question How to relate Project Phase with Project Task in SPM forum

How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Nihar1 — Tue, 25 Aug 2020 14:27:41 GMT

How to link the Project Phases with the task and make dependent so that new phase will get start when the previous state task got closed completely.

Any suggetion will be help full , I am new to Service now and currently in learning phase.

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Rae Ann Prasnic — Tue, 25 Aug 2020 18:40:47 GMT

You are referencing three different things in this post: Project Phase, Project State, and Project Task.

OOTB Project Phase is a stand alone field and needs to be manually changed by a user. If you change the Project State or a Project Task there is no impact to Project Phase.

Now, if you take action on a Project Task it can change the Project State. For instance, if the Project State is Pending, and you start a Project Task for that project (Work in Progress), the Project State will change to Work in Progress as well.

As you build your work breakdown structure (WBS) in the planning console (which are merely Project Tasks) some organizations create Project Tasks to align to the Project Phases - but this would not connect to the Project Phase field on the parent project. It would merely assist a PM in aligning their projects with those phases. The user would need to manually change the Project Phase field once one of these tasks are completed (or in theory you could create a business rule to change that Project Phase automatically - but that is not OOTB).

Please mark reply as helpful or correct if applicable. Thanks! - Rae Ann

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Miguel Donayre — Wed, 26 Aug 2020 01:30:24 GMT

Hello,

You need to write/draw out your Phase-Gate process and figure out the tasks and when they will change the project phases and states. For example, if task 1 is complete, the project enters Phase 2. Figure out the IF then or else logic.

The project phase is manually set, and the project states are semi driven by dates, project tasks, and can be manually changed as well. They can all be automated with different features in ServiceNow.

Once you have a process mapped out, the best way to implement that process( in my option) is through SN Flow Designer. The Flow Designer will automate the Phase-Gate process you mapped out. FLow Designer can change the projet state, phase, and assign users/groups. You can also create Project tasks and have that task trigger the next phase. There is so much that can be done in the Flow Designer to automate your process.

You can also use SN Workflow to automate your process as well, but Flow will be easier to maintain and will require less coding.

That's the approach I would take.

Here is some documentation on the ServiceNow Flow designer, and there is some training on Flow Designer at the Now Learning site.

Here is the documentation on Workflow as well.

I hope that helps out.

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Nihar1 — Wed, 26 Aug 2020 18:57:30 GMT

Thanks for the Response.

This is going to be complete re developing the process.

What I was thinking can it possible I can enable a Custom column in pm_project_task table and refer to the same list of values as Project phases.

When the User is changing the Phase field value under task that will inherit to Project .

One point is We are going to create multiple task for a single phase . So I am thinking the logic should be what ever the First active task phase that value will be inherit to the project phase.

Let me know if this is possible or not as well as some pointers I can refer to achieve it .

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Nihar1 — Wed, 26 Aug 2020 18:57:56 GMT

Thanks for the Response.

This is going to be complete re developing the process.

What I was thinking can it possible I can enable a Custom column in pm_project_task table and refer to the same list of values as Project phases.

When the User is changing the Phase field value under task that will inherit to Project .

One point is We are going to create multiple task for a single phase . So I am thinking the logic should be what ever the First active task phase that value will be inherit to the project phase.

Let me know if this is possible or not as well as some pointers I can refer to achieve it .

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Nihar1 — Mon, 31 Aug 2020 14:58:25 GMT

Hello Rae,

I am taking this approach ,defined a Custom Field under pm_project_task as task phase and the type is as like the project phase field. String and created the choise list as like the project phase.

Now the Question is how Do I create the business rule for depending on the Task phase value change the project phase value .

I am trying to check the first active task and depending on the phase of that task the project phase is going to change.

Can I get some sample script or idea which will help me to perform the above logic .

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Rae Ann Prasnic — Mon, 31 Aug 2020 15:07:47 GMT

I'm sorry, I'm not going to help with scripting. Possibly @Miguel Donayre can?

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Nihar1 — Wed, 02 Sep 2020 21:50:53 GMT

Hello Miguel,

I am now taking the Flow designer approch .

I have setup the flow and it is working as expected .

