Product Idea / UX UI Design
Dato
Documents archive, file manager, task manager, mailbox, and company chat... all are in Dato.
Product Idea / UX UI Design
Dato
Documents archive, file manager, task manager, mailbox, and company chat... all are in Dato.
Overview
Dato is a web application that is helpful with systemizing document flow, tasks, and project management for different field companies like law, construction, trading, service providing, IT, and others.
Dato is everything in one place. No need to use several applications for building the work process in the company.
In Dato is available the work with files. There is integration with popular Google apps and KeyNote, and the possibility for file uploading. Users can export their .doc to .pdf file, sign and share it with colleagues or send by e-mail.
Section Folder of Dato is a flexible tool. It can be used like an e-archive, for example for agreements. At the same time, in Folders users can systemize their projects, or it can keep information about staff, which is useful for the HR department. Different companies decide what is the better way to operate with this tool.
Dato Task manager will help to control the work process in a company, and Dato Chat to communicate between employees.
Let's see every section in more detail.
Dato is everything in one place. No need to use several applications for building the work process in the company.
In Dato is available the work with files. There is integration with popular Google apps and KeyNote, and the possibility for file uploading. Users can export their .doc to .pdf file, sign and share it with colleagues or send by e-mail.
Section Folder of Dato is a flexible tool. It can be used like an e-archive, for example for agreements. At the same time, in Folders users can systemize their projects, or it can keep information about staff, which is useful for the HR department. Different companies decide what is the better way to operate with this tool.
Dato Task manager will help to control the work process in a company, and Dato Chat to communicate between employees.
Let's see every section in more detail.
Folders
Imagine a company with around 20-50 employees. For example, a construction engineering company. So there are the administrative department, legal department, accounters, engineers, purchasing and sales department. They have very different tasks, but every work for one goal, and everyone has to know some information about the construction project, contract, or personnel assigned to the project, or material resources. So they should go to each other and request the information, look for it in a physical archive or in different applications.
Dato provides a tool Folders to organize documentation in the company. A folder it's an entity that can be used as a folder to archive files, or like a section for Project management, or like an archive of any company information.
Find out how it works below.
Dato provides a tool Folders to organize documentation in the company. A folder it's an entity that can be used as a folder to archive files, or like a section for Project management, or like an archive of any company information.
Find out how it works below.
Folder settings and new folder
So, an employee of the legal department of Company X has a lot of contracts with customers, agreements with subcontractors, service companies, etc. Some of them are sent by email, some are hard copies, some are pdf files and part are just drafts. One day Company X implemented the workflow Dato web application. The employee's responsibility now is to create an e-archive of the contracts. He created scan copies of paper contracts, collected drafts, and signed contracts, and uploaded everything to Dato.
In the section Folder he created the folder Agreements. And add for the folder the set of attributes, that helps him to work with the archive. These attributes are columns' names in the table for added items. He, with his colleagues, decided what are the attributes.
The first column is named Contragent. The employee decided it should be a necessary field, so switched on the toggle for the field. Colleagues discussed that it would be nice to create a list of contragents (they will do it using Folder tool as well), so the field Contragent has selector type.
Besides that attribute, the employee added 5 more attributes.
Attribute ID assigns to the item automatically. Column files in the table is a system and do not set up in the Folder settings.
Also, the department decided to use statuses for the items in the folder. Because it will help to understand the progress of the agreement. Is it still a draft, or already signed document or closed.
Statuses can be applied not only for folders, but they can also be used for tasks, so this tool user can set up in the section Settings.
Created folder user can share with the colleagues like his department that with any person in the company.
By this logic, Dato users can create a folder for any type of information. For example, Projects can consist the attributes: Project name (input type), participants (selector type — list of company staff), customer (selector), start and finish (date).
In the section Folder he created the folder Agreements. And add for the folder the set of attributes, that helps him to work with the archive. These attributes are columns' names in the table for added items. He, with his colleagues, decided what are the attributes.
The first column is named Contragent. The employee decided it should be a necessary field, so switched on the toggle for the field. Colleagues discussed that it would be nice to create a list of contragents (they will do it using Folder tool as well), so the field Contragent has selector type.
Besides that attribute, the employee added 5 more attributes.
Attribute ID assigns to the item automatically. Column files in the table is a system and do not set up in the Folder settings.
Also, the department decided to use statuses for the items in the folder. Because it will help to understand the progress of the agreement. Is it still a draft, or already signed document or closed.
Statuses can be applied not only for folders, but they can also be used for tasks, so this tool user can set up in the section Settings.
