.
System messages in the thread record changes to the status, due date, priority and name, as well as people being assigned or removed. This is not a complete log of every operation, but it lets you review the most important changes affecting the completion of the task.
A to-do list in the description is also useful. The team can tick off items without opening the editor, see a progress bar and check who marked an item as complete. The Tasks feature page shows more options.
2. Projects and departments need to be kept separate
Over time, one shared list becomes difficult to navigate. Marketing does not need to see every sales task, and someone working on a client's website should not have to browse administrative matters.
In Task Manager, you divide work into Workspaces, such as “Marketing”, “New website” and “Sales”. Each Workspace groups tasks and chats and has its own set of members and permissions. The “Everything” item shows tasks and chats from all Workspaces available to the user at once.
This structure should reflect how the company actually works. If you handle many short jobs, a Workspace can represent a department, while tasks can represent individual jobs. If you have a few larger projects, a separate Workspace for each project can make navigation easier. The Workspaces page explains how to organise them.
3. Due dates should be visible without opening every task
Task management software should immediately distinguish between overdue items, items due today and those planned for later. If you only see the due date after opening the details, the manager still has to check tasks one by one.
In Task Manager, due date colours follow the same rules in the list, on the Board, in the Calendar List panel and for tasks shown in the calendar grid. Red means the task is overdue, blue means it is due today, green means it is on schedule, and grey means it has no due date or is closed. Above the list are counters that also work as filters.
The Notification Centre brings together information about tasks, conversations, mentions and events, among other things. It can send reminders before an event or task due date, keeping scheduled items visible in one place.
4. Different views should use the same task cards
Not everyone plans their work in the same way. The owner may need an overview list, a designer may prefer a column layout, and someone working with clients may need an hourly schedule. Switching views should not mean creating separate copies of tasks.
In Task Manager, you will find the same task cards in the list, on the Board and in the Calendar List panel, while tasks with due dates also appear in the calendar grid. The Board shows Workspaces as columns, and clicking a card opens its thread.
The Calendar has 1, 2, 3, 5 and 7-day views and a separate List panel. The grid primarily displays time-related items, including tasks with due dates and events. The List panel, meanwhile, is used to browse task and chat cards without limiting them to items placed in the hourly grid.
Due dates can be changed by dragging items in the Calendar. The view does not create a new task - it shows the due date of an existing card.
During the test, ask three people to complete the same scenario: find a task, check its due date and add a decision. Each person can use their preferred view while working with the same data, without creating copies of tasks.
5. The conversation should stay with the relevant item
A task management application will not solve the problem if decisions are still made exclusively in private messaging apps. After a week, only the title remains in the task, while the context is known only to the person who took part in the conversation.
It is worth separating two types of communication. A task is for an item that has an outcome, responsible people and, potentially, a due date. A chat is for questions and decisions without a status or completion date. In Task Manager, both types of conversation belong to a Workspace and support messages, reactions, mentions, quotes and attachments.
A good rule is to transfer the outcome of a conversation to a task. If the chat established that Magda would prepare the mock-up by Thursday, a task should be created with Magda assigned and a due date set. The chat remains the place for discussion, while the task describes the commitment.
6. Permissions should reflect how the company works
A small business does not need a complex role matrix, but it should not operate on the principle that “everyone can see everything”. The software should distinguish between administrators and users and allow access to be granted to specific Workspaces.
In Task Manager, regular users can only see the Workspaces they have access to. Permissions are set separately for each Workspace. You can appoint a Workspace administrator and specify who is allowed to add tasks and chats. Deactivating an account preserves its existing data and frees up a licence seat.
During the trial, test the software from the perspective of a regular user, not just an administrator. The user should be able to find a task, due date and reply field without having access to unrelated projects or company settings.
7. Check where your data will be stored
If you are considering software hosted by the provider, compare it with an installation on your own server as well. Where tasks, conversations and attachments are stored may be one of your key selection criteria.
Task Manager is installed on the client's server. The application files and database are stored on the client's hosting, and shared hosting with PHP and MySQL or MariaDB may be sufficient to run it. You can find technical details on the Installed on your own server page.
