Using Tasks

Overview

Tasks and processes ensure that the steps needed to achieve your firm's goals and events are completed and documented in your organization. This article outlines how to create and view tasks within Practifi. For more information regarding task functionality, please consult our Understanding Tasks & Processes article.

• Creating a Task
  • Global Actions
  • Processes & Tasks Icon
• Viewing Tasks
• Viewing and Adding Checklist Items
  • Deleting Checklist Items
• Creating Recurring Tasks
  • Deleting Recurring Tasks
  • Editing Recurring Tasks
• Using Task Templates
  • Global Actions
  • Page Actions
  • Processes & Tasks Icon
  • Table Mass and Row Actions
• Completing Tasks
  • Home Page
  • Entity Record
  • Tasks Page
  • Understanding the Mark As Complete Workflow

Creating a Task

Tasks can be created by using the Global Actions button or on the Processes & Tasks page on record pages. Depending on the context that the task is created in, it will auto-populate the Related To field information to relate the task to the appropriate record. 

Global Actions

1. Select the Global Actions button located in the upper right-hand corner of Practifi.
   
2. From the drop-down menu of Global Actions, select New Task.
   
3. In the New Task pop-up, enter all relevant information into the fields. To attach the task to a record be sure to input the record name into the Related To field. If the Related To field information is not filled in, this will create a personal task.
4. Press Save to finalize the task creation. 

Processes & Tasks Icon

1. Select the Processes & Tasks icon located on the record's side panel. 
   
2. On the Processes & Tasks view, select the New Task button in the right-hand corner.
   
3. Enter all relevant information into the displayed fields and press Save to finalize the task creation.

Viewing Tasks

Tasks can be viewed through the My Tasks tiles located on the Home page. These tiles will display open tasks that are either owned or created by the running user.

Selecting the tile will open a record table of tasks where the task Subject can be selected to view the individual task record. 

Tasks can also be viewed by selecting the Processes & Tasks icon located in the record side panel.

This will open the Open Tasks record table displaying all open tasks related to the record, regardless of who created the task. To view all tasks regardless of their completion status, select the Task History subtab on the Processes & Tasks table.

Viewing and Adding Checklist Items

If there are any pre-set Checklist items associated with a task, they will appear in the Checklist area on the right-hand side of the Task record page. You can check items off as you complete them.

Please note: If an item has been set as required, only the owner of the task is able to mark the item as complete. For required items, no other user will be able to complete them unless they are assigned the task.

You also have the option of adding your own ad hoc Checklist items to a task. From the Checklist side panel, click New. Enter a description for the to-do item, then click the Save icon. The item is added to the list.

Deleting Checklist Items

If a Checklist item was created while the task was open then the checklist item will be able to be deleted. Pre-set Checklist items cannot be deleted. If deletion is an option for a Checklist item, then a delete button will appear next to it.

If your administrator adds or removes pre-set Checklist Items from a Process Task or Task Template that’s already in use, those changes will not apply to open tasks.

Creating Recurring Tasks

A recurring task is a singular task that can repeat weekly, monthly or annually but does not require any additional tasks or updates to a record to be made.

Please note: The Feed feature, while visible in recurring tasks, is preempted by the creation of multiple records at once leading to a known Salesforce limitation that does not allow the Feed to function. If needing to create a Feed post on a recurring task, you will need to navigate to the individual recurring task record. 

To create a recurring task:

1. Select the Processes & Tasks icon on the record side panel.
   
2. On the Processes & Tasks view, select the New Task button in the right-hand corner.
   
3. Enter all relevant information for the task into the displayed fields. Navigate to the Recurrence section during the task creation. 
4. Set the Frequency fields to how often you would like the task to be repeated. 
   • The Recurrence Interval field is auto-populated by the system upon saving and should be treated as a read-only field and not modified. Clicking into this field will prevent the system from auto-populating the correct value. If you have clicked into the field by accident and are receiving an error, we recommend canceling your recurring task and beginning the creation process again.
     Please note: The Recurrence Interval field is a standard Salesforce field that is calculated using calendar days, not business days.
5. Set the Start Date field to when this recurrence series should begin. The End Date field should be set to when the last task of the recurrence series should be created.
   • Please note: The Repeat This Task field can be ignored and should be left to its default option of None.
     
