Project Team & CRM
Enable CRM on a project - shared, isolated, or none - then work with contacts, companies, activities, and CRM tasks scoped to the project, with rich filters and a dedicated linking panel.
Projects in PrimeTask can have an integrated CRM layer - contacts, companies, activities, and CRM tasks scoped specifically to the project. When enabled, a dedicated CRM tab appears on the project, giving you a focused view of the people and organisations you're working with, separate from the rest of the app.
CRM integration works in one of three modes: none (no CRM tab, default for new projects), shared (the project uses the Space's main CRM), or isolated (the project gets its own private CRM data that doesn't mix with the Space). Pick the mode that matches your confidentiality and workflow needs.
Project CRM is a Pro feature
The CRM system as a whole requires Pro. See License Settings. For the broader CRM system, see CRM Overview.
Choose CRM mode before heavy client work
Shared is best for one CRM across a Space; Isolated is best when project CRM data should stay separate.
This article covers the CRM tab on projects and how CRM integration works. For managing the project's team of collaborators (members, roles), see Project Team.
What you can do
Enable CRM
on any project with a single toggle, from the Edit Project modal
Pick a CRM mode
Shared (uses the Space CRM) or Isolated (project-only CRM)
Switch modes
later if your workflow changes
Turn on Auto-Sync
(Isolated only) to see shared contacts linked to the project alongside the project's private contacts
Use the CRM tab
to browse contacts, companies, activities, and CRM tasks scoped to the project
Switch between Cards and Table
views - your choice is remembered
Filter every entity type
search, status, priority, source, type, outcome, date range, plus quick filters for hot leads, recent contact, follow-ups, and activity state
Link existing contacts and companies
from the CRM into the project via the Link CRM Entities slide panel
Create new contacts, companies, activities, and CRM tasks
directly from the CRM tab - they're scoped to the project's CRM mode
Unlink
shared entities from the project (they remain in the Space CRM)
Navigate to full detail pages
for any contact, company, or activity via click-through
The three CRM modes
Every project has a CRM mode. The mode determines where CRM data lives and who can see it.
None (default)
The project has no CRM tab and no CRM data. This is the default for new projects. Use it for internal work, experiments, or projects that don't involve external contacts.
Shared
The project uses the Space's main CRM. Contacts and companies linked to the project appear on the CRM tab, but they live in the Space's shared CRM - the same contacts and companies you see on the standalone CRM pages. Linking a contact to a shared-mode project adds the project to the contact's list of linked projects; the contact still appears in every other context.
Use Shared mode when you want unified CRM across your Space and project-level visibility without creating duplicate records. Great for client portfolios where the same contacts span multiple engagements.
Isolated
The project gets its own private CRM. Contacts, companies, activities, and CRM tasks you create here live only in this project - they don't appear in the Space CRM or in any other project. You can optionally still see shared contacts linked to the project via the Auto-Sync option.
Use Isolated mode when you need confidentiality - a client project with sensitive data, a separate brand's CRM, or work you don't want mixed into your main CRM.
For the full conceptual background on shared vs isolated, see Shared vs Isolated CRM.
Shared and isolated behave differently
Shared records remain part of the Space CRM. Isolated records belong to the project.
Auto-Sync (Isolated only)
When a project is in Isolated mode, an Auto-Sync with Shared CRM option lets you see shared contacts that have been linked to the project alongside the project's private contacts.
- Shared contacts are shown with a label indicating they come from the Space CRM
- Private project contacts are shown with a project label
- Auto-Sync doesn't copy data - it only merges the two sets at read-time for display
- You can unlink shared contacts from the project (removing the project link) without deleting the contact
- You cannot "unlink" private project contacts - they're owned by this project
Auto-Sync is enabled by default when you switch to Isolated mode.
Enabling CRM on a project
CRM is enabled from the Edit Project modal (press E on the Project Details Page, or use the Edit action in the header).
Step 1
Open Edit Project
Step 2
Toggle Enable CRM on
Step 3
Choose Shared or Isolated
Step 4
For Isolated: choose whether to enable Auto-Sync with Shared CRM (default on)
Step 5
Save
The CRM tab appears on the project immediately. You can now start linking existing CRM entities or creating new ones.
Switching modes
You can switch between Shared and Isolated at any time from Edit Project.
