Using the Task Drawer

FYI holds information related to a task in the Drawer which displays on the right-hand side.

This displays whenever you:

• Create a new task.
• Select an existing task in a list in FYI.
  Or
• Open a task from the Tasks section in the drawer of an email, document or job.

The fields and options that are included in the Drawer, and how they are used, may vary depending on whether you are creating a task, looking at an existing stand-alone task or a task created for an email, document or job. There are also different options available depending on the selections you have made (such as once a Client or Cabinet has been selected).

The following is an example of the Drawer that displays for a new task.

The Drawer is where you can:

• Add or change the brief description of the task in the Task Name
• Update Filing information
• Add Details of the task
• Add Comments for your team

For an existing task you can

• Access the Client or Job associated with a task
• Use Preview to see the context of a task that was created for an email or document.
• Using the Document link access the associated email or document where a task is attached to an email or document.
• Add Time for the Task (refer to Adding Time).

Apart from Task Name, Delegator and Due Date, all other fields are optional.

Selecting Tasks in the List

When the drawer is displayed for a Task, you can select another Task by clicking on it in the list. The drawer stays open and displays the details of the newly selected Task.

• If you have displayed the Preview pane , this stays open for the newly selected Task.
• If you have displayed the Comments pane, this stays open for the newly selected Task.
• You can use the Back button in the drawer to re-display the previously displayed Task. Refer below to Using the Back Button in the Drawer.

Re-displaying the Email, Document or Job from the Task

When opening a task from the Tasks section in the drawer of an email, document or job, the Back button displays at the top of the Task drawer. Click this to re-display the drawer for the relevant email, document or job.

Task Name

The Task Name is a brief description of the task. This displays in the lists in FYI.  It also displays as the Subject when notifications about the task are sent.

To change the Name, click the Name field, make the change and click the Tick icon to save the change (or click the X icon to not save the change).

Preview

Where a task has been created for an email or document, the Preview pane displays a preview of the email or document that the task was created for. You can use this to see the context of the task. Refer to Previewing an Email.

Comments

Comments can be added to a task by any team member. These can be used to add any notes and also allow team members to collaborate on a task. Refer to Adding Comments and Notifying Team Members.

Assignee

Select the name of the user assigned to the task.

If the task is not being assigned to a specific person, this can be left as "Unassigned". When displaying a list of tasks, you can select "Unassigned Only" in the column header filter to display any tasks that are not assigned to a user.

Delegator 

When you create a task, your name will automatically be selected as the delegator. You can select a different user from the drop-down if relevant.

Client 

When adding a task to an email, document or job:

• The Client is automatically taken as the Client for the selected email/document/job.
• If you have the Client or Job workspace open when creating a new Task, a default for the Client is displayed. You can delete this if the task is not specific to that Client, or select a different Client.
• When adding a stand-alone task (that is, not attached to an email or document) you can optionally associate it to a Client. Type at least three characters of the client name to display all clients containing those characters anywhere in the Client Name. Then click to select the required client.

When updating a Task:

• If this has been created as a stand-alone task and a client has been selected, you can change the client that it relates to.
• If a Task was or created for a Job you can change the client, and if relevant the Job.
• Where the Task has been created for an email or document, you cannot change the client.

Cabinet

If Task Security has been enabled in the Practice Settings for your practice, you can select a Cabinet for the task. You can only select one of the Cabinets that you have access to. The Cabinet selected for a task sets the security and ensures that only users with access to that Cabinet can see the task. This is useful, for example, for sensitive areas such as HR or performance management. Refer to Practice Settings and Managing User Groups.

Job

• If a Client is selected, you can also optionally select a Xero Practice Manager Job for the client. Click Show Closed Jobs to select a closed job. Refer to the section Jobs and Time.
• If the task is being created as attached to a Job, the Job is automatically selected.
• If you have the Job workspace open when creating the Task, a default for the Job (and the Client) is displayed. You can delete this if the task is not specific to that Job, or select a different Job.

Job Category

If Task Job Category has been enabled in the Practice Settings for your practice, and a Client has been selected, you can also optionally select a Job Category for the task. Job Categories are from Xero Practice Manager.

Start Date

You can add a Start Date to the task. If the Default Task Start Date option is enabled in your Practice Settings, this will default to today's date (refer to Practice Settings). You can enter or change the date by clicking on the Start Date field and selecting a date from the calendar.

Due Date

A Due Date is given as a default for a new task. The default is one day from today's date. This can be changed by clicking on the field and selecting from the calendar. The default number of days from today's date that is set for the Due Date is set in the Practice Settings (refer to Practice Settings).

Status

The Status for a new task defaults to Not Started. As the task progresses, its Status can be updated to “In Progress”, “Complete” or “Rejected”.

Document

If the task is being created or updated for an existing document, the Document field is included and displays the name of the document the task is attached to.

From the open a task, you can use the Preview pane of the Task to display a preview of the email or document that the task was created for.

You can also click the link to open the drawer for the relevant email or document.

Details

Additional details can be added as free text.

Remember that if you are creating a task by attaching it to an email or document, you can easily display the original source document to provide context for the task, so this may not need to be covered in the Details.

Using the Formatting Tools

You can apply formatting such as bold, italics, etc using the tools at the top of the Details.

Hover over the tools to see the tool tip description of how each is used.

You can use the More Text tool to display additional tools.

Use the More Paragraph tool to display functions such as bullet points, numbered lists, indents.

You can use the More Rich tool to display additional functions such as images, tables, special characters.

The Full screen tool displays the Task details as a full screen or to return to the drawer.

Use the More Misc tool to display functions such as Undo, Print, Code view.

When the cursor is at the left-hand side of the template text area, a Quick Insert icon displays.

Click this to add tools to insert tables, numbered and bullet lists and horizontal lines.

Opening the Client related to the Task

Where a Task has been attached to a Client, in the Update Task drawer, you can re-display the Client, by clicking the Open Client icon.

Opening a Job related to the Task

Where a Task has been attached to a Job, in the Update Task drawer, you can re-display the Job, by clicking the Open Job icon.

Using the Tools at the Top of the Drawer

At the top of the Drawer is the tool Add Time.

Click the Add Time icon to add Time information. Refer to Adding Time.

Using the Back Button in the Drawer

When the drawer is displayed for a Task, you can select another Task by clicking on it in the list and this leaves the drawer open with the details of the newly selected Task.

At the top of the Task drawer the Back button can be used to re-display in turn the previously selected Task in that list.

The history of which Tasks are displayed with the Back button is held until the drawer is closed.