Microsoft Planner is extensively utilized by groups in search of a easy process administration and collaboration instrument inside the Microsoft 365 ecosystem. However whereas it’s simpler to make use of than Microsoft Undertaking, Planner has its personal limitations. So, the right way to use Microsoft Planner successfully? This fast information walks you thru the primary options and views so you will get essentially the most out of the software program.
Understanding the right way to use Microsoft Planner is vital to deciding if it’s the appropriate match in your workforce. Whereas it’s useful for primary process lists and light-weight planning, it doesn’t present the sturdy mission administration options that bigger groups typically want. That’s why it’s necessary to discover whether or not Planner can meet your long-term wants or for those who’ll want a extra superior resolution.
ProjectManager, for instance, is a strong Microsoft Planner various that offers you every thing Planner does and far more. With on-line Gantt charts, kanban boards, real-time dashboards, workload administration and useful resource monitoring, our software program permits you to handle each section of your mission in a single intuitive platform. Strive it right this moment without spending a dime and see why it’s a better option than Microsoft Planner.
Does Microsoft Planner Assist Microsoft Undertaking Recordsdata (MPP)?
Whereas Microsoft Planner doesn’t help Microsoft Undertaking (MPP) information, ProjectManager permits customers to open, edit and export them straight. This characteristic makes ProjectManager a greater choice for groups that have to collaborate on Microsoft Undertaking information with out shopping for costly licenses. With ProjectManager, you may handle MPP information within the cloud, share them along with your workforce and maintain workflows easy.
This permits customers to share on-line in methods which can be much less convoluted than the workarounds provided by Microsoft. ProjectManager’s integration with Microsoft Planner additionally opens up many highly effective mission and portfolio options not accessible on Planner.
For instance, our Gantt chart is likely one of the finest on the planet of mission administration software program. It not solely hyperlinks all 4 varieties of process dependencies to keep away from value overruns, filters for the important path to establish these duties with zero slack, but in addition units a baseline to trace variance in actual time. There’s additionally model management, workflow automation, AI summaries, safe timesheets and far more. Get began with ProjectManager right this moment without spending a dime.
Microsoft Planner Options
Microsoft Planner is a process administration instrument included with Microsoft 365 that helps groups manage work, assign duties and monitor progress. The latest model of Microsoft Planner expands on its primary performance with new views and integrations that give customers extra flexibility in how they handle tasks. For these questioning the right way to use Microsoft Planner, it offers a number of methods to visualise duties and workflows so groups can keep on schedule and meet targets extra effectively.
Studying the right way to use Microsoft Planner begins with understanding its completely different views, every designed to assist groups manage and monitor duties in distinctive methods. From easy grids to visible boards and charts, Microsoft Planner provides a number of views to plan, monitor and full work. The correct view is determined by how your workforce prefers to handle duties, deadlines and assets.
On this part, we’ll stroll by way of the primary views accessible in Microsoft Planner and clarify how each helps process administration and collaboration. By figuring out the right way to use Microsoft Planner throughout grid, board, schedule, charts, timeline, individuals, targets and assignments views, you may tailor the instrument to your workflow and enhance workforce productiveness.
Associated: 10 Greatest Microsoft Planner Options of 2025 (Free & Paid)
Grid View
The Grid View in Microsoft Planner is the place you may manage duties in a structured desk format. It permits groups to shortly evaluation process names, due dates, priorities and standing updates in a single place. For anybody studying the right way to use Microsoft Planner, the Grid View helps construct a transparent process listing that ensures no work is missed.
Board View
The Board View in Microsoft Planner makes use of a kanban-style format to show duties in customizable buckets. Groups can drag and drop duties between columns to trace workflow progress. When exploring the right way to use Microsoft Planner, this view is particularly helpful for agile groups or those that desire visible process administration to observe phases of labor.
Schedule View
The Schedule View in Microsoft Planner shows duties on a calendar so groups can see deadlines and assignments in a time-based format. It’s splendid for shortly figuring out scheduling conflicts or gaps. Anybody taking a look at the right way to use Microsoft Planner successfully will discover this view useful for aligning mission work with key dates and milestones.
Charts
The Charts View in Microsoft Planner provides a high-level visible abstract of process progress, workload distribution and deadlines. It offers pie charts and bar charts that make monitoring efficiency easy. For these asking the right way to use Microsoft Planner, this view makes it straightforward to identify bottlenecks and maintain work balanced throughout workforce members.
Timeline View
The Timeline View in Microsoft Planner resembles a light-weight Gantt chart, displaying duties throughout a horizontal timeline. This helps groups sequence duties and monitor dependencies visually. Understanding the right way to use Microsoft Planner with the Timeline View is important for primary mission scheduling and retaining groups conscious of mission stream.
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Gantt Chart Template
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Individuals View
The Individuals View in Microsoft Planner exhibits process assignments grouped by workforce members. It helps managers perceive particular person workloads and establish over-allocated assets. Groups studying the right way to use Microsoft Planner can use this view to stability tasks extra successfully and guarantee no single workforce member is overloaded with duties.
Targets View
The Targets View in Microsoft Planner permits groups to attach duties to bigger aims, serving to align day by day work with broader mission outcomes. It offers a transparent image of how progress on particular person duties contributes to organizational targets. For groups determining the right way to use Microsoft Planner, this view highlights the larger image behind process completion.