- Shared → Isolated - nothing is moved; the CRM tab starts fresh in the project's isolated storage. You can then use Auto-Sync to still see shared contacts linked to the project.
- Isolated → Shared - the CRM tab starts using the Space's shared CRM. Private entities you created in Isolated mode remain in the project's isolated storage and are not automatically deleted (they become inaccessible through the CRM tab until you switch back).
When switching to Isolated, PrimeTask asks for confirmation because it changes how CRM data is scoped.
Switching modes changes what the CRM tab shows
Review shared and isolated records before switching an active client project.
The CRM tab
The CRM tab appears on the Project Details Page as the CRM sub-area, showing contacts, companies, activities, and CRM tasks. The tab itself has four sub-areas:
| Sub-area | What it shows |
|---|---|
| All (default) | Combined view with contacts, companies, and recent activities |
| Contacts | Just contacts linked to the project |
| Companies | Just companies linked to the project |
| Activities | Just activities logged against project contacts and companies |
CRM tasks are integrated into the project's main task view - see Project Tasks Tab and CRM Tasks.
View modes - Cards or Table
The CRM tab supports two views:
Cards view
Each entity type (companies, contacts, activities) appears as a grid of cards with essential info and actions. Cards include avatars for contacts, logos for companies, and timestamp badges for activities. Good for visual browsing, especially with small data sets.
Table view
A compact sortable, searchable table for each entity type, with sub-tabs for Contacts, Companies, and Activities. Good for scanning lots of entities and using bulk actions. Includes inline edit, delete, and log-activity actions per row.
Your choice between Cards and Table is remembered, so you see the same view every time you open a project's CRM tab.
Filters
Each entity type has its own filter set, available from the filter menu in the CRM tab header. Filters combine with AND logic.
Contacts filters
- Search - match on name, email, or title
- Status - Active, Inactive, Do Not Contact
- Priority - Low, Medium, High, Urgent
- Source - how the contact was acquired (lead source)
- Quick filters:
- Hot Leads - priority is High or Urgent - Recently Contacted - has an activity within the past 7 days - Needs Follow-up - no activity for 14+ days, or no activities ever - Has Activities / Has Tasks - tri-state toggles
Companies filters
- Search - match on company name or industry
- Status - company status (e.g., Active, Prospect, Archived)
- Size - Startup, Small, Medium, Enterprise
- Industry - pulled from the industries present in your linked companies
Activities filters
- Search - match on activity title or description
- Type - Call, Email, Meeting, Note, LinkedIn Message, LinkedIn Connection, LinkedIn Profile View, Demo, Proposal
- Outcome - Positive, Negative, Neutral
- Date range - All, Today, This Week, This Month
Filter persistence
Filter state is saved per project. Switch to another project - it remembers that project's filters separately. Clear all filters with a single action from the filter menu.
Save time with per-project filters
Each project's CRM tab remembers its own filters, so client-specific views can stay tuned separately.
Linking CRM entities
The Link CRM Entities slide panel lets you connect existing contacts and companies from your CRM to the project without recreating them. Open it from the CRM tab header.
Two tabs
- Contacts - link or unlink contacts
- Companies - link or unlink companies
Two views per tab
- Available - entities from your CRM not yet linked to this project
- Linked - entities currently linked to the project
What you can do
- Search by name
- Multi-select entities with checkboxes
- Bulk link selected entities to the project in one action
- Bulk unlink selected entities
- See source badges - Project for entities owned by this isolated project, Shared for entities from the Space CRM linked to the project
Unlinking is context-sensitive
- Shared entities can be unlinked from the project (they remain in the Space CRM)
- Private project entities (created inside an Isolated project) can't be unlinked - they're owned by this project. To remove them, delete them outright.
PrimeTask shows a confirmation when unlinking to prevent accidents.
Creating new entities from the CRM tab
Every sub-area has a create action:
- Add Contact - opens the contact creation modal. In Shared mode, the new contact goes to the Space CRM. In Isolated mode, you choose whether to create it as a project-scoped contact (private to this project) or a shared contact (added to the Space CRM and linked to the project).
- Add Company - same pattern as contacts
- Add Activity - creates an activity and lets you link it to a project contact or company
- Add CRM Task - integrated into the project's task flow; see Project Tasks Tab and CRM Tasks
Things worth knowing
Shared contacts can belong to multiple projects
A contact in Shared mode can be linked to several projects at once. Each link is independent - linking a contact to Project A doesn't affect its link to Project B. You can see every project a contact belongs to on the contact's detail page. See Contact Details.
