---
url: /recipes/split-a-team-into-folders.md
description: >-
  Lay out folders and lists so every person and area of a small team has a clear
  place.
---

# Split a team's work into folders

This recipe is for the lead of a small team, three to ten people, who is setting up a
[workspace](/concepts/hule-model) or cleaning up one that grew by accident. The goal is a sidebar
where everyone knows where a new task goes and sees only the areas they work in.

To invite people and build the tree you need the **Admin** set or higher. Giving someone a
permission set ([setup step 2](#setup-invite-the-team)) needs the workspace owner or a
**Super Admin**.

::: warning Building and sharing needs List/Folder manager
A **List/Folder manager** can build and share the folders; see
[Permissions and access](/reference/permissions-and-access).
:::

## Folder tree: one folder per area

One [folder](/concepts/hierarchy) per area of work, lists inside for the kinds of work, and
[access given per folder](/concepts/sharing):

```text
Acme (workspace)
├── Product (folder)          shared with: Anna, Ben, Chen
│   ├── Roadmap (list)
│   ├── Bugs (list)
│   └── Sprints (folder)      ← folders nest as deep as you need
├── Marketing (folder)        shared with: Dana, Eli
│   ├── Campaigns (list)
│   └── Content (list)
├── Operations (folder)       shared with: every member, one by one
│   └── Requests (list)
└── Management (folder)       not shared: the lead only
    └── Hiring (list)
```

`Operations` is where anyone can ask anyone for something; `Management` stays private.

## Setup: invite the team

1. Invite the team ([Invite a member](/guides/invite-members-and-grant-permissions#invite-a-member)).
   They appear under **Members** once they accept, with the **Worker** permission set.

   ::: warning Inviting needs Manage members
   The **Admin** set and higher have it.
   :::

2. If someone other than you will build the tree, give them the **List/Folder manager** set
   ([Grant permission sets](/guides/invite-members-and-grant-permissions#grant-permission-sets)).
   The set shows switched on in their card.

   ::: warning Giving a set needs Manage permission sets
   Of the system sets, only **Super Admin** includes it; the workspace owner always has it.
   :::

## Setup: folders, lists and shares

1. Write down the areas your team works on, for example:

   * **Product**;
   * **Marketing**;
   * **Operations**.

   Folders follow areas of work, not people: people move between areas, areas stay.

2. In the sidebar, point at the workspace, click **+** (**Add**) and choose **New folder**
   ([Create a folder](/guides/organize-folders-and-lists#create-a-folder)).
   An empty row appears; type the area's name and press `Enter`. The folder appears under the
   workspace.

3. Inside each folder, create one list per kind of work that has its own
   [statuses](/concepts/statuses), and on the form's **Features** step pick **Teamwork**
   ([Create a list](/guides/organize-folders-and-lists#create-a-list)).
   The lists appear under the folder. **Teamwork** turns on every feature except **Repeats** and
   **Story Points**. `Bugs` and `Roadmap` move through different steps, so they are separate
   lists.

4. Open each folder's **…** menu, choose **Share…**, pick a member in **Member**, set **Access**
   to **Edit** and choose **Add**; repeat for each person
   ([Share with a member](/guides/share-a-folder-or-list#share-with-a-member)).
   Each person appears as a row with **Edit**; everything inside the folder is shared with them.

   ::: warning Access starts on Read
   Switch **Access** to **Edit** before you click **Add**, or they can only read. Only members
   who have accepted the invitation are listed in **Member**.
   :::

5. Leave `Management` unshared.
   Being a member gives no access by itself, so a top-level folder you don't share is seen only
   by:

   * you, its creator;
   * the workspace owner;
   * members whose set has **See all** or **Edit all** in **Folders**
     ([Permissions and access](/reference/permissions-and-access)).

   ::: info Private inside a shared folder
   For a private folder *inside* a shared one, turn **Inherit access** off in its **Share…**
   dialog; it gets a lock in the sidebar
   ([Private branches](/guides/share-a-folder-or-list#private-branches)).
   :::

![The sidebar of the workspace Acme: one folder per area — Management, Marketing, Operations and Product — with their lists, and a Sprints folder inside Product](/shots/recipes/split-a-team-1.light.webp){.light-only}
![The sidebar of the workspace Acme: one folder per area — Management, Marketing, Operations and Product — with their lists, and a Sprints folder inside Product](/shots/recipes/split-a-team-1.dark.webp){.dark-only}

## Daily use: where each task goes

* **New task, obvious place.** A bug goes to `Product / Bugs`, a campaign idea to
  `Marketing / Campaigns`. If nobody knows where something goes, it goes to
  `Operations / Requests` and the lead files it later.
* **Cross-area work** stays in one list, the one of the area that owns it. Share that single
  list with the helpers from the other area rather than copying tasks between lists.
* **Someone joins the team.** Share `Operations` and their area's folder with them; they see all
  the lists inside at once.

## Access problems and fixes

* **A member sees nothing.** Nothing is shared with them yet. Share at least one folder
  ([Share with a member](/guides/share-a-folder-or-list#share-with-a-member)), or check that
  their permission set includes **Read** on folders and lists
  ([Permissions and access](/reference/permissions-and-access)).
* **A member can see a list but can't edit tasks.** Their share is **Read**. Open **Share…** on
  the folder or list where you gave it — the row reading **Provided by** and the owner's name,
  not **Via …** — and change it to **Edit**
  ([Change or remove access](/guides/share-a-folder-or-list#change-or-remove-access)). If the
  share is already **Edit**, check that their permission set has **Update** in **Tasks**.
* **No Share… in the menu.** You need the **Share** permission, which **List/Folder manager** and
  higher give; see [Permissions and access](/reference/permissions-and-access).

## Variations: per client, one contractor

* **Folder per client.** Agencies often use one folder per client with the same lists inside.
  Build one, then **Duplicate** it for the next client
  ([Duplicate a folder](/guides/organize-folders-and-lists#duplicate-a-folder)). Leave
  **Copy sharing** off so the first client's people don't get the copy, then share the copy
  with the new client's team.
* **One outside person.** To let a contractor into one folder only, see
  [Give a contractor one branch](/recipes/give-a-contractor-one-branch).