A parallel task consists of several identical tasks, which need to be performed in parallel by different employees before the workflow is continued with the next step. Setting up a parallel task differs from setting up a usual task in just a few ways.
General
Specify the general properties of the parallel task in this step. Proceed as you would for the general properties within a task.
Notification
To inform the user of the new task automatically by email, arrange it here. Proceed as you would for a notification within a task.
Decisions
In this step, define which decisions the responsible user should make within a parallel task and how this should be done. The tab in the wizard's navigation bar shows you the number of previously defined decisions in brackets after the "Decisions" name. Underneath, the dialog is divided into the sidebar with two columns on the left and a large area on the right.
All created decisions are listed in the left-hand sidebar column. If no decisions have been created, it is empty. The areas where you can define settings for decisions are listed in the right-hand sidebar column. As soon as you add a decision, fields and options for the individual settings are displayed in the right-hand area.
The areas in which you define the decisions in more detail are displayed in the right-hand column:
General
For more information read the section Task > Decision > General.
Dialog
If the employee should enter data for a decision in a dialog, e.g. the cost center, specify here which input fields should be available for this. Proceed in the same way as for creating a dialog for a task.
Validation
The inputs for a Parallel Task can be validated before the Parallel Task is completed. To set up the validation, proceed as for a Task.
Stamps
If the employee should stamp the document for a decision (e.g. with "approved" in the case of an invoice), you can set this up this here. Proceed in the same way as for creating a stamp for a task.
Please remember that as of DocuWare version 6.7, stamps for a parallel task are set up in the General dialog of the parallel task.
Assigning Data
If data from a defined source is to be written to a particular destination, you can configure this here. Proceed in the same way as for assigning data for a task.
Assign To
In this step you assign the parallel task to users, roles, or substitution rules. In contrast to a usual task, this is done in just one step for a parallel task. Otherwise proceed in the usual way for assigning a task.
Escalation levels
In this step, we will specify two escalation levels for parallel tasks using the reminder settings and due date settings. Follow the same procedure as for setting the escalation level for a task.
Termination Conditions
In this step you can set conditions for stopping a parallel task. Termination can be useful if several users should accept partial amounts of an invoice, but one of these users accepts the whole amount, and the task should therefore no longer be displayed for the other users, for example. The respective termination criterion is checked every time a user has made a decision.
Enter a Visual Basic expression for the condition in the field. You have two options here: Either type it directly into the field. Or open the dialog with the tabs for Variables and Operators.
In addition to several requirements, the Variables list also includes the variables specified by the user.
In this way, you can compile as many termination conditions as necessary. If a termination condition does not meet the formal requirements, this is displayed by a red border at the top right. The error is displayed in a tooltip when you move the mouse over the input field.