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Tasks

Task records are to-do items assigned to specific users.

Special considerations

Keep the following considerations in mind when working with tasks:

  • Once electronic signature is enabled, it is required for all workflow tasks.

  • By default, Komodo Publications Planning does not automatically remove Document Roles when workflow tasks associated to the Role are closed. To enable strict document role assignments, set mvn__CM_Global_Setting__mdt.mvn__CM_Strict_Document_Roles__c to true.

  • To see a list view of all your tasks, navigate to the Tasks tab.

  • The workflow user interface denotes delegated approvers for tasks in two ways. In the Start Workflow modal, the delegated approver's name displays in parenthesis after the originally assigned user, and once the task has been reassigned to the delegated approver, the task owner name displays as <Delegated approver> on behalf of <originally assigned user>. In the screenshots below, Pamela Content Author is the originally assigned user, and Charles Content Author is the delegated approver.

    MCM_AddTaskAssignee.png
    MCM_WorkflowSummary.png

Task types

There are five types of Komodo Publications Planning tasks:

  • Approval (CM_Approval) - review task that requires you to Approve or Reject the document. To progress a document through a workflow, Komodo Publications Planning creates and assigns an Approval task to a user that is assigned an Approval activity during a workflow stage. Approval tasks can only be created through workflows. Approval tasks display in the Komodo Publications Planning portal and are visible to all authors with access to the publication document.

    Completing an approval workflow activity

  • Review (CM_Review) - review task for documents. To progress a document through a workflow, Komodo Publications Planning creates and assigns a Review task to a user that is assigned a General activity during a workflow stage. Review tasks can only be created through workflows. Review tasks display in the Komodo Publications Planning portal and are visible to all authors with access to the publication document.

    Completing a general workflow activity

  • Consent Task (PP_Consent) - contact verification task with an Accept outcome. You can use this task type to facilitate external authors' and collaborators' consent of author agreements and editorial support agreements. Consent Tasks display in the Komodo Publications Planning portal and are only visible to the assigned author.

  • General Task (PP_General) - general Komodo Publications Planning to-do task. You can use this task type for conflict of interests and other miscellaneous to-dos. General Tasks display in the Komodo Publications Planning portal and are only visible to the assigned author.

  • General (CM_General) - general to-do task. During advanced publish for a document, you can create General tasks for owners of related documents. General tasks can only be created during advanced publish. General tasks do not display in the Komodo Publications Planning portal. General tasks do not display in the Komodo Publications Planning portal.

Note

You can manually create non-Komodo Publications Planning task records if your Salesforce instance uses task record types that are not native to Komodo Publications Planning. Komodo Publications Planning task records can only be created through workflows and during advanced publish.

Task layouts

You can configure task layouts to display in specific locations of the product. Specifically, you can create or modify LY_Layout_Type__mdt records to set the criteria that determine when a layout should be used and then associate these records to product locations (LY_Layout__mdt records). For information on how to configure layouts, visit Layout configuration.

Task layout locations

Task layouts are managed using the LY_Layout__mdt custom metadata type. Each layout record specifies a specific location in the Komodo Publications Planning product. Task layout locations include:

  • CM_Task_Start_Workflow_Assignment - the second form that displays when creating a new task. It captures metadata specific to the Task being created, such as the Assigned User and Due Date. The Start Workflow modal uses this layout.

    Note

    The Assigned User and Due Date fields are hardcoded and are not configurable for this Task layout location.

    MCM_TaskAssignmentLayout.png

  • CM_Task_Start_Workflow_Confirm - the final form that displays when creating a new task. It displays a read-only list of fields relevant to the Task being created. The Start Workflow modal uses this layout.

    Note

    The Assigned User and Due Date fields are hardcoded and are not configurable for this Task layout location.

    MCM_TaskAssignmentCompleteLayout.png

  • CM_Task_Tile - a read-only layout that displays the Workflow history for a document record. The MCM - Activity Tile component uses this layout.

    MCM_TaskHistoryLayout.png
    MCM_TaskPopoverLayout.png

  • CM_Task_Completion - the form that displays in the Task Completion modal. With this layout, you can mark a Task as complete.

