Action Tracking user guide

Type: User Documentation 20-Jan-2022 | Valdas Piekus

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Action Tracking

This document outlines the information required to access the Pims Action Tracker System and perform such tasks as inputting actions and approving actions, tracking progress, and reporting.

Pims Action Tracking is an electronic tool to facilitate the capture, approval, distribution and communication of project actions. It does not replace the need to establishing proper protocols or behaviors of action management. This document outlines the information required to access the Pims Action Tracking module and create action folders (called Sources) and raise actions.

Definitions and abbreviations

Action
A non-routine request or activity that requires formal, documented close-out and approval
Action Source
Sources or Processes initiating an action or multiple actions e.g. Formal Safety Assessments, Management of Change, Team Meetings etc.
Action Source Register
The storage and retrieval location of all Action Source Registers
Change
Any change that affects an agreed set of principles, i.e. Basis of Design (BoD), Statement of Requirements (SoR) and frozen design conditions
Event Type
Event Types define the event which has occurred that has resulted in one or more actions. Types of Events can be HAZOP, Peer Review, Minute of Meeting, etc.
Form
An individual numbered document held in Pims. A form may be a Risk, Action, MoC or an IR form, which is submitted into the system
Module
A specific module within Pims, i.e. the Action Tracking module
HSSE
Health, Safety, Security & Environment
IR
Interface Request
MoC
Management of Change
S&OR
Safety and Operational Risk

Accessing the system

To be able to view Action Tracking forms a user must either be an Admin or have access to Action Tracking for the Project.

Permissions

  • Global Admins can view all forms.
  • Portfolio Admin can view all forms.
  • Project Admin can view all forms.
  • Super users can view all forms.
  • Normal users can view forms they have the corresponding Confidentiality Level and Delivery Line access to.
  • Users can always view forms where they are nominated to sign.

Navigation

Action Source register is accessed from the Pims menu. Click the "Action Sources" menu item, and you will be taken to the register.

Common functionality

For information about common functionality please refer to the Common Functionality user guide.

Setup & Settings

Some settings allows each project to define individually. Admins can access this setting from the "Settings" option in the register. Ref. Action Tracking settings user guide.

Note: When using the Action Tracking settings admins must make sure that they are standing in the correct domain. The settings applied will only apply for the domain they are currently standing in.

Action Source Register

An Action Source if a folder / grouping of actions from a common heritage. Action Sources can be created manually e.g. "Minutes of Partner Meetings", "HAZOP", or are generated automatically when action is raised in one of the other Pims modules, e.g. "Actions from Risk Form 1". An action source contains one or more action forms and more actions can be added at any time.

The hierarchy is:

  1. Action Source Register - this is where all action sources are stored.
  2. Action Source - is the parent storage location of a particular action form.
  3. Action Form - is a digital form used to input and manage an individual action.

For information about the general functionality of the register please refer to the Registers user guide.

New Action Source

Pressing this button generates a pop up for you to create a new action source, once created you then have the ability to raise actions against that source

  1. Press "Add New" in the register.
  2. From the drop down menu select the Project the Action Source register is related to
  3. From the drop down menu select the applicable Delivery Line
  4. From the drop down menu select the applicable Event Type
  5. Type in the Title of the Source Register
  6. Press Save
    • On pressing "Save" you will automatically be taken into the Action Register to add actions against the source.

Action Register

The Action Register contains a list of ALL actions raised in Pims. Depending on your access rights you will see all, some or no actions.

The Pims action register negates the need for the project to maintain a separate list of actions.

  1. There are two hyperlinks in the register
    • Action No - Pressing this will open the form of that individual action
    • Source Title - Pressing this will take you to the source register
  2. Where the Target Close-Out Date has not passed the Days Overview column will register a negative number, e.g. if the action is due in 7 days you will see -7

For information about the general functionality of the register please refer to the Registers user guide.

Navigation

Action register is accessed from the Pims menu. Click the "Actions" menu item, and you will be taken to the register.

New Action

Pressing this button generates a pop up for you to create a new form

  1. Press "Add New" and you will see the below pop up
     
  2. Select the Action Source from the drop down menu
  3. Input the Action Title
  4. From the drop down menu select the required level of Confidentiality. A person with a lower level of confidentiality setting will be able to see an individual form if nominated in the form to perform work. The system does not give a warning if a nominated user would not otherwise be able to see the form
  5. From the drop down menu select the applicable Delivery Line
  6. Press "Ok"
    • On pressing "Ok" you will automatically be taken into the form for you to input the required information.

Create Similar

This allows you to raise new actions which are similar to actions which have already been raised. So select the relevant action in the Action Register first and then press the Tasks button and then press the Create Similar button, which will pop up the below:

This pre-populates a lot of information for you based on the action you have selected to Create Similar from, but you can edit if needed

On pressing Ok the form will be opened in initial step with info pre-populated also from the original action.