The software works without AI. If a company connects the AI Assistant, it uses its own OpenAI, Google Gemini, Anthropic Claude or xAI Grok key. The request and the necessary context are then sent to the selected model provider, and the company pays that provider directly for usage.
8. Calculate the cost over the entire period of use
Do not compare only the initial fee. Check whether the software is billed monthly, annually or as a one-off payment, how the number of users is calculated and how the cost will change as your team grows.
Task Manager charges a one-off fee based on the number of seats and includes a perpetual licence for version 2.x. It does not charge a monthly subscription for each user. A team of 5-8 people fits within the Starter plan, while a team of 9-15 people fits within the Classic plan. The licence terms are described on the Perpetual licence page.
Calculate at least three scenarios: your current headcount, your planned headcount in one year's time and the cost of using the software for three years. Also include any additional services the company actually intends to use.
Selection worksheet: eight questions for each tool
During testing, enter your answers in a single table. Each row corresponds to one of the eight criteria described above.
| Criterion | Question to check | Expected result | Warning sign |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Complete task | Does a single task include a description, due date, people, status and conversation? | The full context is kept in a single thread | Decisions have to be recorded in another tool |
| 2. Division of work | Can projects and departments be separated and their members specified? | Users can see the Workspaces related to their work | Everyone can see the company's entire list |
| 3. Due dates | Can you see overdue tasks and tasks due today without opening their details? | The due date and its status are visible on the card | Tasks have to be checked one by one |
| 4. Views | Do the list, Board and Calendar use the same cards? | Changing the view does not create copies of the data | Each view requires a separate entry |
| 5. Communication | Do the conversation, mentions and attachments remain with the relevant item? | Decisions can be reviewed in the task or chat | The context remains in a private messaging app |
| 6. Permissions | Can a user without configuration access find the task, due date and reply field? | Access matches the user's projects, and everyday features are easy to find | The user can see unrelated projects or needs administrator permissions |
| 7. Data storage | Where are the application files, database and attachments stored? | The answer is clear and meets the company's requirements | The provider does not explain where the data is stored |
| 8. Cost | What is the cost for the current team, a larger team and three years of use? | The pricing model makes it possible to calculate every scenario | The cost after adding more people is unclear |
A practical test is to move one real project. Add five tasks, assign three people, set two due dates, add a few messages and review the plan in the Calendar. The next day, check whether you can identify the status of the work, the people responsible and the latest changes without any additional explanation.
Choose software your team will open every morning
Task management software for a small business should eliminate the need to remember, chase people for updates and search for decisions. If you want to explore Workspaces, tasks, chats, the Board, Calendar and Notification Centre using sample data, open the Demo.
Frequently asked questions
Which task management software should you choose for a company with 5-15 employees?
Choose a tool that combines tasks, accountability, due dates and conversations, while allowing you to separate projects or departments. Also check permissions, where the data is stored and the cost for your planned number of employees.
Is a spreadsheet with a task list enough for a small business?
A spreadsheet may be enough for a small number of simple items. When you need conversations, notifications, permissions and multiple views, as well as a record of changes to status, due date, priority, name and assignees, task management software can provide a clearer overview of the work.
Does every employee need to see every task?
No. Access is best granted by project or department. In Task Manager, users can see the Workspaces they have been assigned to, while members and permissions are configured separately for each Workspace.
Does Task Manager work without the AI Assistant?
Yes. Tasks, chats, Workspaces, Board, Calendar and notifications work without connecting an AI model. The company can configure its chosen provider later using its own key.
How do you get started with task management software?
Start with one team and one real project. Create Workspaces, invite users and move a few current tasks instead of trying to recreate the company's entire history straight away. This first-week plan will help.
Sources
The Task Manager Team - we write about teamwork, AI in business and keeping tasks organised, using examples from Task Manager, software installed on your own server. Task Manager has been developed by Blue Creation Group (Piotr Łącz) since 2013 and is used by organisations including Neonet, the Military University of Technology and Polpharma - read customer reviews. We check our articles against the user guide and the latest version of the software.
