Template Administrators can create new templates, but this should be reserved for when no existing templates fit the requirements of a new project.
The following procedure outlines how to create a new template:
- On the dashboard, choose Manage→Templates.
- On the Documents tab, choose Actions→Create Template..
- Select the type of template you want to create and select OK.
- Enter a name for the template and an optional description.
- Template names have a maximum of 255 characters.
- A Title cannot contain any of the following characters: / : * ? " < > | # + % &
- Choose a base language for the template from the Base Language pull-down menu.
- Select OK.
The template will include the following project tabs:
- Overview: General information about the template, including its name, owner, access control, and version history. Templates can be published, reverted, or inactivated from this tab.
- Documents: The default documents that will be used in projects created from the template. Documents can be organized into folders.
- Tasks: The default tasks users will be assigned to complete in projects created from the template. Tasks can be organized into phases.
- Team: The default users who will participate in projects created from the template. Team members are organized into project groups.
- Conditions: The conditions that control the inclusion of items in projects created from the template. Conditions can be applied to documents, folders, tasks, phases, project groups, and the template itself.
- Advanced Options: Settings that control advanced options for the template. Options may include document process settings and template upgrade settings.
- History: Information about what changes have been made to the template, who made them, and when they were made.
Considerations When Creating Templates
Creating new templates from scratch is uncommon. It is best practice to make copies of templates rather than create new ones. In some project templates, there is built-in functionality that the user would need to recreate when creating a new template.
For example, contract requests have built-in documents based on conditions about the status of the approval task. If you create your own template, this functionality will not be automatically included and must be rebuilt by the template creator. For this reason, making and modifying copies is recommended rather than creating brand-new templates.
Usually, during the deployment phase, customers design a standard process template. This process template should mirror your business process; thus, copies should suffice to make needed changes to the existing process. You may need to make copies of that process template for future changes and tweaks, but the overall design should remain the same to give you a good foundation for adding the new process requirements.
Summary
- Template Creation: Reserve new template creation for situations where existing templates do not meet project requirements.
- Template Structure: Templates include tabs for overview, documents, tasks, team, conditions, advanced options, and history.
- Best Practices: Prefer copying and modifying existing templates to retain built-in functionalities and streamline processes.
- Standard Process Template: Design a standard process template during deployment to ensure alignment with business processes.