Move Action

From here you can move the action to a different source within the same domain.

Workflow - Action Tracking

Toolbar

The buttons that are available in the toolbar depends on the users access. For more information please refer to the Common Functionality user guide.

Header

The AT header displays general information of the Action Tracking.

Header Data
  • Title - The form title entered by the originating person
  • Status - The current status of the form. Current Pims status options for Actions are:
    • Proposed - Initial status set when action created.
    • Raised - Action has been agreed as valid action and issued to the Action Owner to implement the action and update the form.
    • Pending Approval - The action has been completed by the Action Owner and issued to the Action Approver(s) for their review / approval.
    • Closed - All Approver(s) has accepted the action and the action is closed. No further activity on the action can be performed.
    • Moved - Action has been closed and moved to a different Action Source. Once moved the old action cannot be reopened.
    • Void - Action is no longer required and no further activity therefore required.
    • Superseded - Form has been superseded by a new revision.
  • Action No. - A unique number assigned to the form.
  • Date Originated - Date the form was created in Pims.
  • Target Close Out Date - This is the identified date that the action is required to be closed by, based on information supplied further down in the form.
  • Revision - Current revision of the form.
  • Originating Person - Person who entered the form into Pims.
  • Originating Company - Company associated to the Originating Person in Pims.
  • Responding Company - Primary Company associated of the nominated Action Owner.
  • Priority - The assigned action priority of the action, based on information supplied further down in the form.
  • Progress - Identifies which section in the form is currently live.

Section Headers

Each Section Header can be clicked to expand / collapse the section.

Unless otherwise stated, on the completion of each section, all information within each section will be locked down.

Step 1. Action Description

Status = Proposed

This is the initial section of the action in Pims. It is here the Originating Person is required to describe the action, assign the Owner and Approver(s) and set a Target Close-Out Date.

Fields
  • Source - No input required. Automatically populated by Pims. This is not the same as the Action source. It is the Pims module that the action was created in, e.g. CDR, MOC, or Risk. If the action was not originated in another Pims module this field will populate as "Action Tracking".
  • Source Number - No input required. Automatically populated by Pims. This is the number of the Pims Action Source where the action form was originally generated. This creates a history between the individual action and the originating cause/event.
  • Source Title - No input required. Automatically populated by Pims. This is the title of the Pims Action Source where the action form was originally generated.
  • Target Close-Out Date - Calendar selection. This is the date by which the action is required to be closed by. It is this date that Actions are performance managed against, therefore it is critical the the correct Target Close-Out Date is identified, which takes into consideration the need for the Owner and Approver(s) to sign off within this date.
  • Key Milestones - Multi-option selection. If applicable select one or more Key Milestones from the drop down menu.
  • Stand Alone Description - HTML editor. Provide a detailed description giving enough information to complete the actions, without having to refer to the source. The description needs to be stand alone because the Action Owner may not have access to the Source document / module, e.g. the Action may have resulted from a confidential risk, or it was generated from a document outside of Pims, e.g. Minutes of Meeting. To assist the user the Action Title will auto-populate in the Stand Alone Description box and can be edites as required. The description here needs to provide enough information that it is clear to the Owner exactly what is expected of them to complete the action and submit for approval.
  • Data Required - HTML editor. Identify any data or information that needs to be provided as part of the response, e.g. updated drawings, tags, database, etc.
  • S&OR Implications- Tick box. The user needs to decide whether the action has S&OR implications or not, and select accordingly. Default value (yes or no) can be configured in setup.
    • For actions that have a S&OR implication the Action Owner / Approver cannot be the same person.
    • By hovering over the control a tooltip is available to provide guidance information to help you decide if the action has S&OR implications or not.
  • Primary Affected Discipline - Drop down selection. From the drop down select the Discipline most affected / linked to this action. This information is collated for reporting and performance management tracking.
  • Primary Affected Delivery Line - Drop down selection. From the drop down select the Delivery Line most affected / linked to this action. This information is collated for reporting and performance management tracking.
  • Primary Affected Activity - Drop down selection. From the drop down select the Activity most affected / linked to this action. This information is collated for reporting and performance management tracking.
  • Primary Affected Company - Drop down selection. From the drop down select the Company most affected / linked to this action. This information is collated for reporting and performance management tracking.
  • Owner - Drop down selection. The Action Owner should be the person best placed to implement / respond to / coordinate the response to the action. All Pims users with access other than read only can be chosen as a potential action owner.
  • Confidentiality - Drop down selection. You will notice a value already appears in the box, this is because a level of Confidentiality is applied when the form is first raised. Here you have the opportunity to edit the Confidentiality (and thus limit who can see the form). Confidentiality access is linked directly to a person`s user account. Users can see forms of that confidentiality level and below. A person with a lower level of confidentiality setting will be able to see an individual form if nominated in a role on the form. The system does not give a warning if a nominated user would not otherwise be able to see the form.
  • Priority - Drop down selection. The default Priority is set in Pims Global Administration for Action Tracking. This value can be edited by opening the drop down menu and selecting a new value. Priority is selected based on the criticality of the action and not the proximity of the target date. 
  • Approvers - Multi-option selection. As a minimum, every action requires at least one Approver. Local Project requirements or type of action (e.g. HAZOP response) may require multiple approvers. Pims does not have logic driven default approval selection. It needs to be set manually based on the scope and impacts of the action. The Project Action Procedure should maintain a list of required approvers by source type. Approvers should have appropriate experience / knowledge to be able to validate the correctness of the response. Action Approver is a “business role” in Pims. Users need to be given this role setting in their Pims account in order to be listed in the drop down section.
  • OMS Sub Element - Multi-option selection. If applicable select one or more OMS Sub Elements from the drop down menu. 
  • Associated References - Pims gives the option to reference any project documents that are applicable to the form without adding a copy. As a minimum the document number and revision should be included.
  • Attachments - Add option pop-up. By pressing the Upload button when in a form, an attachment can be added to the form through the pop up that appears on screen.
Signature

