Add an action

An action is an activity that has been identified as contributing to the understanding or resolution of a topic.

1. In the left navigation pane, click the Topic Management icon ().
2. Click the Topics tab.
3. Click a topic's Row Action menu (), and then click Edit.
4. On the Edit Topic page, select Actions from the left menu.
5. Click the Add Action link.
6. Specify values for the fields.
   • Each field is display-only, editable, or required. If a field is required, an asterisk (*) appears next to it and you cannot save the action until you provide a value.
   • Each field accepts text, numeric, or date values, or provides a drop-down list of predefined values that you can select. If a value is not required in such a field you can leave the field blank to indicate no value for the field.
   • Arrow icons may appear after the names of a pair of fields to show that they are a linked pair. For example, if fields for State and Area Code appear, the arrows indicate that you must select a value for the State field first and then select a value for the Area Code field. You cannot select an Area Code value first. The values available for Area Code depend on the State you select.

   The fields listed below are standard fields that might appear with the same or different field names.

   Field	Description
   Action type	Choose an action type from the drop-down list. The Generic action type always appears and, if you select it, it sets the Action state to its initial state and Assigned to field to you. If you select a different action type, the settings change to match that action; that is, the Assigned to, Start date, and Planned Completion date fields change to match the default values associated with this action type.
   Action name	Identifying name for the action (required).
   Action description	Description of the action.
   Action state	The progress of the action in the workflow. Actions in the Planned state are dormant. These planned actions remain dormant until they are transitioned from the Planned state into the Open state. Action states are defined by your organization to represent expected workflow stages and are specified in the topic workflow configuration.
   Activate on topic states	For planned actions, choose: All States. Select states, then the Select states link to choose specific topic states that activate the action type. Then click OK.
   Assigned to	User or work team to whom the action is assigned. By default, an action that you add is assigned to you. Available users and work teams are determined by the Visible to work team selection. Users: Members of the Visible to work team selection with Edit Topic/Action work team permission. Work teams: All work teams with the Assign to work team property enabled and at least one active member in the Users list.
   Start date	Date after activation that the action should start.
   Planned completion date	Date when the action is expected to be complete. If a value is defined for this field, the open action will appear on the Calendar tab.
   Actual completion date	Date when the action was completed.

   Additional custom fields might also appear.

7. Click Save.