Today, more than ever, business collaboration relies on the effective coordination of many parties—both internal and external to your organization. Procorem’s Task & Calendar functionality is designed to streamline, audit, and automate project management processes.
Enterprise Task Management in Procorem is much more than a basic task list. Procorem allows you to take control of internal and external project management in the same application as you are managing document collaboration, counterparty communication, and project history.
From the ability to group tasks, sort and filter tasks, create custom approval workflows, send automated alerts with email notifications, create task dependencies, record all activity around tasks, and visualize all your project information in a Calendar view, Procorem Tasks & Calendars allow you to centralize all your key project information in a single project location.
Tasks consist of the following functionality:
-
Task Filtering—You can easily sort your tasks by custom group, task status, who the task is assigned to, and when the task is due. Quickly sort, examine, and filter these tasks to keep your team focused on what is most important.
-
Tasks Details—Every task comes with a wide variety of details from task title, status, task group, description, location, start and due date, task comments, reminders, and a complete audit history of all task activity.
-
Assignees—You can assign tasks to a single user or multiple users. You have the power to determine whether you want to assign to a particular user or by project role. For tasks with multiple assignees, you can decide if all assignees must complete the tasks or if just one needs to complete the task.
-
Approvals—Tasks are a great way to manage your internal approval processes. Just like with assignees, you can assign to multiple approvers or assign by project role. Once approvers are determined, you can decide if any of the approvers can approve the task or if all must approve for the task to be marked as completed. With the push of a button you can also determine the order of approvals.
-
Followers—Staying up-to-date on information is critical for effective project management. For those on the project that are not assignees or approvers, you can mark them as followers to make sure they stay informed on task status updates. Followers will stay informed through email notifications as the task status progresses.
-
Task Dependencies—You can easily set dependencies on tasks to create a logical flow of tasks for your project. By setting task dependencies, you set in motion an automated process that alerts your team when it is time for them to begin working on their task.
-
Task Notifications—All tasks are fully integrated with email notifications. This ensures your team is kept up to speed as tasks are completed or as they fall behind.
-
Task Management—Tasks can be managed on a project by project basis or easily viewed across all projects in a single screen. This keeps project managers aware of all task activity without having to go into each project individually.
-
Task Statuses—Tasks progress through a variety of statuses depending on the information you have put in the task.
-
My Tasks—Every user can see which tasks are associated to them across all the projects in a single view.
-
Navigate to the WorkCenter (project), and then click Tasks in the left navigation menu.
The Task screen opens.
-
Click Create New Task.
The Edit Task screen opens
-
Enter the Task Title.
-
Optionally, select the task group for the task.
Task groups allow you to create custom groupings to better organize your tasks. To add a new task group, select the drop-down, and then click
.
Enter the task group name, and then click
. In addition, you can manage your task group ordering, or delete an existing task group.
After you are happy with your task groups, close the window and select the desired task group for this task.
Note
You only have to create task groups once; they remain in the application, tied to the particular WorkCenter. If you would like to see a common set of task groups across all WorkCenters, first create it in a WorkCenter, and then use the template functionality to copy it to the appropriate WorkCenters.
-
Optionally, provide information about the description, location, start date, and due date for the task.
By selecting a due date, your task will appear on the Calendar. If your start date and end date are far apart, they will show on the Calendar in one long task spanning across multiple hours or days. If you just want to see the Due Date on the Calendar, only fill in the Due Date when creating the task.
-
Optionally, select the assignees for this task. Then select whether any assignee can finish the task or all assignees must finish the task.
You can select from any collaborators on the WorkCenter or select a role on the WorkCenter to assign the task. If you select a role, the role will be added to the task and all users with that role will be added to the task as an assignee as well.
Tip
Assigning roles to tasks is especially powerful because any future project members with that role will be automatically added to the task when they are added to the WorkCenter. This works great to make sure new project members are brought up to speed right away and is also the best way to prepare a template.
-
Optionally, select any approvers for this task. Then select whether any approver can approve the task or all approvers must approve the task.
