Insert form data under a specific parent/child row

Aneesah Serrano

Hello -

I've created a hierarchy and now looking to create a form to gather data to be placed on a sheet. I'm familiar with setting up forms that pull under specific columns, but what I'm needing to do here is enter an individual's name under a specific 'child' row.

Using this screenshot as an example, I'm needing a candidate's name to be placed under a specific location (Hillcrest, Memorial, etc) under the specific district (Grones). Essentially creating another parent/child hierarchy between the location and now candidate's name. The initial sheet will have that parent/child relationship already established, but I'll need all entries of candidate names made after the initial setup to go to the right field.

Bassam Khalil

Hi @Aneesah Serrano

Hope you are fine, unfortunately you can't do that

Genevieve P.

Hi @Aneesah Serrano

As @Bassam.M Khalil pointed out, Smartsheet forms require entirely new rows to enter information into a sheet, so a form submission wouldn't be able to automatically appear in a hierarchy (please provide your feedback to the Product team through this form, here!)

Depending on your specific process, you may want to use Update Requests as your "form" instead. These are sent out from currently existing rows, so the information would be populated exactly where you need it to be. Would this work for you? See the following article for more information: Automatically Request Updates on Tasks.

Cheers,

Genevieve

Aneesah Serrano

@Genevieve P - Thank you. Is there a way to automatically sort a sheet by a column. We are needing to organize a sheet that supports multiple locations. However, if I'm not able to designate a specific location to place data gathered from a form (like in a hierarchy), there is no organization to the sheet and these individuals would need to look through the entire list to find their specific location where the data they need to review is; as opposed to being able to expand a parent row that labels the section they need to review.

Sandra Guzman

@Aneesah Serrano - I plan to submit an enhancement request as proposed by @Genevieve P since I can see added value with having this functionality.

You can sort row by clicking on the column header and select sort from the list of options.

You may want to create a new column and pull in the information to capture the individual that is responsible for the location so that you can manage pulling data for that person. You could create specific filters that look for current user. There are even other options that require a little setup on the front end but you could create a report and filter by their name, or you could develop another supporting sheet and use to cross reference formulas that pull over the data.

All the best,

Ssndra

Aneesah Serrano

Thanks. I guess what I am trying to assimilate is what would be TABS on an Excel sheet. In the absence of that capability, the outdent/indent was the next best thing, but the functionality doesn't allow the flexibility of organizing the sheet the way a tab feature would.

Best,

AS

Dorota P

I know this is an old post, but there is a way to add FORM data under a specific PARENT.

If you keep your data in a CARD view instead of a grid and add a specific field in the FORM that specifies the PARENT column name (drop-down or radio button). The FORM Data will flow to the PARENT and be inserted as the last CARD in the PARENT column.

Dorota P

To assimilate what would be TABS on an Excel sheet, I use the WorkApp that lets you list separate TABS (pages) within the same working space (within an App). when users access the App, they select the tab (page) they need to view the content.

The added bonus is to set up Roles and assign what each user could access/view/edit. Additional pages could also be added with i.e. instructions or links (similar to dashboards)

ssagers

I also need this feature. I'd love to be able to capture data in a form and then place the info gathered as a child row based on a name in a parent row.

WinaHath

Can we have a feature to select where a new submission should appear on the sheet? The only options we have are top and bottom. It will be great if we can specify a row number.

Paul Bilbro

https://community.smartsheet.com/discussion/comment/354036#Comment_354036

@Dorota P this intrigues me, but I don't fully understand the concept. Would you be so kind to add screen shots to explain in more detail?

Thanks!

Paul Newcome

@Paul Bilbro This doesn't actually do any indenting or anything. It simply drops a new card into the appropriate lane, but when you switch to grid view, you will see that all new entries are still going to the bottom of the sheet and not being placed under any actual parent row.

Paul Newcome

My recommendation if you have groupings you want to manage but are using forms for data entry is to do away with hierarchy all together in your data collection sheet and use columns/form fields to indicate which group the entry belongs to.

From there you can use Grouping in a report and/or formulas with cross sheet references in a metrics sheet to get whatever metrics you need from the data.

Paul Bilbro

@Paul Newcome thank you for the examples! I fully understand now.