    MCM_TaskCompleteLayout.png

  • CM_Task_Detail - a read-only layout that displays the full list of metadata fields for a Task. The Task Detail View Form component uses this layout.

    MCM_TaskDetailLayout.png

  • CM_Task_Header - a read-only layout that displays important metadata for a Task. The Task Detail Header component uses this layout.

    MCM_TaskDetailHeaderLayout.png

Task layout field sets

Out-of-the-box, Komodo Publications Planning uses the Task field sets listed below to control the fields that display on task layouts. You can add or remove fields from these field sets.

  • mvn__CM_Task_Completion_Fields_Default - default fields used by the CM_Task_Completion layout when completing a task.

  • mvn__CM_Task_Detail_Layout - fields displayed in the CM_Task_Detail layout.

  • mvn__CM_Task_Detail_View_Form - task detail view form for tasks.

  • mvn__CM_Task_Electronic_Signature - fields to be displayed when electronic signature is required in the environment.

  • mvn__CM_Task_Header_Layout - set of fields used by the CM_Task_Header layout.

  • mvn__CM_Task_Publish_Document_Form - form for creating tasks for related Documents.

  • mvn__CM_Task_Start_Workflow_Layout - used in the CM_Task_Start_Workflow_Assignment and the CM_Task_Start_Workflow_Confirm layouts.

  • mvn__CM_Task_Tile_Layout - set of fields displayed in the CM_Task_Tile layout.

Note

Picklist values are filtered based on the record type of the Task being displayed.

Table 85, “Task layout location configuration” maps the Task layout relationships that exist out-of-the-box between Task field sets, LY_Layout__mdt records, and LY_Layout_Type__mdt records. LY_Layout__mdt records specify the location in the product where the layout should display, and LY_Layout_Type__mdt records set the criteria that determines when layouts should display.

Table 85. Task layout location configuration

LY_Layout__mdt

LY_Layout_Type__mdt

Task field set

CM_Task_Completion

CM_Task_Completion_Default

mvn__CM_Task_Completion_Fields_Default

CM_Task_Detail

CM_Task_Detail_Default

mvn__CM_Task_Detail_Layout

CM_Task_Header

CM_Task_Header_Default

mvn__CM_Task_Header_Layout

CM_Task_Start_Workflow_Assignment

CM_Task_Start_Workflow_Asgmt_Default

mvn__CM_Task_Start_Workflow_Layout

CM_Task_Start_Workflow_Confirm

CM_Task_Start_Workflow_Confirm_Default

mvn__CM_Task_Start_Workflow_Layout

CM_Task_Tile

CM_Task_Tile_Default

mvn__CM_Task_Tile_Layout



Email notifications

When a user is assigned a workflow task, they receive an email notification containing a link to the task. If the user has the External Notifications (PP_External_Notifications) custom permission, the link directs them to a page with all of their open tasks in the Portal. If the user does not have the custom permission, the link directs them to the specific task in the Salesforce environment.

Attach files

Admin users can enable the ability for users to attach files to review and approval emails for both internal and external document collaborators. This allows the task assignees to view tasks and files directly in their emails without having to log into Komodo Publications Planning or the Collaborator Portal, respectively.

Warning

By default, Salesforce converts file attachments that are over 3MB into links and then includes the links in outbound emails instead of the actual files. However, Salesforce is unable to create multiple links for a single file, which is required if a workflow task with file attachments is assigned to multiple task assignees, and will instead throw a "duplicate value found" error. This issue is documented in KI-116.

To best enable users to attach files to workflow task emails, Komodo Health recommends changing the threshold for which Salesforce converts file attachments into links from 3MB to 25MB. To do so:

  1. In Setup, search for and select Email Attachments.

  2. Select the third option labeled "Include as attachment up to Salesforce email size limit or as links if more." (The email size limit is 25MB, as documented by Salesforce in Email attachment limits in Lightning Experience and Salesforce Classic. The default selection is the second option labeled "Include as attachment up to 3 MB or as links if more.")

  3. Click Save.

Additionally, Komodo Publications Planning enforces the following limitations and will throw an error in the Start Workflow modal if either of these limitations are hit:

  • Users cannot attach files that add up to more than 25MB on a single workflow task.

  • A single user cannot receive files that add up to more than 25MB across all of their assigned workflow tasks.