If you indicate all approvers, the task must be fully approved before the task can be marked as Completed. Drag and drop the approvers to ensure a proper approval flow.
You can select approvers by collaborator name or by project role.
-
Optionally, add followers who should remain aware of a task's progression through email notifications. These are members of your team not involved in finishing or approving the task, but are team members who you would like to remain aware of the task’s progression.
-
Optionally, specify the order in which tasks are performed. This controls how tasks are displayed to your team members in the main Task Screen. Enter in numbers starting with “1” in this field and your tasks will respect that ordering.
Note
Due Dates supersede Sort Order. If you are managing your tasks with tangible Due Dates it is recommended to leave the Sort Order field blank.
-
Optionally, specify an automated and controlled order of completion for your tasks. As you begin to create multiple tasks, they will show up in the Task Flow list.
Select the task from the list that you would like to precede the task you are creating. By selecting a task, Procorem ensures that the previous task is completed before you can complete the current task you are on. Further, when the prior task is completed, email notifications will be sent to all the assignees on the current task that it is time for them to get to work.
You can also set an Auto Due Date in the task flow. Entering a number in this field determines the number of days after the completion of the previous task that the current task is now due. If you already have set a due date for this task, then it is not necessary to enter anything in the Auto Due Date field. If you have information in both fields, the task due date will be reassigned when the prior task is completed based on the number you enter in the Auto Due Date field.
-
Click Save.
Click Save to save the task and stay on the Edit Task screen so you can continue to make updates. Click Save and New to save the task and create a new task. Click Save and Return to save the task and return to the task list.
Procorem notifies the collaborators that are assignees or approvers on the task.
If you would like to delete a task, navigate to the main Task screen, and click on the task you would like to delete. At the bottom of the Task Details screen, click Delete.
Deleting tasks is permanent. Make sure this is what you want to do before you do it. You cannot delete a task that has been selected as a parent to any other task.
Each task as the ability to progress through the following statuses:
-
New—New tasks are tasks that have just been created.
-
Pending prior task completion—Tasks with this status are waiting on the completion of a prior task before they can be completed.
-
Pending Assignees—Once you add assignees to a task, it will move to the Pending Assignees status, until finished by the assignees.
-
Pending Approval—If you have added approvers to a task, then it will need to be approved to move from this stage.
-
Finished—Tasks are marked as Finished when all assignees finish their portion of the task.
-
Approved—Once the task is Finished it is ready for approval. Once all approvals are done, the task will be marked as Approved.
-
Completed—Completed tasks are finished by assignees as well as approved by any approvers.
If you do not add any assignees, approvers, or have pending tasks, the Task Status will progress from New to Completed without going through the other statuses.
Only the people that have been assigned the task will be able to finish their portion of the task. The exception to this rule is that people with Account Administrator access or top-level WorkCenter Role access can finish tasks on behalf of other collaborators on the WorkCenter.
In order for a task to be fully completed, it must go through three statuses: Finished, Approved, and Completed. Tasks that are both Finished and Approved are marked as Completed. A person with appropriate rights can move a task from New to Completed if no Assignees or Approvers have been added to the task. Completed tasks are shown as crossed off in the Task screen and Calendar views.
To finish a task, navigate to the WorkCenter Task screen. From here, you have two ways to finish the task.
The first option is to select the check mark next to the task on the main Task Screen. If the task has been assigned to you, you can finish the task right here.
Alternatively, you can click the task itself and select Mark Finished next to your name in the Task Details screen. The assignee or a collaborator with appropriate rights can finish the task in the Task Details screen.
Finishing a task is dependent on how the task is set up. If the task has multiple assignees with All Assignees must mark task as finished selected, then the task will not be Finished until that criteria is satisfied.
Approving tasks works much like finishing tasks. If you are an approver on a task, you can select the “Thumbs Up” icon next to the task.
Alternatively, you can click the task itself and select Approve in the Task Details screen next to your name.
Once a task is both Finished by the assignees and Approved by the approvers, the task will be marked as Completed. Completed tasks will show up in the Task screen and Calendar as crossed out to indicate their Completed status.
