WorkflowMax is gone. Opus picks up where it left off.
Xero retired WorkflowMax in 2024, leaving thousands of businesses searching for a replacement. Opus offers native Xero integration, project management, CRM, team chat, and financial tracking in one platform. No middleware. No workarounds.
More than a replacement
WorkflowMax covered job management and time tracking. Opus gives you that plus everything else you were bolting on separately.
WorkflowMax
Retired in 2024
WorkflowMax was a reliable job management tool for service businesses. It handled time tracking, quoting, and invoicing with a solid Xero connection. Many Australian businesses depended on it for years.
What it did well
What it lacked
Opus
Complete Business Management
Opus covers everything WorkflowMax did and adds the tools you were paying separately for. One platform for projects, finances, CRM, chat, equipment, and AI analytics, all with native Xero sync.
Everything WorkflowMax did, plus
Honest trade-offs
Feature-by-feature comparison
How Opus compares to what WorkflowMax offered before it was retired.
| Feature Area | O Opus | W WorkflowMax |
|---|---|---|
| Project Management | Visual pipeline boards, drag-and-drop stages, project numbering, cost-to-complete tracking, and profit analysis per project. Task management with sub-tasks and assignments. | Had job management with time tracking, job costing, and quotes. Solid for service businesses but limited board views and no drag-and-drop pipeline. |
| Xero Integration | Native two-way Xero sync. Invoices, bills, expenses, and chart of accounts sync automatically. Project profitability calculated from live Xero data. | Had tight Xero integration since both were Xero products. One-way push of invoices and time entries into Xero. |
| Financial Management | Built-in invoicing, bill management, expense tracking, budgets, loan tracking, and cash-flow forecasting. All connected to project data. | Had invoicing and quoting tied to jobs. No bill management, no expense tracking beyond time costs, no cash-flow forecasting. |
| CRM & Client Management | Integrated CRM with client enrichment, contact search, lead pipeline, and client portal. Client data flows into projects, invoices, and reports. | Had a basic client database with contact details. No lead pipeline, no enrichment, no client portal. |
| Team Communication | Built-in threaded messaging, project-level chat, and @mentions. No separate Slack or Teams subscription needed. | No built-in messaging. Teams relied on email or third-party chat tools alongside WorkflowMax. |
| Time Tracking | Time tracking with timesheets, billable/non-billable categorisation, and direct link to project costs and Xero invoicing. | Time tracking was one of its strongest features. Staff timesheets, timer-based tracking, and tight integration with job costing. |
| AI & Analytics | Claude-powered AI assistant for natural-language queries across all business data. AI expense categorisation, proposal parsing, and financial forecasting. | Basic reporting with job profitability and staff utilisation reports. No AI features. |
| Equipment Tracking | Dedicated equipment registry with service histories, depreciation tracking, receipt scanning, and assignment to projects. | No equipment management. Asset tracking required a separate tool. |
WorkflowMax ratings reflect the product's capabilities at the time of retirement. A higher rating in Time Tracking acknowledges its strong timesheet features.
The tool stack you were building around WorkflowMax
Most WorkflowMax users had three to five other subscriptions running alongside it. Opus replaces the entire stack.
Typical WorkflowMax Stack
Per user/month for a 10-person team (before retirement)
WorkflowMax Premium
Job management and time tracking
HubSpot / Pipedrive
CRM and lead management
Slack Pro
Team messaging
Xero Growing
Accounting (shared cost)
Asset spreadsheet
Manual equipment tracking in Excel
Opus Professional
Everything included. One subscription, one login, one bill.
Project Management
Pipeline, boards, tasks, proposals
Time Tracking
Timesheets, billable hours, project costs
Financial Management
Invoicing, bills, expenses, budgets
Xero Integration
Native two-way sync, no middleware
CRM & Client Portal
Lead pipeline, contacts, enrichment
Team Chat
Project messaging, threads, @mentions
Equipment Tracking
Asset registry, depreciation, service logs
AI Business Intelligence
Available as add-on ($24.99/mo)
Your migration options
Three realistic paths for former WorkflowMax users.
