RB User Guide > Calendar > Send Assignment Notifications/Cancellations

Sending batch assignment notifications/cancellations

Save time by sending assignment notifications (resource worksheets) or cancellations in batches, instead of one at a time. Notifications can be sent via text or email or both. You can also print out notifications.

  1. Find resources to notify

    1. Calendar > Send Assignment Notifications/Cancellations
    2. In the Search By pane:
      • Notification Type

        Defaults to Assignment.

        Change to Cancellation to send task cancellation notices.

    3. Enter search parameters/make selections in one of these fields:
      • Date Type
        • Job Date – Assignment only. Scheduled job date.
        • Order Date – Assignment only. Date job orders were placed.
        • Task Cancel Date – Cancellation only. Date the scheduled job was canceled.
      • Date From/Date To

        Click date navigator button in these fields to enter a date range (see Date Navigator). Limited to a 30-day search range.

        TIP: For specific date, not date range, leave one field blank

        Instead of entering the same date twice when you want to search for information about a single day, enter the date in only one field and leave the other field blank. When you search, RB will autofill the blank field with the entered date.

      • Job No.

        Job number to send notifications for a single job

    4. Enter optional search parameters, if desired:
      • Task

        Parts of jobs requiring separate resources. Default is ALL. Click lookup button to restrict search to specific tasks (see Lookup panel). Task options are set in Lists > Jobs.

      • Resource Type

        Categories of professions required for jobs, e.g., Reporter, Scopist, or Videographer; or other resources, e.g., Conference Room. Default is ALL. Click lookup button to restrict search to specific resource types (see Lookup panel). Resource type options are set in Lists > Resources.

      • Job Type

        Categories of jobs requested by clients. Default is ALL. Click lookup button to restrict search to specific job types (see Lookup panel). Job type options are set in Lists > Jobs.

      • Business Units

        Profit centers or parts of your business you track separately. Default is ALL. Click lookup button to restrict search to jobs tied to specific BUs (see Lookup panel). BUs are set in Business Units.

    5. Click search button. In the results pane, RB lists all of the assigned tasks that meet the search criteria color coded by the related job’s job status. (Job status colors are set in System Preferences > Calendar > Job Status Color.)

  2. Select contact method(s)

    1. Check the box(es) at the top of the results grid of the contact method column that you will use for sending assignments/cancellations to most of the resources listed. You can check both sending options to use both contact methods at once:
      • Email

        For sending messages to resources’ email addresses that include worksheets/notifications and can include additional attached files.

      • SMS

        For sending text messages to resources’ cellphones.

      • Print

        If you want to print out notifications, see Batch printing assignment notifications/cancellations.

      NOTE: Customize your notifications

      Update the RB default messages, worksheets, and attached file types:

    2. Uncheck/check the contact method box(es) for any resource(s) that you want to contact via the other method.

      If a result does not have a contact method checkbox, either:

      • (Assignment only) The task has not been assigned. Click the hyperlinked task to assign a resource. See Assigning and pre-assigning resources.
      • The resource is missing contact information in their profile. Click the hyperlinked task to add the resource’s contact information to their profile. See Adding resources to RB.

  3. Send messages

    1. Click Send.

    2. In the Options popup, Form Type is uneditable, and the default Form comes from Tools > Form Templates:

      • Form Group/Form

        Select options in these drop-downs to send a different form than the default. To modify RB’s default templates or create additional ones, see Creating/updating forms & letters.

      • Show mail composer

        Click to select Yes if you want to review and/or edit the notification message. You can also add files manually to the email with the mail composer. See Emailing from RB.

        (Assignment only.) To automatically include notices or other types of files from your job repository, see Attaching files to notifications automatically.

      • Email/SMS From
        Select a different address in the drop-down if you don’t want to send the message from default shown. Email addresses and the default are set in System Preferences > General > Email.
    3. Click OK. (If you are using the mail composer, see Emailing from RB.) RB sends each worksheet by the method(s) selected for that resource.
    4. Click OK again in the popup that appears when the message is sent. R9 notes the method used and the success of its send method for each notification in the Result column. RB also records the date and time in the task’s Notified Date field in the job, and makes an entry in the job’s Notes Log and RB9’s Email Log (RB9 only).
TIP: Preview notifications

If you want to quickly check a worksheet before sending it, click options button > Preview Assignment Confirmation/Cancellation next to its Job No. in the Send Assignment Notifications/Cancellations window. In the Options popup, select a form in the Form drop-down and click OK. RB will display the worksheet with the assignment details filled in. Do not edit the form here.

NEXT: Recording acknowledgements

(Assignment only) When a resource acknowledges an assignment, enter that information in the assigned task’s Edit Task panel of the relevant job. See Logging resources’ acknowledgements.

Reference
Step-by-step instructions