Drop down selection and Submit button. Here the Originating Person has one option:

  • Submitted - All required fields have been completed and the form will forward to the next step.
    • On sign off the status of the form will change to Raised

Step 2. Detailed Response

Status = Raised

In this step the Action Owner fully documents the response to the action. And action response is not de facto approval to implement a change.

Fields
  • Target Close-Out Date - Calendar selection. Content is copied down from previous step. This is the date by which the action needs to be closed by, i.e. the work is complete, the Owner has signed off and the Approver(s) have signed off too. From time to time the Target Close-Out Date of an action may change due to revised project priorities. In such instances a request should be made to the appropriate responsible person to request the date be changed.
    • The Action Owner does not have the required access rights to make this change.
    • Any changes to the Target Close-Out Date shall be discussed with the required person(s), who have the authority to make the change, i.e. Originating Person / Approver.
    • Only administrators and super users can make the actual change.
  • Priority - Drop down selection. Content is copied down from previous step. The Owner has the ability to edit the Priority from within this step (thus the original Priority is recorded and locked in the previous step). Any updates here should be discussed with the Originating Person / Approver and agreed first before making the change.
  • Response Comment- Comment control. It is the responsibility of the Action Owner to insert a comment to describe the work done. Other team members should also use this section to record any contribution that they want to make that is relevant to the action or response. The response should include information such as:
    • Identify any "primary" / "critical" documents that were updated as a result of including their Number, Title, and Rev.
    • What was the actual work done.
  • Associated References - Pims gives the option to reference any project documents that are applicable to the form without adding a copy. As a minimum the document number and revision should be included.
  • Attachments - Add option pop-up. By pressing the Upload button when in a form, an attachment can be added to the form through the pop up that appears on screen.
Signature

Drop down selection and Submit button. Here the Action Owner has two options:

  • Submitted- To the best of your knowledge you have provided a complete and accurate response to the action. Selecting this will move the form to the next step for approval and close out
    • On sign off the status of the form will change to Pending Approval
  • Recycle- This option should be selected if there is either insufficient information to proceed. It is good practise to discuss with the Originator prior to recycling. Selecting Recycle will return the form to the Originator and reopen the previous step
    • On sign off the status of the form will revert to Raised

Step 3. Action Approval and Close Out

Status = Pending Approval

Here the nominated Approver(s) review and approve the Action Response. In doing so the Approver endorses the Response is correct and that it has adequately answered the question, if not they can recycle the action back to the owner for further work

Fields
  • Comments - Comment control. Comments should be included if they provide further supporting information, to document any contribution from other team members or to provide an explanation if the action is recycled.
  • Approvers - Multi select option. It may be appropriate to add or change approvers selected in previous sections. It is good practise to keep the number of approvers to a minimum whilst ensuring the correct people are assigned and have the necessary expertise to approve / reject the response. As a minimum, at least 1 Approver is required to Approve the Action. If all approvers are deleted PIMS will generate an error message.
    • To edit the approvers list press "Edit" to the right in the Signature box, and from here apply necessary changes.
Signature

Drop down selection and Submit button. Here the Action Approver(s) has two options:

  • Approved- The Approver is confirming that the response is validated / technically correct
    • When all Approvers have signed, on sign off by the final approver, the action is closed and the status of the action will change to Closed
  • Recycle- This option should be chosen if the response is not validated / technically correct. The response will be returned to the action owner in previous step for editing or to provide additional information. This should only be selected after discussion with the Action Owner and inserting a comment in the comments field
    • On sign off the status of the form will revert to Raised
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