BlueRock / Xero PM
Choose if you want to stay in the Xero product family.
- Official Xero successor to WorkflowMax
- Tightest possible Xero integration
- Focused on accountants and professional services
- Limited features outside practice management
- Pricing varies by region
Opus
Choose if you want more than what WorkflowMax offered.
- Everything WorkflowMax did plus CRM, chat, equipment
- Native two-way Xero sync (independent of Xero roadmap)
- AI-powered analytics and forecasting
- $25/user/mo for the full feature set
- Built for Australian SMBs (5 to 100 people)
- Free tier available to evaluate before committing
Build your own stack
Choose if you prefer best-of-breed tools for each function.
- Pick specialised tools for PM, CRM, chat, finance
- Each tool excels at its specific job
- Expensive: $80 to $150+ per user/month total
- Data lives in multiple systems
- Integration maintenance is ongoing work
- No single view of project profitability
Frequently asked questions
Common questions from teams migrating away from WorkflowMax.
Why was WorkflowMax retired?
Xero announced in 2024 that WorkflowMax would be retired and replaced by a new product called BlueRock (Xero Practice Manager for some regions). Many users found the transition disruptive, with feature gaps and pricing changes that didn't suit their workflows. Opus offers an independent alternative that doesn't depend on Xero's product roadmap decisions while still maintaining deep Xero integration.
Does Opus integrate with Xero like WorkflowMax did?
Yes, and it goes further. WorkflowMax had a one-way push of time entries and invoices into Xero. Opus has native two-way sync: invoices, bills, expenses, and your chart of accounts sync bidirectionally in real time. Project profitability is calculated automatically from live Xero financial data, which WorkflowMax couldn't do.
Can I migrate my WorkflowMax data to Opus?
Yes. Opus supports project and client data import. Before WorkflowMax shut down, users could export their data (jobs, clients, time entries, invoices). Our support team can help you map that exported data into Opus. Most teams complete the migration within a few days.
How does Opus pricing compare to what WorkflowMax charged?
WorkflowMax charged $30 to $70 per user per month depending on the plan, and that covered job management and time tracking only. Opus Professional at $25/user/month includes project management, financial management, CRM, team chat, equipment tracking, and native Xero integration. You get more features for a lower per-user cost.
What does Opus have that WorkflowMax didn't?
CRM with lead pipeline and client enrichment, built-in team messaging and project chat, equipment and asset tracking with depreciation, AI-powered business intelligence, cash-flow forecasting, bill management and expense tracking, visual pipeline boards with drag-and-drop, and a client portal. These are core platform features, not add-ons.
Is Opus suitable for the same types of businesses that used WorkflowMax?
Absolutely. WorkflowMax was popular with professional services firms, agencies, consultancies, and trades businesses in Australia and New Zealand. Opus serves the same market with a broader feature set. If your business tracks project profitability, bills time, and uses Xero, Opus is a strong fit.
What about BlueRock / Xero Practice Manager as a replacement?
BlueRock (now Xero Practice Manager) is Xero's official successor to WorkflowMax. It's a reasonable option if you want to stay within the Xero ecosystem. However, it's focused primarily on practice management for accountants and professional services. Opus is a broader business management platform with CRM, chat, equipment tracking, and AI analytics that BlueRock doesn't offer.
Who is Opus best suited for?
Opus is built for small-to-medium businesses (5 to 100 people) that need to manage the full business cycle, not just jobs and timesheets. It's popular with professional services firms, construction and engineering companies, consulting agencies, and any business that tracks project profitability and uses Xero. If you relied on WorkflowMax and are looking for something more capable, Opus is worth evaluating.
Ready to move on from WorkflowMax?
Join Australian businesses that upgraded from job management to full business management. Start your free trial of Opus today.
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