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Understanding and Using Deliverables

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Overview

Deliverables help track entitlements that your firm provides to clients across your book of business, giving advisors clear visibility into the service commitments behind every client relationship. This article outlines key aspects of Deliverables to help you understand how the feature works and how to apply it within your organization.

Please note: This feature is not automatically enabled within your Practifi organization. To enable this functionality or to answer any questions about this feature, please contact your System Administrator.

How Deliverables Work

In your Practifi organization, the Deliverable functionality automatically generates a schedule of recurring client entitlements that advisors are tasked with delivering. This automation ensures that your service standards are met across the firm's book of business, reducing the manual effort required to track every commitment. 

Once set up, each Service maintains a set schedule of Deliverables, which are fulfilled by linking them to Tasks and Events with our dedicated sidebar assistant. Over time, each Deliverable gathers a history of successful and unsuccessful fulfillment. This history forms the basis for a deeper understanding of client success outcomes, such as add-ons or churn, through reporting. As of our Barolo release, the Last Review Date and Next Review Date fields on Services are automatically populated based on Deliverables with a Deliverable Type of Service Review.

For example, your firm has a new prospect, Ryan Beger, with an open Retirement Planning deal. Before you promote him to a Client, you'd make sure that your firm's Deliverables are set up for his eventual Service Type. Once created, the Deliverables are attached to Ryan's required Services, with clear, repeatable requirements that any team member servicing his account can follow. 

Scheduling Fields 

Within the Deliverable record, the fields in the Scheduling section determine when the Deliverable is initially started, how often it occurs, and when it is due on an ongoing basis. By setting the Frequency, Initial Calculation Basis, and Ongoing Calculation Basis fields, the system calculates the due date of the Deliverable. This calculated date is displayed in the Next Due Date field, giving you a clear understanding of when the client's Deliverable needs to be fulfilled. 

Frequency

The Frequency field sets how often a Deliverable needs to be completed. From the drop-down options for the Frequency field, select the option that best reflects how often the client expects this Deliverable. The options available in the Frequency field are as follows: 

  • Monthly
  • Quarterly
  • Semi-Annually
  • Annually
  • Biennial
  • Triennial
  • Every X weeks
  • Every X months
  • Every X years

If you're creating an ad hoc Deliverable for a client and select one of the last three options, the X Value field is displayed. This number field lets you specify how long the period should be. For example, if you wanted to make a Deliverable due every six weeks, you would select Every X weeks from the Frequency field and enter "six" in the X Value field, as shown in the screenshot below.

 

Initial Calculation Basis

The Initial Calculation Basis is a setting controlled by Practifi Administrators when configuring a Deliverable Type. The Initial Calculation Basis is used to calculate the Next Due Date field when the Deliverable is created and works with the Frequency field. This field indicates whether the Deliverable's first Next Due Date should be based on the Service's start date or on a calendar period. There are three options:

  • Based on Service Start Date
  • Based on End of Calendar Period
  • Based on Date During Calendar Period

The Based on Service Start Date option means the Next Due Date is calculated as the Service Start Date plus the interval length defined by the Deliverable Type's Frequency field. This means that if the Frequency field is set to Quarterly and the Service has a Start Date of July 15th, then the Deliverable's initial Next Due Date will be October 15th. 

The Based on End of Calendar Period option means that the Next Due Date will be calculated as the end date of the nearest calendar interval as defined by the Deliverable Type's Frequency field. This means that if the frequency is set to Quarterly and the Service has a Start Date of July 15th, the Deliverable's initial Next Due Date will be September 30th, the last day of the third calendar quarter. 

The Based on Date During Calendar Period option allows admins to specify a date other than the last day of the time period specified in the Frequency field. They can select either a Specific Date (a fixed numerical date within the period, e.g., the 15th day of the month) or a Relative Date (a day whose numerical date varies depending on when the period begins, e.g., the first business day of the month).

Ongoing Calculation Basis

The Ongoing Calculation Basis field sets the Next Due Date for the Deliverable after it is fulfilled and, like the Initial Calculation Basis, works in conjunction with the Frequency field. The Ongoing Calculation Basis can be based on the completed Deliverable's due date or based on the date the previous Deliverable was fulfilled. 

The Based on Due Date option for the Ongoing Calculation Basis field means that the Next Due Date for the new Deliverable will be calculated from the fulfilled Deliverable's Next Due Date plus the interval length defined by the Deliverable's Frequency field. If the frequency is Quarterly, was fulfilled on July 15th, but the Deliverable had a Next Due Date of September 30th, then the Deliverable's updated Next Due Date will be December 31st. 

If the Ongoing Calculation Basis is set to Based on Fulfillment Date, the Next Due Date will be calculated as the date the Deliverable was fulfilled plus the interval length defined by the Deliverable's Frequency field. For example, if the frequency is Quarterly and the Deliverable is fulfilled on July 15th, then the Deliverable's updated Next Due Date will be October 15th. 

Scheduling Considerations

Please keep in mind the following about the scheduling of Deliverables:

  • To ensure consistency, due date calculations will be the same for both initial and ongoing schedules. If the initial date is the 15th of every month, the subsequent due dates will also be the 15th.
  • When the Initial Calculation Basis is set to Based on Date During Calendar Period, we recommend setting the Ongoing Calculation Basis to Based on Due Date. If you instead set the Ongoing Calculation Basis to Based on Fulfillment Date, subsequent due dates may not align with the chosen frequency at consistent intervals.
  • If a Deliverable is fulfilled significantly earlier than the scheduled due date, the X-year cycle will begin counting from the early fulfillment date. This adjustment may lead to inconsistencies in the anticipated due dates every X years, as the cycle is reset based on the early fulfillment rather than the original schedule.
  • On the Deliverable Type record, there is a fulfillment setting called If It Isn't Fulfilled By Its Due Date, which can be configured as Treat it as overdue. With this configuration, a Deliverable can be fulfilled after its scheduled due date. Such cases may result in inconsistencies in the anticipated due dates every X years. In some instances, the Deliverable may skip expected frequency intervals if it is fulfilled significantly later than the original due date, as the cycle resets to the late fulfillment date rather than the original schedule.
  • There is a scheduled job for the Event record that checks for events due on the current day and fulfills any associated Deliverables in a batch. This job runs once daily in the morning, typically at 6 a.m. However, there is no mechanism to fulfill Deliverables on the same day if an event is created after this job has already run. For instance, if a user creates an event later in the day, scheduled between 2 and 3 p.m., the Deliverables for this event cannot be fulfilled until after 3 p.m. To address this, the page automatically refreshes when the user opens the Event record page after the event's end time, ensuring that the Deliverables are fulfilled. This approach prevents delays in fulfillment but relies on user interaction to trigger the process.

Accessing a Client's Deliverables

  1. On the Client record, select the Services & Pipeline icon in the side panel.

  2. Select the Deliverables subtab on the Services & Pipeline page view. A list of Deliverables attached to the client's active services will be displayed on this page.

  3. Select the Deliverable Fulfillment subtab to view the Tasks and Events that have fulfilled past Deliverables for the client.

  4. Deliverable information can also be accessed by selecting the Services subtab and selecting a Service record name. 

  5. Deliverable information attached to the Service displays under the Deliverables subtab on the Service record.

  6. Selecting the Deliverable Name opens the specific Deliverable record, with additional information displayed in subtabs.

     

Adjusting Deliverables for Specific Services

Users can modify the Deliverable record directly, if necessary, to provide specific clients with their agreed-upon entitlements, thereby supporting custom service arrangements without changing the firm-wide template. For example, changing the frequency of a check-in Deliverable from quarterly to monthly provides the customer with a higher standard of service than is typically included in the Deliverable Types template your firm created.

Please note: To edit Deliverable records, users must be assigned the Manage Deliverable Settings permission set. If you cannot edit a Deliverable, please get in touch with your Practifi Administrator.

To add additional Deliverables for a specific client's Service:

  1. On the Client record, select the Services & Pipeline icon in the side panel.

  2. Select the Service Name for the Service to which you would like to attach the Deliverable.

  3. Click the caret icon in the page actions to expand the actions drop-down menu. 

  4. Select New Deliverable from the drop-down menu.

  5. On the New Deliverable subtab, enter the following information about the Deliverable:
    • Deliverable Name - Enter the name of the Deliverable as you would like it to be displayed in Practifi.
    • Type - Select the type of Deliverable from the drop-down options.
    • Status - The default selection is Active.
    • Description - Enter a brief explanation of the Deliverable.
    • Ongoing Calculation Basis - Set to either Based on Due Date or Based on Last Fulfillment Date. Determines how the due date for the next Deliverable is calculated.
    • Frequency - Set how often you should complete the Deliverable from the drop-down options.
    • Last Fulfillment Date - The date you fulfilled the last Deliverable of this kind. This field is not required and can be disregarded when creating a Deliverable for the first time.
    • Next Due Date - Set to the date the first Deliverable of this type will need to be completed.

      • Please note: This field is required when creating a new Deliverable for a specific client so the system knows when you expect the first Deliverable to be completed. After the first Deliverable is completed, the system will calculate the Deliverable's due date based on the Ongoing Calculation Basis setting.

    • Auto Create Fulfillment Activities - Check this box to create a dedicated Task that will be completed to fulfill the Deliverable. When this checkbox is selected, the Fulfillment Activity Type and Days Before Due Date fields are enabled.
    • Fulfillment Activity Type - This picklist is enabled when the above box is checked. Choose from the following options:
      • Process Task - In the Task field that appears, search for and select the Process Task you want to fulfill the Deliverable. If you select this option, the parent Process will be created automatically. The completion of the selected Task within the Process is what fulfills the Deliverable.
      • Task Template - In the Task field that appears, search for and select the Task Template you want to create to fulfill the Deliverable.
      • Reminder Task - This option assigns a task to the owner of the Deliverable Type at the interval specified in the Days Before Due Date field. It replaces the previous Set Reminder capability.
    • Days Before Due Date (required) - Enter a whole number for the number of days before the Deliverable's due date you want the fulfillment Task to be created.
    • Allow Fulfillment Date to be Modified - Enabling this setting means users can edit Fulfillment Dates for Deliverables in the sidebar of the Task or Event record that fulfills them. Choose from the following options:
      • Until the work item is completed (default) - This means the Fulfillment Date field can be modified as long as the Deliverable has an open status. The Update Fulfillment Date icon will appear in the Marked for Fulfillment area of the sidebar of a Task or Event record.
      • No - Selecting this option means the Fulfillment Date field will not be editable. The Update Fulfillment Date icon will not be displayed in the sidebar for this Deliverable.
      • At all times - This means the Fulfillment Date can be edited for Deliverables that are marked for fulfillment and Deliverables that have already been fulfilled by a Task being marked as complete or an Event taking place.
    • If It Isn't Fulfilled By Its Due Date - This setting controls whether Deliverables can become overdue. Choose from the following options:
      • Treat it as missed and recalculate due date (default) - Deliverables not fulfilled by the due date will be given a status of Missed, and the next due date will be calculated.
      • Treat it as overdue - Deliverables not fulfilled by the due date can still be fulfilled. Deliverables fulfilled after the due date are marked as Fulfilled Late.

        • Please note: If you checked the Auto Create Fulfillment Activities box, the resulting Deliverables will have their activities automatically marked for fulfillment, meaning they should be viewed as overdue rather than as missed. A validation error will be triggered if you attempt to save a Deliverable Type with the Auto Create Fulfillment Activities option enabled and the If It Isn't Fulfilled By Its Due Date field set to Treat it as missed and recalculate due date.

    • Complete after X fulfillments - If you want the Deliverable to be automatically marked as complete after it is fulfilled a set number of times, enter a whole number in this field. This setting is intended for Deliverables used to complete work for transactional services, such as tax preparation.
  6. Click Save to finalize the Deliverable creation. This change will apply only to this specific client's Service and not to every client's Service across your organization. For changes across the entire organization, adjustments should be made to the Deliverable Type template.

Fulfilling Deliverables

When it comes time to record a Deliverable you've successfully met, you will do so from the Task or Event record page that did the job, using the sidebar assistant on the right side of the record page, keeping fulfillment activity tied to the actual work that delivered it. To use the sidebar assistant:

  1. Create a Task or Event record within your system, or select the Activities icon in the Client record side panel and select the desired record from the list of Tasks and Events.

    Please note: Depending on how your firm has set up Deliverables, there might be a dedicated Task created to fulfill a given Deliverable.

  2. In the sidebar on the Task or Event record, click to expand the Deliverables heading.
  3. In the Available for Fulfillment area, click the plus icon to the right of the Deliverable that the Task or Event fulfilled. Dates highlighted in red indicate overdue Deliverables.

    • Please note: A single Task or Event may fulfill multiple Deliverables. If this is the case, click the plus icon beside each Deliverable that the Task or Event fulfilled.

  4.  The Deliverable you selected appears in the Marked for Fulfillment section. For Task records, the Deliverable will be fulfilled when the Task is marked as complete. For Events, the Deliverable is fulfilled when the Event takes place.

    • Please note: If your firm's Practifi Administrator designated a Task to fulfill a specific Deliverable, it will already appear in the Marked for Fulfillment area of the sidebar. The Deliverable will be fulfilled when the task is marked as complete.

  5. To remove a Deliverable from the Marked for Fulfillment section, click the trash can icon to the right of the Deliverable's name.

Please note: If the Task record is designated to fulfill a particular Deliverable, the trash can icon will be disabled, and you will not be able to remove the Deliverable from the Marked for Fulfillment section.

