Dynamic Daily Task Management
The Problem
Microsoft Planner's recurring task functionality created persistent visual clutter. When marking recurring tasks complete, they remained visible with updated dates for next occurrence instead of disappearing. This prevented at-a-glance understanding of actual daily workload and obscured what still needed attention today.
Day-specific task requirements added complexity. Different weekdays required different tasks, with certain administrative checks needed only on specific days. Tasks relevant only to Fridays and Mondays cluttered Tuesday through Thursday views. Thursday-only tasks appeared unnecessarily Monday through Wednesday. No way to achieve clean daily task visibility showing only today's relevant items without manual daily task creation and deletion.
The Solution
Built five separate Power Automate workflows, one automation per weekday, to generate day-specific task lists in Microsoft Planner. Each day's automation created only that day's required tasks based on role requirements. Tasks disappeared when checked off providing true completion tracking instead of perpetual date-shifting. Clean daily view showed only today's actual tasks without clutter from other days' recurring items.
First Power Automate project undertaken as self-directed learning initiative. Identified tool limitation, researched automation possibilities, designed multi-flow solution, and implemented working system through experimentation and documentation review. Solution demonstrated personal productivity optimization through technical problem-solving.
Architecture
Five parallel Power Automate flows with independent day-specific logic. Each flow uses scheduled daily trigger matching specific weekday (Monday flow, Tuesday flow, Wednesday flow, Thursday flow, Friday flow). Flow execution creates tasks in Microsoft Planner with day-appropriate content. Task creation actions use Planner connector populating task title, description, and assignment. No interdependencies between flows enabling independent operation. Tasks exist only for current day, providing clean workspace without perpetual recurring items.
Key Implementation Decisions
- •Five separate flows vs single complex flow: Day-specific logic isolated per weekday simplified maintenance and customization
- •Daily task generation vs recurring task modification: Creating fresh tasks daily solved Planner limitation completely
- •True completion vs date-shifting: Tasks disappear when complete providing actual progress visibility
- •Day-specific content: Different task lists per weekday accommodated role-specific requirements
- •Self-directed learning approach: First Power Automate project completed through documentation and experimentation without formal training
The Results
Quantifiable Outcomes
- ✓Improved daily task visibility with at-a-glance view of actual workload
- ✓Reduced cognitive load eliminating clutter from future and past recurring tasks
- ✓Better task management with true completion tracking vs perpetual date-shifting
- ✓Personal productivity gain through clearer daily priorities and progress tracking
- ✓Solved Microsoft Planner tool limitation through automation workaround
- ✓Demonstrated self-directed Power Automate learning capability
- ✓Foundation established for future automation projects
- ✓Clean daily workspace maintained automatically without manual task management
Lessons Learned
- →Tool limitations create automation opportunities: Planner recurring task problem solved through workflow generation approach
- →Self-directed learning enables quick capability building: First Power Automate project completed without formal training
- →Personal productivity automation provides immediate value: Daily workflow improvement compounds over time
- →Multiple simple flows often better than one complex flow: Day-specific isolation simplified logic and maintenance
- →User experience thinking drives better solutions: Focus on clean daily view led to fresh task generation vs modification approach