Project template
Task Tracking Template: To Do, Done
Two statuses. That is the entire workflow, and for a lot of teams it is exactly right. A task is either finished or it is not, and pretending otherwise creates admin rather than clarity.
Available in every edition, including the free Community Edition · Unlimited users on every plan
What the Task Tracking template sets up
Choosing Task Tracking starts the project on a board with the shortest status workflow Orangescrum ships: To Do and Done. Work is grouped into task groups, and everything else about the project is ordinary, with task types, labels, priorities, estimates, dates, and assignees all available. There are no sprints, no story points, and no epics. The value of this template is what it leaves out, because a two column board cannot be gamed. Something is either finished or it is not.
The board
Two statuses, and that is deliberate
The shortest workflow in the product. It makes it impossible to hide a stalled task in a middle column.
01
To Do
Everything not finished. Started, not started, stuck, waiting. All of it lives here.
02
Done
Finished. Not nearly finished, not with one small thing left. Finished.
If you find yourself wanting a third column, add it from the board. Most teams who try this template for a fortnight decide they only ever needed two, and the ones who add a third usually add In Progress.
On day one
What you get on day one
The least amount of structure that is still a system rather than a list on a wall.
A board with two columns
To Do and Done. Move a card across and it is finished. There is nowhere for a task to hide.
Task groups
Organise the To Do column into groups such as this week, next week, or by workstream.
Task types and labels
Classify work as meeting, review, development, or whatever your team actually does, and filter the board by it.
Owners, dates and estimates
Assignee, start and due dates, estimated hours, and priority on every task.
Subtasks
Break a task down when it needs more than one person, without needing a whole extra status.
Nothing else
No sprints, no points, no ceremonies, no reports to maintain. That is the feature.
Who it is for
Who picks this one
Operations and admin teams
Recurring work with a clear finish line. Either the invoice was raised or it was not.
Learn more →Small businesses
Six people who talk to each other daily and do not need a status taxonomy.
Learn more →Teams recovering from a heavy tool
You came off something with eleven statuses that nobody kept accurate. Start again with two.
Learn more →Starting task list
What a two column board holds
The template arrives empty. This is the shape that works for teams running recurring operational work.
This weekTask group
- Everything committed for the current week, with an owner
- Due dates on anything with an external deadline
- No more items than the team can actually finish
RecurringTask group
- The weekly and monthly jobs that always need doing
- Owner and due date on each, so it is not always the same person remembering
- Estimated hours, so the recurring load is visible when planning
Waiting on someone elseTask group
- Anything blocked by a person outside the team
- Named in the task, so it is obvious who to chase
- Reviewed at the start of every week
Grouping is doing the work a third column would otherwise do, and it has the advantage that a blocked task is still visibly not done.
The problem
What this template fixes
Status theatre
✓ Two columns. A task is finished or it is not.
Updating the tool is a job
✓ One move per task, from start to finish.
Nearly done means nothing
✓ Done means done, and the board makes that uncomfortable in a useful way.
How to start
Start a project from this template
Three minutes. There is genuinely very little to do.
- 1Create a project and choose Task TrackingThe project opens on a board with To Do and Done.
- 2Invite the teamEveryone who does the work, plus anyone who wants to watch. Unlimited users on every plan.
- 3Create two or three task groupsThis week, recurring, and waiting on someone else covers most operational teams.
- 4Add everything currently in flightHonestly, including the things that have been open for two months. The first board is meant to be uncomfortable.
- 5Put an owner on every taskA task with no owner is not tracked, it is just written down.
- 6Review the board weeklyFifteen minutes. Move what is done, and be honest about what has not moved for a fortnight.
- 7Add a third status only if you miss itMost teams do not. If you do, In Progress is the one to add, and add it from the board.
Pairs with
The features this template leans on
Everything here is available in every edition, including the free Community Edition.
Frequently asked questions
Task Tracking template FAQ
How many statuses does the Task Tracking template create?
Two: To Do and Done. It is the shortest workflow Orangescrum ships, and for teams doing operational work with a clear finish line it is often the right one.
Is two statuses really enough?
For a lot of teams, yes. A third column is only useful if work genuinely sits there and somebody looks at it. If In Progress just becomes a place tasks live for three weeks, two columns tell you more.
Can I add more statuses?
Yes, from the board or the status workflow page, at any time. In Progress is the usual third one. You can also switch the project onto a completely different workflow.
What is the difference between this and Simple?
Simple opens on a task list with four statuses. Task Tracking opens on a board with two. Pick Simple if your project is a plan with phases, and Task Tracking if it is a continuous list of things to finish.
Does it include sprints or story points?
No. Those come from the Agile template. Task Tracking has no methodology overhead at all.
Is it in the free Community Edition?
Yes. Projects, tasks, custom statuses, and Kanban boards are all in the open source Community Edition.
How do I handle blocked work with only two statuses?
Put it in a task group called waiting on someone else, and name the person in the task. This has the advantage that blocked work still counts as not done, which a separate blocked column quietly hides.
Does the template create any tasks?
No. The built in templates set structure, not content. Save a project of your own as a template if you want one that carries its tasks, groups, and labels forward.
Two columns, and get on with it
The shortest workflow in the product, with unlimited users on every plan.