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Project Management

Track project status

Use the Project Management module in Practice CS track the status of projects. There are 2 primary methods available for tracking the status of a project:
  • Tracking Description
    : Each project and its associated tasks include a
    Tracking Description
     field. The 4 tracking descriptions predefined by Practice CS include:
    Not Started
    ,
    Started
    ,
    Completed
    , and
    Canceled
    . You can also add custom tracking descriptions to help define the current status of a project or task.
  • Ready Task
    : Practice CS assigns a Ready flag to the task waiting to be worked on or currently in process. This helps you determine what stage or status the project is currently in. To use this method, you must associate tasks with the projects.

Use Tracking Descriptions to monitor the status of a project or task

Each project and task includes a
Tracking Description
 field that indicates the current status of the project or task. Practice CS predefines 4 tracking descriptions:
Not Started
,
Started
,
Completed
, and
Canceled
. These tracking descriptions can't be changed or deleted since they have special meaning to the system. However, you can add additional tracking descriptions to define the status of a project or task.
To add a custom tracking description:
  1. Select
    Setup
    , then
    Tracking Descriptions
    .
  2. Select
    Add
    .
  3. Enter a description (up to 30 characters) for the new
    Tracking Description
    .
  4. Select
    Enter
    .
The tracking description for a project or task can be changed in the following locations:
  • Setup
    ,
    Clients
    , the
    Projects
     tab
  • Actions
    ,
    Manage Projects
    , the
    Projects
     tab
  • Actions
    ,
    Manage Projects
    , the
    Project Tasks
     tab
  • Projects portlet on the Client Dashboard
  • Projects portlet on the Staff Dashboard
  • Tasks portlet on the Staff Dashboard
  • Time & Expense Entry - Task Selection screen
To change the tracking description on a project or task:
  1. Open the project or task in 1 of the previously listed locations.
  2. Select the dropdown in the
    Tracking
     field.
  3. Select the tracking description that describes the current status of the project or task.
  4. Select
    OK
    .
The tracking description for a project or task is displayed anywhere in the system that a project or task can be opened. Additionally, the tracking description is displayed in the following locations:
  • Actions
    ,
    Manage Projects
    , the
    Projects
     tab
  • Actions
    ,
    Manage Projects
    , the
    Project Tasks
     tab
  • Project portlet on the Client Dashboard
  • Project portlet on the Staff Dashboard
  • Tasks portlet on the Staff Dashboard
  • Project Tracking report
  • Task Tracking report

Use the Ready task to monitor the status of a project

You can add tasks to a project to define and track the individual steps needed to perform the work associated with the project. Each project is assigned an order number when it's added to a project. The order number, which can be modified, defines the order in which the tasks are performed. Each task has a flag that indicates that the task is ready to be worked on. In order for the ready flag to be active on a task:
  • For the 1st task in the project:
    • If the
      Target Start Date
       is based on number of months and days
      After Received
      , the first task is marked "ready" when the
      Received Date
       has been entered on the project
    • If the
      Target Start Date
       is based on number of months and days Before due, the first task is marked "ready" when the project is added or generated.
  • For subsequent tasks, a task is marked "ready" when the tracking description on the prior task in the task order is changed to Completed.
Determine the status of a project based on the ready task:
  • To view the status of multiple projects on the Manage Projects Screen:
    1. Select
      Actions
      ,
      Manage Projects
      , then the
      Project Tasks
       tab.
    2. Filter or group the screen for the set of projects to view.
    3. Sort the tasks descending on the
      Ready
       field so all ready tasks are at the top of the list.
    4. Observe the Activity of the "ready" task which indicates the current status of each project.
  • To view the status of a specific project on the Manage Projects screen:
    1. Go to
      Actions
      ,
      Manage Projects
      , and then the
      Projects
       tab.
    2. Select the project to check the status of.
    3. Check for tasks that display
      Yes
       in the ready column. This indicates the current status of the project.
  • To view the status of multiple projects on the
    Task Tracking report
    :
    1. Select
      File
      , then
      Print Reports
      .
    2. Select the
      Task Tracking
       report.
    3. On the
      Selection
       tab:
      1. Set the dates to include the projects you want included in the report.
      2. Set the 1st filter to
        Ready > is selected
        .
      3. Set the 2nd filter to
        Project > is in the filter > Active Projects
         where Active Projects is a custom project filter for
        Tracking Description > is in the list > <all tracking descriptions except Completed and Canceled>
        .
    4. On the
      Layout
       tab
      1. Set the first Group by to
        Project
        .
      2. Set the
        Sort on
         the Detail by line to
        Client ID.
This will create a report organized by project type, then each client's project with a ready task. You can further filter the report for a particular set of projects or clients on the Selection tab.

This article applies to:

  • Product: Practice CS