Step-by-step guide to unify tasks from multiple apps in one list without switching tools

Juggling multiple technical projects —from GitHub issues to Jira tasks or Asana projects— often means switching between tabs, losing context, and duplicating efforts. The solution isn’t to abandon the tools you already use, but to unify tasks from multiple apps in one list that displays them together, without migrating data or changing workflows. This guide explains how to set up Foco Plus Connections to centralize everything in a single dashboard, with concrete examples for developers and teams who need visibility without friction.

Why centralize technical tasks in one place (and why native apps aren’t enough)

Tools like GitHub, Jira, or Asana are optimized for managing individual projects, but not for giving you a global view when you work on several at once. For example, a developer reviewing pull requests in GitHub, fixing bugs in Jira, and coordinating releases in Asana ends up with three different interfaces, each with its own priority system, notifications, and filters. This creates three key problems:

• Loss of context: Switching between apps means remembering what you were doing in each one, which slows down your workflow.
• Difficulty prioritizing: There’s no easy way to see which task is most urgent when they’re scattered across different tools.
• Duplicate efforts: Marking a task as done in one app doesn’t update its status in the others, forcing you to repeat actions manually.

Foco solves this by automatically bringing tasks from these tools into a single dashboard, where you can view, filter, and complete them without leaving the app. Unlike solutions like spreadsheets or generic note-taking apps, Foco maintains bidirectional synchronization with the original tools: when you mark a task as done in Foco, it updates in GitHub, Jira, or Asana too (if configured).

Step-by-step: how to set up Foco Plus Connections

1. Access Connections from the app

Open Foco on desktop or mobile, go to Settings > Connections, and select the tool you want to connect (GitHub, Jira, or Asana). You’ll need the Plus plan (20 €/month) to access this feature. Each connection authenticates via OAuth, so you won’t need to share credentials manually.

2. Choose the 'destination work' for each connection

When setting up a connection, Foco asks where you want imported tasks to appear. You have two options:

• Automatic (recommended for starters): Foco analyzes the content of each task and assigns it to the most relevant work based on context. For example, a GitHub issue labeled 'backend' might go to the 'API Development' work, while a Jira task with the project 'Support' goes to 'Customer Service'.
• Fixed work: All tasks from that connection will always go to the same work. Useful if, for example, all your GitHub issues belong to a single project.

You can change this setting anytime from Settings > Connections > [Tool] > Edit.

3. Enable bidirectional synchronization (optional)

By default, Foco imports tasks from your tools but doesn’t modify them at the source. If you enable the 'Complete also in the source' option, marking a task as done in Foco will automatically close it in GitHub (as a closed issue), in Jira (as a resolved ticket), or in Asana (as a completed task). This avoids updating statuses in two places.

Bidirectional synchronization isn’t magic: it requires tasks to have a unique identifier in both apps, but Foco handles this automatically when importing them.

4. Set up filters to avoid noise

Not all tasks from your tools are equally relevant. In Settings > Connections > [Tool] > Filters, you can define which tasks to import and which to ignore. For example:

• GitHub: Import only issues assigned to you or pull requests where you’re mentioned.
• Jira: Exclude tickets in 'Backlog' status or with labels like 'low-priority'.
• Asana: Bring only tasks with a due date in the next 7 days.

Workflow examples for developers and technical teams

Workflow 1: Full-stack developer with GitHub and Jira

Imagine you work in a team where the frontend uses GitHub for issues and the backend uses Jira. With Foco, you can:

• Connect both tools and assign GitHub issues to the 'Frontend' work and Jira tickets to the 'Backend' work.
• Use Panorama mode to see all pending tasks in one place, each with the color of its work (e.g., blue for Frontend, green for Backend).
• Filter by priority ('urgent') or due date to decide what to do first.
• Mark a task as done in Foco and have it close automatically in GitHub or Jira, without opening the original app.

Workflow 2: Technical team with Asana and GitHub

A team using Asana for project management and GitHub for code can centralize everything like this:

• Connect Asana and GitHub, assigning Asana tasks to the 'Management' work and GitHub issues to the 'Development' work.
• Use the Kanban view to move tasks between columns like 'To Do', 'In Progress', and 'Done', updating their status in both tools.
• Leverage voice capture to quickly add tasks during meetings: dictate 'Review PR #123 in GitHub for tomorrow at 10 AM', and Foco creates the task with the date, time, and PR link.

What happens when you unify tasks in Foco (and what it doesn’t do)

Foco isn’t a replacement for GitHub, Jira, or Asana, but a smart aggregator that gives you control over what already exists in these tools. Here’s what you can do:

• See everything in one place: Tasks from all your tools, with their dates, priorities, and statuses, in a single dashboard.
• Filter and prioritize: Group by due date, priority, or work, without relying on each app’s native filters.
• Update statuses: Mark tasks as done and have it reflect in the original tool (if bidirectional sync is enabled).
• Add context: Attach notes, labels, or reminders to imported tasks, without modifying the original item.

And here’s what it doesn’t do (by design):

• Modify tasks at the source: You can’t edit the title, description, or assignees of a GitHub task from Foco (only its status).
• Create new tasks in the original tools: Foco imports existing tasks but doesn’t create them in GitHub, Jira, or Asana.
• Sync in real time: Imports update every few minutes, not instantly (to avoid overloading APIs).

Typical alternative vs. Foco: why it wins for technical teams

The most common alternative to unify tasks from multiple apps in one list is using spreadsheets or note-taking apps like Notion. Here’s how they compare:

• Spreadsheets (Google Sheets, Excel): Manually copying and pasting tasks is tedious and error-prone. There’s no automatic synchronization, so every change in GitHub or Jira requires updating the sheet. Plus, there are no views like Kanban or Calendar to visualize work.
• Note-taking apps (Notion, Obsidian): They allow creating databases, but require manual setup for each tool. There’s no native integration with GitHub or Jira, so you’d need to use APIs or external plugins, adding complexity.
• Generic project managers (Trello, ClickUp): They’re designed to manage individual projects, not to centralize tasks from technical tools. They lack deep integrations with GitHub or Jira and are often too rigid for technical workflows.

Foco wins because it’s specifically designed for those who juggle multiple jobs at once and need an organizational layer on top of existing tools. It doesn’t force you to migrate data, learn a new system, or give up advanced features in GitHub, Jira, or Asana. It simply unifies what you already have in a dashboard where you can act on it.

Conclusion: how to get started today

If you manage technical tasks across multiple tools, try this workflow to get started:

• Activate the Plus plan in Foco and connect one tool (starting with GitHub is easiest).
• Set the 'destination work' to Automatic to see how Foco assigns tasks.
• Use Panorama mode to view all your tasks together and filter by priority or due date.
• Enable bidirectional synchronization to close issues or tickets from Foco.
• Add a second connection (Jira or Asana) and repeat the process.

The key is to start with one tool and adjust filters so only relevant tasks come through. Once set up, the time you save by not switching between apps more than compensates for the initial effort. If you work in a team, invite your colleagues to Foco so they see the same tasks and assign responsibilities without leaving the app.