This article explains all you need to know to create a job template in vWork. If you want to find out more about what a Template is, you can read all about this in, What is a template?, or take a look at this video.

You create and store templates on the template settings page. You can create as many job templates as you need.

Note:  You can also create Health & Safety and Quotes templates on this page, but they are not discussed in this article.

Fields that you enter information into in a job template automatically include that information in the corresponding field in jobs that you create from that template. When you create your templates, only add information to fields that stay the same for every job you create from the job template. If the information in a field needs to change from job to job then leave the field empty. You'll be able to add that information when you create the job.

In this article

This article explains what you must add to a job template and what is optional when you create a job template. Topics covered include:

• Open the job template editor 
• Complete the Job Information tab
• Add custom fields in the Custom Fields tab
• Additional job template tabs
• Copy or duplicate an existing template

Click the links above to quickly go to the topic you are interested in. You can return to these links by clicking this icon.

Open the job template editor 

To create a job template:

1. Go to  Settings > Templates > Jobs
   
   
2. Click Add Job Template to open the template editor. 
   
   

Complete the Job Information tab

The Job Information tab is where you enter the main job information including the customer information, worker information, and job steps. 

1. Begin by completing the fields in the Create Job Template section. This section must be completed.
   • Click in the Template Name field and enter a name for the template. The template must have a name. Make the name descriptive so you can easily find it when you want to use it to create a job.
   • If you plan to use this template to create jobs for a single customer you can add the customer in the Customer Name field, but this is optional. If you plan to use this template for many customers leave this field blank. You can easily add the customer's name when you create a job from the template.
   • In the Planned Duration fields click to adjust the hours and minutes you expect jobs of this type to take. This defines the block of time the job will fill in a worker's schedule. It helps with planning.
     
     
     
     
2. Go to the Notes section. This section is optional. 
   • Only enter text in the Note field, or add a new Note, if you want this to show for all jobs based on this template.
     Tip: The text that you add in the Note field on the template can be changed when you create a job from the template, but you can't delete the text and leave the field blank. If you decide you don't need the note when you create the job you will need to delete the entire Note field in the Job editor.
     
     
3. Go to Assign the Job to a Worker. This section is optional.
   • Only add a worker in the Worker field if you will always assign jobs, based on this template, to the worker you select here. If you plan to use different workers to complete these jobs then leave this field as unassigned. You can assign the worker at the time the job is created or after.
     
     
     
     
4. Go to What Steps Must the Worker Complete? This section must be completed.
   Steps are the mandatory activities that a worker must do to start and finish a job. By default, we show two Step fields.
   
   To enter details for each Step:
   • Click in the Step Name field and enter a name for the step. For example, En route.
   • Only click in the Address field for the Step and enter an address if you want all jobs created from this template to use this address for the step. If the jobs you create from this template will have this step completed at different addresses, leave this field empty. You can add a geocoded address to the step when you create the job or after. 
     Note: if you do enter an address, make sure it is geocoded if you want the step address to be visible on the map. See the article Geocoded Addresses on the Map for more information. 
   • Click Add Step to add further steps.
   • You can click to delete a step that you don't want.
   • You can click and hold    to drag and reposition a step above or below the other steps.
   • You can click to add the customer's site address to the Address field. Where you have more than one of these icons, the additional icon can also be used to add an address of an Asset to the Address field. Hover your mouse over the icon to see what address it will add.
     
     
     
     
5. Go to Job Labels. This section is optional.
   The Job Labels section is where you can change the default information that is used to identify a job on the job label. The dispatcher sees this when they hover their cursor over a job on the Schedule or the Map, and a mobile app user sees it in the banner for a job in the vWork app on their mobile device.
   
   • The left of the screen is where you can select what fields you want to display and in what order. 
   • The right of the screen provides a preview of what the label looks like for the dispatcher or mobile app user.
   • To change a field select another option from the drop-down list on the left of the screen. View the preview to see how your selection changes the information on the label.
     
     
     
     
6. If you don't want to add Custom Fields or information in other tabs for the template make sure you click Create now to save the job template and exit the page.  If you want to add custom fields or information in other tabs then continue reading.
   
   Note: When you want to include a custom field in the job labels it is a two-step process. 
   
   
   1. First, add the custom field and save the template. This will add the custom field to the Field options available for you to select from the drop-down lists. See the next topic, Add custom fields in the Custom Fields tab, to learn how to add custom fields to the job template.
      
      
   2. Next, add the custom field to the Job Labels and save the template again.

Add custom fields in the Custom Fields tab

As well as the basic job information and steps, you can also add extra custom fields to the job. Custom fields are used to supply extra information to mobile workers and to enable them to collect information as the job is being completed.

You can learn more about custom fields in the article: The custom field types you can use in jobs.

This topic explains how to add and modify custom fields in the job template.

Edit a custom field

When you first click in the Custom Fields tab you will see there is a default Free Text Type custom field already added to the template. You can modify this to create the first custom field.

Tip: If you plan to use sections in your custom fields then add a Section Header first before you start adding the custom fields. You can't move custom fields between sections. Section Headers are explained in more detail below. You may also need to delete the first default field if you don't plan to use it.

