Kantata vs Polaris PSA

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Our analysts compared Kantata vs Polaris PSA based on data from our 400+ point analysis of PSA Software, user reviews and our own crowdsourced data from our free software selection platform.

Product Basics

Kantata (formerly Kimble PSA) is a sophisticated software solution designed primarily for professional services automation (PSA), adept at managing tasks, resources, and projects efficiently. It is particularly well-suited for agencies, consulting firms, and service organizations seeking to streamline operations and enhance project delivery. One of the key benefits of Kantata is its ability to provide real-time insights into project performance, profitability, and resource utilization, enabling businesses to make informed decisions quickly. Among its popular features are project management, time tracking, invoicing, and financial management, all integrated into a user-friendly interface. When compared to similar products, users often highlight Kantata's comprehensive feature set and its flexibility in adapting to various business processes as significant advantages. Pricing for Kantata typically follows a subscription model, with costs varying based on the number of users and the specific features required, making it adaptable to both small and large organizations looking for scalable solutions.
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Polaris PSA streamlines professional services workflows for project-based businesses. Its core strength lies in automating administrative tasks like time tracking, invoicing, and project reporting, freeing up valuable time for client work. While ideal for agencies of all sizes, it particularly caters to those juggling multiple projects and juggling complex client billing structures. Users praise its intuitive interface, powerful reporting tools, and seamless integrations with popular accounting software. Compared to similar offerings, Polaris PSA stands out for its focus on scalability and customization, allowing businesses to tailor the platform to their specific needs. Pricing follows a tiered model based on the number of users and project complexity, ensuring cost-effectiveness for growing companies.

Pros
  • Intuitive interface
  • Comprehensive features
  • Strong integrations
  • Robust reporting
  • Reliable support
Cons
  • Steeper learning curve
  • Occasional bugs
  • Limited customization
  • Higher pricing
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$45/User, Monthly
Get a free price quote
Tailored to your specific needs
$49/User, Monthly
Get a free price quote
Tailored to your specific needs
Small 
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Small 
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Windows
Mac
Linux
Android
Chromebook
Windows
Mac
Linux
Android
Chromebook
Cloud
On-Premise
Mobile
Cloud
On-Premise
Mobile

Product Assistance

Documentation
In Person
Live Online
Videos
Webinars
Documentation
In Person
Live Online
Videos
Webinars
Email
Phone
Chat
FAQ
Forum
Knowledge Base
24/7 Live Support
Email
Phone
Chat
FAQ
Forum
Knowledge Base
24/7 Live Support