To enable this functionality:

  1. Navigate to the Workflow Stage Activity (mvn__CM_Workflow_Stage_Activity__mdt) custom metadata type.

  2. On the Workflow Stage Activity metadata record of the desired review or approval task, check the Allow Relationship Attachments (mvn__CM_Allow_Relationship_Attachments__c) checkbox.

  3. Click Save.

Once enabled, the Assign Workflow Activities (cmAssignWorkflowActivities) Lighting component will be added to the Start Workflow (cmStartWorkflow) Lightning component to show a list of files that the user can select to attach to the email notification. The list of files is in alphabetical order and includes the primary document for review or approval as well as any related documents. The primary document is selected by default.

KPP_AttachFilesToTaskEmails.png

Update email address

The email address that the notification is sent from and the email address that users can reply to are managed by the Org Wide Sender Email Address (mvn__PP_Org_Wide_Sender_Email_Address__c ) field in the System Event Setting (mvn__SE_System_Event_Setting__mdt) custom metadata type. The field can either be blank or populated with an organization-wide email address. If the field is blank, the email address defaults to that of the user who created the task record.

To set up an organization-wide email address, visit Salesforce Help.

To update the email address that will send and receive task assignment emails:

  1. Open the System Event Setting (mvn__SE_System_Event_Setting__mdt) custom metadata type in Setup.

  2. Click Manage System Event Setting.

  3. Click Default.

  4. Click Edit.

  5. Enter the Org Wide Sender Email Address.

  6. Click Save.

Disable email notifications

Email notifications for tasks are configured with the System Event (mvn__SE_System_Event__mdt) custom metadata type and can be enabled, disabled, or muted with the Pubs Notification (PP_Pubs_Notification) and Notifications Muted (mvn__CM_Notifications_Muted__c) checkbox fields on the Activity object.

To enable or disable email notifications for a Komodo Publications Planning task that is not related to a workflow, add the Pubs Notification field to the associated page layout and check the checkbox accordingly.

To stop sending email notifications to users when either general tasks or workflow tasks are assigned, deactivate the PP Task Assignment (PP_Task_Assignment) System Event Configuration (mvn__SE_System_Event_Configuration__mdt) custom metadata record.

To mute all email notifications for a workflow task, ensure that the assigned permission set has read and edit access to the Notifications Muted field on the Activity object and check the Mute Notifications checkbox in either the Start Workflow modal or the Edit Task modal. If notifications have been muted for the document, then this checkbox will already be checked in the Start Workflow modal. However, the task-level notification setting will supersede any document-level notification settings that have been configured. In other words, if a document's system event notifications are muted and the task-level notifications are therefore also muted by default, users can still uncheck the Mute Notifications checkbox in the Start Workflow modal or at a later time in the Edit Task modal. This would ensure that task assignees are still notified about the task assignment and any updates to the task despite the muted document-level notifications. For more information about system events and muting document system event notifications, reference System events.

Start Workflow modal

Edit Task modal

Mute Notifications checkbox in the Start Workflow modal
Mute Notifications checkbox in the Edit Task modal

Complete a task

Completing a task is a two-step process:

  1. Completing the work required in the task.

  2. Marking the task as complete by clicking ✓ Complete Task in either the Task record or the Document record via the workflow task icon.

Task record

Document record

KPP_CompleteTaskInTaskRecord.png
KPP_CompleteTaskInDocumentRecord.png

Tasks can either be completed by the task assignee or by another document collaborator. There are two instances where the latter can occur:

  1. The document collaborator assigns the workflow task to themself. This means that the original owner of the Task record is replaced and subsequently loses access to the task.

    To have this capability, the document collaborator must either be a system admin (via the PP_System_Admins permission set) or be the owner of the workflow (via the mvn__CM_Start_Workflow document version permission).

  2. The document collaborator completes the workflow task on behalf of the task assignee. This means that the owner of the Task record maintains ownership and access to the task. This allows both users to perform any work required in the task but gives the document collaborator the ability to mark the task as complete if the task assignee does not do so.

    Note

    Out of the box, the document collaborator will only be able to mark the task as complete in the Document record. The ✓ Complete Task button is not visible in the Task record.

