A room for Project teams

People Around the Project

Remember who is affected, who can help, and who needs a clear update.

Why this might help

Every project touches more people than you think. Some folks are doing the work. Others are waiting on your results. A few have the power to slow things down or speed them up. A people map helps your team pause and name all of them before someone important gets forgotten. It's not complicated. Think of it like drawing a quick picture of everyone orbiting your project, so you know who to talk to, who to keep in the loop, and who might need a heads-up before things go sideways.

Does this feel familiar?

  • You finish a big task and then realise three people needed to know about it two days ago.
  • Someone outside your team suddenly pushes back on your work because nobody told them it was happening.
  • Your team keeps asking 'wait, who owns this decision?' in the middle of a busy week.
  • A helpful person with useful knowledge never gets asked because no one thought to include them.

Try this together

  1. Grab a whiteboard or blank doc and spend ten minutes listing every person or group your project touches, even the ones on the edges.
  2. Sort your list into three rough buckets: people doing the work, people affected by the outcome, and people who can unblock or approve things.
  3. For each person, write one sentence about what they need from your team and how often they need it.
  4. Share the map with your whole team early, not just the lead, so everyone knows who to call when something comes up.
  5. Revisit the map at the start of each new phase, because the people around a project often shift as the work moves forward.

People Map

  1. Draw a circle in the middle of a page and write your project name inside it.
  2. Add a ring around it for people directly involved, like your core team and main decision-makers.
  3. Add an outer ring for people who are affected or interested but not doing the day-to-day work.
  4. Draw a line from each person to the centre and label it with one word, like 'approves', 'uses', or 'advises'.
  5. Review the finished map together as a team and mark anyone who needs a regular update or a direct conversation soon.

Questions worth talking about

Who on this list haven't we spoken to in a while, and is that actually fine?

If this project hit a wall tomorrow, whose help would we need first?

Are there people being affected by our work who don't even know we exist yet?

A few common questions

How detailed does a people map need to be?

It only needs to be detailed enough to be useful. A rough sketch with names and one-word roles is plenty to start. You can always add more as you learn. The goal is to stop people from falling through the cracks, not to build a perfect org chart.

What if our project team keeps changing?

That's actually when a people map helps most. When new people join or roles shift, the map gives everyone a quick way to get oriented. Update it at the start of each phase rather than trying to keep it perfect every single day.

Can Tindlo help us keep track of the people on our map?

Yes, in a practical way. When you create work items in Tindlo, you can attach People directly to them alongside files, links, and notes. That means the right names stay connected to the right tasks, and your team can see who's involved across the week view without digging through separate docs.

Keep the story close to the schedule

A date makes more sense when you can also see the reason, the owner, and the work around it. Tindlo brings those pieces together when a calendar alone isn't enough.

See how Tindlo works →

Where would you like to go next?

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