6. Select Save to finalize the recurring task creation.

Deleting Recurring Tasks

You can either delete recurring tasks one at a time or delete the entire series, which will delete all associated tasks at once.

To delete a single recurring task:

1. Select the Processes & Tasks icon on the record side panel.
2. On the Open Tasks subtab, click the caret for the task you want to delete and select Delete.
   
3. A message appears, asking you to confirm you want to delete the task. Click the Delete button.

To delete a recurring task series:

1. On the Processes & Tasks page, click the name of one of the recurring tasks to open it in a new tab.
2. In the upper-right corner of the screen, click the caret and select View Series. The task series opens in a new tab.
   
3. Click the caret again and select Delete Series.
   
4. A message appears, asking you to confirm you want to delete the recurring series. Click the Delete Series button.
   

Editing Recurring Tasks

As with deletion, recurring tasks can be edited one at a time or you can edit the series. Here are a few things to note:

• Changes made to a standalone recurring task will not be reflected in the other tasks within the series.
• If you change the Subject or Comments for a recurring series, all the tasks in the series will reflect these changes.
• If you change the Start Date, End Date or Frequency of a recurring series, other tasks in the series can be deleted and links to the tasks can break. We recommend deleting the series and creating a new one rather than attempting to edit due dates or frequency.

To edit a single recurring task:

1. Select the Processes & Tasks icon on the record side panel.
2. On the Open Tasks subtab, click the caret for the task you want to delete and select Edit.
   
3. In the edit window, make the desired changes, then click Save.
   Please note: Changes made to a single recurring task will not be reflected in other tasks within the series.

To edit a recurring task series:

1. On the Processes & Tasks page, click the name of one of the recurring tasks to open it in a new tab.
2. In the upper-right corner of the screen, click the caret and select View Series. The task series opens in a new tab.
   
3. In the upper-right corner of the series record, click the Edit button.
4. In the edit window, make the desired changes, then click Save.
   Please note: If you change the Start Date, End Date or Frequency of a recurring series, other tasks in the series can be deleted and links to the tasks can break. We recommend deleting the series and creating a new one rather than attempting to edit due dates or frequency.

Using Task Templates

Task templates are available through Global Actions, page actions, the Processes & Tasks section and through table mass and row actions on specific records within your Practifi Organization. The creation process will ask you which task template to use, displays the fields in an editable form for any final adjustments and then creates the task record with the values as specified. Depending on the context the action is launched from, the task will be automatically related to the relevant records.

Global Action

1. In the upper right-hand corner of your Practifi organization, select the Global Actions menu button.
                   
2. Select New Task (from template) from the Global Action drop-down menu.  
3. Select the relevant task group from the Task Group drop-down and then select the template from the Task Template drop-down.
4. Once the template is selected, click Next to proceed.
5. Ensure that all pre-filled from the template information is correct and make any changes if necessary. Select Next to create the task. 
   
   
6. If your firm uses Active Forms in its templated tasks, you will be prompted to enter the information necessary in the Active Form. Enter this information and click Next to proceed. If the templated task does not have an associated Active Form, you will not need to complete this step and will instead just see the success message.
7. The pop-up will display a message when the task is created successfully. Select Finish to close the task creation pop-up. 

Page Actions

The task template functionality is available through the page actions on the following record types:

• Assets
• Client Entities
• Contacts
• Deals
• Liabilities
• Processes
• Services

To launch a task from a template through the page actions:

1. Navigate to the record and select the caret button on the page actions located in the right-hand corner of the record. 
2. Select New Task (from template) from the drop-down menu. 
3. Select the relevant task group from the Task Group drop-down and then select the template from the Task Template drop-down.
4. Once the template is selected, click Next to proceed.
5. Ensure that all pre-filled from the template information is correct and make any changes if necessary. Select Next to create the task. 
   
