Delivery · Intake Queue
Intake item
Shape one piece of handed-over work into work streams, check what is left, and promote it into a project or decline it.
An intake item is a single piece of work waiting for delivery. Before it can be delivered, it needs a home and a plan: the project it will land in, the work streams that will deliver it, an owner and dates for each stream, and the tasks each stream will start with.
The intake item screen brings all of this together. It shows what has been set up, what is still missing and who is responsible, so that by the time the item is promoted, its work streams can start straight away.
Before you start
Open an item by selecting it in the Intake Queue.
What you can do depends on your part in the item:
| Who | What you see |
|---|---|
| Lead | Every control: project, priority, work streams, owners, dates, requirement placement, Promote to project and Decline item. |
| Work stream owner | Your own work streams, where you can draft and edit tasks and hand them over. The rest of the item is read-only. In the top bar you see the next check the item is waiting for. |
| Anyone else | The item read-only, with an eye icon in the top bar. |
If you own just one work stream on an item, opening the item takes you straight to that stream.
Promoted and declined items are read-only for everyone.
Understanding the screen
The screen has two parts.
The setup rail
The rail on the left lists:
- Overview: the item as a whole. It shows an amber dot while the item still needs a project or has requirements without a work stream.
- Work streams: one entry per stream, each with an icon showing its status. Leads add a stream with +.
On smaller screens, the rail opens as a panel. Select the list icon in the top bar to show it.
Work stream statuses
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| No owner | Nobody has been assigned to the stream yet. |
| With owner | The owner is preparing the stream’s tasks. |
| In review | The owner has sent the tasks to the lead to review. |
| Complete | The tasks are done, or the lead has accepted them. |
The overview
At the top of the overview you see:
- A Feature concept link back to the portfolio item, if the item was handed over from planning.
- The item’s title and summary.
- The project the item will land in, and its Priority.
Below that, two tabs:
- Work streams: the streams that will deliver the item.
- Requirements: the feature concept’s requirements and the stream each one is in. See Intake requirements.
When any requirement has no work stream, a warning such as 2 requirements need a work stream appears beside the tabs. Select it to open the Requirements tab.
The work streams table
| Column | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Status | The stream’s status and how long it has been in that status. The time turns amber after five days without a change. |
| Work stream | The stream’s name. Select the row to open the stream. |
| Owner | The stream’s owner. A dashed circle means nobody is assigned. Leads can select it to assign someone. |
| Dates | The stream’s start and end dates. Leads can select it to set them. |
| Reqs | How many requirements the stream covers. A stream with no requirements is shown in amber, so you can check whether it is needed. |
| Tasks | How many tasks have been drafted for the stream. |
Choose the project
Every item needs a project before it can be promoted.
- Select Add to project under the item’s title.
- Choose an existing project from the list. Or, if you can create projects, choose to create a new one. The Create New Project dialog opens. See Projects.
The chip now shows the project’s name. Select it again to change the project.
Set the priority
- Select the Priority chip under the item’s title.
- Choose Critical, High, Medium or Low.
Add a work stream
Only leads can add work streams.
- Select + beside Work streams in the setup rail.
- Enter a name for the new work stream.
- Press Enter.
The stream appears in the rail and in the work streams table with the status No owner. Open it to set it up. See Setting up a work stream.
Check what is left before promoting
Promote to project in the top bar shows how many checks are still open, for example Promote to project · 3 left.
- Select Promote to project. A list of checks opens. Met checks have a green tick and unmet checks have an amber circle, with a count such as 2 of 3.
- Select an unmet check to go to whatever fixes it.
| Check | What it needs |
|---|---|
| Project | The item has a project. |
| Requirements assigned | Every requirement from the feature concept is in a work stream. |
| Workflow and owner | Every work stream has a workflow and an owner. |
| Dates | Every work stream has a start and end date. |
| Tasks | Every work stream has at least one task. |
| Accepted | Every work stream’s tasks have been accepted. Shown only when your organisation uses the Review step. |
An item also needs at least one work stream before it can be promoted.
Your organisation decides whether the Review step is used in Governance → Delivery → Promotion. See Promotion.
Promote the item
When every check is met, the promote panel says what will be created, for example Creates 3 tracks and 18 tasks.
- Select Promote to project.
- Select Promote to project again in the panel to confirm.
Promotion turns the item’s work streams and their tasks into real work in the project. You are taken to the project’s overview. The item’s status in the queue changes to Promoted, and opening it now shows Open project.
Decline the item
If the work will not go ahead, decline it to take it out of the queue. Only leads can decline an item.
- Select the ⋮ menu in the top bar.
- Select Decline item.
- Select Decline item again to confirm.
The item is marked Declined and you return to the queue.
What happens next
After promotion, the work streams appear on the project’s Work streams tab, and each one starts on the first stage of its workflow. See Project work streams and Work stream board.
Good to know
- Changes save as you make them. If a change cannot be saved, you see Couldn’t save and can try again.
- Work stream owners see the next open check in the top bar, for example Dates: 1 of 3, so they know what the item is waiting for.
- If you open a work stream that has been deleted, you see This work stream is no longer here. Select Back to the item to return.