Share Your Insights: How Do You Use Default and Custom Views in Wrike? 📣

• Yes, I am familiar.
• We use custom views almost exclusively.
• When creating new work, we mostly use the new table view. I would expect that filters in this view would affect subfolders in the same way they affect main folders. 

Yes, familiar.

I usually delete the classic views and stick with custom, in anticipation of wanting to save filter options anyway. Is there any reason to keep "classic"? Could the custom views just be "views", for example?

Table view is the most universally appreciated view so I usually set that as default. I would expect either the parent default view to cascade to the children, or there be specific controls to override. Right now, its never quite clear if I am setting default views for the team or myself.

Understanding Views: Yes, very familiar.

Usage: We use custom views for almost every different team, and those custom views are typically the only way they access their work. I appreciate that I can have a traditional view for getting the larger sense of the project or tasks, and then the custom view can show me how that work is impacting different resources or teams. 

Creating New Work: I expect to see Table view as default, with the Gantt and Board views as secondary non-default options. I do not expect any filters on the views by default, and I appreciate having all of the fields and filters available at the top of the task list pane so that I can tweak my views easily. 

Understanding Views: Yes

Usage:

• We use custom views on our Marketing kanban board to show active work by department/sub-team that are driven by a custom field. We use the classic Board view to show everything the Agile team is working on together.
• Sometimes we build custom views for major projects, typically with Table or Board view only and we usually set them as the default view. Key features: Filtering on custom fields, ability to rename the views, ability to set them as the default
• Our default is List view and we use the heck out of it. Key features: Clean, simple, and shows us the basics (assigned, task name, due date, status).
• I love that I can click a view and get an option to copy the permalink! Super helpful, especially for sharing with coworkers who don't use Wrike much so they can see exactly what I'm seeing.

Creating New Work: 

• We utilize List view for creating new projects (usually from Blueprints, but also from scratch)
• If we need to add a subtask to a task we usually open the task and add them. Sometimes from List view.
• For projects or folders, it would be helpful to have Table and Gantt as secondary default views.
• As for filtering projects, we typically filter by status or a custom field. 

Additional Feedback:

• Something that would be really handy to have is a filter to catch anything active that's inside a completed item. So if a Project is closed but there's still a task in progress, I need to easily see that. Same thing if a task gets closed but there's an open subtask inside of it. I've used other tools (Rally specifically comes to mind) that had an "orphaned tasks" filter. This way nothing falls through the cracks. I submitted a product idea for this last year (task level only, which would catch anything in a project!)

Understanding Views: Yes, very familiar.

Usage: The only classic views I use are the List view for looking on mobile devices, or Gantt view. In nearly all other cases, I use custom views to better support the custom field data that powers nearly all of my various workflows. I often use custom Table views with custom filters applied to create staged views like "Pending", "Completed", and "All" status projects/tasks. Different types of work streams require different custom fields to inform the state of the work, so I'll usually start with standard fields, the append additional ones for the unique elements.

Creating New Work: Consistency is key. I like to have my Status column first, then Title, then the assorted standard and custom fields which can vary in significance depending on the use case. One of the biggest complains with new users is how the UI changes depending on which folder you're viewing. So we try to limit this confusion by sticking to standard layouts and columns for the baseline for all new folders/projects. I tend to default to Pending (or active) work as the default view, with Completed work as the next view so that people can quickly navigate to various modes. It also helps to deep link to those in comms from Slack/Email for landing in the right "mode". "All" view is when you want to look at everything at a glance, but Reports or Dashboards/Analytics might be better suited for that. I think that this framework could vary depending on whether you work in a production environment where everyone works in the same way, or in a less defined context where occasional users might participate and have wildly different approaches to their individual work.

Understanding Views: Are you familiar with the difference between classic and custom views? 

Yes, we use both classic and custom views across multiple departments.

Usage: Are you actively using custom views and if so, how often and why? What key features do you find useful for your work within the two kinds of views?

One of the main use cases for custom views is creating a client facing deliverable. We have a custom field "client timeline task" and create a custom view filtered on those tasks. We then create a snapshot of the gantt view and share with clients. Now that public links are an option, we are exploring creating a public link on our client timeline task custom view.

Creating New Work: When you create a new project, what view options do you expect to have by default? How should filters work when drilling down through subprojects and subfolders?

The table view makes more sense as a default view than list with all available filters at the top.Or a way to build a view with filter into the blueprint. In this example, there would be a new project created then a "client timeline task" view already created.

