Adding a Task Using the Create Task Window

Note: For information on adding tasks directly from the Task List, see Adding a Task in the Task List.

When you add a task, you provide a name and description, as well as information such as the intended start and finish dates (Planned Start and Planned Finish). You can also assign the task to team members if you are ready to do so. Any assigned team member will receive a notification that the task has been created and assigned to them.

Default Task Type

By default, the task type is Fixed Duration (non effort driven). Any task you create in PPM defaults to this type, unless you change the type. If you change the task type, the change persists until you change it again. This means that any place you create a task will use the values you last set until you change them again. The task type default is a default only for the logged in user. Another user in the same project may have a different default task type.

To add a task:

1. On the global Tasks tab, click Create Task.
   The Create New Task window opens.
2. Select a Workspace for which you are adding the task.
   The list includes all workspaces you are member of and defaults to the workspace you selected the last time you created a task in the Create New Task window.

3. Type a Task Namefor the task.
4. To provide more detail about the task, include a Description.
   The description might include information about why the task is being created.
5. Type or select the Planned Start date on which you intend for the task to start.
6. Type or select the Planned Finish date on which you intend for the task to end. By default Planned Finish is set to the same date as Planned Start.
   Note: If you clear the Planned Finish box, the date is automatically generated based on the duration you type for the task Duration.
7. In the Duration box, type the number of days the task will last.
   By default the duration is set to the number of days from the planned start date and the planned finish date. If you change the duration, the planned finish date will automatically adjust for the correct number of days.
8. In the Planned Work box, type the number of hours the task will take to complete.
9. From the Priority list, select Low, Medium, or High to set the priority of the task.
10. Specify task properties (milestone, deliverable, or billable) in the Task Properties section.
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    • Milestone—A milestone is a task that identifies a key event in the schedule.
      
    • Deliverable—A deliverable is something produced during project execution. If the task is a deliverable component of the project, select Deliverable.
    • Billable—A billable task is assumed to be billed externally and includes fields for that billing. A non-billable task has its external rate field disabled.
      For more information, see About Billable and Non-Billable Tasks.
      Note:The Billable option is hidden if external billing is not enabled for the workspace.

     

11. To assign team members to the task,click Browse Member Directory and choose team members to whom you are assigning the task.
    Note: For details about how to use the Member Directory, see Using the User Selector.
12. Specify advanced task information (task type, constraint information, and task number) in the Advanced Information section.
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    1. Task Type—Task type defines which task property remains fixed. Select from  Fixed Units, Fixed Duration, or Fixed Work. For details on task types, see Task Type Overview.
       Note: If you change the task type, the new setting persists until you change it again. This setting applies whenever you add a task in PPM, including when adding tasks using the Task List. For more information, see Adding a Task in the Task List.
    2. Effort Driven—If the duration of the task should be updated when the number of assigned team members changes, select Effort Driven.
    3. Insert After Task#—Select the position in the task list where the new task will be inserted.
       Options are Top, or the number of any existing task.
    4. Constraint Type—Select an option to specify whether or not there is a constraint on the dates of the task.
       Options include, None, Must Start On, Must Finish On, and As Soon As Possible(the default). For more information, see Task Constraints Overview.
    5. Constraint Date—If the constraint type is either Must Start On or Must Finish On, type a date in the Constraint Date text box, or click on the calendar icon and select a date from the calendar.
    6. Task External Rate—To specify a task-level external billing rate for a billable task, type the rate value in the External Rate box, or click the Billing Rate Selector icon and select a predefined rate.
       Note: You can only set an external billing rate if the task is billable and the workspace has external billing enabled. For more information see About Billable and Non-Billable Tasks.
       
       Any external rate entered here is used only for work done on this task and overrides any external rate set at other levels (the workspace member or enterprise resource level for example). If you do not specify a task-level external rate on a billable task, the rate defaults to the external rate of the workspace member assigned to the task. If there is more than one assignee and you do not specify a task-level rate, the rate is determined by the external rates of the assignees and the amount of work each does on the task.

     

14. If another task must be started or finished before this task can begin, specify the details for the predecessor in the Select Predecessors section.
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    1. Select Predecessor Task from—From the list of existing tasks, select the task that is the predecessor of the task you are creating.
    2. Dependency Type—Select the type of dependency that represents the dependency the new task has with its predecessor task. Options are:

    • Finish to Start—The predecessor task must finish before the new task can start.
    • Start to Start—The predecessor task must start before the new task can start.
    • Finish to Finish—The predecessor task must finish before the new task can finish.

    3. Lag—Type the number of days delay between predecessor and successor tasks. To enter lead time, type a negative number. For more information about lag and lead time, see About Lag and Lead Time.
    4. Add—Click Add to add the predecessor task to the Selected Predecessors list.

15. To add a cross-project predecessor, in the Select Cross-Project Predecessors section.
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    1. Select Predecessor Tasks from—Select the project which contains the predecessor task.
    2. Select Predecessor Task Below—From the list of existing tasks, select the task that is the predecessor of the task you are creating.
    3. Dependency Type—Select the type of dependency that represents the dependency the new task has with its predecessor task. Options are:

    • Finish to Start—The predecessor task must finish before the new task can start.
    • Start to Start—The predecessor task must start before the new task can start.
    • Finish to Finish—The predecessor task must finish before the new task can finish.

    4. Add—Click Add to add the predecessor task to the Selected Predecessors list.

16. In the Notifications section, select the team members who can view the task, and team members who should be notified that the task has been created. Note: Assignees get an automatic notification about the task. You only need to specify assignees here if you are including something in your custom notification message that they need to see.
    
    Click Browse Member Directory to select team members.
    
17. To include a custom message in the notification, select Type Custom Notification Message.
    A Notification Message box displays. Type the message to be sent to team members who are notified of the Issue.
18. Click Save & Close to save the new task and close the Create New Task window, or Save & Add Another to save the new task and leave the window open so you can add another task.

Note: If global or personal nonworking time affects the assignee, Planned Finish is automatically adjusted when you add an assignee or change a duration. A changed field indicator displays in the Pl. Finish column of the Task List when this occurs.

Related Topics:

• About Billable and Non-Billable Tasks—An overview of billable and non-billable tasks and how this impacts other task values.
• Adding a Task - Default Values—About the default values when creating a task.
• About Task Duration and Planned Work—How Duration and Planned Work interact with Task Type and assignees.
• Adding a Task in the Gantt Chart—How to add a project task in the Gantt chart.
• Adding a Task in the Task List (Add Pane)—How to add project tasks using the Task List Add Pane.
• Adding Tasks to a Workspace—An overview of adding project tasks.
• Cross-Project Dependencies Overview—About cross-project dependencies.
• Tasks Overview—About tasks.

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