Sub-boards & connected workflows
Break big steps into their own plans
“Build the app” isn’t a step. It’s a project of its own. In Flowboard, any step can have its own board, and the step’s card shows how far along that board is.
Big projects hide smaller projects inside them
Cram every sub-task into one plan and it becomes unreadable. Split them into separate documents or tools and you lose track of how they connect. What you need is both: a simple top-level plan, and a detailed plan behind each big step.
How it works in Flowboard
- 1
Give a step its own board
Open a step and create a sub-board, or use a workflow card, which gets its own board the first time you open it.
- 2
Plan the detail there
The sub-board is a full board with its own columns, steps, gates and documents. Sub-boards can have sub-boards too.
- 3
Watch progress roll up
The parent card shows a strip with the sub-board’s name and “3 of 7 steps done”, kept up to date automatically, plus a checklist of its steps you can tick from the parent.
- 4
Finish with confidence
Marking the parent step done while its sub-board still has open steps asks you first, so nothing slips through.
When to use it
- A step takes more than a week or involves several people
- You want an executive view and a working view of the same project
- Phases of a project have their own milestones
- You’re running several related projects under one goal
Common questions
- How deep can sub-boards go?
- As deep as you need. A sub-board’s steps can have sub-boards of their own, and each level shows its progress on the card above it.
- Can I copy a board with all of its sub-boards?
- Yes. Duplicating a board copies everything on it, plus every sub-board it links to, with all links pointing inside the copy.
Related
Feature
Visual project planning
Plan projects visually: lay out every step in swimlane columns, connect them in order, and see the whole plan at once instead of scrolling through a task list.
Learn moreFeature
Gates & milestones
Stop work starting too early. Flowboard gates hold steps back until a step is done, a date arrives, materials are bought or a metric hits its target.
Learn moreFeature
Project documents
Write briefs, specs and notes in a built-in document editor and pin them to the steps they belong to, so the plan and the thinking behind it stay together.
Learn moreUse case
Flowboard for engineers
Plan engineering projects visually: map the design process from requirements to testing, gate builds on reviews, and track parts, costs and specs.
Learn moreUse case
Flowboard for business owners
Plan a business or startup visually: turn goals into a roadmap, break initiatives into their own plans, and track costs and key numbers.
Learn moreReady to see your whole plan?
Create your first board in under a minute. Start from a blank canvas or a template.