How to Link Tasks Across Projects in Planfix
When one customer request needs work from two or three departments, you can link tasks across projects in Planfix instead of retyping the same details in every project. A single button on the object creates a task in another department’s project, fills in the assignee and keeps the new task tied to the original request. This three-minute video walks through both sides of the setup: the manager’s click and the button settings behind it.
What you’ll learn: how to link tasks across projects in Planfix
- How a manager creates a task for a specialist in another department with one click from a customer request.
- How a Task set field keeps the request and the new task linked in both directions.
- How to add that field to an object and reuse it in every object whose buttons generate tasks.
- How to set a button’s conditions, appearance and the users who are allowed to click it.
- How to configure the button’s actions: the project, the assignee and a task name built from variables.
- How the new assignees get access to the original conversation with the customer.
How to link tasks across projects in Planfix, step by step
Step 1. Add a Task set field to the object
Open the object you work with, in the video it is the Request object, and create a new field named Linked tasks with the Task set type. A Task set field stores any number of links to tasks, up to 250 values, so one request can hold every task spun off from it. Add the same Linked tasks field to each object whose buttons will create tasks, and give the new task a field that points back to the original customer request.
Step 2. Create the button on the request object
Buttons are configured in the object’s settings: Account management → Types of objects → the object you need → Buttons. Give the button a name that states what it does, such as Task for contractors, then define in which other objects it works, the conditions under which it is displayed, who is allowed to click it, and how it looks. Planfix lets you add several action buttons to the same object, one per department.
Step 3. Configure the actions that create the linked task
Now set what the click does. The first action creates a separate task for contractors: select the corresponding object and its placement, then specify the project and the assignee. Because each department keeps its own project folder, the new task lands in the right place and is organized the moment it appears. Add the request to the Linked tasks field so a colleague from a related department always knows which request the task belongs to, and change the task name with variables so the connection is clear in any list.
Assignees can be predefined at the object level or in the button settings; either way, they are added automatically when the task is created.
Step 4. Link the new task back to the request
Add one more action to the button: change the current task, that is, the task in which the button was clicked. The task created by the click is added to the request in the Linked tasks field and recorded as the last task created by the script. The assignees of the new task are also added to the participant list of the request, so they can review the original communication with the customer and ask for details if needed. Save the settings; other buttons are configured the same way.
Example: a repair center request sent to other departments
The video follows a request management process in a repair center. A new customer request arrives with an empty Linked tasks field. When the manager clicks Task for contractors, the new task appears in that field, with its own project and assignee already filled in, and the task itself shows which request it came from.
From there the manager can open the task straight from the customer chat, and the specialists who received it can read the original correspondence as participants of the request. Nobody copies the client’s words into a new task, and nothing has to be searched for later.
Who it’s for
- Service and repair centers: one customer request that turns into work for diagnostics, spare parts and contractors.
- Support teams: a request that needs a developer or a technician without losing the thread with the client.
- Operations managers: cross-department handoffs that should land in each department’s own project.
- Sales and account managers: tasks for legal, finance or delivery created from the deal they are already reading.
- Administrators: one field and a set of buttons that make the same handoff repeatable for everyone.
FAQ
How many tasks can a Task set field hold?
A field of the Task set type can contain up to 250 values, which is enough for one request to keep every task created from it. The field can be used as a custom field, a directory field or a data tag field.
Do assignees from another department see the original request?
Yes, when the button adds them to the participant list of the request. That action is part of the button setup, and it gives specialists access to the original communication with the customer so they can ask for details.
Which Planfix plans include buttons?
Buttons are available on the Plan B and Plan X plans; the number of buttons depends on the plan. The same button can be pressed in the same task once a minute.
Start with one cross-department button
Pick the handoff your team repeats most often, add a Linked tasks field to the object it starts from and build one button for it. Cross-project linked tasks are one piece of business process automation in Planfix, and they work the same way for deals, orders or applications. To see how the fields and statuses of an object are set up first, watch custom objects in CRM. New to Planfix? Sign up to try it.
