How to Add Microsoft Planner to Teams : A Complete Guide

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User Question

Our project team struggles to keep track of all our tasks and deadlines across multiple projects. We’re already using Microsoft Teams for our communication, but everyone tracks their tasks differently – some use email, others use notebooks or sticky notes. Is there a way to integrate task management directly into Teams so we can see all project tasks in one place without switching between multiple applications?

Comprehensive Answer

Microsoft Planner integrates with Teams to provide powerful task management capabilities right where your team already collaborates. In this post we will learn how to add Planner to a Teams channel tab and make the most of this integration.

Insert Planner as a Tab in a Teams Channel

  1. Navigate to the Teams channel where you want to add Planner.
  2. Click the “+” icon at the top of the channel to add a new tab.
  3. In the “Add a tab” dialog, select “Planner” from the list of apps.
  4. Choose between creating a new plan or using an existing one:
    • Create a new plan: Enter a name for your plan (e.g., “Marketing Project Q2”)
    • Use an existing plan: Select from plans you already have access to
  5. Click “Save” to add the Planner tab to your channel.

Organize Your Planner Board

  1. Once added, your Planner board will appear as a tab in your Teams channel.
  2. Create task buckets to organize work (e.g., “To Do,” “In Progress,” “Completed,” or by project phase).
  3. Add tasks by clicking the “+ Add task” button in any bucket.
  4. For each task, you can specify:
    • Task name and description, Due date, Assignees (team members responsible), Attachments etc’

Customize your plan view

  1. Use the “Views” dropdown in the top navigation bar to switch between:
    • Board view: Kanban-style board with movable task cards
    • Charts view: Visual breakdowns of task status, assignments, and priorities
    • Schedule view: Calendar view of tasks with deadlines
  2. Filter tasks using the filter button to focus on specific criteria:
    • Tasks assigned to specific people
    • Tasks with particular labels
    • Tasks due in a certain timeframe

Customize planner notifications in Teams

  1. Enable notifications by clicking on the three dots “…” at the top of the Planner tab and selecting “Configure notifications.”
  2. Choose which types of Planner updates should trigger notifications in the Teams channel.
  3. When discussing tasks in channel conversations, use the @ mention feature to link to specific tasks.
  4. Create a meeting directly from a task by clicking the three dots on a task card and selecting “Schedule a meeting.”

Accessing Planner Across Devices

  1. Install the Teams mobile app to access your plans on the go.
  2. Use the Planner web app (tasks.office.com) for additional features.
  3. Enable offline access in the Teams desktop app settings to view your tasks when not connected.
  4. Or otherwise integrate Planner tasks into MS Outlook.

Troubleshooting guidance

Visibility issues: If team members can’t see the Planner tab, check that they have been added to both the Teams channel and the Office 365 Group that powers the team.

Permission errors: Only team owners can add tabs by default. If you need to add a Planner tab but don’t have permission, contact your team owner.

Sync delays: If changes don’t appear immediately, try refreshing the tab or checking back in a few minutes as synchronization can sometimes take time.

Duplicate plans: Be careful not to create multiple plans for the same purpose. Before creating a new plan, check if one already exists that you can use.