   
6. If your firm uses Active Forms in its templated tasks, you will be prompted to enter the information necessary in the Active Form. Enter this information and click Next to proceed. If the templated task does not have an associated Active Form, you will not need to complete this step and will instead just see the success message.
7. The pop-up will display a message when the task is created successfully. Select Finish to close the task creation pop-up.

Processes & Tasks Icon

The task template functionality is available through the Processes & Tasks navigation icon on the following record types:

• Households, Organizations & Individuals
• Divisions

To launch a task from a template through the Processes & Tasks section menu:

1. Navigate to the record you would like to launch and select Processes & Tasks from the navigation sidebar.
   
2. Select the caret button located on the right-hand side of the Processes & Tasks table.
3. Click New Task (from template) from the drop-down menu. 
4. Select the relevant task group from the Task Group drop-down and then select the template from the Task Template drop-down.
5. Once the template is selected, click Next to proceed.
6. Ensure that all pre-filled from the template information is correct and make any changes if necessary. Select Next to create the task. 
   
   
7. If your firm uses Active Forms in its templated tasks, you will be prompted to enter the information necessary in the Active Form. Enter this information and click Next to proceed. If the templated task does not have an associated Active Form, you will not need to complete this step and will instead just see the success message.
8. The pop-up will display a message when the task is created successfully. Select Finish to close the task creation pop-up.

Table Mass and Row Action

The task template functionality is available through the table mass and row actions on specific record tables based on the app. 

• In the Advisor & Management apps, all record tables on the following pages:
  • Directory
  • Clients
  • Pipeline
  • Influence
  • Services
  • Processes
• In the Client Service & Compliance apps, all record tables on the following pages:
  • Directory
  • Clients
  • Services
  • Processes
• In the Marketing app, all record tables on the following page:
  • Pipeline

To launch a task from a template through table mass and row actions:

1. Use the Navigation menu to locate the record table from the above options. For example, selecting the Clients option from the Navigation menu.
2. Once on the record table, select the Name checkbox located next to the record or records you would like to create a related task.
   
3. Select the New Task (from template) button located at the top of the record table. 
4. Select the relevant task group from the Task Group drop-down and then select the template from the Task Template drop-down.
5. Once the template is selected, click Next to proceed.
6. Ensure that all pre-filled from the template information is correct and make any changes if necessary. Select Next to create the task. 
   
   
7. If your firm uses Active Forms in its templated tasks, you will be prompted to enter the information necessary in the Active Form. Enter this information and click Next to proceed. If the templated task does not have an associated Active Form, you will not need to complete this step and will instead just see the success message.
8. The pop-up will display a message when the task is created successfully. Select Finish to close the task creation pop-up.

Completing Tasks

When you've finished a Task, there are a number of ways to mark it as complete in Practifi.  

Home Page

To complete a Task from the Home page:

1. Click on a Task tile to open the tile table.
   
   
   
   
2. On the right-hand side of the row for the desired Task, click the caret, then select Complete Task.
   
   
   

Entity Record

To complete a Task from an Entity record:

1. From the record side panel, click the Processes & Tasks navigation icon.
   
   
   
   
2. On the Open Tasks tab, click the caret on the right-hand side of the row for the desired Task, then select Complete Task.
   
   
   
   

Tasks Page

To complete a Task from the Tasks page:

1. Click the Navigation Menu and select Tasks.
   
   
   
   
2. On the Tasks page, click the caret on the right-hand side of the row for the desired Task, then select Complete Task.
   
   
   
   

Understanding the Mark As Complete Workflow

Following any of the above methods will initiate the Complete Task workflow. You will see the following sections in the Complete Task window, depending on how the Task is configured:

• Completion Details:
  • Time tracking functionality
  • An Outcome selection picklist
  • A preview of Task actions
• Review What’s Been Done:
  • • Active Form
    • Checklist items
    • Deliverables

Once you've filled out the required information, click Finish to complete the Task.