Tasks

Updated by Daniel Sjögren

Tasks in Quinyx can be considered sub-shifts, i.e., they describe the activity of the assignee of a portion of a shift. You can define a task either on a shift type or manually on a shift. Tasks work like shifts in the sense that they are built out of shift types; however, the default and start and end time will always be noon until 1 p.m. and can be adjusted if needed.

You can add a task on a local or shared shift type from from Account settings or from an actual schedule or base schedule.

Note that when adding, editing or deleting a task notifications will be sent to the affected employee. Read more about pause notifications here

Create a task

On a shift type

To create a task on a shared shift type go to Account settings > Shift types > Add. To create a task on a local shift type go to Group settings > Shift types > Add.

Create a task just as you would a shift, but with a duration shorter than any shift you plan to associate it with:

To do this:

  1. Click the shift on which you want to add a task.
  2. Click Add task to add a task to a shift.
  3. Select the task you want to add to a shift. You can use the default time or set the time for the task yourself:
You can add multiple tasks on a shift as long as they are contained within the shift time.

Now, when you add a shift on a schedule or base schedule, those tasks already exist:

You can change the time on a task by expanding the task and editing the start and end times:

Please note that when you change the shift type all settings will be inherited from new shift type, including tasks.

On a shift

You can also create a task directly from a shift in either Schedule or Base schedule.

Assign a task
  1. Add a shift or click on an existing shift.
  2. Add task in the detail panel by clicking on the "+" next to the task heading.
  3. Select shift type, task, start, and end time of the task:

You can set up multiple tasks during a shift as long as they do not overlap.

  1. Save
Note that when you add a task to a shift, Quinyx automatically shows what information the task will inherit. Once you've selected which task to add, you'll see Cost Center, Section, and Project appear under the scheduled time for the task:
Unassign a task

It's possible to unassign a task. As a task cannot exist outside of a shift, the unassigned task will be moved to a unassigned shift. The unassigned shift is a copy of the shift that the task is unassigned from, i.e. same shift type, start and end time, same cost center, etc.

To do this:

  1. Go to a shift with tasks
  2. Click on
  3. Save
  4. The task(s) can be located in the unassigned shift section on an unassigned shift

If you unassign several tasks in the same action, they will all end up in the same unassigned shifts. Otherwise they will end up on different unassigned shifts.

Delete a task

You can easily delete a task:

  1. Click on the "bin" next to the task
  2. The task get's status "deleted". You can choose to reverse at this point by clicking the "arrow":
  1. Save. Note that the task won't be deleted until you have saved the changes.
Redistribute a task 

You can move or copy a task from one shift to another. 

To do this:

  1. Select an assigned or unassigned shift with tasks in it.
  2. Scroll down to the task section and click on
  3. Click on to initiate move or copy action.
  4. Select which shift you want to move or copy the task to.

If needed:

  • Change the start and end time of the task by clicking the "arrow" on the left-hand side of the tasks shift type name.
  • You can also change the start and end time of the tasks that already exist on the "receiving" shift. Click on the "arrow" on the left-hand side of the task that you want to change.
Comments on tasks

You can add and edit comments when you're assigning a task to a shift.

Add a comment to a task

When selecting a task in the drop-down on a shift, you'll see a comment box:

Type in comments that you would like to add to the task:

When you save, the comment on the task will be saved and visible for the employee in their schedule.

Edit a comment on a task

Click on the shift that you would like to edit, and open the advanced detail panel. Notice that the comment will be visible below the start and end time of the task:

Expand the task, and you'll see the comment box. Change the comment, and save the shift to store the new comment:

Inherited comments on task

If the shift type that you use when selecting a task already has a comment defined, then that comment will be inherited and visible in the comment box when you select it:

This feature is available both in Schedule and Base schedule. The comments you add to the tasks will be visible for the employees when they view their schedules.
Overlapping of Breaks and Tasks

Scheduling a task over a break only means the employee will work on the task in question both before and after his/her break; in order for the employee to not go on break, you need to remove the break from the shift altogether.

Task warnings

You will receive a warning when the following occurs:

  • A task is moved or copied to a shift where there is already a task:
  • A task is moved or copied outside of a shift:

You can move/copy several tasks in one action. Each action will then be marked with the action that you have chosen, either "move", "copy" or "unassign". Note that the action won't be triggered until you click "Save". If you cancel the action, then no tasks will be moved/copied or unassigned. Note that you can also revert the action before you have saved it by clicking 

The list of shifts (employees) that you can move/copy the task to includes shifts that overlap with the shift the task is originating from.

Skill validation on task level

Quinyx has skill validation on task level in Schedule so that a manager is notified if an employee doesn’t have a skill required for the task assigned to the selected shift time. The manager has the ability to approve or deny the warning:

Punching on tasks

You can set up punching on tasks in an agreement template. Setting this up allows an employee to punch time on any tasks planned within a shift. Click here to read about how to set up punching on tasks.

Tags

You can use tags to track time on internal projects, cost centers, physical resources, and so forth by setting them on shift type, task, or both. Read about how to add tags to tasks here.

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