Once you enter your tasks, you have a variety of options in terms of how you view those tasks. Each task and calendar view in Procorem offers a different look at either single projects, your tasks, or tasks across a variety of projects simultaneously.
The primary location to view tasks for a single project is within the WorkCenter itself. Navigate to the WorkCenter, and then click Tasks in the left navigation menu.
Once in the Task screen, you have a variety of options to sort and filter tasks. To select your view, click the View option in the upper left of the screen.
Table 10. View Options on the Task Screen
|
View Option |
Description |
Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Task Group |
Sort all your tasks by the predetermined Task Groups you have selected. To learn more about setting Task Groups, review Manage Tasks. |
|
|
Task Status |
Sort your tasks across five core statuses: New, Pending Prior Task Completion, Pending Assignees, Pending Approval, and Complete. |
|
|
Assignee |
See all your project tasks by the person the task is assigned to. |
|
|
WorkCenter Role |
See all the tasks sorted by the assignee’s WorkCenter or project role. |
|
|
Due Date |
Sort all your tasks by their respective due dates. Due date will sort the earliest tasks first and then group them into four categories: Overdue, Coming Soon, Future, and Completed. |
|
Often times you want to focus on the tasks that are still active, not ones that have been completed. To remove all the Completed tasks from the Task Screen, click Show Completed so that the button is grayed out.
The Task screen provides a number of details around each task. Included for each task:
-
Title of task
-
Assignees
-
Approvers
-
Due date
-
Status
-
Creation date
-
Number of reminders (indicated by the clock icon)
-
Number of followers (indicated by the people icon)
You have the option of minimizing the details to just show:
-
Task title
-
Due date
-
Task status
-
Number of reminders
-
Number of followers
In addition to the Task screen in the WorkCenter, you have a number of other options for viewing tasks.
Table 11. Other Options for Viewing Tasks
|
View Option |
Description |
Example |
|---|---|---|
|
WorkCenter Calendar View |
To see the WorkCenter Calendar View, navigate to the WorkCenter, and then click Calendar in the left navigation menu. Tasks that are overdue will be marked in red, tasks completed will be crossed out, and tasks coming up will appear in a standard font. To go into the Task Details page from this screen, click on the task itself. At the top of the screen you will see arrows to help navigate and the ability to sort the calendar by Month, Day, and Week. NoteTasks appear on the Calendar View after a Due Date is assigned. Tasks with both a Start Date and Due Date will appear stretched between the two dates. Tasks with no due date will not appear in the Calendar View. |
|
|
Account Tasks View |
If you are looking for a view of tasks across multiple projects or WorkCenters, head to the Account Tasks screen. The Account Tasks provides you a view of tasks on all WorkCenters you have access to across that Account. If you are not on a WorkCenter, you will not see any tasks associated with that WorkCenter in this screen. Once in the Account View, select the Account Tasks from the left hand navigation menu. From here you can filter tasks by user, and whether that user is an assignee, approver, or creator. You can also sort the columns (WorkCenter, Task Title, Status, Due Date, Assignees, and Approvers) to help you get to the key task details. |
|
|
Account Calendar View |
In the same area as Account Tasks, you can access the Account Calendar screen. The Account Calendar will show you all the tasks in a calendar view across all projects or WorkCenters under a single account. To get to this view, click Account Calendar on the left navigation menu. Once in the screen, every task will have a standard naming structure to provide you key information about the task. It will be led with WorkCenter Name – Task Name. |
|
|
If you are looking for all tasks for which you are an assignee, approver, or follower, visit My Tasks on the left navigation panel from the Home Screen. |
|
|
|
My Calendar |
Use this view to see all tasks you are involved in, but in a Calendar View. My Calendar is located in the left navigation panel next to My Tasks. |
|
|
If this screen is enabled for your account, you can sort, filter, and group the tasks for a WorkCenter. |
|
From the Quick Links section on the Procorem home page, you can access My Tasks. The count of tasks in the left navigation panel represents the tasks where you are an assignee or approver and excludes any tasks where you are a follower only.
