🆕Create a Task Workflow
Last updated
Last updated
In this guide, we will walk through setting up a task creation workflow in a tracker, using a scenario where an AV equipment order form triggers task creation once the request is approved.
You’ll begin by setting up a tracker with various columns that will later be used to create the task. Let’s go through the essential columns and their corresponding task fields:
Order Request Title (Text Column): This column captures the title of the order request. It will map to the Task Title.
Equipment Needed Description (Rich Text Column): This column stores the detailed description of the equipment needed. It maps to the Task Description.
Responsible User (User Look-Ahead Column): This identifies the person assigned to the task and maps to the Assignee field in the task. You can either assign a task to a user or a team using User Look-Ahead or Team Look-Ahead columns, respectively.
Need By Date (Date Column): This sets the due date for the task and maps to the Due Date field.
Task Type (Radio Box or Drop-Down Column): This maps to the Task Type in the task settings (e.g., Project Planning, Equipment Checkout).
Task Priority (Radio Box or Drop-Down Column): This column sets the priority of the task (High, Medium, Low). Ensure the priority values match the ones available in your task settings.
Equipment Checklist (Checkbox Column): This column maps to the Task Checklist.
Supporting Files (File Attachment Column): This column captures any attachments that are added during the request process and will be mapped to the Attachments section of the task.
In order for the columns to map correctly, the column types MUST match the above. The column titles can be to your preference.
For our example, we will include an approval workflow which will serve as the trigger for our Task Creation workflow. Once your tracker is set up with the appropriate columns, you’ll need to configure a workflow for task creation:
Approval Workflow: When a new entry is added to the tracker, an approval workflow will be triggered (e.g., when someone submits an AV equipment order form). The approver (in this case, you) will receive a request for approval.
Task Creation Trigger: Once the approval request is accepted, the Approval Status column will change to "Approved," and that will trigger the next workflow—creating the task.
After the approval workflow is set up, it’s time to define the mappings between tracker columns and task fields.
Click Set Up Mapping to configure how each tracker column will map to a specific task field.
The mapping interface is similar to the one used for publishing posts, but in this case, you’ll map tracker columns to task properties.
For example:
Task Title: Mapped from a Text Column like the Order Request Title.
Assignee: Mapped from a User Look-Ahead Column (e.g., Responsible User).
Task Type: Mapped from a Radio Box Column (e.g., Task Type).
Priority: Mapped from a Radio Box or Drop-Down Column (e.g., Task Priority).
If you are mapping a User Look-Ahead field, you can assign the task to an individual. If you're using a Team Look-Ahead field, the task can be assigned to an entire team.
Once the mapping is complete, you'll need to set up success and failure blocks. These determine what happens after the task is created:
Success Block: If the task creation is successful, update the Task Creation Status column to "Created."
Failure Block: If the task creation fails, set the Task Creation Status to "Failed."
With the workflow and mappings in place, you can test it by submitting a form (e.g., an AV equipment order). After the form is submitted:
The Approval Request will be triggered.
After approval, the task creation process will kick off.
The task will be automatically created based on the data from the form and mapped tracker columns.
Once the task is created, you can view it in the Tasks Module. If you’ve mapped the Responsible User, the task will appear in that user’s task list. If you used a Team Look-Ahead field, the task will be visible in the Team Tasks Module.
If you enable Multi-Select for the User Look-Ahead Column, you can assign the task to multiple users. This will create a Centralized Task, and the assigned users can view and manage the task collectively.
To verify the workflow has executed properly check the Automation Log to view the status of each step, from the approval request to the task creation. Once the task is successfully created, the Task Creation Status will be updated to "Created" in your tracker.
