Tasks

"Somebody should restock the drinks fridge" is how a job gets left undone. Everyone heard it, so nobody did it. A task in Tabs is one job with one owner. It has a store, it can have a deadline, and it keeps a record of everything that happened to it.

Tasks are in the menu under Work.

Giving someone a job

Go to Tasks and press New task.

Only the first two are required.

Done when is the field most people skip, and the one that prevents arguments. "Fridge is full and the old stock is at the front" can be checked. "Sort out the fridge" can't.

The person you give it to is told in the bell the moment the task is theirs, and it appears on their My day.

A worked example

It's Friday morning and a drinks delivery is due at your Ikeja store by noon.

What needs doing: Receive the drinks delivery and count it in. Store: Ikeja. Owner: Chinedu. Due: today, 1pm. Priority: High. Done when: every carton is counted against the supplier's invoice and the stock is adjusted.

Chinedu sees it at the top of his day. If the truck hasn't come by 1pm, the task turns red and says how late it is, on his screen and on yours.

Working a task

A task is always in one of four states.

Whoever owns the task sees one button for the next step. On a new task that's Start. Once it's started, the button becomes Mark as done.

When something is in the way. Choose Mark as blocked and say what's stopping you. Tabs won't accept a block without a reason, because the reason is what the person who can fix it needs to read. "Supplier hasn't delivered" or "No change in the till" is enough. A blocked task shows to whoever watches the store's work, with its reason. When the problem is cleared, press Unblock.

Checklists. Some tasks carry a checklist, such as the opening and closing lists a shift is given. Tick each item as you do it and the line is crossed off. A task with a checklist can't be marked done until every item is ticked. Ticking the first item starts the task for you.

Comments. Under the task, anyone who can see it can add a comment. Use it for the things that would otherwise go to WhatsApp: "Truck says 2pm now", "Short by one carton, see invoice". You can edit or remove your own comments.

History. Every task keeps a dated list of what happened: who created it, who it was given to, each change of status, each edit. Nothing on it can be removed. Anyone who can open the task can read its history. The same actions also appear in the activity of the person who did them.

Tasks that open by themselves

When an order is recorded, Tabs opens a task for it at the order's store: Fulfil order, with the order's number.

If someone is on a published shift at that store right now with the Fulfilment duty, and their role lets them hand over orders, the task goes to them. If nobody is, it waits as unassigned.

This task has no Mark as done button. Its button is Open order, and it finishes by itself when everything on the order has been handed over or delivered. That keeps the task honest. Nobody can tick off a delivery that hasn't left the shop.

The task follows its order from then on. Cancel or delete the order and the task goes. Cancel a handover so the order is no longer fully fulfilled, and the task opens again.

Besides the copies of a shift checklist that each shift is given, it's the only kind of task Tabs creates for you today. Everything else on the list was written by a person.

The Tasks page

What you see depends on your role.

Your own tasks. Every member has this, with no special permission. The page is titled My tasks and lists the jobs you've been given.

Everyone's tasks. A role that can view tasks sees every task in the business. Narrow the list with the chips at the top: Status, Owner, Store, Unassigned and Overdue.

Either way, the list is in the order work should be picked up. Unfinished tasks come first. Among those, overdue ones lead, then the most urgent, then the nearest deadline.

Click a row to open the task. Right-click a row, or use its menu, for the quick actions.

Changing, reassigning and removing

These belong to a role that can manage tasks.

• Edit changes the wording, the store, the deadline and the priority.
• Reassign gives the task to someone else, or puts it back in the unassigned queue. The new owner is told.
• Reopen brings a finished task back to to do.
• Remove takes it off everyone's lists. What was done on it stays on record.

If a member is suspended or removed while they still hold unfinished tasks, Tabs takes those tasks back and marks them unassigned, so the work doesn't disappear with the person. The person comes off the roster too.

Who can do what

A new role you create doesn't get either permission until you tick it. The business owner has both. Set this under roles.

Using tasks well

• One job, one owner. A task given to nobody waits in the unassigned queue. A job that really needs two people is usually two tasks.
• Put a time on it. A task with no deadline can never be late, so it never asks for attention.
• Write a reason someone can act on. "Can't do it" tells your manager nothing. "Waiting for Mr Okafor's payment to land" tells them who to call.
• Don't use tasks for the stock itself. A task says "count the drinks". The numbers go in a stock count.

What tasks don't do yet

• A task you create can't be linked to an order or a transfer from the form. Only the automatic Fulfil order task carries a link. Mention the order number in the wording for now.
• Tasks don't repeat. A job that comes round every day belongs on a shift checklist.

If something goes wrong

There's no Mark as done button. Check four things. The task hasn't been started, so its button still says Start. It has unticked checklist items, and it tells you how many are left. It's a Fulfil order task, which finishes with its order. Or it isn't yours: only the person a task was given to, or someone who can manage tasks, can move it along.

You can't see a colleague's task. Your role only shows you your own. Ask the business owner to let your role view tasks.

You can't change a finished task's checklist. Finished tasks are locked. Someone who can manage tasks has to reopen it first.