Workflow management in applications

My Tasks is a pivotal interface within Semarchy xDM for users to efficiently manage, track, and collaborate on tasks and workflows.

It features a side navigation with distinct sections, as described below.

Task board

The task board provides users with an organized view of their ongoing tasks, which are divided into three categories.

  • In Progress: this category shows the current user’s ongoing tasks, organized into two subcategories:

    • Direct authoring tasks typically require direct input or authorship from the user, and consist in creating new records or updating existing information (e.g., adding a new product to the inventory, updating customer information, or modifying product descriptions).

    • Duplicate management tasks involve activities related to identifying, reviewing, and resolving potential duplicate entries using a duplicate manager (e.g., reviewing and merging duplicate customer records, or identifying and resolving duplicate product entries).

  • To Do: this category is dedicated to pending tasks directly assigned to the current user. Those tasks are grouped by step definitions.

  • Team To Do: this category provides visibility into tasks assigned to a pool of potential candidates, including the current user. Those tasks are grouped by step definitions. Once a candidate claims a task, it no longer appears in the other candidates' task board.

Task details

Click each category to reveal the corresponding list of workflow tasks.

Tasks are presented in a table format, featuring key details such as description, workflow start date and initiator’s name, priority, and more.

To examine additional workflow-related details for a specific task, click the corresponding task row in the table. A side panel appears with further information on the workflow and its progress history.

A task table view can be configured to display details of the record handled in the task. To show the record details columns:

  1. In the Workflow Builder, open a workflow definition.

  2. Click a user task item in the editor to set its properties.

  3. Under the My Tasks Configuration section, choose a collection from the Collection drop-down menu.

  4. Save your workflow definition.

For more information, see My Tasks configuration.

Customizing display

To customize the information displayed in a table view:

  1. Click the Options menu Options menu.

  2. Click Select columns Select columns.
    The Select columns window opens.

  3. Select all items you want the table to display.

  4. Click the [alt=Drag handle drag handle and drag items up or down to rearrange the columns in the table based on what matters most to you.

  5. Click on Apply to save and apply your preferences.

To reorganize columns, you can also:

  1. Click the Options menu Options menu.

  2. Click Sort rows Sort rows.
    The Sort rows window opens.

  3. Click the Drag handle drag handle and drag items up or down to rearrange the columns in the table based on what matters most to you.

  4. Click on Apply to save and apply your preferences.

To reset the default layout, repeat steps 1 and 2, and then select Reset.

History

The History section within My Tasks offers a detailed perspective of both ongoing and completed workflows. It includes a View drop-down menu offering two options:

  • Workflows I Initiated displays all workflow instances initiated by the current user. All details are displayed in a table format, including workflow description, status, dates, assignees, and more.

  • My Completed Workflow Tasks offers insights into tasks completed by the current user. This view provides comprehensive details such as task description, completion date, related workflow status and progress, and processed records.

Using advanced search filters

Both views feature advanced search filters for efficient exploration based on criteria like workflow ID, description keywords, workflow name, status, date, time frame, and assignee.

To use search filters:

  1. Next to the View drop-down menu, click the Filter Filter icon.
    The Filter side panel opens.

  2. Enter your search criteria in the appropriate fields:

    • Workflow ID: input the ID of a workflow instance.

    • Workflow Description: type a word or words contained in a workflow description.

    • Workflow Name: select the name of a workflow definition from the drop-down menu.

    • Task Completed: choose a completed task (if any) from the drop-down menu. Note that this criterion is only available if a workflow name has been selected.

    • Transition Selected: choose a transition (if any) from the drop-down menu. Note that this criterion is only available if a completed task has been selected.

    • Start Date After: use the date picker to filter tasks started after a certain date.

    • Start Date Before: use the date picker to filter tasks started before a certain date.

    • End Date After: use the date picker to filter tasks completed after a certain date.

    • End Date Before: use the date picker to filter tasks completed before a certain date.

  3. Click Filter to display the search results.

To reset the search criteria, repeat step 1, and then select Reset.

Customizing display

Users can also customize the details displayed in the History section using the Options  Select columns or Sort rows option, as described above.

User preferences and custom view options set within the History section persist across sessions.

Notifications settings

In this section, users can customize their preferences for receiving notifications using the following toggles:

  • Assigned to me: click this toggle to the on position to receive email notifications for tasks directly assigned to you.

  • Assigned to my team: click this toggle to the on position to receive email notifications for tasks assigned to a pool of candidates, including you.

Administration

This section of My Tasks allows users to delve into workflow administration. For a comprehensive description of this section, see Workflow administration UI.

Quick access using user-friendly URLs

To quickly access and navigate tasks within My Tasks based on their status, type, and name, users can use the following URL structure:
<base_URL>/mytasks/task-board/<TaskStatus>/<TaskType>/<TaskName>

  • <TaskStatus> can be replaced with in_progress, todo, or team_todo.

  • <TaskType> can be replaced with workflow_user_task, legacy_workflow_task, direct_authoring, or direct_duplicates_manager.

  • <TaskName> is the name of a given task, as defined in the corresponding workflow definition.

This URL structure is especially convenient for integration into workflow-related emails and notifications, or for bookmarking and easier access in general.