My Tasks is organized into three tabs: My Tasks, Completed Tasks, and Tasks I'm Following.
The first tab shows tasks where you are an approver or assignee, and the task is not complete.
You can click the Filter icon to filter tasks by:
-
Due Date—Identify the operator for the filter, such as "Is Equal To" or "Is After." Then select or enter a date, and click Filter.
-
WorkCenter—Select one or more WorkCenters.
-
Task Group—Select one or more groups.
-
Task Title—Search by part or all of the name of a task.
-
My To Do—Search for your tasks that need to be finished or your tasks that need to be approved.
If a task requires approval in a specific order, the columns shows a comma-delimited list of prior approvers who have not approved the task. The order of prior approvers is not always listed in the approval order; visit the task details for this information.
The system logic to display prior approvers works as follows:
-
If a task has the All approvers must mark task as approved and Approvals are performed in order checkboxes selected AND
-
Prior approvers have not approved the task AND
-
There are no assignees for the task OR
-
One assignee has finished the task and Any assignee can mark task as finished is selected OR
-
All assignees have finished the task and All assignees must mark task as finished is selected
-
-
-
Status—Select one or more statuses.
The Completed Tasks tab shows tasks that have been completed, where you are an approver or assignee.
You can click the Filter icon to filter tasks by:
-
WorkCenter
-
Task Group
-
Task Title
The Tasks I'm Following tab shows tasks you are following, excluding completed tasks.
You can click the Filter icon to filter tasks by:
-
Due Date
-
WorkCenter
-
Task Group
-
Task Title
-
Status
On each of the tabs you can:
-
Click the WorkCenter name to navigate to the Tasks page for the WorkCenter.
-
Click the Task Title to navigate to the Task details page.
-
Click a column header to change the sort of the grid.
Note
Each tab displays only the top 1,000 tasks returned for the tab.
Important
Your organization will need to work with ProLink to enable the Task Overview screen for your account(s). Contact ProLink Customer Success/Professional Services if your organization is interested in this feature.
The Task Overview screen allows you to view, sort, and filter the tasks for a WorkCenter. You can also group the tasks so you can more easily focus on a particular set of tasks at a time.
To navigate to the Task Overview screen, click Task Overview on the Tasks screen of a WorkCenter.
The Task Overview screen opens in a new browser tab.
In the grid, you can view:
-
Task—The name of task. Click the hyperlink to navigate to the Edit Task screen.
-
Phase—The location of the task.
-
Status—The task status, with a visual indication (Green for Complete, Yellow for Pending Approval, Red for all other statuses [New, Pending Assignees, Pending Prior Task Completion]).
-
Task Group—The task group.
-
Associated Roles—The assigned roles of the task.
-
Most Recent Upload—The most recent upload date of any files linked to the task.
-
Most Recent Comment—The most recent comment preceded by the user name (up to 500 characters).
The grid shows up to 1,000 records.
To keep you and your team on track, Procorem integrates directly with your email system through regular email notifications. At Procorem, we understand the world still works on email and our goal is not to replace email, but create better ways to centralize and integrate email communications in a trackable, auditable, and manageable way.
For a complete overview of Procorem Notifications, review the Notifications in Procorem Help Center article.
Procorem notifications provide immediate and digest based emails for important project activity. Nowhere is this more important than tasks. Because tasks are such a critical part of any project, task progress will always alert key project participants as tasks progress through different statuses and stages.
Task-related emails are sent out in the following cases:
-
Creation of task
-
Finishing of task
-
Approval of task
-
Completion of task
-
Deletion of task
-
Change in task details
-
Prior task completed
-
Task reminders
-
Task comments
Emails will always be sent to some combination of Task Assignees, Approvers, or Followers. Email language will vary depending on the type of email, but email notifications will have a standard look and feel.
If you are on a WorkCenter, but not an Assignee, Approver, or Follower of a task, you will not receive any task notification emails. You will, however, see all WorkCenter task activity in your daily or weekly digest email. (To make sure the collaborators on a WorkCenter receive task emails, make sure they are added to the task as an Assignee, Approver, or Follower.)
