Industrial Guided Task standard and task life cycles

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Industrial Guided Task Standard and Task Life Cycles

    The Industrial Guided Task (IGT) standard and task life cycles outline the various states that an IGT standard or task can transition through. Understanding these states allows ServiceNow customers to effectively manage task workflows and track progress within their operational processes.

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    Key Features

    • IGT Standard States:
      • Draft: Editable standard.
      • Review: Approval requested; non-editable.
      • Published: Active standard available for task creation; non-editable.
      • Retired: Inactive, read-only standard; non-editable.
      • Revised: Older version available as read-only; non-editable.
    • Approval States:
      • Not yet requested: Approval not submitted.
      • Requested: Awaiting review for approval.
      • Approved: Request approved, state changes to Published.
      • Rejected: Request denied, reverts to Draft.
      • Canceled: Request withdrawn.
      • No Longer Required: Request obsolete due to changes.
    • Task States:
      • Ready: Task created and ready for execution.
      • Work in Progress: Task actively being executed.
      • On Hold: Task paused due to dependencies.
      • Submitted: Task submitted with pending subtasks.
      • Closed Complete: Task finished and submitted.
      • Closed Skipped: Task expired.
      • Canceled: Task removed from schedule.

    Key Outcomes

    Customers can expect automated tracking of task durations as states change. The system records the actual start time when a task moves to "Work in Progress" and the end time upon submission, allowing for effective monitoring of task efficiency and performance. This structured life cycle management enables better task oversight and facilitates operational decision-making.

    A life cycle is the list of states that an Industrial Guided Task (IGT) standard or task can go through.

    Industrial Guided Task standard states

    Table 1. Life cycle states for Industrial Guided Task standards
    State Description
    Draft The standard can be edited.
    Review Approval has been requested and the standard is being reviewed. The standard cannot be edited.
    Published The standard is active and published. The standard can be requested, which means a task can be created. The standard cannot be edited.
    Retired The standard is inactive, read-only, and can’t be requested. The standard cannot be edited.
    Revised End state. An older version that has been revised. The standard is available as read only for reference. The standard cannot be edited.

    Industrial Guided Task standard approval states

    Table 2. Life cycle states for approvals
    State Description
    Not yet requested The standard has not been submitted for approval yet.
    Requested The approval request has been submitted and is awaiting review. Any user from the assigned owner group can approve it for publishing.
    Approved The request has been reviewed and officially approved. The state of the standard changes to Published.
    Rejected The request was reviewed and not approved. When the request is rejected, the state of the standard moves back to Draft.
    Canceled The request was withdrawn before a decision was made.
    No Longer Required The request is obsolete due to changes.

    Industrial Guided Task states

    Table 3. Life cycle states for Industrial Guided Tasks
    State Description
    Ready

    The task is created and ready to be picked up for execution.

    When a task transitions to this state, the system automatically captures the actual start time. On ICW mobile, the actual start is captured when the operator selects Perform task.
    Work in Progress The task is being executed on the shop floor.
    On Hold The task has been temporarily paused due to dependencies or external factors.
    Submitted The standard has been submitted, but some child sub tasks are still pending before the task is fully complete.

    When a task transitions to this state, the system automatically captures the actual end time and calculates the business duration.
    Closed Complete The task has been completed on the shop floor and submitted in the Workspace.
    Closed Skipped The task has expired.
    Canceled The task has been removed from the schedule. It won't be executed due to cancellation of the order, process changes, or other strategic decisions.

    Industrial Guided Task life cycle

    When you start a task, you can make changes and select Save. The task then changes to Work in Progress but you can still change the state to On Hold. When you cancel the task, you must fill in the justification and then select Cancel task. If the task is a work in progress, the Continue task button is available. Once you select Submit, the state changes to Closed Complete.

    When the state of a task changes it triggers an automatic tracking of task duration. The actual start time is recorded when the task moves to Work in Progress, and the actual end time is recorded when the task is submitted. The system captures the total duration spent on the task, from Work in Progress state till Submitted state. The duration value is then recorded in the business duration field.