I am familiar with both views. I am not using the custom view at the moment. My work does not require me to make many changes to the views in order to complete my tasks. I use the list view as it helps me keep everything straight and in order. I like being able to scroll down to see what tasks i have coming up and what is priority for my week.

Understanding Views: Are you familiar with the difference between classic and custom views? 

Yep!

Usage: Are you actively using custom views and if so, how often and why? What key features do you find useful for your work within the two kinds of views?

Our teams are using BOTH custom and Classic Views.  I think Custom views are preferred for teams who have a LOT of custom field / values they are trying to filter & sort by - vs Classic views are always great for quick access

Creating New Work: When you create a new project, what view options do you expect to have by default? How should filters work when drilling down through subprojects and subfolders?

I think the child projects or folders should always retain, by default, that of the parent - but I have lots of use cases where this is NOT the case too - ultimately - if you configure any view at the blueprints level - whether you are using "Create from.." or a request form to build - it should inherit those properties.  Which new custom views DO allow that.  Ultimately I think the AI goal here would be to recognize what a user typically changes to and auto reset the view based on that users' likely preference (or at least ask) - sort of like setting a browser default - but that might be a question for a future date!

Understanding Views: Are you familiar with the difference between classic and custom views? By classic I just assume we're talking about default views, and yes I am familiar.

Usage: Are you actively using custom views and if so, how often and why? What key features do you find useful for your work within the two kinds of views? -- I never use the "More classic views" section of doing a view. I almost always create my own view depending on the type of space I'm building.

- If its sustaining projects that have new tasks on a regular basis  I normally go with a "new" table that I add a lot of custom fields to that view and then depending on the need I may filter by those specific fields. I might utilize custom workflows for viewing

Creating New Work: When you create a new project, what view options do you expect to have by default? How should filters work when drilling down through subprojects and subfolders? 

- I think the available new views are fine. However I've run into issues when it comes to how Wrike sees Projects. Wrike sees Projects as a contained box, and thus if I'm looking at it from the sidebar, or a list view I can't expand that project. Even if the project has sub projects. To my knowledge I can only do that in a table view. And while a Table view is great for a lot of things, sometimes I like to be able to use List as a less overwhelming view. 

- I think another issue is with how custom fields work is that even if I generated the custom field at a space level, it's not available to me to add as a field, unless I go into space settings and add it to a particular folder/project etc. And I think as a space admin I should be able to add any space field to any folder/project/etc view without having to do extra menu work. 

Understanding Views: Yes I am familiar with.

Usage: Yes I do. We have one special table view with custom fields for the weekly project meeting. 

Creating New Work: we normaly start with a Gantt View but customized with columns showing the most imprtant values for a project manager. We are using the Gantt as a hybrid between Gantt and Table to see the timeline quickly and shift tasks by drag and drop and on the other hand as table to enter values quickly without openeing the tasks. So a customized Gannt is the most helpfull tool for a project manager.

Understanding Views: I am familiar with classic and custom views. Classic views are great for a quick look, but anything more specific gets into the need for custom views.

Usage: The best thing we use custom views for are filtering Gantt charts. We have a project blueprint that includes tasks for multiple project paths, then based on the type of project tasks are filtered out and the filters are made the default for the set of views we are looking for.

Creating New Work: When we create a new project we use list view and Gantt view by default. Board view is also pretty commonly used for weekly team meetings. Filtering custom fields is what we expect to be able to do in all of those views. The biggest thing I would like to see changed is the ability to manipulate project blueprints with the same views as an active project.

Understanding Views: I am lightly familiar with the difference between classic and custom views.

Usage: We are not currently using custom views very extensively, other than some of the templatized custom views. Specifically, Gantt Charts and Tables are our most used views. We primarily use tools (tables) to summarize our projects in folders and use table grouping and sorting methods to view our work most efficiently.

Creating New Work: I'd expect list views as well as a Gantt chart view as defaults when creating projects. I think filters should be able to filter through sub folders for assignee and task status when looking at a project overall. 

Understanding Views: Yes, I'm familiar with the difference between classic and custom views

Usage: Yes, we're actively using custom views daily to provide a single view for users to check and update their projects and tasks on one page. Classic list view is often useful for digging into one project's tasks. Gantt view is useful for visualizing projects on a timeline (obviously). New table view is useful for an overview of all projects and tasks.

Creating New Work: New table view would be the default. It would be fantastic, if users could have a personal custom table view with only their own projects. Filtering based on Project Owner would be one really useful view. We also have users who would appreciate a default view filtered on a specific custom field value. If a user is assigned to a task within a project, it would be useful to display the whole project auto expanded to show the relevant task.