The new project task is automatically getting created. But How Do I associate with the newly created project task to the project number .

Can you please provide some hint here which field in the pm_project_task table contains the Project number and how do I link that

Here is the Screen shot which I have done

When I test it it is showing the task created but It it not displaying when I check under project .

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Miguel Donayre — Thu, 03 Sep 2020 01:15:32 GMT

Hello,

You have to use the trigger record --> project record--> sys_id data pill to relate the project task to the project.

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Miguel Donayre — Thu, 03 Sep 2020 01:20:51 GMT

I just created a new Project and the tasked showed up with the flow

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Nihar1 — Thu, 03 Sep 2020 01:31:05 GMT

Thanks for the Response.

Will check this and getback to you if I have some more questions

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Nihar1 — Thu, 03 Sep 2020 12:53:07 GMT

Hello Miguel,

I am now facing another issue .

The flow process has the triggering point as project created or updated.

the Fist action is create task next is check if the first task status is Closed Completed or not . if the status is close completed then create another task .

But when I am updating the Fist task it goes and create another task with same short description .

Is it like I have to create two separate flow one for Create and other for update and what is the condition i can check for the update case so it will check if the active task is there then do not create the new task.

Appriciate your help.

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Miguel Donayre — Fri, 04 Sep 2020 11:29:51 GMT

I would need to see your flow.

Also, you don't need to create an action to check if a task is complete. there is a "wait" checkbox on the create task action. That lets any proceeding task that comes after to wait till that task is finished to start that task. You also add conditions on what to wait on.

https://docs.servicenow.com/bundle/orlando-servicenow-platform/page/administer/flow-designer/reference/create-task-flow-designer.html

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Nihar1 — Fri, 04 Sep 2020 13:07:56 GMT

Hello Miguel,

Thanks for the Update.

My Flow is as bellow .

What I need here .

First task should always get created when a new project got created then when the first task is Completed the 2nd task get created it means when the project got updated it should check the status of the first task and decide if the 2nd task is ready for creation or not .

As I put Wait.Now for the new project the first task is not getting created

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Miguel Donayre — Fri, 04 Sep 2020 15:18:13 GMT

Hello

I got it working in my instance -

CLosed out the 1st task - the flow created the next task

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Nihar1 — Fri, 04 Sep 2020 17:04:55 GMT

Hello Miguel,

Thanks for the detail . It is even working in my Instance now.

I have deleted the Flow and started a fresh one and created a new test request which is working as expected.

But What I have seen one point , When the Task State is Close and Complete the Project state is also changing to Close and Complete and then it is coming back to Work in progress because of the new task got created.

Can we put the some condition that state of the Project got change to Close and complete only when the last task is in same state .

Also How Do I add the value to note Filed of the Project if the Task state got changed automatic .

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Miguel Donayre — Fri, 04 Sep 2020 18:03:06 GMT

I don't understand what you are asking?

The example project I used doesn't switch to closed complete with the task is closed and complete.

Here is the step you can do to set the State for a project. Find the "Update Record" action and add it. Drag the Trigger - Record created --> "Project record" pill (the enter pill) in the record filed.

Once it's added, it will pull all the fields you can edit into the action. Pick the State and change the State you want. It will update after the last task is complete if you have the wait check off. You also set the Phase this way as well, switch the state field to phase.

After closing out the last task in the flow, it changed the State.

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Nihar1 — Mon, 21 Sep 2020 17:34:50 GMT

Thanks For the Info.

This helps me to complete the requirment.

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

neethu4 — Thu, 24 Sep 2020 12:54:01 GMT

Hi Miguel,

If we use flow designer/Workflow for creating project task and project phase setting,in case if we use project template for project creation then this workflow also trigger and it will create duplicate project task,in this case which is the better way for phase setting?

For example i have a project with 5 gate task and i have configured it through a workflow and phase also setting on completion of each gate task.But if i use project template for project creation,template already has 5 stage gate task and in this case how can the project phase set?

Thanks,

Neethu

Re: How to relate Project Phase with Project Task

Sabry Shaheen — Sun, 19 Sep 2021 13:00:21 GMT

You may choose the 'Phase' value in the 'Detailed' tab