Updating Row Information without Request Update

crittcg

I have a sheet that we are tracking a number of projects on. First column contains the project names and subsequent columns are a plethora of project data like goals, objectives, budgets, contacts, risks, and so on. Forms are used to populate the information on the onset and at different stages (Discovery>Evaluation>Planning>Executing>etc...).

Halfway through the lifecyle of a project if a project manager wants to update something like a Problem Statement or a Goal, is there a good way to allow this? I know you can "request update" but that requires a trigger of some sort. This isn't a triggered event, it's more maintenance.

The only work around I've thought of is to have an initial "Update Request" be sent at the onset of the project. It's basically a single checkbox they click and "submit update" on that triggers another workflow that sends them another Update Request based on the stage the project is in (Charter or Closeout info won't be populated or altered on projects in Discover phase... that sort of thing). The initial checkbox Update Request would need to sit there in their email or notification panel until they need it... which could quickly get lost. After they update it the first time, the workflow unchecks the request box and sends them another update request that will sit in their inbox until they need to update again.

This is clearly not ideal.

It would be great if I could have a form where the first field is a drop down populated with the current projects (or better yet, projects assigned to the user who is signed in!). They select a project and the rest of the form populates with the current cell values and they can change what they need to and update the row (project info) as needed.

So... Is this possible or has anyone else cooked up a workaround?

Matt Johnson

Hi @crittcg

If the Problem Statement or Goal isn't associated with a specific task (row), maybe consider using Sheet Summary fields (the pop out window on the right side). I've done this for clients in the past and linked the field to the Project Level Dashboard. There isn't a trigger or reminder, other than the field is visible on the Dashboard that would be shared on the screen during Team meetings so it was in the PM's best interest to keep it updated.

It's not exactly the answer you were looking for, I know, but maybe something to consider.

Side Note: You could also run a sheet summary report across all Projects and see all the Projects' Goals in one table for a Portfolio Dashboard.

I hope that helps.

Matt

crittcg

https://community.smartsheet.com/discussion/comment/350703#Comment_350703

I think I see what you're getting at, but we're not using different Sheets for different projects. Each Row is a seperate project entirely (so not using the Gantt chart functionality obviously).