Product Insights

  • Team-Centric: Adjust around crucial processes to guarantee recurring and thriving project execution. The software offers project collaboration ensuing enhanced agility and customer satisfaction. 
  • Offers Guidance: Users are guided to make informed decisions that defend profitability and streamline resource usage from the data Kantata collects. 
  • Flexibility: Scale with business growth and adapt to the market. The cloud-based software is wholly configurable and the open API layer allows integration for a wide range of applications. 
  • Training Services: Users are offered training services as part of the integration process. Training sessions are utilized as the basis of end-user material that's tailored specifically to a user's organization. 
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  • Enhanced Project Visibility and Control: Gain real-time insights into project status, resource allocation, budgets, and timelines. Identify potential risks and bottlenecks early on, allowing for proactive adjustments and course corrections to ensure projects stay on track and within budget.
  • Improved Resource Utilization and Optimization: Effectively match the right people with the right projects based on skills, availability, and workload. Streamline time tracking and approval processes to ensure accurate billing and payroll. Optimize resource allocation to maximize productivity and efficiency.
  • Streamlined Financial Management and Reporting: Automate invoicing, billing, and revenue recognition processes, reducing errors and accelerating cash flow. Generate comprehensive financial reports and analytics to track project profitability, identify trends, and make informed business decisions.
  • Boosted Collaboration and Teamwork: Foster seamless communication and collaboration among project teams, clients, and stakeholders through centralized project information, shared workspaces, and real-time updates. Break down silos and enhance knowledge sharing to improve decision-making and project outcomes.
  • Enhanced Customer Satisfaction and Retention: Deliver projects on time and within budget, while maintaining high levels of quality and customer satisfaction. Establish a single source of truth for project information, fostering transparency and trust with clients. Strengthen client relationships and increase the likelihood of repeat business.
  • Data-Driven Insights for Strategic Decision-Making: Leverage the power of real-time data and analytics to uncover actionable insights, identify areas for improvement, and make informed strategic decisions. Improve project outcomes, optimize resource utilization, and drive overall business growth.
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  • Plan Accordingly: The foresight analytics accessory allows teams to plot future business performances. It also aids operational teams in managing routine resourcing and project management. 
  • Model Projects: Users can employ the proposal modeler tool on future projects to evaluate profitability with precision. Extensive project plans gauge components such as resource efforts, margins and expenses. 
  • Maintain Resources: The resource planning feature allows users to pinpoint the required skills and available resources for projects. It also offers accurate scenarios to maximize resources. 
  • Varying Modes of Delivery: Users can utilize various delivery methods, such as waterfall, agile and more, to give up-to-date expected efforts, costs and margins. The intelligent insights component detects risks and issues early so users can promptly take action. 
  • Generate Accurate Invoices: The billing engine element assures users that all revenues are invoiced in real-time to magnify cash flow and deplete debt. Invoices can be drafted with either step-by-step or batch processing. 
  • Build Customer Relationships: Users can use the CRM module to improve outcomes and forge stronger relationships with their clientele by connecting and partnering with them during project deliveries.  
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  • Live Intelligence: Harvest live information through its SmartBeats interface that provides a 360 degree view of how actions impact business. Visualize and filter data within MissionControl and display recommendations relevant to a user’s role. 
  • Project Management: Reference historical metrics to create pipelines and budgets for new clients. Oversee beats in each stage or improve collaboration with instant updates and feedback. Push notifications to manage project statuses and expenses. 
  • Financial Forecasting: Track resource costs, billing rates and finance benchmarks using SmartBudget. Simulate prices, revenue and other factors to strategically bid on accounts. 
  • Client Management: Organize customers, vendors, funding institutions or sales partners under the client entity. Share workload reports and presentations to define project metrics. Deliver account support in the consolidated view to assess project recommendations, billing and client profiles. 
  • Governance:  Achieve compliance by setting validation rules for forms and attachments. Simplify complex workflows by creating checklists and forming breakdown structures to monitor process adherence. Adapt to users in different time zones, currencies and languages. 
  • Time and Expense Tracking: Create customized or pre-populated timesheets for faster submission. Track time and expenses from a desktop or mobile device with built-in GPS tracking and geofencing capabilities. Enable automatic approvals, upload receipts or manage availability and budgets. 
  • Resource Allocation: Configure dimensional reports to determine availability and pinpoint underutilized resources. Reduce training time and create positions based on skills needed or assign placeholders to account for pending projects. Leverage the recommendation engine Smartmatch to analyze talent and recommend applicants based on skill rating to expedite hiring efforts. 
  • Billing and Invoicing: Create rate structures to accommodate versatile contracts and eliminate invoice discrepancies. Offer flexible billing plans specific to the user level, role or other combinations. Manage invoices, track delinquencies and monitor financial health in real-time. 
  • Integrations: Connect platforms like Slack, Microsoft Teams and Quickbooks for seamless workflows. Increase revenue and engagement with the use of its open APIs. 
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Product Ranking

#6

among all
PSA Software

#15

among all
PSA Software

Find out who the leaders are

Analyst Rating Summary

88
88
100
58
100
100
89
89
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Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Dashboard and Reporting
Project Financials
Resource Management
Project Management
Dashboard and Reporting
Project Financials
Resource Management
Time and Expense Management
Platform Capabilities

Analyst Ratings for Functional Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

Kantata
Polaris PSA
+ Add Product + Add Product
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Dashboard And Reporting Mobile Capabilities Platform Capabilities Project Collaboration Project Financials Project Management Resource Management Time And Expense Management 100 100 89 82 80 100 93 100 88 58 100 89 93 87 100 85 100 100 0 25 50 75 100
100%
0%
0%
27%
0%
73%
100%
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100%
0%
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80%
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20%
80%
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20%
80%
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20%
93%
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7%
80%
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80%
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20%
100%
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100%
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92%
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8%
83%
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17%
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89%
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11%
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Analyst Ratings for Technical Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

75%
0%
25%
70%
0%
30%

User Sentiment Summary

Great User Sentiment 383 reviews
Excellent User Sentiment 202 reviews
85%
of users recommend this product

Kantata has a 'great' User Satisfaction Rating of 85% when considering 383 user reviews from 3 recognized software review sites.

92%
of users recommend this product

Polaris PSA has a 'excellent' User Satisfaction Rating of 92% when considering 202 user reviews from 2 recognized software review sites.

4.3 (346)
n/a
4.28 (21)
n/a
3.7 (16)
4.6 (198)
n/a
5.0 (4)

Awards

SelectHub research analysts have evaluated Kantata and concluded it earns best-in-class honors for Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Project Management.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Award
Project Management Award

SelectHub research analysts have evaluated Polaris PSA and concluded it earns best-in-class honors for Time and Expense Management. Polaris PSA stands above the rest by achieving an ‘Excellent’ rating as a User Favorite.

