Construction task management
Construction Task Management for Contractors
Tasks in Rental Leak are action items for a construction team: a title, a project, one person it is assigned to, a due date and a priority. Operations shows each person their own work first — what is overdue, what is due soon and everything open — and shows owners and managers the overdue work across every project. Tasks are included on every plan.
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What a task is
One action item, one person
A task is small on purpose. It is the thing that has to happen, who is doing it, and by when.
- A title
- A project
- One assigned person
- A due date
- Normal or High priority
- Comments
- A linked rental, when it is about one
- A full activity history
Why action items get lost
The list that lives in a text thread
Nobody owns it
An item raised in a meeting or a group text belongs to everyone, which usually means no one.
There is no due date
Without a date there is no such thing as overdue, so nothing ever surfaces by itself.
It is on a different list per job
Each project has its own spreadsheet or notebook, so nobody can see what is late across the company.
Nobody knows it was done
The person who asked finds out it was handled only by asking again.
The context is somewhere else
“Call off the lift” is only useful next to which lift, on which job, from which vendor.
History disappears
When a line is deleted from a list, so is the record of who asked, who did it and when.
How it works in Rental Leak
Work that comes to the person who has to do it
Choose New task from Operations, from a project or from a rental. A task started from a project is filed under that project, and one started from a rental is linked to that rental and its project, so the person doing it can open the rental directly. The person it is assigned to gets a notification on their phone.
To finish a task, tap the circle beside it in any task list. It is marked complete, and Undo is shown for a few seconds in case it was a slip. The person who created the task is told when someone else completes it. Open a task to add a short comment or see its activity: who created it, who it was assigned to, due date changes, comments, and who completed it and when. A completed task can be reopened.
Tasks sit on the same projects as your rentals. An item such as returning a boom lift can be linked to that rental, next to its vendor, rate and next billing date — the detail equipment rental tracking already holds. Completing the task does not change the rental: requesting off-rent and marking it returned stay their own recorded steps, which is what keeps off-rent and return tracking accurate.
A follow-up can also start in the field. From an entry in the project Daily Log, Create follow-up task opens a task with the project already filled in, so a delay written down at 2 p.m. has an owner before the end of the day.
What it is and is not
Action items, not a scheduling system
Not a Gantt chart
There are no dependencies, critical paths or resource levelling. A task is something a person needs to do.
One person per task
A task is assigned to one person so it is always clear who has it. Unassigned tasks can be completed by anyone on the team.
Overdue comes first
Lists are ordered from real dates: overdue work first, then what is due soon. There is no score and nothing to configure.
Clear permissions
Everyone on the team can see tasks, create one and comment. Changing a task is for the person who created it or an owner or manager, and only an owner or manager can delete one.
Nothing is lost
A deleted task keeps its history and can be restored. A project that has tasks can be archived but not deleted.
On every plan
Tasks are included on Starter, Contractor and Pro, on the web, iPhone and Android.
Common questions
Are tasks included on every Rental Leak plan?
Yes. Operations and Tasks are included on Starter, Contractor and Pro.
Can a task be assigned to more than one person?
No. A task is assigned to one person so it is always clear who is responsible. A task can also be left unassigned.
Does completing a task change a rental?
No. A task can be linked to a rental, but completing it never changes the rental. Requesting off-rent and marking a rental returned are separate steps.
Can field users create and complete tasks?
Yes. Everyone on the team can see the company’s tasks, create a task and comment. A task can be completed by the person it is assigned to, the person who created it, or an owner or manager.
Does Rental Leak have Gantt charts or schedules?
No. Tasks are action items with a person and a due date. Rental Leak does not do Gantt charts, dependencies or project scheduling.
Keep reading
Related
Construction daily log
Work, crew, weather, deliveries, delays and photos by project and day.
See the Daily Log →Construction rental management software
Everything Rental Leak does for rentals, from the agreement to the invoice.
See the overview →Off-rent and return tracking
From the off-rent request to the pickup, with every step recorded.
Track returns →Rental tracking across jobsites
One rental list for the field and the office, organized by project.
Track every jobsite →Spreadsheet alternative
What changes when the rental log stops being a spreadsheet.
Compare →How to call off rental equipment
A call-off checklist that keeps each step on the record.
Read the guide →Give every action item a person and a date
30 days free, no credit card required. New trials include Pro features for the full 30 days. Plans start at $59/month after that.