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A comment on custom views as the default for specific locations: a few months ago, we asked Wrike Support "Can we enforce a predefined "new table view" column setup to all users? (#1424776)".

Support replied that we "can create a custom view for the desired folder/project, use the desired filters, and then set it up as the default for the specific location. I believe this is the best way to have a standard view for everyone."

Initially, the filtered custom view set as default for the specific location seemed like the perfect solution indeed. Since then, however, we have realized that we can't really lock the views and prevent users from deleting them. Once a view is gone, rebuilding it from scratch seems to be the only way to restore a deleted default filtered custom view. 

It would be really useful to be able to lock down the default view we want to present to users. Also, we would appreciate a way to export/import a filtered custom view in those situations where a user has managed to delete it.

Thank you all very much for such detailed feedback, we appreciate it. We'll keep you posted on this research! 

Lisa Community Team at Wrike Wrike Product Manager Become a Wrike expert with Wrike Discover

Lisa Wrike Team member Become a Wrike expert with Wrike Discover

I dont use this but i cant wait to try it!

Understanding Views: Yes, very familiar with the difference between views.

Usage: We utilize custom views daily and those set ups depends on the point in project lifecycle and intended audience for the review. With set up, we most frequently use new table mixed with gantt views for easy of editing and scheduling, but for wider team standup and sprint planning, board view has been our go to. Within board view, it's been extremely helpful to be able to group by assignee for standup reports. When tracking specific details or general team status, we use the dashboards and chart view.

Creating New Work: When creating a new project, the new table view is our expected default, though a custom gantt would also be great as default. For team meetings, being able to filter by assignee, completion, and associate project are what we lean most heavily on. 

Understanding Views: Yes

Usage:

• I primarily use custom views. However, there are some tools available in the List view, such as rescheduling the project based on moving the dates of a selection of tasks (think "Advance Schedule" option).

• Additionally, in the List view you can remove tasks from a specific location in bulk, something you cannot currently do in the Table view.

• I use the Timelog View to see all the time entries within a specific project. It's very useful to get an overview without having to build a dashboard or report.

• The Resources View is used at the Workspace level (we have some for individual PMs) where they can see all the projects and the people involved at a glance.

Creating New Work:

• 90% of the tasks come from blueprints, and the usual preferred view is the new Table view.

• I notice that many PMs often go into the different folders that make up a project and work in List View. Personally, I find it very inconvenient, but I've seen several people use it this way, and they've confirmed that for them, being able to isolate different project phases is much more intuitive than seeing all the tasks in Table view.

• However, after setting up the tasks in Table view, I usually switch to Gantt to see any dependencies and understand if we've planned things properly, and then I move on to the Workload view (Resources View) to make sure everyone has the available time.

• Our sprint scheduling then happens directly from the Workload Charts, where we move tasks forward or backward in time based on our needs. Here, it would be very helpful to have more information when hovering over a task, such as:

  • The name of the project we're in

  • Whether that task has dependencies (predecessors or successors)

• This way, the Workload Chart could be much more useful even when modifying things.

1. Not especially. I started using Wrike about 6 months ago and so have been using the custom views almost exclusively since there. The rest of my org also uses custom views over classic.

2. Almost entirely custom views; of those, we use list and table the most, with Gantt charts being used occasionally at the strategic level. My organization doesn't use resources or scheduling yet, but I could see us using scheduling more as we evolve both our PMO and our use of Wrike.

3. List and table.

We so appreciate your detailed comments here, folks 💚

Lisa Community Team at Wrike Wrike Product Manager Become a Wrike expert with Wrike Discover

Lisa Wrike Team member Become a Wrike expert with Wrike Discover

I actually don't know what the difference is between Classic and Custom views.

Understanding Views: Yes

Usage:

• We use custom views to check specified timelogs across different company locations

• Our default is List view and we use it on a day to day basis. Most of our colleagues refuse to use the other views unless their features are required (Gantt Chart for example)

Creating New Work: 

• We utilize List view for creating new projects in the Blueprintarea
• If we need to add a subtask we do via List view.
• We do everything we can in the Listview, whenever possible!

Understanding: Yes

Usage:

• Team members may be using classic views but admins are more focused on setting up custom views.
• Table and Gantt views are used the most heavily, but some folks like using List views as well. (Wish that it was easier to control which fields show up in which views/folders across the Space as not all fields are applicable to all item types/views and each user has to independently hide irrelevant columns on their side in Table views, which is non value-add busy work.)
• Custom views are a necessity so that we can set default filter sets, but we do wish there was an easier way to share saved filters between users within our Space.

