Using Locus’s Task Management software, you can create Tasks with specific due dates and assign them to specific employees, keeping your entire organization up to date on one-time or recurring deadlines. But did you know that this software can also use a sequence of tasks to manage more complex processes? 

Sequenced Tasks are records containing multiple “subtasks” in a specific order. Once a subtask is completed, the next subtask in the sequence becomes available. Each step in a Sequenced Task can have separate due dates and be assigned to different people.  

If your team needs to complete a lengthy process, such as a certification application with many steps, Sequenced Tasks keep employees on the same page and save time on coordinating Due Dates. If certifications must be completed yearly, the Tasks can be repeated from the beginning every year.  

To create a Sequenced Task, open a New task record and set the Task Recurring Type to Sequenced. Select the Date your Sequence will begin at and the length of time it takes to repeat. Like other repeating tasks, the new Task stops repeating after a specified date.  

While this repetition cycle is set up in the parent Task record, each individual step is created as a child task in the Sequenced Tasks Table. Subtasks must be created with a name and the expected number of days it will take to complete the task. Use the Sequence field to set the Task’s location in the process (1 for first, 2 for second, etc.) 

Each subtask’s Due Date is set to the Duration in Days plus the previous Subtasks’s Due Date (or the Initial Date for the first task). Therefore, each Due Date depends on how quickly the previous task is completed. Once the final subtask is finished, the first task activates again, with its Due Date pushed forward based on the Repeat Cycle specified in the parent record.  

Sequenced Tasks are compatible with other types of Tasks. For example, your team could construct a multi-step crisis plan which is initialized by a Triggered Task (triggered in the event of a crisis such as a spill).  

Sequenced Tasks are just one way Locus software can be configured according to your company’s needs. Reach out to our product specialists today to learn more about how our Task Management software can improve your organization’s productivity!