Jobs is a Sortly workflow that lets your team track the items, assets, tools, parts, and materials tied to a specific job, work order, or project, all in one structured place.
Create a job, organize its items, log what gets used as work happens, then close the job and save a permanent record of everything that was used.
In this article
How Jobs works
Jobs lives in the Workflows section of Sortly, on both web and mobile. Each job is a single record that holds its key details and is backed by its own folder, so the materials for that job stay together and separate from the rest of your inventory.
A job moves through a simple lifecycle:
- Create the job and capture its details.
- Organize items into optional subfolders that match how your team works.
- Pull items from inventory into the job as they get used.
- Track progress by updating the job status and item quantities.
- Complete the job and save a permanent record of everything that was used.
Who can use Jobs
Every role can use Jobs. Owners and Admins see every job. Everyone else sees only the jobs they created or were added to as a member.
| Role | Access | What they can do |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | Full | Full access to all jobs. The only role that can delete a job. |
| Admin | Full | Full access to all jobs. Same as Owner but cannot delete a job. |
| Team Member | Limited | Can create jobs and view or update only the jobs they created or were added to. |
| Custom Role | Limited | Same as Team Member. What they can do inside a job depends on their account permissions. |
| Limited Access Seat | Limited | Same as Team Member: create jobs, view and update the jobs they created or are a member of. |
Within a single job, you control each member's access separately. When you add someone, choose whether they can view only or manage items in that job.
Create and run a job
Follow these steps to take a job from setup through to completion. Steps 2 and 3 are optional.
-
1
Create the job
Go to Workflows, open Jobs, and create a new job. Enter job number, dates, notes, and an external job link. A job folder is created automatically. Dates are optional.
-
2
Add subfolders (optional)
Organize items into subfolders by room, stage, or material family. Suggested subfolders are offered to start. Keep, rename, add, or skip them. You can change subfolders any time while the job is active.
-
3
Add members
Add teammates using Edit members. Set each person to view only or manage items.
-
4
Pull items into the job
Use Pull Items to move items from inventory into the job folder, then choose the destination subfolder. The picker shows only this job's folders.
-
5
Start the job
Change the status from Not Started to In Progress. Status is visible in both the job list and the job detail page.
-
6
Track and update items as work happens
You can update quantities and move items between subfolders from two places:
- Workflows > Jobs — open the job and use the Items tab.
- All Items > Job folder — navigate directly to the job folder in your inventory.
Both show the same items and support the same actions.
-
7
Complete the job
Change status to Completed. Return any unused items to inventory or another active job. Only what was actually used stays with the job.
-
8
Your job history is saved
Once a job is completed, nothing inside it can be changed. This gives you a reliable history of exactly what was used, which comes in handy for billing, reviews, and future reference.
Understanding Job Statuses
- Not Started: the job has been created but work has not begun.
- In Progress: the job is underway. You can add items, move them around, and update quantities.
- Completed: the work is done. The job is closed and nothing inside it can be changed.
Only an Owner can delete a job, which sends the job folder to Trash.
Delete a job
If you created a job by mistake or no longer need it, you can delete it. Open the job, click the three-dot menu (...) in the top right corner, and select Delete. You will be asked to confirm before the job is removed.
Deleting a job sends the job folder and all its subfolders to Trash. Any items that were still inside the job folder at the time of deletion will also move to Trash. You can restore them from Trash if needed.
Job Settings
Owners and Admins can configure default subfolders that apply to every new job your team creates. Go to Settings and select Job Settings.
Custom Subfolders
Add subfolder names here to have them pre-populated whenever a new job is created. This saves your team from setting up the same subfolders from scratch each time. You can still add, rename, or remove subfolders on individual jobs at any time.
Using Jobs on mobile
Jobs is fully supported on the Sortly mobile app for iOS and Android. You can create jobs, pull items, update quantities, move items between subfolders, and complete jobs from your phone or tablet. Item movements made on mobile update your inventory in real time and work offline, syncing when you reconnect.
Reporting on a job
All activity that happens inside a job folder is captured in Sortly's standard reports. Go to Reports and filter by the job folder to see data specific to that job.
The two most useful reports for reviewing a job are:
Activity History
Shows a log of every action taken, who performed it, and when. This is the report to use when you want to know who moved an item, who pulled it into the job, or who made a change. Each entry shows the action type (such as Move Item — Added to Job), the user's name, and the item and folders involved.
Transactions
Shows the exact inventory detail behind every movement — quantity change, transaction type, folder, and item price. When an item is pulled into a job, you'll see two matching rows: a positive quantity entry in the job folder and a negative entry in the original folder. This is the report to use for billing, reviewing what was consumed, or reconciling quantities.