Project task lists help project managers deliver effective and efficient results. Task lists outline and describe your projects. They guide your project’s team members. Task lists inform your customers and other stakeholders of the project’s progress. A project task list is a physical (or digital) representation of the thinking and planning process and a record of the project’s completion.

So, what is a task list? What are the benefits of using project task lists? What is the best approach to task list creation? 

 

What is a task list in project management?

In its simplest form, a task list is a to-do list. A to-do list divides your project into smaller bite-sized chunks. That may be enough for a small, simple project. 

What about larger, more complex, or fairly long-term projects? A task list is the combination of your project’s tasks, so let’s define a project task first. Tasks are described in more detail than items on a to-do list. The kind of detail we’re talking about includes:

• Description. What are we going to do in each stage? Describe the work. But, it might even be helpful to describe the necessary skill sets to deliver the stage.
• Prioritization. Some tasks build on earlier tasks. It helps to establish the importance and order of tasks.
• Duration. Tasks take time. Estimate how long a task should take. 20 work hours? 40 work hours?
• Deadline. Your project is likely timebound. So, logically then the tasks are also timebound. Clarify deadlines for each activity. Your customer expects punctuality! 
• Resource allocation. Your resources in this context are the people on your team. You need to know who can receive work and when. Your team members need to know their responsibilities. Identify who is available when and then who does what.

Your project management task list captures each task in a one-stop shop outlining your project. Think of your task list as a roadmap that provides robust and structured guidance for you and your project team.

We can visualize project tasks like this:	The project management task list combines all of the project tasks:

 

When is a task list useful?

A task list is a project management tool so you can use a task list for any project.
Building the task list prompts you to plan and review your project with care and clarity.  

Let’s see if creating a project task list will help you plan, manage and deliver your project.
Reflect on these questions:

• Would it help to break your project into smaller stages?
• Can work on some stages of your project occur simultaneously?
• Are you working on your project alone?
• Or, are there multiple team members involved?
• Are you responsible for managing your employees’ time?
• Does your project have a deadline?
• Would a shared reference point help you communicate with your team or customers?
• Are you managing more than one project at a time?
• Are some team members deployed on more than one project simultaneously?
• Do you want to create an environment conducive to efficient work?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you should plan and manage your projects with task lists.

 

Benefits of a project task list

Creating and using a project task list provides many benefits to you, your team, and, most importantly, your customers.

• Clarity. The task list gives the project manager a coherent overview and an easier way to manage. In turn, team members get a clear view of each task and how they fit together. Everybody knows what to do, when to do it, how long it will take, and who will do what. 

• Efficiency. The task list shows you who has work and who is available for more work. This allows for simultaneous task completion, which makes the project go faster. This efficiency can lead to more time for more projects.

• Risk prevention. Imagine your team encountering obstacles while working on a task. Does the project come to a grinding halt? No way! While designated team members resolve the issues with the problem task, other tasks can continue on schedule. This means the task list reduces risk and helps lead to success. 

• Motivation. Because the project is broken down into small units, your team can see accomplishment after accomplishment throughout the duration of the project. You can check off each task as your team completes them. A series of small achievements is much more motivating than waiting a long time for one large success. Also, a project task list can prompt a strong team working culture. You can give ownership of the project tasks to your team members by involving them in creating the task list. Of course, the task list is a managed tool, but it does not need to be top-down. 

• Communication tool. Communication is essential within a team and with your customers and other stakeholders. One of the best things about a project task list is that it is a communication tool. It allows your team to track progress throughout the duration of the project. The task list gives your team a shared reference point for regular stand-up meetings. Exploit it to show your customer how the project is going, both progress and trouble-spots.

You might be also interested in: Workflow Documentation for enhanced team efficiency

But it’s not just a tracking tool. A task list for employees gives your team reflection and learning opportunities. From this perspective, the task list leads to improvements in your current project and can even inform future projects. It improves the way your team does its work.   

 

How to create a project task list

Here’s a brief step-by-step guide to help.

1. Determine Scope

Scope defines what is and is not part of the project. Agree on the project’s scope with your client before anything else.

2. Determine Resources

Resources are who you have available to work on the project. Weekwise.com gives you a crystal clear view with its simple-to-use ‘Resource Planning’ tool showing you who is available and when.

3. Identify Main Stages

Use Weekwise to create a timeline of the project and how its main stages fit together.

4. Describe and Assign Tasks

Now you can describe each task’s work activity, identify the deadline and the number of work hours involved, fine-tune prioritization and dependencies, and allocate your resources. With Weekwise.com it’s remarkably easy to define assignments, including work duration and number of hours assigned. Remember, Weekwise.com provides each worker’s skill sets and availability and the ‘Match Skills & Availability’ tool lets you drag and drop the right team member directly into a task. If you lack a resource for a task, Weekwise.com reminds you to find one! 

A fantastic online planning tool that can help you set up your project task list is Weekwise. 

Weekwise.com gives you all the handy, intuitive features that will make creating and managing a project task list a piece of cake. Weekwise.com enables you to manage your projects easily and efficiently online with real-time data from anywhere. It’s time to reduce your stress while improving your projects’ results with Weekwise.com.