The Goal: Create a new project — from scratch or from a template — and add the tasks needed to manage it from start to finish.
Before You Begin:
- You need permission to access Projects under Home, My workspace section.
- Decide whether to build the project from scratch or from an existing project template.
- A project can also be created in two other ways: automatically based on Membership type (see Auto Create Projects for New Membership) or from a contact's Profile tab (see Add a Project to a Contact). The steps below cover creating one from the Projects/Tasks area.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Create a Project
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Go to Home, My workspace section, click Projects.
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Click the Add button.
- Configure the following:
- Project Name: Enter a name for the project. Best practice is to provide a name that provides a good understanding of the project.
- Code Name: If you wish to track projects by code name, enter the Code Name.
- Status: Select Active from the drop-down. Changes to the status of the project may be updated through the lifetime of the project.
- Result: Select the desired result from the drop-down list. This field may be updated throughout the life of the project. For example, if this is a project for membership acquisition, a result might be "Acquired". If the prospect is not acquired, you may return to the project to change the result.
- Project Template: If you wish to use an existing project template, select it from the drop-down.
- Project Description: Enter a description of the project. This is a good location to document your project scope, etc.
- Custom Fields: If there is additional information you wish to track about this project, click the + sign to add custom fields.
- Start Date: Enter the start date of the project. The system will default to the current date.
- Estimated End Date: Enter the estimated end date of the project.
- End Date: When creating the project, this field should be left blank. You can fill this in once the project has been completed.
- Owner: Select the owner of the project from the drop-down list.
- Project Contacts: If this project is to be tied to a contact in your database, enter the name of the contact. Once the project is saved, you will see the project on the contact's Profile tab. NOTE: Alternately, the project could have been created directly from the contact's Profile tab.
- Categories: Select a category from the drop-down list. Categories make it easy for you to search, filter and report on projects.
- Event: If this project is to be tied to an event, enter the name of the event. Once the project is saved, the project will be displayed on the event's Tasks tab.
- Click Save to finalize the project.
Add Tasks to a Project
If you are not using a template to create a project, once the project has been created you will add tasks to it. A task may be a single stand-alone task to be performed, or it may have sub-tasks within it.
- Go to Home, My workspace section, click Projects.
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Click the desired project from the projects list.
- Once the project is open, click the Tasks tab. A list of all tasks associated to the project will be displayed.
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Click the Add button.
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Configure the following:
- Assigned To: Select the person you wish to assign this task to. Once the task is saved, the person the task has been assigned to will receive the Task Assigned automated email notification.
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Task Type: Select a task type from the list. Task types are a way by which you will be able to report, search and filter tasks. If you wish to add a new task, click the
icon. For further information on creating task types, see Task Types.
- Priority: Select the desired priority for this task.
- Project: The name of your project will be displayed.
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Milestone: Select the desired milestone from the drop-down. By using milestones, you can divide the project into specific phases. If you wish to add a new milestone, click the
icon.
- Task Description: Provide a description of the task.
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Task Items: If the task includes sub items, click the
to add.
- Enter a name for the sub-task. The completed checkbox and completed date should be left blank when you first are creating the task.
- To add additional tasks, click the
- Start Date: Enter the desired start date for this task.
- Due Date: Select the desired due date for this task.
- Estimate Hours: Enter the number of hours that you estimate this task will take to complete.
- Dependent On: If other tasks must be completed in order to complete this task, select the dependent task(s) from the drop-down list. You will not be allowed to mark this task as complete until the dependent tasks have been completed.
- Completed On: This is the date that the dependent task is completed. If this task has been completed, the completed date will be automatically populated.
- Click Done.
Common Pitfalls
- Filling in the End Date too early: Leave the End Date blank when creating the project; complete it only once the project is actually finished, or your reporting will be inaccurate.
- Forgetting to link the project to a contact or event: If the project should appear on a contact's Profile tab or an event's Tasks tab, set Project Contacts or Event before saving.