FiSCHER: Switching From Trello to MeisterTask (Success Story)

Choosing the task management tool that best suits the needs of your team can have huge benefits to productivity and collaboration. Read on to find out how German battery technology development company FiSCHER has become more productive than ever since switching to MeisterTask from Trello.

FiSCHER is a German battery technology company with over 40 years’ experience in the field of safety lighting, heavy lifting and other electrotechnical services. Task management is an integral part of the company’s digital ecosystem, enabling efficient and flexible collaboration between more than 70 employees. 

In this post, we look at why FiSCHER chose to switch task management tools from Trello to MeisterTask in 2017. We also talk to Axel Fischer, one of the company’s directors, about how using MeisterTask has improved productivity and data security since the change.

Task Management and Digitalization

Digitalization in general and digital task management in particular are hot topics in an increasingly-remote business environment. However, as early adopters of Trello, FiSCHER was a step ahead of the curve as early as 2012. Company director Axel Fischer remembers the process that led to implementing the software:

At first, we were looking for a task management solution to meet the needs of corporate management. The capabilities of Microsoft Outlook and SharePoint weren’t really sufficient at the time. We also looked at Wunderlist, but it did not provide the overview we were looking for.

Digitalizing task management with a dedicated Kanban tool allowed for a clear overview of task status, even while team members were out of the office. “Remote working and home office have been part of our company culture for over 10 years now,” says Fischer. “It was therefore especially important for us to find a tool that would work on mobile devices and facilitate working on the go.”

Security Matters: Switching from Trello to MeisterTask

While FiSCHER initially benefited from the overview that Trello provided, Axel Fischer became increasingly anxious to change to a different task management solution as time passed. His search for a replacement tool was motivated by his growing concerns about data security:

Data security is an important topic for us. With Trello, we simply did not feel that the provider shared our concerns. It came down to geographical location: the fact that our data was being stored on servers in the USA made us uncomfortable.

After unsuccessful attempts with two open-source task management solutions, Fischer stumbled upon MeisterTask in early 2017. Conversely to Trello, MeisterTask was able to meet FiSCHER’s stringent data security requirements. Following the conclusion of a data processing agreement, Fischer was reassured that MeisterTask was the optimal choice.

Features Built for Productivity

Although security considerations were the catalyst for change, MeisterTask provided a number of key benefits to FiSCHER that Trello could not: above all, ultimate flexibility and practicality for the company’s employees. Fischer explains:

MeisterTask’s automations are a major plus for us. The possibility to not only visualize processes, but also to trigger and automate the steps within them, was a defining factor in our decision to switch tools.

Further advantages that MeisterTask held over Trello were time tracking functionality and the seamless integration with MindMeister, our very own mind mapping tool. The latter gives the company a distinct edge in terms of turning ideas into reality.

We brainstorm together in MindMeister and then export our ideas to MeisterTask directly. From there, we can immediately start formalizing our plans through structured tasks: it’s a great workflow for us to have.

Actually transitioning from Trello to MeisterTask was simple. With a few clicks via MeisterTask’s Trello import function, Fischer was able to import all 110 of the team’s Trello boards — including cards, checklists, and tags — in the shortest time possible. 

From Invoice Processing to Fleet Management

The FiSCHER team manages dozens of projects and processes with MeisterTask. In addition to classic use cases, such as the management of IT support tickets, the team has shaped its boards to accommodate less-orthodox workflows too. Invoice approval and management of the company fleet both run efficiently in MeisterTask itself. 

“Thanks to MeisterTask, we don’t need our own document management system. We have created our own projects for processing invoices: a task is created for each invoice and assigned to the responsible employee for processing and approval. Our orders from suppliers are also processed in MeisterTask. The Kanban format is ideal for displaying the current status for as many as 20 production and shipping processes simultaneously.”

It doesn’t stop there: with MeisterTask, the FiSCHER team plans and organizes events, manages returns and complaints, communicates with suppliers and takes care of all office management duties. Rather than getting lost in email chains, employees communicate directly on the tasks themselves, ensuring all important information and files can be found by the relevant stakeholders easily.

MeisterTask is an incredibly versatile tool that helps us visualize a wide range of workflows and processes. It is the perfect solution for us — helping us manage our projects together and reach our goals with ease.

FiSCHER Employees aren’t the only people who have benefited from making the switch :

I start loving @meistertask ! Valid alternative to Trello and inspiring quote of the day✌🏻 pic.twitter.com/cxi5RvQTJ0

— Marco Santarossa (@MarcoSantaDev) March 27, 2019

The benefit to be challenged by new kids on the block. I have to admit after 8 years using #trello that @meistertask is better (export, ease of use, following) #teams #todo #collaboration

— François Nguyen | Building Data Teams & Platform (@Francois_Nguyen) February 13, 2019

Interested in Adopting MeisterTask in Your Organization?

MeisterTask Enterprise offers a task management solution individually tailored to your company’s needs. In addition to MeisterTask Business, it includes:

• A dedicated account manager
• Personalized onboarding assistance
• A custom security review
• SAML Single Sign-On for your employees

Contact us today for a tailored pricing offer!