OrangeSprocket adds color with Clarizen's Online Project Management Software

Nestled in a quiet part of the world, in a valley that stretches far and wide, you will find a quaint little shop where Sprockets toil and something fresh is always afoot. Imagine a place where ideas have no boundaries and creativity flows like sweet orange wine. You are in OrangeSprocket country.

OrangeSprocket, based in New Brunswick, Canada develops branding and interactive design experiences that leave a lasting impression. They provide the ultimate experience, creating more meaningful relationships between its clients and their customers. Their work includes website and promotional micro-sites, user interface, rich media learning destinations, direct marketing and collateral design.

OrangeSprocket has worked with some of the most recognized brands in the world. They’ve poured their blend of sweet goodness for the likes of Coke, Symantec, Nikki Beach, SkillSoft, Salesforce.com, The Nature Conservancy and Chalk Media to name but a few.

As a result of its expertise in interactive and digital creative, the company has seen significant increase in business over the past few years. In addition, projects have grown in complexity – some spanning over 12 months or more. Hence OrangeSprocket knew it needed to deploy a more effective project management system to ensure it could continue to deliver these projects on time and on budget. It was critical for them to exceed customer expectations despite high growth while keeping headcount and resources under control. 

“We briefly evaluated Microsoft Project but immediately realized that its desktop model was counter intuitive to how we work and interact with each other”, said Bill McGrath, Chief Executive of OrangeSprocket. “Our team is made up of creative designers who rely heavily on collaboration, brainstorming, simple solutions and easy instant access to information. Close collaboration on multiple projects is a part of our daily work flow. So we could not dream of using any project solution that did not embody collaboration between team members. Using Microsoft Project in a creative environment is like stealing a child’s crayons.  As a result, we took one look at MS Project and decided not to use it”. Some of the other solutions uncovered were either too expensive to justify or their functionality and usability were too complicated.  Basecamp supported document collaboration, but their solution did not provide the basic project management requirements that OrangeSprocket needed such as scheduling detailed tasks with start and end dates and support for milestones. A Google search led them to Clarizen.  “In a short trial we discovered that Clarizen contained all the key capabilities we needed, as well as a very intuitive interface. Finally the Gods have spoken and Clarizen be thy name! We decided to use their On-Demand solution for managing our client projects. After we signed the contract, Clarizen offered

several times to setup training sessions for our staff but we really felt we didn’t need it. It was that simple to use and easy to understand”.

All project team members (Sprockets) use Clarizen’s project mail capability to update the progress of their tasks via email. This enables project managers (creative leads) to stay on top of their projects, while eliminating the need for lengthy 1:1 meetings to obtain project status. In addition, project managers get alerts from Clarizen any time a task is expected to be late, so they can proactively address issues and bring projects back on course. Such capabilities have given the team a better handle on their projects and have made them more accountable to each other.

At OrangeSprocket, team members often switch gears several times during the day as they move between projects, something easily accomplished within the Clarizen dashboard. Clarizen’s ability to attach relevant documents or notes at the discrete task level keeps team members on the same page in terms of schedule, dependencies, assumptions, requirements, customer comments and scope, even as they switch context between different customer projects. Ability to present comprehensive information at-a-glance, along with the unique dashboard and Roadmap features, ensures that projects are indeed executed on time and budget.

“Since subscribing to Clarizen, just months ago, we have already experienced reduced project cycle times, increased customer satisfaction and a boost in employee engagement and productivity all of which translate directly to our bottom line. Can’t argue with the numbers!” said McGrath.