Fields and inheritance

  • Updated

Labels and Custom Fields were once treated separately but are now merged into one category called Fields, designed for simplicity. Now you can easily manage fields for any object, such as campaigns or tasks, from a single consolidated tab.

Hierarchy of data across objects

Metadata is shared among campaigns, tasks, work requests and assets to unify a taxonomy. However, there is a hierarchy of how data flows among objects. 

  • Work requests can spin off campaigns, tasks and events.
    • Campaigns can be containers for tasks and events.
      • Campaigns and tasks can contain assets.

The following image shows how the field properties of a work request are shared with the campaign. The fields of the campaign are shared with the task that is associated with the campaign, and so on. (Dashed arrows show creation, colored arrows show hierarchical sharing of metadata.) 

Field-inheritance.PNG

  • A work request can start the flow of metadata by sending traits Department and Journey Stage to the campaign.
  • The campaign has traits Region and Quarter and inherits Department and Journey Stage.
  • The task adds traits Media Type and Team, and inherits the traits from the campaign and work request.
  • The asset in the task includes the Asset type trait, and inherits the traits from the campaign and work request and task.

    Assets only inherit label field types today and will soon include all fields soon. 

Work request brief to campaign 

From a work request, select Start > Campaign.

Field-inheritance-1.png

If the campaign DOES NOT have a parent campaign:

  • The Create Campaign page displays the work request fields and their values, and you can change them.
  • Elements of a campaign (such as events, tasks and assets) can inherit the work request brief’s fields and their values.
  • On the Fields tab, edits you make on the Create Campaign screen are available for updates (if permissions allow). The Fields tab represents the final state of the campaign’s taxonomy and the point in which any children of the campaign inherit fields and values downstream.

The brief is the point of origin for these values and is not updated when you make changes on the Create page or Fields tab. 

If the campaign DOES have a parent campaign:

  • All of the previous behaviors apply.
  • Values are combined on multiple selections that are on the parent campaign and the work request. For example, if the work request has a multi-select field Animal with a value of cat and dog, and the parent campaign also has a multi-select field Animal with a value of elephant and dog, then the new campaign will have three values assigned to it (cat, dog, elephant) on the Create Campaign page. (You can change the values before saving the campaign.)

    multi-select_scenario.PNG

  • Single selections may create a conflict between the parent campaign and the work request. To prevent this conflict, you choose which has precedence. For example, if one campaign has Pillar=walking and the work request has Pillar=running, you can choose to inherit Pillar=running from one of the campaigns.

    single_select_scenario.PNG

If the campaign has a campaign template:

  • All of the previous behaviors apply. Fields are carried over from the campaign template and single-select, multi-select behavior applies. 

Work request brief to task

From a work request, select Start > Task.

Field-inheritance-2.png

If the task DOES NOT have a workflow with assigned fields:

  • The Create Task page displays the work request fields and their values, and you can change them.
  • The task brief inherits the work request fields and their values.
  • On the Fields Tab, edits you make on the Create Task screen are finalized and available for update (if permissions allow). The Fields tab represents the final state of the Task’s taxonomy and the point in which any task assets will inherit fields and values downstream.

    Assets only inherit labels today.

If the Task DOES have a Workflow with assigned fields:

Workflows provide governance in a task and its downstream activities; it takes precedence over all other inheritance. For that reason, when a workflow is assigned to a task, fields and values from that workflow are applied to the task, overwriting fields and values that came from the work request.  

  • In the task brief, the work request fields and their values are inherited by the task brief.
  • Only those fields and values defined on the workflow are available on the Create Task page, where you can change them (if permissions allow). 
  • Values are combined on multiple selections that are on the workflow and the work request.
  • On the Fields tab, edits you make on the Create Task screen are finalized and available for update (if permissions allow). The Fields tab represents the final state of the Task’s taxonomy and the point in which any task assets inherit fields and values downstream.

    Assets only inherit labels today.

The brief is the point of origin for these values and is not updated when you make changes on the Create page or Fields tab. 

A task has a special scenario compared to the other objects (event, campaign). If a task has a workflow with fields, then the workflow fields determine the field types that a task can inherit.

Task_scenario.PNG

Campaign Fields to Task

When you assign a campaign to a task the following inheritance occurs:

If the Task does not have a workflow with assigned fields:

  • On the Create Task page, the campaign fields and their values are displayed and available for changes.
  • On the Fields tab, edits you make on the Create Task screen are available for updates (if permissions allow). The Fields tab represents the final state of the task’s taxonomy and the point in which any task assets inherit fields and values downstream.

    Assets only inherit labels today.

  • On the Fields tab, fields you add from the task brief are available on the Fields tab for updates (if permissions allow). Updates made to the brief are reflected on the Fields tab, but updates on the Fields tab do NOT change the original state of the brief.

If the Task does have a Workflow with assigned fields:

Workflows provide governance in a task and its downstream activities; it takes precedence over all other inheritance. For that reason, when a workflow is assigned to a task, fields and values from that workflow are applied to the task, overwriting fields and values that came from the work request.  

  • Only those fields and values defined on the workflow are available on the Create Task page, where you can change them (if permissions allow). 
  • Values are combined on multiple selections that are on the workflow and the campaign.
  • Single select fields on both the workflow and the campaign cause conflict modal to appear.
  • On the Fields tab, edits you make on the Create Task screen are finalized and available for update (if permissions allow). The Fields tab represents the final state of the task’s taxonomy and the point in which any task assets inherit fields and values downstream.

    Assets only inherit labels today.