While a standard set of automated emails are sent out based on your involvement in a task, you have the option to set custom reminders to make sure your team stays on track. Reminders in Procorem can be sent when a task due date is coming soon, when a task is due, and when a task is past due.
-
Navigate to the Task screen and select the individual task.
-
Select the Reminders tab on the upper part of the screen.
Once in the reminder screen, you can see all the reminders in a list view. In this list view you can see the recipients of the reminder, when it is set to be sent, the type of reminder and the current status of the reminder.
-
To add a new reminder, click Add Reminder and you will be placed into a screen to configure the specific reminder.
-
Adjust the type, recipients, and a variety of other criteria depending on the type of reminder.
-
Click Save.
Much like files and WorkCenters, you can make comments on individual tasks in Procorem. Comments remain tied to that task and are available at any time for all project participants to see. When comments are made, notifications are sent to all collaborators involved in that task, and an activity record will be created to ensure a complete audit trail of all task comments.
To create a task comment, navigate to the Task screen and select the individual task. From there, select the Comment tab in the upper part of the screen. Once there, you will see all previous comments and can make a new comment by writing in the field and clicking Post Comment.
All activity around a task in Procorem is recorded. You can quickly view all activity around a particular task by heading to the individual task and selecting the Activity tab.
Task activity will always be available here, or you can see the Activity Feeds on the WorkCenter, Home screen, and Account levels. Check out the Activity Introduction article to learn more about activity in Procorem.
Procorem tasks provide a comprehensive way to manage project milestones, checklists, and centralize all your key project information in a single location. While task types can widely vary, often tasks require collaboration around specific documents or files.
Procorem fully supports the ability to link specific tasks to related files in a WorkCenter. With this ability, your team can quickly develop a set of tasks and approval processes around a specific file from a centralized location. Quickly manage the review, approval, and completion of the file from both the task and the file record.
To associate files to a task, or review files already associated with a task, first navigate to the WorkCenter and select Tasks in the left navigation panel. Once selected, you will be placed in the Task screen that shows all associated tasks with that WorkCenter.
An immediate indication that there is a file associated with a particular task is to take a look at the icons on the task item. Icons quickly indicate reminders, files associated with the task, followers on the task, and comments on the task; in that order.
To access the task itself, click on the task row and you will be placed in that particular task.
Once in the task, notice the Files tab on the top of the screen, which shows the number of associated files with this particular task.
By selecting the Files tab, you will see all associated files with this particular task. From this screen, you can perform a number of functions, such as downloading the file, opening the related file folder, or accessing the actual file record.
Users with appropriate task permissions, will also be able to add files to the task and unlink a specific file with the related task.
Table 12. Common Actions for Managing Files Associated with Tasks
|
Action |
Description |
|---|---|
|
Download the file |
To download the file associated with the task, click |
|
Open file location |
To open the file location within the WorkCenter, select the name of the file or click on the row itself. Once in the file location, you can quickly upload new versions of the file, make comments on the file itself, manage file statuses, and much more. |
|
Open file folder location |
Click |
Some task management features require appropriate WorkCenter Role permissions such as the ability to create and update the task. To learn more about setting up these permissions, take a look at the WorkCenter Roles Help Center article.
Table 13. Actions that Require Member-Only Privileges
|
Action |
Description |
|---|---|
|
Add files to tasks |
Click Add File(s). You'll see all files in the WorkCenter. Select the checkbox next to the file you want to attach and then click Select. To add a file to a task, you must first upload it to the WorkCenter. For more information on uploading files, review the Uploading & Downloading Files Help Center article. |
|
Unlink files from tasks |
Click Unlink to remove an association of a file to a task. Confirm the action. |
As your team works and updates files, you can quickly upload new versions of files directly to Procorem. Procorem will fully track and record all versions, which can quickly be restored or deleted as required.
To upload a new version of the file from the task screen, first select the file on the task screen you would like to update. You will be directed to the file record where you can upload a new version of the file. The new version will be accessible from both the file record and on the task itself.
Comments
0 comments
Article is closed for comments.