Microsoft Planner Is Changing in 2026 — Here’s What PMOs Should Do Next

Microsoft’s Planner update rolling out in early 2026 brings a few useful improvements—but it also removes several features with little warning and, in many cases, no direct replacements. For PMOs and delivery leaders, this update is less about new functionality and more about clarity of intent.

Microsoft is positioning Planner as a lightweight work tool, not a full project or portfolio management platform.

The Good (But Incremental)

Planner is getting some overdue usability upgrades:

  • Task chat replaces comments, adding rich text and @mentions
  • Custom templates improve consistency for repeatable work
  • Copilot’s Project Manager agent expands to all plans for licensed users

Helpful changes—but none that solve governance, reporting, or scale.

The Bigger Signal: What’s Going Away

Several features PMOs quietly relied on are being retired:

  • Whiteboard integration in premium plans
  • iCalendar feeds for task visibility in Outlook
  • Planner components in Loop
  • Viva Goals integration (with no replacement)

On top of that, converting a basic plan to a premium plan will be temporarily unavailable, forcing manual rework just to move up-market.

What PMOs Should Do Next

This is the moment to be proactive—not reactive.

PMOs should:

  • Inventory how Planner is being used today
    Identify where teams rely on features that are going away (whiteboards, calendar feeds, Loop components).
  • Clarify Planner’s role
    Decide what belongs in Planner (team tasks) versus what requires a true project or portfolio tool.
  • Standardize before scaling
    Use templates and governance where possible, but recognize Planner’s limits.
  • Plan for reporting and lifecycle gaps
    If leadership needs cross-project visibility, Planner alone won’t get you there.
  • Evaluate long-term platforms now
    Waiting until features disappear creates rushed migrations and frustrated users.

Planner is evolving—but not in a PMO-friendly direction.

Planner is becoming a better task tool—but it’s moving further away from what PMOs need for structured project and portfolio management. If your PMO needs structure, visibility, and longevity, now is the time to define a modern Microsoft work management strategy.

Bottom Line

Microsoft’s message is unmistakable: Planner is designed for team‑level task execution, not enterprise‑grade PPM. PMOs using it as anything more than a lightweight task tool should view this update as a catalyst to re‑evaluate their approach—and modernize their PPM ecosystem before the next wave of product retirements forces their hand.