[jklp]

I think the reason they're so many dead bodies in this space is that there's not much a productivity tool needs to do, and any attempts to create a new one is just repackaging an existing tool into a nicer UI.

Basecamp is Asana is Evernote is Trello. You have tasks, you assign them to people, and I think 99% of the time the reason people go with a certain tool is the look and feel.

I've found the main driver for productivity (and I know this sounds flippant) is to actually make an effort to be productive. If you aren't making an effort (or your team members aren't making an effort) the tool won't change their behaviour.

[notduncansmith]

I find this to be largely true as well. If your team is making an effort, the project management tool's utility is a symptom - it will never be a cause, one way or the other. The only way for me to be productive is to find somewhere relatively quiet (but not silent), get comfortable, and convince myself that working on X is the most productive use of my time right now. Usually opening the editor and firing up the terminal is enough to get me in the swing of things. If playing with whatever I'm working on and finding broken stuff to fix isn't enough to kick-start my brain into problem-solving mode, checking the issue tracker is a good crutch. After the first commit, I can usually start flying. It's all about momentum.