What it does well
Familiar, quick to get started and no additional solution needed. For a few projects and a small team, a well-maintained list is often enough.
Compared
PlainPPM compared
When you look for a project portfolio management solution, you usually compare it with what you already have. Here you can see what the most common alternatives do well, where they reach their limits and what PlainPPM does differently.
At a glance
The alternatives in one table.
| Alternative | Strengths | Limitations | PlainPPM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Excel and SharePoint | A few projects, a small team, a quick start | As more people get involved, maintaining, reconciling and reporting turns into a full-time job | A ready-made structure in your Microsoft 365, with further development and maintenance by us |
| Planner Premium | Planning individual projects: tasks, dates, timeline | No layer for ideas, portfolio and resources across all projects | Uses Planner for planning and adds ideas, portfolio, resources and reports |
| Jira and monday.com | Agile software teams, flexible teamwork | Separate platform, separate login, data outside your Microsoft 365 | Runs in your own Microsoft 365 tenant, with no additional data silo |
| Project Online | Long the Microsoft standard for PPM | Discontinued by Microsoft on September 30, 2026 | Built on the current Microsoft 365 services |
| Other solutions on Microsoft 365 | Extensive functionality for large organizations | Take a close look at billing, language and implementation effort | One annual package for the entire organization, a lean standard, extensible exactly where you need it |
Built in-house
Excel and SharePoint, built in-house
Where it reaches its limits
As soon as more people get involved or resources become scarce, maintaining lists, reconciling data and reporting quickly becomes a full-time job. And a custom build on the Power Platform also needs someone to develop and maintain it.
What PlainPPM does differently
PlainPPM also runs in your Microsoft 365, but comes with a ready-made structure: evaluate and approve ideas, see all projects at a glance, plan resources and get reports in Power BI. We take care of further development and maintenance.
Microsoft
Microsoft Planner Premium on its own
What it does well
Planner Premium is strong at planning individual projects: tasks, dates and timeline, right in Microsoft 365.
Where it reaches its limits
Everything above the individual project needs an additional layer: evaluating and approving ideas consistently, planning resources across all projects and steering the portfolio as a whole.
What PlainPPM does differently
PlainPPM uses Planner for planning and adds exactly this layer: ideas, portfolio, resources and reports. Planner remains the tool your project teams work with.
Separate platforms
Jira and monday.com
What it does well
Jira is strong for agile software teams. monday.com is a flexible work platform for many kinds of teamwork.
Where it reaches its limits
Both are separate platforms with their own contract, their own login and their own data storage outside your Microsoft 365. Jira isn’t built for a classic PMO with resources, costs and programs.
What PlainPPM does differently
PlainPPM runs in your own Microsoft 365 tenant: no additional data silo, no extra vendor for your project data and the familiar Microsoft experience for everyone involved.
Successor
Project Online
Microsoft discontinued Project Online on September 30, 2026. That’s why many organizations are looking for a successor.
What it did well
For many years, Project Online was the Microsoft standard for project and portfolio management, and it was very powerful.
Where it reached its limits
It was complex to set up and use, and it formed a separate data silo alongside the rest of Microsoft 365.
What PlainPPM does differently
PlainPPM is built on the current Microsoft 365 services, lives in your tenant and is closer to everyday work in Microsoft 365, for the PMO and project managers alike. We’re happy to discuss your move with you in a demo.
On Microsoft 365
Other PPM solutions on Microsoft 365
What they do well
There are other solutions that, like PlainPPM, are built on Microsoft 365 and the Power Platform, often with extensive functionality for large organizations.
What to look out for
How is it billed: by number of users or as a package? Which language do your teams work in? How much effort does it take until everyone is working with it?
What PlainPPM does differently
No user-based licenses for PlainPPM, but one annual package for your entire organization. A lean standard that you extend exactly where you need it via the Feature Kiosk. Made by DACS in Zurich, in German, and also available in Microsoft’s Swiss cloud.
Compare for yourself
The best way is to see it for yourself.
In a demo, we show you PlainPPM using an example from your day-to-day work, and we’re happy to compare it directly with what you use today.
Book a demoPlan a trial weekView pricing
As of October 2026. Information on other solutions is based on publicly available information from the vendors.
Next step
Get in touch.
Write to us or give us a call. Together we will find the best way for you to get to know PlainPPM.
Christoph Dahlemchristoph.dahlem@dacs-group.com
Adrian Adamadrian.adam@dacs-group.com