SoftwareGlimpse
CRM capabilities

Project management Reporting & dashboards capability

Dashboards, portfolio reports, and progress analytics for managers.

Educational diagram of project management reporting & dashboards capability.
Reporting & dashboards as buyers should evaluate it in a productivity stack — not a product endorsement.

At a glance

  • Primary goal

    Trusted manager visibility

  • Typical team

    Ops, project managers, agencies, and delivery teams

  • Priorities

    Live dashboards · Portfolio views · Exports · Plan gates

  • CRM options shown

    9 products to explore

Fit snapshot

Overview

Reporting turns live work data into dashboards managers can review weekly without rebuilding slides from scratch.

  • Live dashboards
  • Portfolio views
  • Exports
  • Plan gates
  • Review ritual

Who this is for

Managers and ops leads running delivery reviews.

Real-world examples

How teams put CRM to work for reporting

  • 1

    Example 1

    Monday reviews start from a stuck-items dashboard.

  • 2

    Example 2

    portfolio health is visible without exporting to sheets.

Challenges in reporting

These are the operating problems that usually push teams toward CRM for reporting — not feature wish lists.

  • Capability missing or gated

    Without CRM discipline: Teams discover the feature only after buying the wrong plan.

  • Capability unused after launch

    Without CRM discipline: Adoption fails and status drifts.

  • Too much noise

    Without CRM discipline: Notifications and views overwhelm contributors.

  • Wrong job cluster

    Without CRM discipline: A specialist tool is forced to act like a work OS (or the reverse).

How CRM helps with reporting

A CRM only helps when the team keeps owners, history, and next steps current. Here is what “good” looks like for reporting.

  • Capability missing or gated

    With CRM discipline: Map must-haves to the qualifying plan before purchase.

  • Capability unused after launch

    With CRM discipline: Trial with a real workflow and a sceptic user.

  • Too much noise

    With CRM discipline: Configure for the weekly ritual you will keep.

  • Wrong job cluster

    With CRM discipline: Keep specialists on landscape decision paths.

Outcomes teams aim for

  • Clearer operating loop

    The capability supports a weekly ritual people keep.

  • Less rework

    Status and handoffs need fewer manual chases.

  • Honest fit

    Buyers stop comparing across unrelated job clusters.

What matters for reporting

Check dashboard depth on the plan you will buy and whether reports stay live.

  • 1

    Live dashboards

    Live dashboards as a buying lens for this capability.

  • 2

    Portfolio views

    Portfolio views as a buying lens for this capability.

  • 3

    Exports

    Exports as a buying lens for this capability.

What reporting usually needs

Start with must-haves your team will use weekly. Treat nice-to-haves as later upgrades — not day-one blockers.

Diagram mapping reporting & dashboards pains to project management capability fixes.
What usually breaks around reporting & dashboards — and how this capability helps.

Must-have

  • Available on target plan

    Confirm gates before you commit.

  • Trialable in two weeks

    Evidence from a real workflow.

Nice-to-have

  • Depth beyond marketing copy

    Native behaviour for your stack.

A practical reporting workflow

A simple operating loop beats a complex board nobody updates.

Workflow diagram for using reporting & dashboards in project management.
A practical operating loop for reporting & dashboards.
  1. 1

    Confirm must-have

    Write the weekly outcome this capability must enable.

  2. 2

    Check plan gates

    Confirm the quoted tier unlocks it.

  3. 3

    Trial it

    Run one real workflow for several days.

  4. 4

    Review adoption

    Keep only what people actually use.

See how CRM products implement this workflow

Broader capability workflow demos for reporting — distinct from narrow feature walkthroughs.

  • Smartsheet: Smartsheet Overview
▶ Watch official workflow demos

See reporting in action

Official vendor demonstrations help show how different CRM platforms approach the workflows, features and interactions that make up reporting. Absence of a video does not mean a product lacks the capability.

  • Smartsheet logo

    Smartsheet

    Smartsheet Overview

    Focus: How Smartsheet presents the product in an official vendor video.

    Official vendor video

    This video is hosted on YouTube

    This content is hosted by YouTube. The player loads only after you allow marketing cookies.

    Smartsheet Overview

    What this shows

    • Smartsheet product surfaces as shown in the official vendor video
    • UI/workflow layout marketed by the vendor

    What to notice

    • Official vendor demo — treat as UI/workflow evidence, not SoftwareGlimpse scoring.

    What this does not establish

    • pricing
    • comparative superiority
    • security or compliance certification
    • implementation effort or total cost of ownership

    Features visible in this demo

    Source: Smartsheet · Verified 18 Aug 2026

View all capability evidence →

How products approach reporting & dashboards

Evidence-backed workflow comparison using official vendor demos and screenshots — not a ranking or entertainment gallery. Absence of media does not mean a product lacks the capability.

  • Smartsheet logo

    Smartsheet

    Official video

    Smartsheet Overview

    Open source ↗
    • Confirm must-haveNot shown
    • Check plan gatesNot shown
    • Trial itNot shown
    • Review adoptionNot shown

    Smartsheet emphasizes

    • Smartsheet product surfaces as shown in the official vendor video
    • UI/workflow layout marketed by the vendor

Common scenarios

  • Best when

    Work OS buyer

    Shared ownership and multi-view planning are the job.

  • Best when

    Specialist buyer

    Timeline slides, PDFs, remote access, or desktop shells are the job.

How to evaluate this capability

  1. 1

    Confirm this capability is a must-have

    Learn more →
  2. 2

    Map it to seats and plan gates

    Learn more →
  3. 3

    Test it in a shared trial

    Learn more →
  4. 4

    Compare researched platforms

    Best project management →

Read the full CRM buying guide →

CRM software to explore

Catalogue products tagged to related use cases for reporting & dashboards. Inclusion here is not a ranking.

monday.com logo

Project Management

Work OS / work management platform with boards, timelines, automations and AI credits — Basic from $9/seat/mo annual (3-seat minimum).

Hive logo

Project Management

Work management platform with free plan (≤10 members) and Teams from $12/user/mo annual — strong monday.com peer.

Office Timeline logo

Project Management

PowerPoint-native timeline / Gantt specialist (now Lucen Timeline) — Free add-in; Lite from $9/user/mo annual.

Asana logo

Project Management

Cross-functional work management with goals, workflows and AI Studio — Starter from $10.99/user/mo annual.

ClickUp logo

Project Management

All-in-one configurable Work OS (tasks, docs, dashboards, ClickUp Brain) — Unlimited from $7/user/mo annual.

Jira logo

Project Management

Atlassian Agile issue tracker for software teams — Free ≤10; Standard from ~$8.15/user/mo annual.

Notion logo

Project Management

Docs-first workspace with databases and light project tracking — Plus from $10/user/mo annual; AI on Business.

Smartsheet logo

Project Management

Spreadsheet-style work management with Gantt, portfolios and automation — Pro from $9/member/mo annual.

Wrike logo

Project Management

Enterprise/agency work management with proofing, intake and resourcing — Team from $10/user/mo annual.

Loading evidence explorer…

FAQ

  • Is there one best platform for reporting & dashboards?

    No. Fit depends on your primary productivity job (work OS vs timeline slides vs PDF vs remote access vs desktop workspace), seat count, and which requirements are must-haves. Use the Best Project Management shortlist and requirements guide rather than starting from a single ranking.

  • How does this relate to CRM capabilities?

    CRM capabilities store relationships and pipeline on records. Project management capabilities plan and track internal work — often integrating with chat, files, and CRM. Buy for the productivity job that is blocking first.

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