User Favorite Award
Time and Expense Management Award

Synopsis of User Ratings and Reviews

On-Par Customer Support: Approximately 94% of users say Kantata's customer support and/or designated software expert is efficient in providing resources and troubleshooting issues.
Effective Performance: The platform's speed and quality of performance is excellent, as stated by 66% of users.
Flexible: Nearly 80% of users reported Kantata as a flexible solution that is configurable to their business needs.
Features Aplenty: Kantata has an assortment of various accessories to streamline productivity and display the overall health of a project including data and analytics, project overview, time and expense tracking, quote management and more, according to 68% of users.
Useful Mobile App: Precisely 71% of users say the mobile app is proficient with timesheets and the ability to take photos of receipts.
Integratable: Kantata integrates with several programs including Peoplesoft Financials, Sage Intacct and resource management tools, as stated by 73% of users.
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Intuitive Interface: Users consistently praise Polaris PSA's ease of use, even for those without extensive technical backgrounds.
Flexible Customization: The software allows for tailoring to specific workflows and business needs, ensuring a seamless fit within existing processes.
Comprehensive Project Management: Users appreciate the ability to manage all project aspects, from planning and scheduling to resource allocation and budgeting, within a single platform.
Accurate Time Tracking: Polaris excels at capturing billable hours precisely, streamlining timesheet submission and approval processes.
Streamlined Invoicing: Generating accurate invoices based on project data is effortless, leading to faster client billing and improved cash flow.
Robust Reporting: The software provides insightful reports on project performance, resource utilization, profitability, and other key metrics, empowering data-driven decision-making.
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Steep Learning Curve: Kantata's extensive customization options and complex interface can be overwhelming for new users, leading to a prolonged onboarding process and potential frustration.
Resource Management Challenges: Some users find it difficult to effectively manage resources and allocate tasks due to limitations in resource forecasting and scheduling tools.
Reporting Limitations: Generating customized reports or accessing real-time data insights can be cumbersome, requiring manual effort or workarounds.
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Learning Curve: Users report a steeper learning curve compared to simpler PSA tools.
Initial Setup Complexity: Setting up Polaris PSA can be complex for smaller teams or those with limited technical expertise.
Limited Workflow Customization: While flexible, some users find it challenging to tailor the software to highly specialized workflows.
Performance Issues: Users have reported occasional lag or glitches, especially on older hardware or with large datasets.
Software Bugs: While uncommon, some users have encountered bugs that require technical support to resolve.
Pricing Concerns: Polaris PSA's pricing can be higher compared to some basic PSA tools, especially for smaller businesses.
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Overall, users find Kantata a robust PSA program with an extensive amount of features such as quote management, capital management, time and expense tracking, reporting, invoicing, project overview and more. It's configurable, so users may adjust it to fit their business practices. It's built on Salesforce and integrates with Peoplesoft Financials, Sage Intacct and separate resource management applications. Customer support and designated software experts offer helpful troubleshooting techniques and resources. Although the user interface is a bit difficult to master and the implementation process is long, most users believe Kantata is well worth it.

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User reviews for Polaris PSA paint a picture of a powerful, albeit demanding, PSA tool. Many praise its intuitiveness and flexibility, with one user calling it "a breath of fresh air compared to clunky legacy systems." It stands out in its comprehensive project management, effortlessly handling everything from planning to billing within one platform. Another user loved "ditching the patchwork of apps we used before and having everything in Polaris." However, Polaris' learning curve can be steep. "It's not as pick-up-and-play as some simpler tools," admitted a reviewer. The initial setup can also be complex, especially for smaller teams. This complexity, while offering deep customization, led some to feel limited in tailoring it to specific workflows. "We have a unique process, and while Polaris is flexible, it took more work than expected to get it just right," shared one user. Performance isn't always flawless, with occasional lag and bugs reported, particularly on older systems. Despite these hiccups, many appreciate Polaris' robust reporting and data-driven insights, with one user exclaiming, "Finally, we can make informed decisions based on actual data, not just gut feeling!" Ultimately, Polaris PSA shines for its comprehensiveness and power, but demands investment in training and setup. Users often compare it to Asana or Monday.com, finding it more robust but less user-friendly. If you're a growing team seeking a one-stop PSA solution with deep customization and powerful reporting, Polaris is worth a look. Just be prepared to dedicate some time to mastering its intricacies.

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Screenshots

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