Case Study: Setting Up Asana for Long-Term Success
Bringing Governance to Asana Across Five Departments
Context
This documents my capstone project for the Asana Administrator Certificate. I took the role of an Asana admin at a mid-size company and built a plan to manage licenses, app connections, and onboarding. I then turned that plan into a recurring checklist and a working Asana project.
Company Profile
A mid-size company with about 1,000 employees, organized by department, with some teams built around role or title.
Five departments use Asana: Marketing, Sales, Executive, HR, and Product Development.
The company does not handle sensitive personal data, and is not subject to any strict government compliance stipulations.
Slack and Google Drive connect to Asana.
The company has an IT governance framework, but it had not yet been applied to Asana.
Challenges
Most people use only a small part of Asana, and many don't know what it can do
License types had not been checked against real usage, which risked wasted spend
Slack and Google Drive connections had no approval process and relied on individual accounts
Company IT rules were not yet applied to the Asana environment
Privacy settings had to work for both department-based and role-based teams
Goals
Match license types to actual usage to control cost
Make app connections secure, documented, and not tied to one person
Create a consistent onboarding and training approach for the five departments
Build a repeatable checklist so good admin habits last
Help people enjoy using Asana, not just use it
Process
Gathered company details: size, structure, privacy, data, integrations, onboarding, billing, and governance
Chose three focus areas: license management, app connection governance, and onboarding and training
For each area, defined the problem, the admin actions, the desired outcome, and one proactive measure
Proactive measures: quarterly license audits, quarterly app reviews, and an annual onboarding review
Condensed the plan into a 7-item checklist grouped by how often each task happens: ongoing, as-needed, quarterly, and annually
Built the checklist into an Asana project with sections, due dates, and an owner on every task
Collaboration
Asana Administrator - billing owner and license decisions
IT Director - backup for billing, plus security and governance input
Department teams - onboarding and training rollout
Tools
Asana Admin console - licenses, members, app approvals, onboarding settings
Asana - checklist project with sections, due dates, and assignees
Slack and Google Drive - integrations reviewed
Asana Administrator Certificate best practices checklists - reference guide
Output: Ongoing Asana Admin Best Practices Checklist
Ongoing
Confirm the onboarding flow is current for all five departments
Check that team and project privacy settings still match the company structure
As-needed
Confirm no app requests are waiting on approval
Quarterly
Audit members and adjust license types
Review connected apps, service accounts, and integrations
Review license mix and billing with the Asana Administrator and IT Director
Annually
Revisit how company IT governance is applied to Asana
Expected Impact
Lower license costs by matching license types to real usage
Safer, steadier app connections that don't break when one person leaves
Consistent onboarding across all five departments
IT governance that is visible and checked on a regular schedule
Stronger Asana adoption and more enthusiasm for the tool
Key Takeaways
Start with the company's real needs, not generic settings
A recurring checklist keeps admin work from slipping
Adoption is a people challenge as much as a settings challenge
Owners and due dates are what turn a plan into action
Home | AI Skillset | Core Skills | AI Expertise | Marketo | About Me | Contact