Project Task List: How to Create it

Tracking tasks is one of the most important activities in project management. Staying on top of your to-do list isn’t an easy task, though—no pun intended.

Everything begins with the creation of a project task list. You write out each individual task, assign tasks to stakeholders, give them due dates, and keep track of them.

Sounds easy? Well, it certainly is if you follow my step-by-step guide.

What is a project task list?

A project task list is a comprehensive document that outlines the individual tasks required to complete a project. It provides a roadmap for completing project objectives, ensuring tasks are organized, prioritized, and tracked throughout the project lifecycle.

Project task lists in PM

A project task list plays a central role in managing and tracking project activities. It integrates seamlessly with various project management processes and tools, including:

• Scheduling: Project task lists help create detailed schedules by identifying task durations, dependencies, and deadlines.

• Resource allocation: Assigning tasks to team members ensures that resources are utilized efficiently.

• Risk management: Tracking task progress helps identify potential bottlenecks and risks early.

• Performance monitoring: Task lists provide a clear view of progress against project timelines and objectives.

• Collaboration: They serve as a communication tool, keeping all stakeholders aligned.

Many project management tools, such as Service Provider Pro, Jira, and Monday.com, offer features to create and manage project task lists, making them dynamic and accessible in real-time.

Organizational structure & effective PM

Project task lists contribute significantly to managing project activities by providing structure and clarity. They allow project managers to:

• Break down complex projects: Divide large projects into manageable tasks, making execution more straightforward.

• Track dependencies: Identify task dependencies to ensure efficient task sequencing.

• Prioritize work: Focus on critical tasks that directly impact project success.

• Monitor progress: Maintain visibility into task completion rates and project milestones.

• Improve accountability: Assign clear ownership of tasks, fostering responsibility among team members.

By offering an organized framework for managing tasks, project task lists become an indispensable tool for project managers. They ensure that projects remain on track, resources are used efficiently, and goals are achieved within the set timelines.

Types of project task lists

There are several types of project task lists that can be used in marketing agencies, depending on the specific needs of your projects.

Task list

An online task management platform such as Service Provider Pro that allows teams to create and assign tasks, set deadlines, and track progress. Above, you can see a project task list example using SPP’s task feature.

Gantt chart

A visual representation of tasks and dependencies, often using bar charts or calendars.

Kanban board

A board (often in Trello) with columns representing different stages (e.g., To-Do, In Progress, Done), where team members can move cards to track progress.

Spreadsheet

A spreadsheet tool such as Google Docs or Airtable where you can freely design and arrange columns and rows.

Organizing & managing task lists

Effectively managing your tasks is important if you want for maintaining your productivity. With a well-organized task list, you can focus on priorities, track progress, and meet deadlines.

Below are essential strategies for organizing and managing your task list.

Setting task priorities

Not all tasks carry the same weight. Setting priorities ensures that you’re focusing on what matters most. Consider the following methods to prioritize your task list:

• Eisenhower Matrix: Organize tasks into four categories: Urgent & Important, Important but Not Urgent, Urgent but Not Important, and Neither Urgent Nor Important. Prioritize tasks in the first category.

• ABC Method: Assign tasks as A (critical), B (important but not urgent), and C (optional). Start with A tasks.

• MoSCoW Method: Divide tasks into Must Have, Should Have, Could Have, or Won’t Have.

• Time Blocking: Set specific time slots for top-priority tasks to ensure completion.

Regularly reassess and adjust priorities to accommodate changing deadlines and goals.

Using task management software

Task management software has transformed the way you can organize and manage work. These tools provide features that make task tracking more dynamic and collaborative:

• Real-time updates: Synchronize task lists across multiple devices and team members for immediate updates.

• Collaborative capabilities: Assign tasks, share updates, and monitor team progress seamlessly.

• Automated reminders: Receive notifications for deadlines and recurring tasks to remain on track.

• Dynamic task organization: Easily reorder tasks by dragging and dropping them as priorities shift.

Thanks to Service Provider Pro, all your projects can have tasks with due dates, team member assignment, and it supports HTML so you can add links and style your tasks.

Create & assign tasks with due dates.

Create tasks

Learn more

How to create a project task list

Now that you’re aware of the different methods to stay on top of your tasks, let me show you step-by-step how you can create a task list for your projects in Service Provider Pro.

Identify project scope

In SPP.co, every project is linked to a service. When you set it up, you can define its value, if it’s a recurring service, intake forms, and of course, tasks.

Before you can create the latter, it’s important to know the scope of your project. What is the end result, who has to work on this service, and what are the deadlines for each task including the full project?

Also define what the deliverables are. For instance, social media management agencies might want to deliver a certain number of social posts every month.

Define each task

With the project scoped, it’s time to break it down into smaller chunks. Content agencies could break down the creation of a blog post into the following tasks:

1. Verify brief

   1. Please check if the brief contains all necessary information. If so, change status to Writing, and set the due date to 1 week from now.

2. Writing process

   1. Research topic and keywords in ahrefs.com.

   2. Outline an article structure.

   3. Write the content piece and let it rest for 1 day.

   4. Come back to it, read through it, and make changes if necessary.

   5. Change status to Editing & proofreading.

3. Editing & proofing process

   1. Edit the content piece in Google Docs.

   2. Use the Suggesting function for large edits.

   3. Apply small edits directly (punctuation, spelling mistakes).

   4. If too many changes necessary, assign back to writer.

   5. If content is ready, assign to manager.

4. Project delivery

   1. Write a short message to inform the client that the content piece is ready, and change status to Complete.

5. Revisions

   1. If a client requests a revision, the order status will change to Revision. Managers will assign the original writer the content piece, who will re-write according to instructions, and pass.

Write down detailed instructions and add supporting links, for instance, the tools used to check grammar and spelling, keyword research, etc.

Create tasks that are small enough to easily handle by the team member, and that don’t take multiple weeks to complete. Making the tasks too small can quickly turn into a micromanagement issue.

Track time needed

If this is your first time fulfilling a task, you should ask your team members to use a time tracking tool and calculate the average time spent on it. The more precise you are, the easier it is to set deadlines you can uphold.

Keep tracking your time with tools such as Clockify and adjust the deadlines if needed in order to improve your accuracy.

Assign the tasks

Finally, you can decide who is going to be assigned to the tasks. Depending on the service rendered, your team can consist of internal agency team members, but also external collaborators. Make sure that everyone is aware of the tasks they have to fulfill and have the time to do so.

In SPP, you can keep an eye on assigned tasks by going to Reports → Assigned orders. Another report you can look at is the Completed tasks report. You can see how many tasks a team member has completed in a given time period.

Improve your project planning using tasks

To stay on top of your project completion timeline, it’s essential to have a list at hand that gives you a detailed overview. Use whichever method works best for your agency, be it a simple task list, a Gantt chart, kanban board, or spreadsheet.