Asana tips: How to get from request to deliverable, fast

If your team has a work intake process, then you know how challenging it can be to manage requests in a timely, effective, and headache-free manner. In addition to making sure you get all of the information you need to complete the request, you also want to make sure every ask gets handled in the right order, and that no task gets lost in the shuffle.

Luckily, there’s a better way. Instead of doing all of the work yourself, try these four Asana tips to simplify the entire process—from initial request all the way to final deliverable.

Step 1: Streamline the request process with Forms

The first hurdle in the intake request process is making sure you get all of the information you need, in the right place, when the request is submitted. If you don’t have a formal process in place, you’re likely receiving requests through various avenues—email, Slack messages, and maybe even one-off Asana tasks.

When your requests are scattered across different apps in different formats, it can be hard to know if you’re getting everything done. Instead, use Forms to ask all of the right questions and make the request process easy—both for you and for your collaborators. Anyone can submit an Asana form—even if they don’t have an Asana account.

And with Forms branching, you can customize Forms so team members and clients only answer relevant questions. Never again ask “If you answered yes to the previous question…” Instead, create a dynamic form that only serves up relevant questions.

Step 2: Automate manual work with Rules

Once you have all of the details you need, you also have to make sure that information gets into the right hands. Typically, this process is manual and time-consuming, and it gets in the way of high-impact work. Instead, use Rules to make sure everything gets routed correctly.

Rules have two parts: a trigger and an action. To automate your work request process, create a trigger based on a new task being added to the project (which happens when the form is submitted). Then, set the action to whatever you like. You can automatically assign tasks to teammates, add teammates as collaborators, set custom fields, add the task to another project, or a variety of other actions. Learn more about Rules in our guide.

💡Tip: Asana Business and Enterprise customers can set Rules with multiple triggers or actions. For example, you could create a Rule with two triggers and one action: if a new task is added to the project and it has a due date, assign that task to a specific team member.

Step 3: Track team capacity with Workload

Once work is assigned you need a way to make sure that no one on your team is getting swamped with requests. That’s why no work intake process is complete without workload management.

With Workload, you can get a real-time sense of everyone’s work in one central view. That way, you can reassign work if necessary and prevent burnout before it happens.

Step 4: Simplify feedback with Approvals

If you’re managing any sort of creative request process, you’ll likely also need to incorporate approvals into the process. Without a good system for approvals, feedback can get lost, and deliverables that are almost done can take days to cross the finish line. Not only that, but it can also be hard to communicate your feedback.

You can simplify the entire feedback process by marking any regular Asana task as an Approval. Doing so will change the Completed button at the top of the task to three options: Approve, Request changes, or Reject. That way, approvers can clearly communicate their needs with the click of a button.

💡Tip: For edits and suggestions, use proofing on PDFs and images to mark the particular line or detail you’re talking about. Just click on the attached PDF or image file to leave a comment exactly where you need a change. This comment will function like a task, with an assignee and a due date.

Build your work intake request process with Asana

Make sure no task is lost in the shuffle by building your work intake process with Asana. Do you manage your work intake process in Asana? Share your favorite tips in the comments!