I struggled with this at my firm. Some are so complex they are almost unusable, so I made my own
The important parts for me where the priority, client, project name, then associated pending and completed tasks for each. I designed the system to be overly simple so my employees didn't get overwhelmed and enjoyed using it.
Some features
New Projects or replies appear in full marroon as seen below.
I can create projects for my employees and give them full requirements and attach any documentation or logo artwork.
I can associate tasks with projects for each employee. They will get an email saying they've been assigned a task.
They can reply and comment, just as I can on the task.
They can upload their comps - This also makes nice links for my clients to view comps and for print companies to download high large zips.
I can view everyones tasks on one screen
I can mark tasks as completed
Update priority, phases, etc.
Personally I use Daylite (
http://marketcircle.com/daylite/) to monitor myself and leads.