Create and manage account-related tasks with Workbench

Tasks are a productivity feature that gives you a running to-do list of loads that need attention. Some tasks are automatically generated by the Turvo platform, and others can be created and assigned to you or others.

When tied to customer accounts, tasks provide the ability to monitor and manage actions that may be required for the management of your relationships and workflows with shipping partners, such as one-time reminders to follow up with a prospective customer or recurring tasks that you may need to track, like the creation of a monthly batch invoice.

You can view and address account-related tasks within the account page itself or manage all of your account-related tasks via the Workbench. 

In this article, you will learn more about creating account-related tasks, assigning them to users in your Turvo tenant, and managing your existing tasks.

Note: The account-related tasks feature is enabled by default for all Turvo users.

Use the links below to jump to a specific section of this article:

• Creating a task manually from an account
• Managing existing tasks from the account’s Tasks tab
  • Updating task details
  • Marking a task as complete
  • Linking tasks to other entities
  • Adding followers to a task
  • Viewing and adding task activity
  • Filtering for Completed or Incomplete tasks
  • Access the Workbench from the Tasks tab
• Managing all account-related tasks via Workbench
  • Accessing tasks from Workbench
• Learn more about Accounts, Tasks, and Workbench

Creating a task manually from an account

To create a task specific to an account:

1. Go to that account by navigating to Accounts > Customers using the left navigation menu and finding the specific account.
   1. Note: Specific accounts can also be found using the global search bar.

2. In the account’s page, you can create the task in one of two ways. The steps below remain the same no matter which way you access the Create task modal.
   1. Via the Fast Action Button (FAB):
      1. From any tab in the account, click the FAB.
      2. Click Tasks.
      3. The modal will update to show existing tasks specific to the account.
      4. Click the Add task button.

2. 2. Via the Tasks tab:
      1. From any tab in the account, click the Tasks tab.
      2. The tab displays a list view of existing tasks specific to the account.
      3. Click the Add task button.
      4. Enter a name for the tasks in the New task field, then click the check mark to the right or hit the Enter key.
      5. The right pane expands to show the task details.

Note: Existing account information will be automatically added to the task, if available.

Important note: Changes to the fields in the task’s details are saved automatically. The only required fields to create the task are the Name and Assignee.

3. Use the fields in the task details pane to add information and manage the task’s status:
   1. Add a more detailed description of the task, if necessary, in the Description field. Click the field to open the text field, then click the checkmark to save your changes. Click the undo arrow to cancel the changes.
   2. Use the Assign field to assign the task to a new user on your tenant. The user that creates the task will be assigned automatically.
      1. If you wish to assign a task to another user, click the field and type in a user’s name, then select from the matching results that appear below.
      2. The assigned user is displayed below the Assign field.
      3. If the task is assigned to another user, click Assign to me to reassign it to yourself.

4. Use the Set contact field to select one or more contacts for the account who may need to be contacted to complete the task.
   1. If the account already has a Primary Contact entered in the Details tab, that contact will be added automatically.
   2. If there is no Primary Contact added to the account, this field will be blank.
   3. Click the field and type in a contact name. Matching contacts will be displayed in the drop-down below.
      1. If there are no existing contacts on the account, click Add contact from the drop-down that appears when clicking the field. The Add contact modal will appear.
         1. Protip: See our How to create a contact article to learn more about creating a new contact.
         2. Note: If you are creating a new contact in this way, the details relevant to the account will be added automatically to the Add contact modal’s fields.
5. Set a date that the task needs to be completed by in the Set due date and Time fields.
   1. Click on the date and use the calendar pop-up to select the date.
   2. If the task needs to be done by a specific time of day, click the Time field and select a time from the drop-down.

6. If this is a task that will be repeated on a regular basis, click the Recurring field to set the task to be automatically repeated.
   1. Note: This field is locked until a due date has been added.
   2. Use the drop-down to select the frequency of the task’s repetition:
      1. Does not repeat: The default selection for this field. Set the task to Does not repeat if this is a one-time task.
      2. Daily till Date: Use this setting to set the task to repeat every day until a date and time of your choosing. This is useful for tasks that have a known end date.
      3. Everyday [Monday to Friday] till Date: Select this option to repeat the task every day with no set end date, but omitting Saturdays and Sundays.
      4. Custom: Use this setting to repeat this at an interval of your choosing. The modal will update to display options for setting the custom intervals or specific dates for the task to repeat on:

7. If you selected Custom, the Custom - Reminder modal appears. Use the fields within it to set how frequently the task repeats.

Note: Tasks can only be repeated until the due date.

7. 1. Use the Repeat every text field and drop-down to set a number and interval. For example, type in “2” and select Week to repeat the task every two weeks.
      1. If you selected Day, the task will repeat every number of days that you selected, until the end date that you choose.
      2. If you selected Week, the task will repeat every week on the selected days of the week, until the end date that you choose.
         1. Use the Repeat on field to select the day of the week that the task will repeat. Click a letter corresponding to the day of the week. They are displayed Sunday through Saturday.
      3. If you selected Month, the task will repeat on the same day of the month that you created the task, until the end date that you choose. For example, if you create a task on April 6th, the task will repeat on the sixth day of each month.
   2. The Custom setting requires an endpoint for the task repetition. Therefore, you are required to make a selection under Ends.
      1. Select the Up to due date radio button to set the task to end on the due date, no matter the number of occurrences between the start and end date (so long as it is less than 30).
      2. Select On to set the task to repeat until a specific date, prior to the due date. Use the calendar field to select the end date.
      3. Select After to set the task to repeat a specific number of occurrences. For example, setting a monthly task with 24 occurrences would mean the task would repeat every month for two years, so long as the due date has not been met.

