When to use subitems in monday.com | Virtual Project Manager

What sets monday.com apart from other collaboration tools is that you can add multiple owners to a task at an item level. However, this could sometimes lead to confusion if you meant to directly assign a specific component of the task to a group member.

In the scenario mentioned, using the sub-item feature can be very useful. You get to breakdown the parent task to its components and track the completion of each while still getting the whole picture.

To help you in maximizing the potential of sub-items, I have put together some recommendations on when to use the monday.com sub-items.

Use sub-items when there are multiple tasks with different assignees

In my case, one of the projects I got was for a company that manufactures beauty products. In releasing their new product, a lot of processes and departments are involved.

They have many action items but each item has additional tasks that are fulfilled by several members of the team. On top of that, those have deadlines that need to be tracked so they’ll not miss the product launch date.

To provide them with a functional board that is easy to navigate, I have utilized subitems. Also, I have setup “dependencies” so the schedule for all tasks is automatically adjusted. With it, they can always see if they’re still on track of their deadlines.

Note: Avoid using too many layers of sub-items as it may affect the overall work visibility. It is recommended that you set terms with your team as to which tasks should be added as sub-items.

Utilize subitems for service fulfillment

As you provide a service, there are generally things that need to be done before the actual service. To help you have a smooth implementation, you can specify the things you or your team would need to do and put them as subitems. This way, you know which ones are done and those that need your attention.

With subitems, you get to see immediately who among your team members needs reminder. Reminders can be automated but to get a word from you may also be needed at times.

Take advantage of subitems for recurring parent tasks with similar components

If you’re an accounting firm or a similar business where you produce monthly reports with similar structure but the inclusions of the reports are being collated from different teams then using subitems saves you a lot of time in manually entering the information.

So, what will happen is that every period that the parent task recurs then the subitems will also be automatically created with it.

Note: Subitems can be automated using an automation recipe within the monday board

Kick off with subitems

Create a clutter-free workspace and start maximizing your work hours. Just remember when to use subitems. Make sure that it won’t create confusion, instead it will smoothen the processes even more.

If you have further questions with monday.com board functions and configurations, you may schedule a commitment-free consultation with me.