Tasks & Messaging
Manage work with the Kanban board, raise queries, and communicate with your team.
Tasks and Messaging are Helium's built-in collaboration tools — keeping your team coordinated without leaving the platform. The Tasks page is a Kanban-style board that tracks work from creation through to completion, with built-in conversation threads for raising queries.
The Kanban board
TasksNavigate to Tasks in the sidebar to open the Kanban board. Work is organised into four columns:
| Column | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Pending | New tasks that have not been started yet |
| In Progress | Tasks that are actively being worked on |
| Query | Tasks that are blocked or need clarification — a conversation thread is attached |
| Completed | Finished tasks |
Each column shows a count badge indicating how many tasks it contains.
Filtering your view
By default, the board shows My Tasks — tasks assigned to you personally or to a role you hold. Use the dropdown at the top of the page to switch between:
- My Tasks — Tasks assigned to you or your roles
- [Client Name] — All tasks for a specific client (one option per client you have access to)
Task cards
Each task appears as a card on the board showing:
| Element | Description |
|---|---|
| Title | The task name, displayed in bold |
| Description | A short preview of the task description (if one was provided) |
| Type badge | The kind of task: Action, Approval, Review, or Research |
| Priority | A coloured left border indicates urgency — blue (Low), yellow (Medium), orange (High), or red (Urgent) |
| Assignee | The name of the person or role the task is assigned to |
| Attachment icon | Appears if the task has images or files attached |
| Message icon | Appears if a query conversation has been started |
| Due date | The deadline, if one has been set |
Click any task card to open its full details.
Creating a task
Click New Task
Click the New Task button at the top of the board. A form opens.
Enter the task details
Fill in:
- Title — A clear, short name for the task (required)
- Description — Additional context or instructions (optional)
- Type — Choose Action, Approval, Review, or Research
- Priority — Set the urgency: Low, Medium, High, or Urgent
- Status — Choose which column the task starts in (usually Pending)
Assign the task
Choose how to assign the task:
- Assign to User — Search for a specific team member by name, or leave as "Unassigned"
- Assign to Role — Assign to anyone holding a specific role (e.g. "Warehouse Lead", "Manager")
Set optional details
- Client — If your organisation manages multiple clients, select which client this task relates to
- Due Date — Set a deadline using the date picker
- Files — Upload images or documents relevant to the task. You can drag and drop files or click to browse.
Save
Click Save to create the task. It appears in the selected column on the board.
Working on a task
Starting work
Open a Pending task and click Start Work. This moves the task to the In Progress column and records when work began.
Completing a task
Open an In Progress or Query task and click Complete. This moves the task to Completed and records the completion time.
Editing a task
Click the pencil icon on any task to reopen the creation form in edit mode. You can change the title, description, priority, assignee, due date, or add files.
Raising a query
If you need clarification or are blocked on a task, you can raise a query. This creates a conversation thread directly on the task and changes its status to Query.
Open the task
Click the task card to open its details.
Click Raise Query
Click the Raise Query button. This creates a new conversation thread and automatically invites:
- You (the person raising the query)
- Your line manager
- The person who created the task (if different from you)
The task moves to the Query column on the board.
Write your question
Type your question or describe the blocker in the message input at the bottom of the conversation thread. Click send.
If a query conversation already exists, the button changes to Continue Query, which reopens the existing thread.
Responding to a query
When someone raises a query on a task assigned to you (or one you are invited to), the conversation thread appears on the task detail page. Type your response in the message input and send it. All participants in the conversation can see the full message history.
Task detail page
The task detail page shows everything about a task in one place:
- Header — Title, status badge, priority badge, type badge, and an edit button
- Description — The full task description
- Metadata — Assigned to, created by, created date, due date, started date (if applicable), completed date (if applicable)
- Related page link — If the task links to a specific page in Helium (e.g. an order or customer record), a clickable link takes you directly there
- Images — A gallery of any uploaded images, shown as thumbnails. Click to view full size.
- Attachments — A list of uploaded files with names, sizes, and download links
- Query thread — The conversation history, with a message input for adding new messages
Task types
| Type | When to use |
|---|---|
| Action | A task that requires something to be done (e.g. "Pack order #1234", "Update supplier pricing") |
| Approval | A task that requires someone to approve or sign off on something |
| Review | A task that requires someone to review work or information |
| Research | A task that requires investigation or information gathering |
Priority levels
| Priority | When to use |
|---|---|
| Low | Can be done when time allows — no immediate pressure |
| Medium | Should be done soon but is not blocking other work |
| High | Important and should be prioritised — may be blocking something |
| Urgent | Must be dealt with immediately — time-critical |
Daily workflow
Check the Tasks page at the start of each day to see what needs your attention. The badge count in the sidebar shows how many outstanding tasks you have at a glance.