Table of Contents

Altus Tasks

My Open Project Tasks View

The My Open Project Tasks view on the Tasks tab found under the Initiatives sections in Altus uses a custom filter to display tasks that are assigned to the current user. This custom filter looks and works differently to other view filters.

If you edit the filter in any way, it will result in a different filter being applied to the view, due to the inability of the UI filter to represent the custom filter.

If edits have been made to this view and you'd like to go back to the default view, clicking the 'Reset to default' and 'Apply' buttons on the Edit filters: pane will reset the view.

Keyboard shortcuts for timeline view

When using the Timeline view in Altus the following shortcut keys can be used:

Function Shortcut
Move Row Selection Down Down Arrow
Move Row Selection Up Up Arrow
Save and Move Down Enter
Cancel Request Esc
Select Task Columns Home
Select Gantt Bar End
Open Right-Click Menu Space

Altus Schedule Types

The Altus Schedule allows you to set tasks to:

  • Auto: this allows Altus to automatically schedule your tasks based on the Duration and Effort. Altus doesn't schedule time over the weekend automatically.
  • Manual: this allows the user to schedule your tasks manually. Tasks can be scheduled over weekends using this setting.

Altus Task Types

The Altus Schedule allows you to set tasks to:

  • Fixed Unit: the number of resources assigned to the task is set and you don't want this to change, even if the duration or work changes.
  • Fixed Work: the work for this task is set, and you don't want this to change, even if you've changed the duration or if resources/units change.
  • Fixed Duration: the duration of this work is set, and you don't want this to change, even if you modify resources/units or work on the task.

Setting one of these task types determines what happens when values within the Task are modified.

  • Fixed Unit: If you enter a value into the Effort (Hours) field, any changes made to the Duration (Days) will not change the Effort (Hours) value, any changes made to the Resources Units % will update the Duration (Days) (and Finish date), but not the Effort (Hours) value.

  • Fixed Work: If you enter a value into the Effort (Hours) field and the Duration (Days) field the system will retain them and not recalculate them. If you add Resources to the task the Units % of these resources will be calculated to show the velocity of work that needs to be done to complete Effort (Hours) value in the Duration (Days) time frame.

  • Fixed Duration: If you modify the value in the Duration (Days) field, the Effort (Hours) value will be updated based on the original values and how much the Duration has been changed. (For example: A task with a Duration of 5 days and 40 hours effort, if you update the Duration to 10 days the effort will update to 80 hours effort) If you add Resources to the task the Units % of these resources will be calculated to show the velocity of work that needs to be done to complete Effort (Hours) value in the Duration (Days) time frame.

This image explains what is calculated when each of the Task Types are selected.

Locking of Tasks

Tasks within Altus can be locked.

This can be a manual process (i.e. a Project Manager entering the task form and updating the locked field)

An image of the Task form with the locked field visible.

Or this could be automated by a process (e.g. Power Automate, Business Logic, Integration of a External Tool ala Project Online)

When a task is locked, this will drive certain behaviours within the timesheet module.

  • If a task has been locked the timesheet module will not add the Task to the Timesheet by default nor will it be able to be chosen manually by the user.
  • If a task has already been added to the timesheet module, it will now show with a locked icon and be non-editable.
  • If a locked task has already been added to the timesheet with values against it, the user won’t be able to submit their timesheet until these values against the locked task are removed.
    • The user can clear these values using the Clear Locked Rows button.
    • Once the values are removed the timesheet can be submitted.

The timesheet module showing locked tasks.

Task rollup

When managing tasks for a project directly within Altus (e.g. your project has no associated primary external project), some schedule data is rolled up and populated into your project metadata whenever the Task schedule is updated. Whenever the schedule is saved, a Task Rollup action is triggered for the project, and that action will:

  • Populate the project Finish date with the finish date of the task that is scheduled to finish last.
  • Populate the Effort (Total), Effort Completed and Effort Remaining fields with the respective sum of values from the tasks.
  • Calculate % Complete value for the project (based on Effort Completed / Effort (Total) * 100).
  • Set the Last Sync Date to the current date and time (UTC).
  • Lock the above fields to reflect that the values in them are calculated and have not been manually entered.

