{"id":8350,"date":"2024-09-13T16:31:53","date_gmt":"2024-09-13T16:31:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/plaky.com\/blog\/?p=8350"},"modified":"2026-04-14T10:43:57","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T10:43:57","slug":"action-items","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/plaky.com\/blog\/action-items\/","title":{"rendered":"What Are Action Items (& How to Write Them)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A project is almost like a living being, isn\u2019t it? It evolves, progresses \u2014 and sometimes, you can\u2019t tell how it will develop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What that means is that you, as an organized and responsible project manager, may create a project plan, define scope, goals, and objectives \u2014 and still<\/em> sit in a meeting and find more unexpected work that needs to be done. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why? Because small, day-to-day items of work cannot be planned too far in advance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These small pieces of work are called action items. Read on to find out how to create them and ensure the success of your project.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Action<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

What is an action item? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

An action item is a specific unit of work that has to be finished to reach a goal or complete a more complex task. Action items are usually assigned to one person and take a short time to finish.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We talked to Craig Guarraci<\/a>, founder of Tech PM Career Path, who explained how they make use of action items in his company:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Craig<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cAction items are used to track smaller, but important work and could be completed in a few hours or less than a day. They track previously unknown work that appears during project execution. Action items often include investigative work that may affect the project. They need one owner, a priority, and a completion date so that the project can proceed smoothly.\u201d<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Action items often emerge as a result of a meeting. The action item form can be filled with all the necessary details during the meeting, or quickly after. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But who\u2019s in charge of the form? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked about who completes the action item form in a meeting, Craig explained that it depends on the amount of workload project and program managers have: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Craig<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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“Usually, the project or program manager completes the action item form. However, if the project or program manager is feeling swamped, they can ask team members to open an action item for themselves by noon or the end of the day.\u201d<\/em><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Project task vs. action item<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The difference between a task and an action item is that an action item is a small, specific task that cannot be further subdivided into smaller units of work, while tasks can contain subtasks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreover, complex tasks can sometimes have several task owners, while an action unit only has one. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\ud83d\udca1 Plaky Pro Tip<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn more about project tasks and how to organize them into an efficient task list:<\/p>\n\n\n\n