In Summary
- Google Tasks do not have the feature to assign tasks to others.
- But you can assign from other Google services like Google Chat, Gmail, Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides.
- Tasks assigned to you on Google Chat can be even accessed on the Google Tasks app.
- Anyhow, tasks from Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides are not in sync with Google Tasks app.
Unlike Microsoft To-do, Google Tasks does not allow you to assign tasks to others. You can only create tasks for yourself, schedule them, or make them recurring tasks. However, if you are a Google Workspace user, you have several options to assign tasks to others using other Google applications such as Google Chat, Gmail, Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. So let us get started.
Table of Contents
How to Assign Tasks on Google Chat
In Google Chat, you can create Spaces, which is nothing more than a group chat feature for your workspace. The tasks feature available in Spaces is an extension of the Google Tasks app. Any tasks assigned to you in Spaces can even be accessed from the Google Tasks app. Let me explain this in detail.
1. Open Google Chat and select any space on which you want to assign the task. Ensure the person you want to assign the task to is available in that space. If you don’t have any space, you can easily create one by clicking on the Plus + icon beside the Spaces and selecting the Create space option. Now you can give your space a name and add people to it.
2. On the space, switch to the Tasks tab where you can create space tasks.
3. Here, click on Add space task button to start creating the task.
4. Now give your task a name, description, add a due date, etc.
5. Click on the Assign option and select the person that you want to assign that task. You can only assign the task to one person as of now.
6. Once done, click on Add button to assign a task on Google Chat.
Tips to Access and Manage Tasks in Google Chat
1. Once you create a task, you can always click on it and start editing the task name, due date, description, and even assign it to somebody.
2. The tasks assigned to you from Google Chat can be accessed even from the Google Tasks app in the My Tasks list.
3. You have the option to sort tasks by assignee, which will put all assigned tasks first in alphabetical order. If you sort again by the assigner, the list is reversed so that the assigned tasks are at the top.
4. You can delete the task, just by hovering over the task and selecting the Delete icon. Then click on the Delete option in the pop-up to confirm.
5. Clicking on the circle icon before the task will mark the task as complete. Anyhow, you can scroll down and uncheck the task to re-open it.
6. All the changes you make to the tasks, from creating and marking them as completed to deleting them, will be listed as an activity in the chat tab.
How to Assign Tasks in Gmail
Gmail does not have its own task feature. Google Chat is part of Gmail, so you can access it from Gmail instead of accessing Google Chat separately.
1. Open Gmail, click on the Spaces option in the left sidebar, and select the space to start creating tasks.
2. Now open the Tasks tab and assign the tasks as mentioned in the previous method. This way, you can keep all your emails, chats, and tasks in one place.
If you cannot find the Google Chat option in Gmail, click on the Cog icon at the top right corner and then click the See all settings button.
Now open Chat and Meet tab and select Google Chat under the Chat option. Once done, click on Save Changes to access the Google Chat and spaces directly from Gmail.
How to Assign Tasks in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides
In Google Workspace, you can assign tasks for documents in addition to regular tasks. With its help, you can assign tasks to complete documentation or make changes to document files such as documents, sheets, and slides. Assigning tasks in these applications is possible using the comment function. Learn how to assign tasks in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides here.
1. Open any docs, sheets, or slides file and place your cursor where you want the changes to be applied.
2. Now, right-click and select the Comment option. Alternatively, you can also use the ctrl+alt+M shortcut to create a comment.
3. It will open a comment window where you can write your comment about the changes you are expecting. To assign it, just type @ and enter their name or email id. It prompts an Assign to checkbox within the comment window.
4. Check the Assign to checkbox and click on Assign.
That’s it; you have assigned the task within the document.
Tips to Access and Manage Tasks in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides
1. Once you assign the task to a person, he will receive an email notification about the comment you have created so that they can take action on it. Anyhow, these tasks are not in sync with Google Tasks.
2. When they open the document, they can see comments beside the document file on Google Docs and Slides.
3. On Google Sheets, they will see a yellow banner with comments on the cell. Hovering on that cell will show the comment.
4. By clicking the three-dot menu on the comment, you can edit the comment, Delete the comment and also get a link to that comment if you have created the comment. In comparison, others can only copy the link to that comment.
5. The comments are visible to everyone who can access the document, not just the creator and assignee.
6. Everyone who can access the document can also reply to the comment for a back and forth discussion related to the assigned task.
7. when adding a reply, you can reassign the task to someone by mentioning them in the reply. It will prompt to Reassign the task. Just check the checkbox beside Reassign to and click on Reply. The task will be reassigned to the person mentioned in the reply.
8. Once the assignee completes the task, they can simply check off the task by clicking on the checkmark icon at the top of the comment window.
9. You can click on the comment icon at the top bar to check the comment history of all the comments on that document. Here you can access when the task is marked as done, when there are replies, etc. Anyhow, if you have deleted the comment, it will be deleted from the comment history too.
Assign Tasks to Others on Google Workspace
Google products can be quite confusing at times. Nonetheless, they are also powerful in their own way. The Google Tasks app does not let you assign tasks to others, but you can use the Google Chat app to complete the process. In any case, you should create a space, add the person to that space, and then create a task to assign to them. This process can be done away with by a simple feature in the Tasks app.
While the tasks from Google Chat at least sync with Google Tasks, the tasks assigned from Google docs, sheets, and slides do not. You still have to rely on email notifications.