What happens to unfinished tasks if the job is closed? How do I start using job scheduling? What happens when a task that was scheduled is completed? The Job Scheduling FAQ has all the answers:

Q. Do I have to use the job scheduling feature in Clients & Profits ASAP? 

No. Job scheduling is a separate part of the production and traffic system. It's optional, and can be started any time. It may be more practical to use it to remember upcoming deadlines and less for resource planning. Traditionally, it's been very difficult to tightly schedule creatives in the ad business. Unlike building airplanes, creatives don't fit well into rigid work schedules. If you start slowly by scheduling only key deadlines, you'll soon have a good idea about how involved (and automated) you want job scheduling to be.

Q. Do I have to schedule all jobs and task, or can I only start with those for one client?

Since all jobs are scheduled independently, you have complete flexibility over which jobs can be scheduled with Clients & Profits ASAP. In fact, since job scheduling is so time-consuming it's a good idea to use it for only large, complex jobs with long time lines. You can always start small, scheduling just a few important jobs, to see if it pays off for your shop.

Q. How do I start using job scheduling?

First, start scheduling just the new jobs. Let the jobs already in progress move through the shop as they always have, even if it's less than organized. Scheduling helps you track each task's start and due dates (including the exact time of day), who is responsible to its completion, and the production specifications that describe the work. Be sure to print the Work to Do reports, as well as the Weekly Task Planners for your production and creative staff -- they might like what they see.

Q. Should I schedule all tasks?

No. Only those job tasks that have important, can't-miss deadlines should be scheduled first. Then the job's interim deadlines should be scheduled to automate the daily and weekly work-to-due reports for each staff member. Tasks that either don't have deadlines, or have deadlines that aren't critical to clients or to the staff, don't need to be scheduled.

Q. How do I schedule a job's tasks?

From the Job Ticket web page, click the Schedule link. The Job Schedule web page opens, listing the job's production tasks. The job is scheduled by entering start and due dates for its tasks. Learn about job scheduling in this tutorial video.

Q. Is there a quick way to update schedules and print schedule reports for many jobs?

Yes. To update job schedules for many job tasks at one time, choose Production > Work to do. Make your selections, click Find, and the Work to do window will appear listing the tasks. Besides viewing scheduled tasks and printing reports with various sorting options, the Work to do area has other special features. By selecting a task, and clicking the "mark as finished" button, today's date is automatically entered for the task's finished date. It won't appear on any scheduling reports from now on.

Q. What happens when a task that was scheduled is completed?

Nothing happens automatically. Instead, someone in the production department (or a creative) needs to mark the task as finished. This can be done in the Job Schedule window or the Work to Do window. Finished tasks no longer appear on production reports. When a task is marked as finished, Clients & Profits ASAP automatically notes its finished date (it is the date someone clicked the "mark as finished" button, although the date can be changed in the Job Schedule window). It uses these dates to analyze on-time performance.

Q. What happens to unfinished tasks if the job is closed?

For starters, the job probably won't be closed if it has unfinished tasks. If the job shows unfinished tasks, they probably are finished but haven't been updated with finished dates (that's a common occurrence). If a job is closed with unfinished tasks, they are automatically marked as "finished" by Clients & Profits ASAP as a time-saver. You can also prevent a job from being closed with unfinished tasks with a customizable setting in job Preferences.

Q. What are the best schedule reports to print for staff members who don't have access to Clients & Profits ASAP?

The Work to Do reports (which are printed from Production > Work To Do) are the only reports most creatives need to track their unfinished tasks and deadlines. The Weekly Task Planner is also an ideal report for creatives that have fewer tasks due during the week, since the report is more compact. Of course, it's still better to give creatives access to Clients & Profits ASAP. It's the only way they can look up their own deadlines, production specs, and more (not to mention entering the time online) while they work.

Q. Is there a difference between task status and job status?

Yes, task status is independent of the job's production or billing status, but uses the same codes from the Status Table. You can use them any way that makes sense and seems useful. They don't have the same intelligence as job status codes. You can use task status for tasks that require special attention or a quick turnaround. For example, if a scheduling report is limited to a certain task status, like RUSH, then it identifies only those tasks with the RUSH status. Other tasks may fall within the due date range you enter, but because they aren't marked as RUSH, they don't print on the report. (Choose Snapshots > Production > Job Schedules, then limit the report by a task status and range of due dates.)

Q. How can I evaluate whether or not our deadlines are being met?

The On-Time Performance report, which is printed from Snapshots > Production, compares how many tasks are finished early, on time, late, and very late. The Missed Deadlines report focuses on only tasks that are finished late -- how many days late for each task and an average number of days for all tasks by resource, AE/Team, or client. These reports can be printed every month to evaluate the shop's progress (or lack of progress) in meeting deadlines throughout the year.