Microsoft Planner is a task management application included with Microsoft 365 that facilitates the creation, assignment, and organisation of tasks, making it a valuable tool for planning and organising teamwork. Whether you’re managing a small team or coordinating department-wide initiatives, Microsoft Planner provides a visual and user-friendly interface that helps keep everyone on track.
The new Microsoft Planner integrates seamlessly with Microsoft 365, Teams, and Project for the web, offering a unified work management experience with next-generation AI capabilities.
Task Management Apps in Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365 offers several task management tools, each designed to cater to different needs:
- Microsoft To Do: Primarily for personal tasks and individual task management.
- Microsoft Planner: Designed for team and group tasks, suitable for mid to low-complexity projects.
- Microsoft Project: A more advanced tool for complex project management, which requires additional licensing.
Microsoft Planner plays a significant role in the task management software space, often compared with other tools for its effectiveness in project planning.
Microsoft Planner Key Features
Microsoft Planner stands out as a project management tool for its simplicity and efficiency in handling team tasks. It allows users to:
- Create Tasks: Easily set up new tasks and add necessary details such as due dates, descriptions, and attachments.
- Organise Tasks: Group tasks into buckets, categorise them with labels and prioritise them to keep everything in order.
- Assign Tasks: Allocate tasks to team members, ensuring everyone knows their responsibilities.
- Visualise Workload: View the distribution of tasks across the team to manage workloads effectively.
- Track Progress: Monitor the status of tasks and projects in a visual format that is easy to understand.
Planner’s visual interface is one of its key strengths, promoting teamwork by making it simple for everyone to see what needs to be done and who is responsible for what.
Microsoft Planner Integration
One of the significant advantages of Microsoft Planner is its seamless integration with other Microsoft 365 apps, enhancing its functionality and making task management more efficient. This integration also enhances collaborative work management within teams, providing a consolidated and flexible solution for tracking all work and projects.
Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams is a central hub for collaboration in Microsoft 365, and Planner integrates smoothly with it. Here’s how:
- Teams Sidebar: The Planner app, as a tasks app, can be added to the Teams sidebar, allowing you to view and manage personal tasks, team-assigned tasks, and shared plans without leaving Teams.
- Team Channels: You can add Planner as a tab in standard team channels to create and organise tasks directly within Teams, offering a consistent experience akin to working in Planner online.
Microsoft Loop
Microsoft Loop is designed to connect various Microsoft 365 apps, and its integration with Planner ensures tasks are synchronised across different platforms. This integration supports enterprise work management by synchronising tasks across platforms:
- Task Creation: Tasks can be generated from various contexts, including Teams chats, whiteboards, Outlook, and OneNote.
- Synced Task Lists: These task lists sync as lightweight plans in Microsoft Planner, ensuring updates are reflected across all platforms.
- Loop Pages: Planner boards can be integrated directly into Loop pages, allowing users to view and update plans within the Loop app.
Microsoft To Do
Microsoft To Do and Planner work together as task management software to streamline task management:
- Assigned to Me: Tasks assigned to you in Planner automatically sync to the “Assigned to Me” section in To Do, making it easy to track your responsibilities.
- Task Lists: Task lists created in To Do appear in the New Planner app in Microsoft Teams, providing a cohesive task management experience across both apps.
How to Use Microsoft Planner
Getting started with Microsoft Planner is straightforward. Here’s a step-by-step guide:
- Access Planner: Open Planner from the Microsoft 365 app launcher or through the dedicated Planner app.
- Create a Plan: Click on “New Plan” to create a new plan. Give it a name and choose whether it will be public or private. Users with ‘Project for the web’ subscriptions can access premium features in the new Planner app.
- Add Tasks: Within your plan, click “Add Task” to create new tasks. You can set due dates, assign the task to team members, and add descriptions.
- Organise Tasks: Use buckets to organise tasks into different categories or phases. Add labels to categorise tasks further and use the priority setting to highlight important tasks.
- Assign Tasks: Assign tasks to team members by clicking on the task and selecting the assignee from the dropdown list.
- Track Progress: Use the “Board” view to see tasks in their respective buckets, the “Charts” view to get an overview of task status and team progress, and the “Schedule” view to see tasks on a calendar.
Benefits of Using Microsoft Planner
Using Microsoft Planner offers several benefits that enhance productivity and collaboration:
- Centralised Task Management: All tasks are in one place, making it easy to manage and track them.
- Visual Clarity: The visual layout helps in understanding task status and priorities at a glance. It also supports project managers in visualising and managing tasks.
- Enhanced Collaboration: Team members can easily see what others are working on, fostering better collaboration and accountability.
- Integration with Microsoft 365: Seamless integration with other Microsoft 365 apps ensures a smooth workflow and reduces the need to switch between different tools.
- Accessibility: Since Planner is cloud-based, team members can access it from anywhere, on any device.
Project Management Use Cases for Microsoft Planner
Microsoft Planner is versatile and can be used in various scenarios:
- Team Projects: Ideal for planning and managing team projects, from marketing campaigns to product launches.
- Departmental Initiatives: Useful for organising department-wide initiatives, ensuring all tasks are accounted for and progress is monitored.
- Event Planning: Great for planning events, from small meetings to large conferences, by keeping track of tasks and deadlines.
- Personal Productivity: Even though it’s designed for teams, individuals can use Planner to organise their tasks and projects, leveraging its visual and organisational features. Compared to Project Online, Microsoft Planner is more suited for simpler project management needs, while Project Online offers more advanced features for complex projects.
Tips for Maximising Productivity with Microsoft Planner
To get the most out of Microsoft Planner, consider these tips:
- Regular Updates: Keep tasks and plans updated regularly to ensure everyone has the latest information.
- Use Labels and Buckets: Make full use of labels and buckets to categorise and prioritise tasks effectively.
- Leverage Integrations: Utilise integrations with Microsoft Teams, To Do, and Loop to streamline task management across different platforms.
- Monitor Progress: Regularly check the Charts and Schedule views to monitor progress and adjust plans as needed.
- Communicate: Use the comments section within tasks to communicate with team members, keeping all discussions related to a task in one place.
Microsoft Planner is a powerful yet user-friendly task management tool that can significantly enhance the way teams organise and manage their work. Its integration with other Microsoft 365 apps, visual interface, and collaborative features makes it an essential tool for any team looking to boost productivity and streamline their workflow. Whether you’re managing a small project or coordinating a large team, Microsoft Planner provides the functionality and flexibility needed to stay on top of tasks and ensure successful project completion.
Ready to master Microsoft Planner? Enquire about our Microsoft Planning training course today.
