Managing Tasks

A task is a specific piece of work needed to deliver an initiative, with an owner, dates, and progress. Tasks are created on the initiative or project they belong to, and appear on its schedule, its Task Board, and the Tasks page.

This article covers both the Advanced and Simple Models. Tasks can only be created once they're enabled for the initiative's classification, or for the program.

Enabling tasks

Advanced Model

To enable tasks on an initiative classification:

1. Navigate to Administration > Classifications, and click Edit next to the initiative classification.

2. On the General Configuration tab, check Enable Tasks.

   

3. Click Save.

All tasks share one classification, Scheduled Tasks. To add custom fields to tasks, map them to Scheduled Tasks under Administration > Custom Fields — they then appear on every task. See Custom Fields (Advanced Model).

For the classification's other task settings, such as the Task Board on its Kanban Board tab and schedule templates, see Configuring Initiative Classifications (Advanced Model).

Simple Model

To enable tasks for a program:

1. Navigate to your program, then to Configuration > Program Items > Tasks.

   

2. Turn on Enable Tasks.

   

The same page sets the fields tasks and action items have:

• Task Properties — the custom fields on the program's tasks.
• Action Item Properties — the custom fields on action items, the tasks created under RAID items.

See Custom Fields (Simple Model). To set up the Task Board for the program's projects, see Configuring the Task Board (Simple Model).

Creating a task

To create a task:

1. Open the Create Task side sheet in one of these ways:

   • On the initiative or project, open the Create menu and select Task.
   • On the Task Board, click New Task.

   

2. Under Details, choose the Type, enter a Name, and select an Owner.
3. Under Scheduling, set the Start Date and Due Date.
4. Fill in any other fields, described below.
5. Click Create, or Discard to close without creating the task.

Tasks can also be added directly on the schedule — see Schedules.

Task fields

The side sheet has the same sections wherever it's opened, but opened from the Task Board it shows some extra fields, noted below.

Details

• Type — Task for a piece of work with a duration, or Milestone for a single point in time.
• Name — what the task is.
• Description — more detail about the task. Task Board only.
• Owner — the person responsible for delivering the task.
• Priority — how urgent the task is.
• Tags — labels for grouping and filtering tasks on the board. Task Board only.
• Taskboard Status — the task's column on the Task Board. Shown as Kanban Status outside the board.
• Display on Kanban — shows the task on the Task Board. Shown outside the board, where the Task Board is enabled.

Assigned Resources

The people working on the task. Click the add button to add a resource, and set their Effort, as a percentage of their overall capacity. Each resource's Resource Type is shown, and, where resource management is enabled, their Allocation Status — whether they've been allocated to the demand. See Resource Allocation.

Additional Fields

Any custom fields set up for tasks.

Scheduling

• Apply Task Dates — Task Board only. When turned off, the task keeps its dates, but:
  • its Start Date and Due Date can't be changed, and its Type stays as Task;
  • its due date isn't shown on its card;
  • it counts as unscheduled when filtering the board;
  • it doesn't appear in its owner's and assigned resources' to-do lists.
• Start Date and Due Date — when the task starts and is due on the schedule.
• Complete Before and Complete After — other tasks this task must finish before or after. Task Board only.
• Display on Schedule — shows the task on the schedule. Task Board only.
• Display on Dashboard — shows the task on the initiative's dashboards.
• Progress — how far through the task is, as a percentage. Drag the slider to set it.

Summary tasks

A task with other tasks beneath it on the schedule is a summary task, and its Type shows as Summary. Its dates are worked out from the tasks beneath it, so they can't be changed directly. Change the dates of the tasks beneath it instead.

Finding and editing tasks

Tasks can be found and edited in two places:

• Tasks page — under Tools on the side menu, lists the tasks of the initiative or project, and of those beneath it, in two views:
  • Table — tasks in a table, to filter, sort, and update in one place. See Table View.
  • Board — tasks as cards in columns. See Board View.
• Schedule — under Tools on the side menu, shows tasks on a timeline. Edit a task's details in the task list, or drag it on the chart to change its dates. See Schedules.

On the Tasks page, click the edit icon at the right of a task's row in the table, or click its card on the board. The Edit Task side sheet opens. Change its fields and click Save, or click the delete button at the top right to delete the task.