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Item Workflow

Understanding the item lifecycle and status transitions.

Overview

Items in SiteWhiz follow a simple workflow:

Open → In Progress → Closed

This workflow helps track work from discovery to completion.

Item Statuses

Open

The starting state for new items:

  • Item has been created
  • Work has not yet started
  • Awaiting assignment or action

In Progress

Work is actively happening:

  • Someone is working on the item
  • Awaiting information or approval
  • Partially completed

Closed

Item is complete:

  • Work is finished
  • Issue is resolved
  • Decision is made
  • Question is answered

Status Transitions

Valid Transitions

From To When
Open In Progress Work begins
Open Closed Quick resolution
In Progress Closed Work completed
In Progress Open Work paused
Closed Open Reopened

Automatic Updates

Some actions trigger status changes:

  • Assigning an item may set to "In Progress"
  • Adding a resolution may set to "Closed"

Item Types and Workflows

Actions

Tasks that need to be completed:

  1. Open - Task identified
  2. In Progress - Someone is working on it
  3. Closed - Task completed

Decisions

Choices that need to be made:

  1. Open - Decision pending
  2. In Progress - Under discussion
  3. Closed - Decision made

Issues

Problems that need resolution:

  1. Open - Problem identified
  2. In Progress - Being investigated/fixed
  3. Closed - Problem resolved

Questions

Information requests:

  1. Open - Question asked
  2. In Progress - Researching answer
  3. Closed - Question answered

Best Practices

Keep Status Current

  • Update status as soon as work state changes
  • Don't leave items "In Progress" indefinitely
  • Close items promptly when complete

Use Comments

When changing status, add context:

  • Why is this moving to In Progress?
  • What was the resolution?
  • Why is this being reopened?

Review Regularly

  • Check open items weekly
  • Follow up on stale "In Progress" items
  • Archive old closed items

Filtering by Status

Finding Open Items

Use filters to see what needs attention:

  1. Go to Items page.

  2. Click Filter > Status.

  3. Select Open.

  4. View all items awaiting action.

Finding Overdue Items

Items past their due date with Open or In Progress status:

  1. Apply the Overdue filter.

  2. Review and update or reassign as needed.

Reporting on Status

Item Counts

The dashboard shows:

  • Total open items
  • Items in progress
  • Recently closed

Trend Analysis

Over time, track:

  • Items created vs. closed
  • Average time to close
  • Items by type and status

Reopening Items

When to Reopen

Reopen closed items when:

  • Issue recurs
  • Work was incomplete
  • Decision needs revisiting
  • Additional information needed

How to Reopen

  1. Open the closed item.

  2. Click the status badge.

  3. Select Open or In Progress.

  4. Add a comment explaining why.

Archiving Items

Automatic Archiving

Closed items may be automatically archived after:

  • A set period (e.g., 90 days)
  • Project completion
  • Manual archive action

Viewing Archived Items

  1. Enable Show Archived filter.

  2. Archived items appear with indicator.

  3. Can be unarchived if needed.