    To enable and grant this capability:

    1. Check the Complete Tasks on Behalf of Other Users (mvn__CM_Task_Completion_On_Behalf_Of_Enabled__c) field on the MCM Global Setting (mvn__CM_Global_Setting__mdt) custom metadata type.

    2. Assign the document collaborator the CM_CompleteTasksOnBehalfOfOthers (CM_TaskApproverOnBehalfOf) permission set, which contains the CM Complete Tasks On Behalf Of Others (CM_Task_Completion_On_Behalf_Of) custom permission.

    Once the document collaborator completes the workflow task on behalf of the actual task assignee, the Owner Name (mvn__CM_Owner_Name__c) field will be populated with "<name of document collaborator> on behalf of <name of task assignee>" while the Original Assignee (mvn__CM_Original_Assignee__c) field will be populated with "<name of task assignee>". Additionally, the Complete On Behalf Of Flag (mvn__CM_Complete_On_Behalf_Of_Flag__c) field will be checked.

Cancel a task

A user can cancel a workflow task when one of these conditions are met:

  • The user is the owner of the document.

  • The user is the creator of the workflow.

  • The user has the CM_Admin custom permission. This permission is part of the CM_SystemAdmin permission set.

Even when one of the above conditions is met, users cannot cancel workflow tasks in two situations. These exceptions include:

  • The task being canceled is the only non-canceled task of a required workflow stage activity.

  • The task being canceled is the only non-canceled task of the workflow stage.

Ad hoc tasks

Ad hoc tasks can be created when a task is required that falls outside the standard task types and workflows.

Special considerations

Keep the following considerations in mind when configuring Ad hoc tasks.

  • You must use the PP_TaskInvocableHandler handler class that calls on the current process builder used to create contact verification tasks.

  • All task inserts are subjected to receiving task assignment notifications rather than only workflow tasks.

  • The above method allows you to suppress the standard Salesforce email notifications.

Workflow activity service

You can configure sObject records to be created or updated when (1) Tasks are created or completed and (2) administrator configured criteria is met. To configure the records that should be created and updated, create and modify records for these custom metadata types:

  • Workflow Activity Service (mvn_­_­PP_­Workflow_­Activity_­Service_­_­mdt - defines the sObject records that are created or updated when (1) Tasks are created or completed and (2) criteria are met. Visit Workflow Activity Service.

  • Workflow Activity Service Mapping (mvn_­_­PP_­Workflow_­Activity_­Service_Mapping_­_­mdt) - represents a workflow activity service mapping on a document. Visit Workflow Activity Service Mapping.

Four out-of-the-box Workflow Activity Service records control when the system automatically creates and updates Target Submission records. Visit Targets.

Metadata

The primary metadata used to manage tasks include:

  • Activity (Activity) - The primary metadata used to store task data is the Task object. The task object inherits all of its fields from the Activity standard object. For more information on the Task object, visit Salesforce's documentation.

  • Layout (mvn__LY_Layout__mdt) - manages layouts. Each Layout record refers to a specific location in the application.

  • Layout Types (mvn__LY_Layout_Type__mdt) - displays and captures data specific to the type of document or task being managed. For example, since FAQs and Corporate documents have different metadata requirements, you can configure the LY_Document_Edit_Metadata layout to render the FAQ_Edit_Metadata layout type for FAQ document types and the Corporate_Edit_Metadata layout type for Corporate document types. In other words, LY_Layout_Type__mdt records determine when layout types should be used.

  • Workflow Activity Service (mvn__PP_Workflow_Activity_Service__mdt) - The Workflow Activity Service (mvn__PP_Workflow_Activity_Service__mdt) custom metadata type defines the sObject records that are created or updated when (1) Tasks are created or completed and (2) administrator configured criteria is met. For example, the Target Submission - Create (PP_Target_Submission_Accepted) record is an out-of-the-box Workflow Activity Service record that creates a Target Submission record when a Submit Publication task is created on the Document Version object and this criteria is met:

  • Workflow Activity Service Mapping (mvn__PP_Workflow_Activity_Service_Mapping__mdt) - The Workflow Activity Service Mapping (mvn__PP_Workflow_Activity_Service_Mapping__mdt) custom metadata type represents a workflow activity service mapping on a document.