8. Next, use the Set reminder field to set a reminder that the task’s due date is approaching. Reminders will appear in the assigned user’s Turvo notifications.
   1. If you selected Does not repeat in the Recurring field (detailed above), you will receive the following options:
      1. None: No reminder will be sent.
      2. 15 minutes before
      3. 30 minutes before
      4. 1 hour before
      5. 2 hours before
      6. 1 day before
   2. If your task is recurring, set a date and time for the reminders to begin in the Reminder start from fields.
      1. Reminders for a repeating task start at the date and time that you specify, and repeat at that time on days when a task repeats, per the Recurring field.
      2. For example, if you have set a task to repeat every Monday through Friday with a due date of April 28, and set the reminders to start April 22nd at midnight, it will create a reminder at midnight every Monday through Friday that falls between April 22nd and April 28.
9. The Link and Followers fields are optional and discussed in the Link tasks to other entities and Add followers to a task sections below. These can be configured during task creation or added at a later time.

Managing existing tasks from the account’s Tasks tab

Existing tasks can be managed directly from the account’s Tasks tab. Click the Tasks tab or a task in the Tasks card in the account’s Summary tab to access the account’s tasks.

Tasks are shown in a list view that displays the task’s Name, Due date, Due time, and Assignee (the user in your tenant that the task is assigned to).

Click a task to display more information about it in the right pane. From here, you can view and manage details for the task.

Protip: A preview of tasks related to the account is shown in the Tasks card of the account’s Summary tab. Clicking a task in the card will direct you to the Tasks tab and open the right pane for the selected task.

Updating task details

The same fields detailed above in the Creating a task manually from an account section are available in the right pane. You can use the right pane to update details such as the task’s Name, Assignee, Due date, etc.

Changes made to the fields will be saved automatically.

Marking a task as complete

Use the Mark complete check button to change the task’s status from Incomplete to Complete. If clicked on a completed task, the status will be changed back to Incomplete.

A message will appear at the bottom of the screen notifying you that the task has been marked Complete. There is an UNDO button in the message if you would like to cancel the change.

Linking tasks to other entities

You also have the ability to link an account task to other entities, such as shipments, orders, offers, and other accounts. Linking an account-related task to another entity will mark the task as being relevant to that particular entity. Linked entities will be shown within the task, allowing you to quickly navigate to the other entity.

To link an entity:

1. Click the Link field to expand it. The account the task is created for is already listed as a linked entity.
2. Click the + sign to add a new entity.
3. In the text field, search for a shipment, order, offer, or account that also relates to the task. Matching results appear in the drop-down below. Click a result to link the entity.
4. Use the arrow buttons to scroll through linked entities.

Adding followers to a task

Tasks can also be followed by users, so that the task will appear in the user’s Workbench page as a Followed task. Use the Followers field to make the task more visible to particular users in your Turvo tenant. Type in the name of a user and select from the matching results shown below to assign the user as a follower.

Protip: You can also type in the name of a group to add the task to the Workbench of all users in the group.

Viewing and adding task activity

The Activity section of the right pane records activity done on the task by users, so that progress on the tasks is visible to other users.

Click Add a comment to add an entry to the task’s timeline. Use the text field to enter a summary of the activity and click the send icon. All comments are shown below the text field, including the user making the comment and a timestamp.

Filtering for Completed or Incomplete tasks

If no filter is applied to the Tasks tab, all tasks are shown. Use the filter feature to view only Completed or Incomplete tasks, or select All tasks to view both completed and incomplete tasks.

Protip: See our Using filters to find information article to learn more about using filters in Turvo.

Managing all account-related tasks via Workbench

You can view all account-related tasks in one location, regardless of the account the task is tied to, by using Turvo’s Workbench.

Accessing tasks from Workbench

To access the Workbench:

1. Open the left navigation bar and select Workbench.

2. When Workbench opens, it will default to Tasks or Exceptions, depending on how you last left it. If Workbench opens to Exceptions, change the toggle to Tasks.

3. By default, all of your followed and assigned tasks will be displayed, regardless of whether they are shipment-related, account-related, or tied to another entity.
4. Click on a task to open the right pane, where you can view and update the task.
   1. Note: The fields and features available in the Workbench match the fields found in the right pane when updating the task from the account’s Tasks tab. See the Updating task details section above for more information.

Tasks created from a customer account display the name of the customer and other related entities, such as shipments, to the left of the due date.

Learn more about Accounts, Tasks, and Workbench

Check out the following Help Center articles to learn more about other features in Turvo relating to accounts, tasks, and the Workbench page.

• Creating and managing shipment-related tasks 
• Viewing and editing customer details 
• Viewing and editing carrier details 
• Managing exceptions with Workbench