Is there a way to transfer ownership of a Teams Planner linked in a private channel without the owner’s involvement?

Question

Is there a way to transfer ownership of a Teams Planner linked in a private channel without the owner’s involvement?

Anonymous

Hello,

I am the owner of a Planner for a private channel. I used the following workaround to create the Planner since it isn’t a built-in capability in MS Teams yet:

Go to Planner on the Web
Create a 'New Plan"
Give it a Name and select "Private"
Add Members that are in the private Channel
Copy the link of the Plan
Go to your private channel in Teams
Add a new tab
Select Website
Paste the link of the created Plan

This makes it complicated because it was created in an app environment rather than attached to the channel itself.

Is there a way to transfer ownership of this Planner without my involvement? I no longer have access to the account that created it. Or is there a workaround? The only other solution I can think of would be to copy each individual task over into a new Planner.

Thank you.

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2 answers

Answer 1

Hi Hannah,

Just following up to see if the previous suggestions helped resolve the issue. Let us know how things are going—your update would be greatly appreciated! If you think my reply is helpful to you, please remember to mark it as an answer.

This helps others in the community facing similar problems. Thanks for your understanding.

Clover - L - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist.

Answer 2

Hi Hannah,

Thank you for posting in Microsoft Community.

I understand that you're looking for a way to transfer ownership of a Teams Planner linked in a private channel without the owner’s involvement. You've hit on a common challenge because private channels in Teams do not have their own associated Microsoft 365 Groups, which is why your original workaround of linking a separate Planner plan as a website tab was necessary.

The good news is that a Microsoft 365 Global Administrator or a User Administrator in your organization can transfer ownership. This is the most efficient and recommended solution:

Steps for a Microsoft 365 Administrator to Transfer Planner Ownership:

Since the Planner plan is intrinsically linked to an underlying Microsoft 365 Group, the administrator needs to change the ownership of that group.

1.Identify the Associated Microsoft 365 Group:

The name of the Microsoft 365 Group will usually be the same as the Planner plan name you gave it when you created it (e.g., "My Private Channel Project Plan").
The administrator can also find it by looking at the "Members" section within the Planner web app for that specific plan, or by looking at the URL of the Planner plan itself (it often contains the group ID).

2.Administrator Access Microsoft 365 Admin Center:

The administrator logs into the Microsoft 365 admin center (https://admin.microsoft.com).
They must have a Global Administrator or User Administrator role.

3.Navigate to Groups:

In the left-hand navigation pane, the admin clicks on Teams & groups.
Then, they select Active teams & groups.

4.Find the Relevant Group:

The admin will need to search for the Microsoft 365 Group that corresponds to your Planner plan's name.

5.Change Group Ownership:

Click on the name of the identified Microsoft 365 Group.
Go to the Membership tab.
Click on the Owners section.
Click + Add owners.
Enter the name or email address of the new user who should be the owner (someone who has access to the private Teams channel).
Click Add.
Crucially: The administrator should then remove your old, inaccessible account from the Owners list if it's still listed there and if that account is no longer valid or accessible.

6.Add New Owner as a Member (if they aren't already):

It's a good practice to ensure the new owner is also listed as a member of the group, which usually happens automatically when they are added as an owner, but it's worth double-checking under the "Members" tab.

What Happens After Ownership Transfer:

Once the administrator changes the ownership of the underlying Microsoft 365 Group, the new owner will see the Planner plan listed under "My Plans" in their Planner hub
They will also be able to manage the plan, add/remove members, delete the plan, etc.
The link you pasted into the private Teams channel (as a website tab) will continue to work, as the underlying plan itself hasn't changed, only its ownership.

We hope this helps! If you have any further questions or need additional assistance, please feel free to ask.

Best regards,

Clover - L - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist.