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Assignments can be used to initiate a series of routed assignments based on a user-defined workflow. As these are considered assignments, not just informational messages, they can play a special role in project management. They can also be used to route any type of board card or task related to any type of operation.
Examples include routing for RFPs, Contracts, Job Openers, Creative Processing, Approvals, Issue Tracking etc.
Assignments can be routed to multiple assignees at a time. They are also self-commenting, meaning when an assignment changes state, the new state, new employee assigned, date, time and information on who updated the assignment is added automatically to the comment log.
Routed Assignments can be created directly from the Assignments & Alerts Manager Application, Boards, Job Jacket, Estimate, Project Schedule and Campaign applications. Assignments can also be created from the Print/Send functionality.
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Select the Maintenance on the Main Menu. Select Project Management and then select Workflow from the menu to open the Workflow Maintenance application.
Upon entering the Workflow Maintenance application, there are 4 tab options:
States - All defined States will display on the first tab, sorted by State Name.
Templates - The second tab includes the Templates created for the workflow.
Template Detail - The third includes the selected Template Detail's information.
Routed Assignment Settings - The 4th tab includes the option to add comments to the Routed Assignment when updates are made to the alert. Check the Track Descriptions Changes checkbox to automatically add comments when updating the Alert and/or Assignment.
States are the various statuses that a Board Card or Task can be 'in' at any point. The state of the routed assignment determines which employees would be available as the assignee. States are required in order create Templates with workflow detail.
To add a new State, enter the following information on the first (empty) row in the grid:
State Name - Enter a State Name that identifies where the Board Card or Task goes when the state is selected within the Alert.
Inactive - If a state is no longer in use, it may be marked as Inactive. Inactive states will no longer be available for selection.
Default Category - Select a category that would typically accompany the state. Available selections are Action, Discussion Topic, Event and Review. When creating an alert, the category can be changed.
When completed, click the Add icon to add the new state. Since the states are sorted by the 'State Name', the newly added state may not display on the initial page of the grid.
To discard the entry of a new state, click the Cancel icon.
The states grid displays all active states. Use the Page Size to change the number of states to display at a time. The grid's footer indicates the total number of pages that are available for viewing. Use the Change page navigational arrows to view all role codes.
Save changes to the screen before using the Change page navigation.
Upon initial view of the States in the Workflow Maintenance application, only active states are displayed. To view states that are inactive, click the Show Inactive checkbox, located top right corner of application. To display just the active states, uncheck the Show Inactive checkbox.
All fields can be modified (State Name, Inactive and Default Category) on the States tab. When modifying is completed, click the Save icon located on the individual state row.
If multiple changes have been made to the states, to save all rows simultaneously click the Save All icon located in the column header.
To delete a state, click the Delete icon located on the individual state row. A message will display verifying that the state is to be deleted. Click OK to delete the state, otherwise click Cancel to not delete the state.
To generate a report listing all states, click the Export to Excel icon, located top right corner of application. If the Show Inactive checkbox is selected, the report will also include all inactive states.
Templates represent the various types of workflow that will drive the routing of the Assignments. Templates contain a description and detail. The template detail is where the States and Employees are entered to create the workflow path. Templates are required in order to add workflow detail.
To add a new Template, enter the following information on the first (empty) row in the grid:
Template Name - Enter a Template Name that identifies the States and Employees for a specific workflow path.
Auto Route - Workflow templates can be designated to Auto Route. The auto-route feature transforms assignments using this template to automatically move to the next state when all assignees have marked the assignment complete. Click on the Auto Route option to use the auto routing feature for the workflow template in that row.
Routed assignments using an Auto Route workflow template will display the Auto Route symbol on all of the following:
Assignment Card Face
Workflow Template Description
Assignment Page - will display Auto Route = Yes in the header
Proof - Select this option to designate the workflow template that will be available for Proofs. When a new proofing assignment is created, only workflow templates with this option checked will be available.
Inactive - If a template is no longer in use, it may be marked as Inactive. Inactive templates will no longer be available for selection.
When completed, click the Add icon to add the new template. Since the templates are sorted by the 'Template Name', the newly added template may not display on the initial page of the grid.
To discard the entry of a new template, click the Cancel icon.
The template grid displays all active Templates. Use the Page size to change the number of Templates viewed. The grid's footer indicates the total number of pages that are available for viewing. Use the Change page navigational arrows to view all codes.
Save changes to the screen before using the Change page navigation.
Upon initial view of the template in the Workflow Maintenance application, only active templates are displayed. To view templates that are inactive, click the Show Inactive checkbox, located top right corner of application. To display just the active templates, uncheck the Show Inactive checkbox.
Both fields can be modified (Template Name and Inactive) on the Templates tab. When modifying is completed, click the Save icon located on the individual template row.
If multiple changes have been made to the template tab, to save all rows simultaneously click the Save All icon located in the column header.
To delete a template, click the Delete icon located on the individual template name row. A message will display verifying that the template is to be deleted. Click OK to delete the template, otherwise click Cancel to not delete the template.
To generate a report listing all templates, click the Export to Excel icon, located top right corner of application. If the Show Inactive checkbox is selected, the report will also include all inactive templates.
To add detail to a template, on the Template Detail tab select the template from the dropdown. The Template Detail displays the available states and employees for association as well as currently assigned states and employees for that template. To quickly locate the Template, start typing the name of the template and the dropdown will automatically filter the selection.
States and Employees are automatically saved once moved to the Available or Current selection window.
To assign a state to the template, highlight the state and click the Right Arrow, located between the Available States and States Currently In Template selection windows.
Multiple states can be selected at the same time by holding down the Ctrl button while clicking on each state.
To select All states at the same time, click the All to Right Arrow, located between the Available States and States Currently In Template selection windows.
Rearrange order of States - To change the order that the States are displayed within the Assignment, highlight the state and click the Move Up Arrow or Move Down Arrow. The States can also be re-ordered by highlighting the state to be adjusted and drag and drop accordingly.
Completed State - To indicate a state as the 'last state' in the workflow, highlight the state from the States Currently in Template selection window. Move (drag) the State over to the Completed State icon, located on the right of the States Currently in Template selection window.
Select the state from the States Currently In Template window to assign an employee to that state.
To assign employees to the selected state, highlight employee(s) and click the Right Arrow, located between the Available Employees and Employees Currently in State selection windows. Multiple employees can be selected at the same time by holding down the Ctrl button while clicking on each employee.
To select All employees at the same time, click the All to Right Arrow, located between the Available Employees and Employees Currently in State selection windows.
Employee List Type - To limit the available employees, use the Filter by located above the Available Employees selection window. Select employees manually, By Role, By Department or By Alert Group. When filtering by Role, Department or Alert Group, select from the Available section. All employees related to the Role, Department or Alert Group will be automatically selected (and displayed in the 'Employees in this....' section).
Copy Current Assignment Team - The ability to copy the assignment team from one state to another is available. First, select the State from the States Currently in Template selection window that the assignment team should be copied from. Click the Copy Current Team link, located under the Employees Currently in State selection window. Highlight the state that the current team's employees should be copied to and click the Copy button.
Default Employee(s) - When set as default, all assignees will appear in the routed assignment. To set employee(s) as default when the state is used for Assignments, highlight the employee from the Employees Currently in State. Move (drag) the Employee over the Default Employee icon, located on the right side of the Employees Currently in State window. Multiple default assignees can be established on any Workflow by State. These selected default assignees will appear in the routed assignment.
To remove a state to the template, highlight the state and click the To Left Arrow, located between the Available States and States Currently In Template selection windows.
Multiple states can be selected at the same time by holding down the Ctrl button while clicking on each state.
Rearrange order of States - To change the order that the States are displayed within the Assignment, highlight the state and click the Move Up Arrow or Move Down Arrow. The States can also be re-ordered by highlighting the state to be adjusted and drag and drop accordingly.
Completed State - To indicate a state as the 'last state' in the workflow, highlight the state from the States Currently in Template selection window. Move (drag) the State over to the Completed State icon, located on the right of the States Currently in Template selection window.
Select the state from the 'States Currently In Template' window to assign an employee to that state.
To assign an employee to the state, highlight the employee and click on the To Left Arrow, located between the Available Employees and Employees Currently in State selection windows.
Multiple employees can be selected at the same time by holding down the Ctrl button while clicking on each employee.
Default Employee - To set an employee as the default employee when the state is selected during Assignments, highlight the employee from the Current Assignment Team. Move (drag) the Employee over the Default Employee icon, located on the right side of the Employees Currently in State window.
To generate a report listing the template detail, click the Export to Excel icon, located top right corner of application.
A State listed with a single asterisks indicates that State is a Completed State (Example: Close*).
A State listed with double asterisks indicates that State is part of the Automated Assignment workflow (Example: Estimate**).
An Employee listed with single asterisks indicates that Employee is the default Employee (Example: Alan A. Able*).
The Assignment Settings Tab allows control of how Assignments are processed. Changes made are automatically saved.
Track Description Changes - Controls the automatic comments that are added when an update to the Priority, Start Date or Due Date of an assignment or alert in the Assignments and Alerts Manager Module. When the Track Description Changes is selected, each time an Assignment has been updated, an automatic comment will be added. To disable the automatic comments, unselect this option.
Routed Assignment Default Subject - Select what the default subject should automatically state when creating or updating an Assignment. Select from the dropdown:
Don't Modify - When selected, the Assignment's subject line will not be automatically modified. This will require a subject to be manually added for each Assignment that is created.
State - When selected, the Assignment's subject line will default to the Workflow Templates State. As the Assignment goes thru various States, the Subject line will automatically be updated to match the new State.
Template - When selected, the Assignment's subject line will default to the Workflow Template's name.
Template and State - When selected, the Assignment's subject line will default to the Workflow Template's and State's name. As the Assignment goes thru various States, the Subject line will automatically be updated to match the new State.
Job #, Job Name, Template, and State - When selected, the Assignment's subject line will default to the Job Number, Job Name, Workflow Template's and State's name. As the Assignment goes thru various States, the Subject line will automatically be updated to match the new State.
The subject line can still be modified when creating or updating an Assignment, regardless of the option selected here.
Routed Proofs By Default - When selected, proofing assignments will default to being routed. When unselected, proofing assignments will default to being non-routed.
Put comments first on emails - Determines email alert layout for assignments and alerts. When checked, all email alerts will be sent with the comments located at the top of the email. When unchecked, all email alerts will be sent with the subject and description located at the top of the email. This can also be changed in Advantage under Maintenance / General / Agency - System & Alert Options tab. Changing the setting in one location (Advantage or Webvantage) will automatically update the setting in the other location.
Click on the x on Workflow Maintenance to exit the maintenance application.
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