The Task Rollup function will also be called if an External Project reference is removed from a project (if that project has Altus Tasks associated with it) to restore the alignment of these fields to the task schedule (and no longer the external project).

For users with the Altus Admin User role, Task Rollup sync logs appear in the Sync Logs section of the Settings area of the Altus app.

Task Indenting and Outdenting Behaviour

You can organise tasks within your project using the Indent and Outdent options in Altus Tasks. These functions are available from the right-click menu. To adjust multiple tasks at once, select all relevant tasks, then right-click to apply Indent or Outdent.

Screenshot of the Indent and Outdent context menu in Altus Tasks, showing options to indent or outdent selected tasks.

Timesheet to Task Actuals

Please see here.

Schedule Hygiene

When working with project schedules, it is important that each task type behaves consistently and reflects accurate, meaningful data. Summary Tasks and Milestones serve structural purposes rather than representing actual delivery work. Because of this, they are not designed to hold Estimated Effort, Actual Effort, or Assignments.

These checks help maintain schedule hygiene, support downstream reporting, and prevent issues with timesheeting and actuals import.

Why Summary Tasks Should Not Contain Effort or Assignments

Summary Tasks represent the roll‑up of their child tasks, not individual pieces of work.

Problems caused when effort or assignment data exists at a summary level

  1. Double-counting hours If a Summary Task contains its own Effort or Actuals and its children also contain effort, totals become inflated and reporting becomes inaccurate.

  2. Invalid resource allocation Assignments at a summary level conflict with the scheduling model. Summary Tasks cannot meaningfully distribute work to resources.

  3. Confusing or ambiguous planning Summary Tasks describe phases or groupings, not work items. Adding effort at this level blurs their purpose and reduces schedule clarity..

  4. Broken roll-up reporting Reports assume Summary Tasks are pure aggregations. Adding Actuals or Estimated Effort to a summary task distorts:

    • Percent complete
    • Cost roll‑ups
    • Remaining effort
    • Variance calculations

Why Milestones Cannot Hold Effort or Assignments

A Milestone represents a zero‑duration event (such as a handover, approval, or key checkpoint). It marks progress, but does not define work.

Problems caused by effort or assignments on milestones

  • Duration conflicts Effort implies work over time; milestones have no duration.
  • Invalid resource allocation A milestone can't represent effort performed by a resource..
  • Reporting and costing inaccuracies Actuals recorded against milestones break timesheet and cost models.

Milestones are markers, not tasks. If a task containing effort or assignments is converted into a milestone, this data becomes invalid and may be modified or removed.

Timesheeting and Actuals Import Risks

Note

All tasks with resource assignments automatically appear on the assigned resource’s timesheet. If a task does not display directly, it can be added via Add > Project Tasks.

When a task has a resource assignment:

  • It appears on the resource's timesheet
  • The system expects that actual effort to be recorded against it
  • Integrations, time-entry workflows, and cost reporting all rely on this behaviour

This creates significant issues when the assignment is on a Summary Task or Milestone, because these task types are not designed to receive actual hours.

What Happens When a Resource Timesheets Against a Summary Task or Milestone?

If a Summary Task or Milestone appears on a timesheet and a resource logs time to it, the following hapens within Altus:

Summary Tasks

  • Actual Effort entered against a Summary Task does not get added to the Summary Task
  • The timesheet entry becomes effectively orphaned
  • This time can still be imported into the Project Financials app, creating project costs that are difficult to trace back to a specific task or piece of work

Milestones

  • When time is entered against a Milestone, the system converts it into a task to accommodate the actual effort
  • This changes the nature of the milestone and introduces unintended work into the schedule

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