Perceptive Content Fundamentals

Task Administration

A task is work that you assign to one or more users for documents and projects. You select the task that best matches the work that needs to be done. The task types are defined as follows:

• Document Deficiency - Create this task type to indicate when a document is missing or is incomplete.
• Pointer - Use this task type to draw attention to a specific document or project location for further action.
• Signature Required - Assign this task type when a user needs to digitally sign a document. The Document Management Suite license must be installed on your Perceptive Content system for the task Signature Required type to be available.

Task Template

To administer tasks, in Management Console, you create task templates for your users. In a task template, specify the task type, set locations (project, document, and page), an assignment list, a completion method (automatic with valid digital signature, manual and complete pending review), reasons (action and return), a due date method, and security options. Task template security allows you to determine the roles your users have when working with tasks.

The primary Perceptive Content task roles are creator, assignee, and reviewer. A task creator creates and assigns tasks to task assignees. These assignees, in turn, sign, complete, or return tasks. You can assign tasks to multiple users or to a single group. After a task assignee completes a task, a task reviewer may be required to review the task. A review is required when the completion method is set to "Complete pending review" in the task template.

There are several task views available in Perceptive Content Explorer that allow you to optimize task viewing and processing: My Assigned, To Review, Returned to Me, Complete Pending Review, and Returned by Me views run automatically when selected. The task results you see are based on your task role. For example, if you are a reviewer, when you select To Review, tasks that require your review appear. If you are not a reviewer and select To Review, no results are returned. You can customize the task startup and processing options for the Assigned View. Although new task views cannot be created, administrators and users with the proper privileges have the ability to create public filters for a task view. The Perceptive Content Explorer grid can be customized for the view or filter.

Task Reason Lists

Task assignees are prompted to select reasons from two reason lists, action and return. Reasons provide users with pre-set descriptions that they can select to indicate why they are signing, completing, or returning a task. A reason list is a set of reasons that you, the administrator, bundles as a list from which the user can select. For example, as administrator, you control the contents of every reason list as well as which reason lists are available for each of the three task template types. You can:

Create, modify, and delete reasons. Action reasons and reason lists for Signature Required task templates are managed in the Digital Signatures area of Management Console. For a user to access Digital Signature reasons and reason lists, he or she must have the Manage Digital Signatures privilege. When you create action reasons and reason lists for Document deficiency and Pointer task templates, you do so in the Tasks area of Management Console. Additionally, return reasons for each of the task template types are managed in the Tasks area of Management Console. A user must have the Manage Task Templates privilege to access Tasks in Management Console.

Add reasons to or remove reasons from reason lists, as well as arrange the reasons in a preferred selection order. Typically, you will place the most frequently cited reason at the top of the list. This allows a task assignee to simply press ENTER to select a reason rather than requiring the assignee to scroll the reason list.

Assign action reasons to signature required task templates. Action reasons are optional for document deficiency and pointer task templates, but are mandatory for signature required task templates.

Task Levels

Use task levels to assign a series of tasks. Each level in the series represents a single task and is sequential. A task series starts with Level 1 and contains at least two levels. When the task for Level 1 is complete, a new task is created for the task assignees on Level 2. When the Level 2 task is complete, and a third level exists, a new task is created for the Level 3 task assignees, and so on. You can assign up to ten task levels and, in turn, you can assign multiple users or a single group to each level. You can assign the same users or group to multiple levels, however, only the users and groups assigned to the task template are available for assignment.

Configure task levels when there are multiple assignees who need to complete a task in a specific order. For example, suppose you work in an accounts payable (AP) department that requires two levels of signatures for invoices over a certain amount before the invoice is paid. To address this requirement, you can create a signature required task with two levels. You assign the AP team lead to the first level and AP manager to the second level. Once the team lead completes the signing task for an invoice, a new signing task for that invoice appears for the AP manager.

When you want the ability to accelerate the task completion process, you can set a task series as a hierarchy. As with task levels, the task series hierarchy represents a single task that starts with Level 1 and contains at least two levels. However, with the hierarchy, prior levels and can complete the task at any time. When an optional task assignee completes a task, that assignees level in the hierarchy determines whether the next task in the series is created or if the series is complete. When you create a task series hierarchy, you must assign unique users to each level.