Completing or Canceling Deliverables

As of the Pinot Blanc release, Deliverables can be completed or canceled if they are no longer needed, keeping each client's active service schedule accurate and reportable. The difference between these two actions is the status applied to the Deliverable. As you might expect, completing a Deliverable sets its status to Completed, while canceling it sets its status to Canceled. When a Deliverable’s status is set to Completed or Canceled, the following things happen:

  • The Deliverable no longer appears in the sidebar on Task and Event records.
  • The Next Due Date field’s current value is deleted and stops recalculating.
  • Fulfillment activities are not created.

You can include the Status field when reporting on Deliverable fulfillment.

Please note: Tasks with a status of Canceled will display Deliverables in their sidebar, but they will not have plus icons next to them because canceled Tasks cannot be used to fulfill Deliverables. If a Task that was automatically created as a fulfillment activity for a Deliverable is canceled, the Deliverable will appear in the Available for Fulfillment area of the sidebar. Another Task or Event can fulfill it.

To complete or cancel an individual Deliverable:

  1. Open the Entity record with the Deliverable you want to complete or cancel.
  2. In the record side panel, click the Services & Pipeline navigation icon.
  3. On the Services & Pipeline page, click the Deliverables tab.

  4. In the record list, click the caret on the right-hand side of the row for the desired Deliverable, then select Complete Deliverable or Cancel Deliverable.

  5. In the pop-up window, click to confirm that you want to complete or cancel the Deliverable.

     

To complete or cancel multiple Deliverables in a list view:

  1. Check the boxes next to the Deliverables you want to complete or cancel.

  2. At the top of the list view, click the Complete Deliverables or Cancel Deliverables button.

  3. In the pop-up window, click to confirm that you want to complete or cancel the Deliverables.

     

Reactivating Deliverables

If you want to restore one or more completed or canceled Deliverables, you can reactivate them. The Reactivate Deliverable action is available on Deliverable records and as a row action or mass action for Deliverables with a status of Completed or Canceled.

The Reactivate Deliverable action changes the Deliverable's status from Completed or Canceled to Active. Attempting to reactivate a Deliverable that already has an Active status will result in an error.

Please note: Reactivating a Deliverable means it will become available for fulfillment on Tasks and Events, will start generating fulfillment activities (if enabled), and its Next Due Date field will be recalculated based on the calculation method used when it was first created. If the calculation basis is the Service’s start date, then the current date (today’s date) will be used instead.

Alternatively, you can manually set the due date using the Next Due Date field in the Reactivate Deliverables window.

Understanding Cancellation Behavior for Fulfillment Activities

When you cancel a Deliverable with fulfillment activities attached, the system handles the associated tasks intelligently, depending on whether they were created by the system or manually linked. Understanding this behavior helps you anticipate what will happen to related tasks and avoid unexpected work items remaining in your system.

System-Managed vs. User-Managed Tasks

The system distinguishes between two types of tasks when determining cancellation behavior:

Pre-nominated tasks are system-managed fulfillment activities that are automatically created based on Deliverable Type settings. These are typically auto-created reminder tasks or process tasks that the system generates to fulfill the Deliverable. Since users may not always remember that these tasks exist, when the Deliverable is canceled, the system also auto-cancels the system-managed task to prevent orphaned Task records that no longer make sense.

Manually linked tasks are user-managed activities that users explicitly attach to a Deliverable via the Deliverables sidebar. When you manually link a task to a Deliverable, you have chosen that task yourself. The system assumes you are aware of it and may still need it for other work, so it does not automatically cancel the task when you cancel the Deliverable. Instead, the system removes the link. If you no longer need the Task, you can cancel or close it yourself.

Detailed Cancellation Behavior

Here's how Practifi handles the following scenarios:

  • Deliverable with a single, pre-nominated task: If the task is the Deliverable's pre-nominated fulfillment activity and it is only linked to that Deliverable, canceling the Deliverable will also cancel the task. This applies to automatically created tasks. What matters is that the system pre-nominated the task.
  • Deliverable with a single, manually linked task: If you manually linked a task to the Deliverable via the Deliverables sidebar, canceling the Deliverable does not cancel the task; the task is just unlinked from that Deliverable and stays open.
  • One Task linked to multiple Deliverables: If a task (whether pre-nominated or manual) is linked to several Deliverables and you cancel one of those Deliverables, the task stays open because the other active Deliverables still need it. The task is detached from the canceled Deliverable. Only when a task is exclusively linked to the canceled Deliverable (with no other active Deliverables) will the system auto-cancel that task.

This intelligent handling keeps your task list clean and relevant without accidentally removing tasks that are still needed for other work or other Deliverables.

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