1. Click in the Name field and type a unique name to identify the custom field.
   The name you give the field is what will show on the job, and in the Fields screen on the mobile app, to identify the custom field.
   In this example, (see the screenshot below these steps) we have called the custom field "Proof of Delivery."
   
   
2. Click in the Type field.
   Here you select the type of custom field you want. This could be Free text (the default type selected for this custom field), an image, pick list, date and time, signature, or one of the many other types of custom fields. In this example, we have chosen an Image Type.
   
   
3. You can enter details in the Detail field if you want this to be the same for all jobs created from this template. This is information you want to share with dispatchers or mobile app users about the job, or information you want mobile app users to capture through the vWork mobile app while they are completing the job. If this will change for each job, or you want the mobile app user to add information they collect while doing the job, leave this field unchanged in the template. In this example, we didn't add an Image as we want the mobile app user to capture this at the point of delivery using their mobile device.
   
   
4. Select the Permissions you want to apply to the custom field.
   The Permission determines how the mobile app user will interact with the custom field.
   
   For most custom fields there are four Permissions for you to select from when you assign this to the custom field:
   • Read only - This is used to provide information about the job. The mobile app user can only view this custom field on the mobile app. They are not able to edit it. 
   • Hidden - This is useful for providing information that only needs to be seen by dispatchers using the web app and is not useful for mobile app users. The dispatcher can see this custom field in the job editor. It doesn't show in the mobile app. 
   • Optional - This is an optional custom field that doesn't need to be completed for a job to be completed. Both the dispatcher and mobile user can add and edit information in this field.
   • Required - This is a custom field that must be completed. A job can't be completed until all required custom fields have had information entered into them. Required custom fields show in red in the Job Editor and in the vWork mobile app.
     In this example, we have made the custom field required as we want the mobile app user to capture a photo of the completed delivery as proof that a parcel was successfully delivered.
     
     
     
     
5. When you have finished adding the custom fields that you want click Create to save the template.

Add more custom fields

To add another custom field:

1. Click to add a Free Text type custom field.
   
   
2. Edit the custom field following the instructions given above.

Delete a custom field

To delete a custom field:

1. Click at the end of the custom field row.

Move a custom field

Custom fields show on the mobile app in the order they are listed in the template. You can change the order in which custom fields show on the mobile app by dragging them to a new position in the section they are in.
Note: You can't drag custom fields between sections. 

To move a custom field:

1. Click and hold .
   
   
2. Drag the field up or down to where you want it. 

Add a section header

Section headers are useful to group custom fields into sections. On the mobile app all custom fields in a section are collapsed under the section header by default. This saves room on the screen. To view the custom fields in a section the mobile app user can tap to expand the section.

Section headers are also used with Conditional Logic to group custom fields that are revealed when a specified condition is met in a custom field. To find out more about Conditional Logic please read the article: Use conditional logic with custom fields.

Tip: Create the Section Header before you create the custom fields you want in the section. You can't drag custom fields between sections so this is the only way to make sure the custom fields will be listed under the Section Header.

To add a Section Header:

1. Click to a add a new Section Header.
   
   
2. Click New Section and type a unique name for the Section Header. This is what the section will be called on the vWork mobile app.
   In this example, we have called the section Customer Samples. It is used to group the customer sample custom fields for landscape materials. This section is opened using Conditional Logic. When  the mobile app user selects Yes in the required field named: Does the customer want samples? this section opens on the mobile app.
   Note: You can see the Required custom field highlighted in Red in this example.
   
   
   
   

Additional job template tabs

You may see additional tabs in the job template editor if you have enabled the options that turn these on in your vWork account settings and they have been added to your vWork account.

In this example, Invoicing and Heath & Safety have been enabled in the settings.  Both Invoicing and Health & Safety can be enabled for the job template through their corresponding tab. Take a look at the screenshots below to see what these look like.

Invoicing tab

Invoicing for this template is enabled when you click Click here to enable invoicing for this template. You can learn more about Invoicing in the article: Invoicing with vWork.

Health & Safety tab

Health & Safety in vWork includes Tags, Hazards, and Events.

You can add Tags to job templates under the  Health & Safety Tags section in the Health & Safety tab. You can find out more about this in the article: Health & Safety Tags.

Hazards are enabled for a template when you click Click here to enable hazards on this template in the Health & Safety tab. You can find out more about this in the article: Health & Safety: Hazards.

Copy or duplicate an existing template

If you have a template you have already created that is very close to a new template you want to create you can clone the template to use as the base for the new template.

To clone a template:

1. Go to Settings > Templates > Jobs
   
   
2. Find the template you want to clone and click the icon next to it.
   
   In this example, we are cloning the Food Delivery template.
   
   
   
   
3. When you click the template editor opens with a copy of the template. Give the template a new name and make any changes you want.
   
   In this example, we will call the new template, Frozen Food Delivery.
   
   
4. Click to save the template.
   
   
   
   
5. The new template is created with the new template name and added to the template library.
   
   
   
   Note: You can also use these steps to clone Quotes and Health & Safety templates.