Setting up basic job stages

1. Overview

Job stages give you a simple, visual way to see where every job is in its lifecycle. Instead of one long list of “open jobs,” you can quickly see what’s waiting to be scheduled, what’s in progress, and what needs invoicing.

This guide covers:

• Why a small set of stages works best
• A simple starting set of stages for most service teams
• How to move jobs from stage to stage
• What to watch for as your volume grows

2. Step-by-step

Before changing anything in the system, decide on paper what stages you want. The best starting point is a small, consistent set — you can always add later.

Step 1 — Use a small starter set

For most service teams, these stages work well:

• New / To review — work that just came in and needs a decision
• Scheduled — approved work with a date
• In progress — currently being worked
• Complete / Ready to invoice — finished work waiting on billing
• Invoiced / Paid — closed out

Step 2 — Create stages in order

Create your stages in the same order you want to see them on the board. The key is to keep the “meaning” of each stage obvious.

1. Open Settings
2. Find Job stages
3. Add stages in the order above
4. Save and confirm they appear correctly

If your business has multi-visit work, you can still start with this set and simply be consistent in how you move jobs.

Step 3 — Create a job from an accepted quote

The most reliable way to get clean data is to always create jobs from accepted quotes.

1. Open an accepted quote
2. Click Create Job
3. Confirm basic details — contact, location, notes
4. Save the job in the first stage (e.g. New / To review)

Step 4 — Move jobs consistently

The board only stays useful if everyone moves jobs the same way. Make one simple rule: “If the work changes state, move the job.”

3. Tips & common questions

Tip: Don’t overbuild early

It’s tempting to create a stage for every possible scenario. Start with a small set and let reality tell you what you actually need.

Question: Should I create stages for every crew?

Usually no. Keep stages about status, not organization. Use tags, assignments, or filters for crew-specific tracking.

Question: What if a job gets stuck?

That’s the point of stages: you can see stuck work quickly. If something stays in the same stage too long, it’s a signal to follow up.

4. What to read next

Once you have basic stages, the next step is learning how to keep jobs clean with notes and files.

• Creating quotes and jobs
• Using notes and files on jobs