Created folder user can share with the colleagues like his department that with any person in the company.
By this logic, Dato users can create a folder for any type of information. For example, Projects can consist the attributes: Project name (input type), participants (selector type — list of company staff), customer (selector), start and finish (date).
Actions with items
- add a new item like a new row of the table;
- quick edit of an item in the table;
- change status (click on the status cell and select the right one in the dropdown);
- add and remove files (to every item can be added up to 10 files);
- view an item and move to another folder.
File manager
There is no company now that would not work with e-files. Contracts, instructions, account tables, presentations, photos, etc.
Dato allows users to upload files from the computer and share it inside the company or add files to any folder using folder attributes, or send them by email.
Research showed that many companies use google apps for their work. The most popular apps are docs, sheets, slides, and forms.
That's why these applications are integrated into Dato.
Take a look some features of File manager in Dato.
Dato allows users to upload files from the computer and share it inside the company or add files to any folder using folder attributes, or send them by email.
Research showed that many companies use google apps for their work. The most popular apps are docs, sheets, slides, and forms.
That's why these applications are integrated into Dato.
Take a look some features of File manager in Dato.
What interesting users can do with a file
Except for common actions, like opening, renaming, duplicating, and downloading Dato users can:
- move them to another Folder (in Dato Folders have special attributes for archive systemizing, read about that in the section Folders);
- sign and save files as pdf.
- Move to folder
In the first step, the user should select the folder where to move the file. Folders in Dato have different attributes, which the user can set in a folder setting. In the second step Dato suggests creating a new item in the folder. In that case, the user should fill the item attributes. Or the user can add the file to an existing item. Here he has to find the item using ID or attributes.
Item in the folder it's like a package of documents.
For example, a company has a contract with Company Y, and this contract has a file with the contract draft in .doc format, signed contract in .pdf, and some specifications in .jpeg. So the user can create one item in a folder for this package of files.
Item in the folder it's like a package of documents.
For example, a company has a contract with Company Y, and this contract has a file with the contract draft in .doc format, signed contract in .pdf, and some specifications in .jpeg. So the user can create one item in a folder for this package of files.
- Sign and save file as pdf
Dato provides the possibility to convert a file to .pdf format and put the document user's signature.
This tool can be helpful for signing contracts, invoices, letters, or even construction plans of work (a drawing).
The user creates a signature using a computer mouse or touch bar and drags and drops it to the field of the file.
No need to download the file to the computer, then paste the signature, convert it with any other application and upload a new file.
So it saves time and the user can immediately share it in Dato, add it to a task, put it in a folder (e.g. Projects), or send it by email to a client.
This tool can be helpful for signing contracts, invoices, letters, or even construction plans of work (a drawing).
The user creates a signature using a computer mouse or touch bar and drags and drops it to the field of the file.
No need to download the file to the computer, then paste the signature, convert it with any other application and upload a new file.
So it saves time and the user can immediately share it in Dato, add it to a task, put it in a folder (e.g. Projects), or send it by email to a client.
Tasks
To continue the story about Company X, let's take a look how they work with tasks.
So, an employee can see a list of tasks that he created and the all task, open for him.
In a new task, he should fill the task title and start/end dates.
Task status by default will be To Do (the system takes it from the settings, where is a default preset of statuses for tasks). A user can change the name of the statuses there).
Optionally the user can add a task description, connect the task with an item in a folder (if there are files they will be shown in the section files) and user can attach any other file as well.
The task can be divided into subtasks, which can be assigned to any executor assigned to the main task. If there are no assignees, then the task is on the creator.
Users can use filters for easy searching in the task.
So, an employee can see a list of tasks that he created and the all task, open for him.
In a new task, he should fill the task title and start/end dates.
Task status by default will be To Do (the system takes it from the settings, where is a default preset of statuses for tasks). A user can change the name of the statuses there).
Optionally the user can add a task description, connect the task with an item in a folder (if there are files they will be shown in the section files) and user can attach any other file as well.
The task can be divided into subtasks, which can be assigned to any executor assigned to the main task. If there are no assignees, then the task is on the creator.
Users can use filters for easy searching in the task.
Mailbox and company chat
Dato has a mail client that allows to connect different accounts and work with user's mails inside Dato. Also Dato provides company chat to quick connection between coworkers. Chat is separate section, but can be open like modal window over any section of Dato.
Settings
At the moment the section allows add/edit/delete users, setting up roles for users, to fill in information about the company, to change the order of the menu items, and to manage sets of statuses for tasks and folders, there are more features in under the development.