Creating New Work: 

• 99% of our projects are created via intake forms that tie to our custom blueprints. 
• New tasks are created in Table, Gantt, or List views

We use list views as the default view.  Some users change their view and that is strictly up to them.   All but 2 or 3 users like the list view and they never change it including myself.

Understanding Views: 

Yes, Personally I tend to use custom views, although my organization uses both classic and custom views across different departments.

Usage: 

I use the Kanban view most often. I find the visual of where tasks are in the process very easy to absorb using this view. I do use the Table view when creating a project blueprint. It is easier to work with for setting up tasks and subtasks. 

Understanding Views: Are you familiar with the difference between classic and custom views? 

Yes.

Usage: Are you actively using custom views and if so, how often and why? What key features do you find useful for your work within the two kinds of views?

Yes. Different users setup different views to help them filter work. For example, we have a work category field that helps sort work in dashboards and to-do lists for individuals. Our social team has custom views to see tasks for certain item types like Facebook, etc. That said, while custom views are useful, we still use classic views at least 85% of the time in day to day work.

Creating New Work: When you create a new project, what view options do you expect to have by default? How should filters work when drilling down through subprojects and subfolders?

I still feel really strongly about expecting to have the list view. When I'm working on building a new project, I want to be able to just enter all the tasks quickly with minimal detail and visual distractions, and that's what I get in the list view. I'll start using other views from there as needed, but usually just List and Gantt while building.

Understanding Views: Are you familiar with the difference between classic and custom views? 

Yes, definitely!

Usage: Are you actively using custom views and if so, how often and why? What key features do you find useful for your work within the two kinds of views?

We almost exclusively use custom views. However, one area where we still use the Classic view is dashboards. We use a lot of dashboards -- both internally and for external vendors to whom we outsource some of our work, and a lot of them have been using the same dashboards for years. We haven't changed those.

Creating New Work: When you create a new project, what view options do you expect to have by default? How should filters work when drilling down through subprojects and subfolders?

When we create new projects, it is nearly always in (New) Table or List view. 

We like the filtering options and the side-by-side view available in List View, and the customization of columns available in Table View.

Understanding Views: We have a highly developed understanding of views across our project management office and team.

Usage: We use Custom Views only.  We need the flexibility to make views serve our workstyle, plus our main views are Table and Gantt which now reside in Custom Views.

Creating New Work: We typically have complex project/task/subtask trees and thus plan or build projects in the table view.  We add dependencies and scheduling details in the Gantt view.  There are two main deficiencies in the current system that could be improved for massive benefit to the speed, effectiveness and efficiency of the platform:

1. For views (especially Table), all the settings need to be savable as a view configuration; filtering, field visibility, column sequence, grouping, etc.  Then, those saved configurations need to be applicable to any view context.  If I save my view, I should be able to go to any project and apply that view.  The view should be persistent as I navigate around within or across projects until I change the view (perhaps to another one I saved).  Currently, one might take several minutes to configure the view to display what is needed only to navigate one level up or down or to another project where all that work is lost.  No other software I've encountered has the hyper-localized view behavior of Wrike...certainly not any PM platform.  This one change would save us 100s of manhours.
2. Keystroke navigation and manipulation would also improve efficiency and effectiveness drastically.  I'm not aware of too many platforms that don't allow indent/outdent of subtasks from the keyboard (except Wrike).  For example [Ctrl]+[left/right arrow].  I also can't think of another platform that doesn't use [Tab] to navigate across the table fields and [Enter] to start a new line below the current one (i.e. insert next task).  The amount of right-clicking and fighting against the mouse-driven behavior is quite maddening.
3. The Gantt view is pretty solid save for the same features in #1 and #2 above.  One additional function that is surprisingly absent is the ability to create a dependency to a parent/summary task.  It is very common to have an entire portion of a task tree be dependent on one or more predecessors.  Yet, Wrike requires creation of a dependency to every subtask rather than one simple dependency that drives the parent/summary task and everything below it.  This, again, is table stakes with most other PM software UX but is shockingly absent in Wrike.

Understanding Views: Yes, very familiar.

Usage: Yes, we delete the classic/standar views and create a new Table View in every project. And most projects we use the New Calendar View and some projects the Gantt View.

Creating New Work: Table Biew, I would love that the subfolders/projects would use the same view by default.

Your feedback is immensely useful for our research and we're grateful for all your comments here! 

Lisa Community Team at Wrike Wrike Product Manager Become a Wrike expert with Wrike Discover

Lisa Wrike Team member Become a Wrike expert with Wrike Discover