Isolated mode keeps confidential data truly private
Entities created in an Isolated project as project-scoped are stored separately and never appear in the Space CRM or in other projects. This is the right choice when data confidentiality matters - a sensitive client project, an acquisition target, or any context where CRM data shouldn't cross project boundaries.
Auto-Sync doesn't duplicate data
When Auto-Sync is on (Isolated mode), shared contacts linked to the project show up in the project's CRM tab, but they aren't copied. They stay in the Space CRM and are only merged at view time. Updating a shared contact from any location updates it everywhere - the Space CRM, every linked project, every place it's referenced.
Switching from Isolated to Shared doesn't delete data
If you switch a project's CRM mode from Isolated to Shared, any contacts and companies you created as project-scoped entities remain in the project's isolated storage. They won't appear in the CRM tab anymore (the tab now uses the Space CRM), but switching back to Isolated makes them visible again. To permanently delete, do so before switching modes.
Deleting is context-sensitive
- Deleting a shared contact or company from the project CRM tab unlinks it from the project (it remains in the Space CRM)
- Deleting a project-scoped contact or company fully deletes it - there's no "unlink" option because it only exists in this project
The CRM tab respects your CRM architecture
Everything you do in the CRM tab respects the Space CRM's configuration - custom fields, custom statuses, custom priorities, tags, relationship fields. See CRM Overview for the full CRM system.
The project header shows CRM counts
When CRM is enabled on a project, the project header's quick stats include linked contact count, linked company count, linked activity count, and CRM task count. Click any of them to jump to the CRM tab. See Project Header.
Team tab vs CRM tab - different purposes
The Team tab shows who collaborates on the project (owners, admins, members, viewers). The CRM tab shows the external people and organisations you're working with. A CRM contact can also be a team member, but the two concepts are kept separate - one is about project access, the other is about external relationships. See Project Team.
Common questions
"I enabled CRM but don't see the CRM tab."
Check three things:
"What's the difference between Shared and Isolated?"
In Shared mode, the project uses the Space's main CRM. Contacts and companies are linked to the project but live in the Space - they appear everywhere you'd expect them to appear. In Isolated mode, the project has its own private CRM storage - entities you create here don't appear anywhere else. Auto-Sync (Isolated only) lets you optionally see shared contacts linked to the project alongside your private data.
"Can I convert a Shared project to Isolated later?"
Yes, from Edit Project. The switch doesn't move any data - the project's CRM tab just starts using isolated storage. You can still see linked shared contacts via Auto-Sync.
"Can I convert an Isolated project's data to Shared?"
Not directly - switching modes doesn't move data. Private project-scoped entities stay in the project's isolated storage. If you want to bring them into the Space CRM, you'd need to recreate them as shared entities from the Space CRM, then link them back to the project.
"How do I link a contact I already have in my Space CRM to a project?"
In Shared mode: open the CRM tab, use Link CRM Entities, pick the contact from the Available list, and link. In Isolated mode with Auto-Sync on: same process, and the shared contact will appear alongside your private project contacts.
"Do CRM tasks show on the project's Tasks tab too?"
Yes - when CRM is enabled, the Tasks tab has a Show CRM tasks toggle that shows CRM-linked tasks alongside regular project tasks. See Project Tasks Tab.
"Can I delete a shared contact from a project without losing it?"
Yes - deleting a shared contact from the project CRM tab only unlinks it from the project. The contact remains in the Space CRM. To fully delete a contact, do it from the Space CRM's Contacts page.
"Why can't I unlink this contact?"
The contact is probably a project-scoped entity in an Isolated project - PrimeTask shows a "source: Project" badge for these. They can't be unlinked because they only exist inside this project. To remove, delete the contact outright.
Where to go next
| If you want to… | Read this |
|---|---|
| Understand shared vs isolated in depth | Shared vs Isolated CRM |
| Manage the project's team of collaborators | Project Team |
| Use CRM tasks in the project's task flow | Project Tasks Tab |
| See all CRM contacts and companies | Contacts List |
| Browse all CRM companies | Companies List |
| Log activities on a contact | Activities Overview |
| Work with CRM tasks | CRM Tasks |
| See how projects relate to CRM at the system level | CRM & Projects |
| Return to the Projects hub | Projects Overview |