Microsoft Planner is the ideal tool for teams looking to manage their projects and tasks in a structured way – without the complexity of full-fledged project management software. For Swiss SMEs and departmental teams, Planner offers the perfect entry into digital task management.
Features
Boards and Buckets
Planner organizes work in visual Kanban boards with freely definable buckets (columns). Typical structures include "To Do," "In Progress," and "Done" – or project-specific phases such as "Concept," "Implementation," and "Review." Team members can drag and drop tasks between buckets, allowing them to keep track of project progress.
Tasks
Each task can be assigned with due dates, checklists, attachments, and labels. Checklists are excellent for multi-step work processes such as quality checks or approval processes. The priority levels (Urgent, Important, Medium, Low) assist in daily work planning. Comments enable direct communication within the task context.
Progress Tracking
The Charts View provides a visual overview of the status of all tasks: how many are open, in progress, or completed. Groupings by bucket, assignment, or due date provide different perspectives on project progress. The Schedule View displays tasks in a calendar format.
When to Use Planner?
Small to Medium Projects
Planner is perfectly suited for projects with 3–15 team members and manageable complexity. For larger endeavors, Planner Premium (formerly Microsoft Project for the Web) offers advanced features such as Gantt charts, dependencies between tasks, and resource planning. Both solutions share the same data foundation in Dataverse.
Team Tasks
The seamless integration into Microsoft Teams makes Planner the natural task management tool for any team. Add a Planner tab to your Teams channel, and all team members have direct access to the board. Task notifications appear in the Teams activity feed, and due tasks are displayed in the To-Do app and Outlook.
Simple Workflows
With Power Automate, Planner tasks can be automatically created – for example, with new form submissions via Microsoft Forms, emails to a specific address, or changes in SharePoint lists. For Swiss teams, a clear naming convention for plans and buckets is recommended to maintain oversight as the number grows.
Conclusion
Planner is perfect for uncomplicated task management in Swiss teams. The combination of visual boards, Teams integration, and Power Automate connectivity makes it a versatile tool for everyday work.