Tasks on a board, list, calendar and pivot
Every project's work as tasks with assignees, priority, dates and tags. See them as a board by stage, a list, a calendar or a pivot. Stages are shared by every project, or a project keeps its own.
PLANSEvery plan
The problem it solves
- Work is agreed in meetings and chat threads, and a week later nobody knows who took it on.
- Each project lead keeps tasks in a different sheet, so you cannot see what is late across projects.
- Deadlines live in people's heads, and the client hears about a slip before you do.
- A project that works differently, such as a retainer or an audit, does not fit the columns everyone else uses.
How it works
- Open Projects > Work > Tasks and Plans > Tasks. It opens as a board, one column per stage, showing open tasks.
- Press + on a column to add a task with its name, project, assignees and deadline, or open the full form for the rest.
- Each card shows the priority, project, tags, people, checklist count and a due note such as 3 days late.
- Drag a card to the next column, or click a stage in the bar at the top of the task. Moving into Done records the date it was done.
- Use the list to edit many tasks at once. The calendar shows deadlines by month; the pivot sums planned hours by project and stage.
- Each person keeps Projects > Work > Tasks and Plans > My Tasks open: their tasks on every project, grouped by project.
Everything it does
A task
- Name, project, parent task, assignees (one or more), priority, start, deadline, planned hours, tags and a description
- A number by itself, such as T-00001; search by name or number
- Priority: Low, Normal (to start with), High or Urgent, shown as stars
- The person who adds a task is its assignee unless you change it
- Client Can See: the task, its stage and deadline show on the client portal
- The deadline cannot be before the start
- Comments, files and the full history on every task
Stages
- Five come ready and are shared by every project: To Do, In Progress, In Review, Done, Cancelled
- Each stage has a meaning: open, in progress, in review, done or cancelled; Done and Cancelled close the task
- Rename, reorder, add or archive stages; fold a column so it takes less room (Done and Cancelled start folded)
- Client Sees It per stage: on to start with, off for Cancelled
- A project can have its own stages: set them on the project's Task Board tab; empty means the shared ones
- A task can move to Done only when its required checklist items are ticked and its subtasks are closed (two settings, both on)
Views
- Board by stage, with quick add on each column
- List with edit of many tasks at once, planned hours totalled, and optional columns for number, parent, start, checklist and entity
- Calendar by deadline, a month at a time, coloured by project
- Pivot: projects down, stages across, planned hours as the measure
- Task Calendar and My Tasks as their own menus
Filters and grouping
- My Tasks, Not Given to Anyone, Open, Late, Due in 7 Days, High and Urgent, Client Can See, Top-Level Tasks, Archived
- Group by project, stage, assignee, priority, or deadline week
- Each project card shows its open tasks and how many are late; the project has an Open Tasks button
Who sees what
- Everyone sees the tasks given to them and the tasks of projects they manage or are on the team of now
- Projects Managers see every task of the Entities they work in
- Team members add and change tasks; only managers delete them (others archive)
- Task stages are changed by managers; tags by Projects users
Who uses it
Team memberWorks from My Tasks, moves cards, ticks checklists and comments.
Project managerBreaks the project into tasks, gives them out, sets deadlines and watches the Late filter.
Projects ManagerSees every task across projects, deletes tasks and keeps the shared stages.
Projects AdministratorSets the stages, tags, templates and the rules for finishing a task.
Where you use it
- Web: Projects > Work (My Tasks, Tasks, Task Calendar); Projects > Configuration (Task Stages, Task Tags)
- The SmartMy Projects app: your tasks, stage changes, checklist, comments and the timer (built and in testing, not in the app stores yet)
- Client portal: tasks marked Client Can See, in stages the client may see
What you control
Settings
- Task stages: the five shared ones to start with, or a project's own
- Checklist before done: on
- Subtasks before done: on
- Client Sees It per stage: on, off for Cancelled
Notifications
- Task Given to You: to each person added to a task, except the person who added them, in the app and by email
- Task Due or Late: to the people on a task before its deadline and each morning while late, in the app and by email
Questions
Can one project use different columns from the others?
Yes. Pick its own stages on the project's Task Board tab. Projects with none set use the shared stages.Can a task have more than one person on it?
Yes. A task takes any number of assignees, and each one is told when they are added.Can the client see our task board?
Only the tasks you mark Client Can See, with their stage and deadline, and only in stages marked Client Sees It. Everything else stays inside your team.Are there task dependencies and a Gantt?
Not on the task board. Links between activities, the critical path and the Gantt are in the work plan, from Scale.Can we add our own fields to a task?
Not yet. Tasks have the fields listed here; use tags for anything extra you want to sort by.Is the task board in the Starter plan?
Yes. Tasks, the board, list, calendar and pivot, subtasks, checklists, repeating tasks and templates are in every plan.Related features
TASKSSubtasks, checklists, comments and filesSplit a task into subtasks with their own people and stage, add a checklist of steps, and keep comments and files on the task. A task can be closed only when its required items are ticked and its subtasks are done.TASKSRepeating tasks and task templatesTasks that come back daily, weekly, monthly or yearly, every n, until a date. Templates add a project's usual tasks in one go, with dates from the start and each task given to the right role.TASKSDeadline remindersPeople are told when a task is given to them. They are reminded before its deadline, on the day, and every morning while it is late. You set how many days before.TASKSTask automation rulesRules that act when a task is created, reaches a stage or goes overdue, or a timesheet week is late. They assign, set priority, tags or deadline, add a follow-up task, or tell people. Every run is logged.CLIENTS, DASHBOARDS, APPS, AIClient portalYour clients log in to see their projects. They see status and health with your note, the tasks you let them see, the updates meant for them and the payments due and received. Clients are free; they do not count as users.PLANNINGWork plan and Gantt with the critical pathPlan a project as linked activities with durations in working days. Schedule works out the dates, the float and the critical path. Set a baseline and see every slip against it on the Gantt.
See your next project on it.
Tell us how many people keep time, how you bill your clients today (hours, fixed price, retainers) and what you use now. We will set up one of your real projects with you.