Assignments View
The Assignments View in Microsoft Planner offers every workforce member with a personalised listing of their duties throughout all plans. It centralizes particular person tasks, making it simpler to prioritize work. When contemplating the right way to use Microsoft Planner, this view is vital for workers who need readability on their particular workload.
Be aware: Views in Microsoft Planner differ by model. Microsoft Planner Fundamental has fewer options, whereas Microsoft Planner Premium provides extra superior views and integrations.
Associated: Microsoft Planner vs. Undertaking: In-Depth Software program Comparability
Learn how to Use Microsoft Planner
Now that now we have a greater understanding of the views in Microsoft Planner, let’s discover the right way to use it.
1. Make a Activity Record with the Grid View
The Grid View in Microsoft Planner (particularly in its newer model) acts like a spreadsheet you may work together with. You enter process names, due dates, begin dates, priorities, progress percentages and assignees straight in cells. It’s a structured method to see all of your duties without delay and shortly edit them. When studying the right way to use Microsoft Planner, this view is right for creating your preliminary listing of labor objects, organizing them by mission or section and making bulk updates effectively.
2. Handle and Monitor Workflows with the Board View
The Board View provides a kanban-style interface in Microsoft Planner the place duties are displayed as playing cards inside columns (buckets). You drag and drop duties between buckets to mirror states like To Do, In Progress or Executed. This visible stream helps groups see bottlenecks or caught duties at a look. For these desirous to know the right way to use Microsoft Planner, the Board View is nice for workflows that evolve step-by-step and the place visible suggestions is vital to managing work.
3. Visualize Tasks On a Calendar with the Schedule View
The Schedule View in Microsoft Planner exhibits duties on a calendar grid by date. Every process seems on the day(s) it’s energetic or due, supplying you with a transparent view of how work is distributed throughout time. Groups can spot overlaps, gaps or scheduling conflicts shortly. When you’re determining the right way to use Microsoft Planner for a timeline overview, the Schedule View brings readability to when duties begin and end in relation to one another.
4. Monitor Tasks from a Excessive-Degree with the Charts View
The Charts View offers a visible dashboard of process standing, progress and distribution throughout assignees. You get pie charts and bar charts that break up duties by standing (e.g. Not Began, In Progress, Late) or by particular person. This view helps you monitor general well being and spot the place work is piling up. For customers studying the right way to use Microsoft Planner, Charts are important for shortly understanding workload imbalances or overdue duties with out digging by way of particular person plans.
5. Create Fundamental Undertaking Schedules with the Timeline View
The Timeline View in Microsoft Planner (in newer or premium variations) shows duties as bars alongside a horizontal timeline, much like a Gantt fashion. You possibly can drag duties to regulate begin or finish dates and see how they align with one another. It offers groups a visible view of sequence and overlap. When exploring the right way to use Microsoft Planner for scheduling, the Timeline View is your go-to for seeing how duties relate over time.
6. Export & Share Recordsdata
When studying the right way to use Microsoft Planner, groups might have to export or share process info. Microsoft Planner permits exporting knowledge to Excel for reporting and sharing outdoors the platform. Nonetheless, the export course of is proscribed in comparison with extra superior instruments, making it more durable to provide detailed stories or share knowledge throughout a number of tasks. For instance, Microsoft Planner doesn’t enable customers to open, edit or share Microsoft Undertaking information (MPP information), which is able to ship many customers in search of a Microsoft Planner various.
ProjectManager Is Higher than Microsoft Planner
ProjectManager offers a number of mission views—Gantt chart, listing, kanban, calendar and sheet—multi functional platform, permitting groups to handle tasks from completely different angles with out shedding knowledge. Not like Microsoft Planner, which is proscribed to primary grid, board and schedule views, our software program provides all 4 varieties of process dependencies, important path monitoring, automated alerts and color-coded progress indicators. Groups may also create customized fields, monitor budgets, handle workloads and connect information on to duties, making it a much more complete mission administration resolution.
Use Actual-Time Collaboration
As a result of ProjectManager is absolutely cloud-based, it helps real-time dashboards, dwell updates and built-in file sharing throughout the workforce. Customers can remark straight on duties, assign work and get prompt notifications about adjustments or delays. Microsoft Planner requires integration with Microsoft 365 instruments like Groups or SharePoint for related collaboration, which may be extra complicated to arrange and preserve. Our software program additionally contains role-based permissions, exercise logs and multi-project views, retaining groups aligned and managers knowledgeable always.
Get Superior Reporting and Automation
ProjectManager provides sturdy reporting, AI-powered insights and workflow automation that Microsoft Planner lacks. Groups can generate customizable stories on process completion, mission variance, useful resource allocation and finances monitoring. Automated reminders, recurring process creation and threat alerts assist tasks keep on schedule with out handbook oversight.
Whereas Microsoft Planner offers primary charts, our software program offers high-level useful resource administration (reminiscent of workforce web page and workload charts), real-time metrics and forecasting instruments, making it simpler for managers to make knowledgeable selections and ship tasks efficiently.
Associated Microsoft Planner Content material
For many who wish to study extra about Microsoft Planner or are on the fence as as to whether it’s what they want or whether or not they need to search for another, beneath are extra articles that discover Microsoft Planner options, evaluate it to MS Undertaking and far more.
ProjectManager is on-line mission and portfolio administration software program that connects groups, whether or not they’re within the workplace or out within the discipline. They’ll share information, remark on the process stage or keep up to date with electronic mail and in-app notifications. Get began with ProjectManager right this moment without spending a dime.