---
title: Task dependencies
slug: content-marketing-platform/docs/task-dependencies
docTags: 
createdAt: 2026-07-20T15:44:54.704Z
---

Task dependencies let you establish relationships across tasks and work your team has in progress. Optimizely Content Marketing Platform (CMP) can automatically shift due dates forward or backward for steps and tasks as you adjust due dates. You can also visualize the relationships across these dependencies in **Timeline** and **List** views under **Plan**.

![task-dependency-1.png](https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/BrbvVORKJ5iIeSMZye5kI/kSpnOTOTE6H0fpVgyiBVe-20260720-145842.png)

## Add related activity

1. In a task, select **Related** and click **Add Related** to indicate your work is related to another task but does not depend on it.
2. Select the **Relationship** menu and select one of the following options.
   - **Depends on** – Displays a **Task** menu to select the task on which this task depends.
   - **Relates to** – Displays the **Activity** menu to select the activity to which this task relates.

## Manage task dependencies

You may have tasks that depend on each other, such as a current task's due date that can be impacted by a change in the predecessor's due date. Select the **Relationship** menu, click **Depends on**, and select your desired **Activity type** (campaigns, tasks, events, or work requests).

You can start or complete tasks without requiring actions from the task on which it is dependent.

If a task is dependent on your work, you can update dependent task steps or due dates or continue without impacting their schedule. As dates shift, CMP notifies you of date changes.

## Visualize dependencies in the Plan view

After you add dependent tasks, go to the **Plan** view to visualize the relationships across your tasks.

Select the **Depends on** column in list view to see work dependent on tasks. You can update the dependencies using the in-line edit feature in the column in the **Plan** view, as shown in the following image.

![task-dependency-4.png](https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/BrbvVORKJ5iIeSMZye5kI/VRF4z60Vg4rWLzA0LsrlE-20260720-145842.png)

When you edit dates from the **List** view, you can select options to change the dependencies.

Go to the timeline calendar to see the relationships across tasks. You can visualize tasks linked to other tasks in the same campaign or across campaigns. Dates visually change when the predecessor task's date is changed.

![task-dependency-5.png](https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/BrbvVORKJ5iIeSMZye5kI/97vldLkxhzZ47-BAZR7lh-20260720-145843.png)

You can also update dependencies from the **Calendar** view.