Task management

At Kiefa, a facility management SaaS tool, we designed a task management system tailored to the complexities of cannabis cultivation—integrating labor, inventory, and SOPs into a unified platform. The Kanban-style Task Board and flexible Task Editor empowered teams to plan, assign, and track work in real time. By comparing estimated vs. actual labor, the system delivered operational insights that improved efficiency and cost control. Evolving through user feedback, these tools came to power over 90% of daily activity across the platform.

Client

Kiefa

Services

Design, Research

Industries

Cultivation

Date

Jan '23 - Jan '25

Impact

  • +6% increase in technician activity, signaling stronger engagement and feature adoption.


  • Task Editor became the platform’s most-used feature, central to daily operations.


  • Enhanced labor reporting directly supported quarter-over-quarter sales growth from Q2’24 to Q3’24, tying operational efficiency to revenue impact

Task board
Task board
Task board

v2 Task Board + Add Assignee modal

Problem

Early versions of the Task Editor lacked depth—missing critical features for granular data capture, leading to inefficiencies in task management and labor tracking.

We were also maintaining two separate Task Editor experiences:

  • Admins needed robust tools to assign tasks, track labor performance, and record inventory.


  • Technicians had a pared-down view—limited to logging time, noting inventory use, and referencing SOPs.

v0
v0
v0

Beta Task Editor: A right-side drawer UI that enabled users to edit tasks without losing context from the Task Board.

Solution

We took an iterative, research-driven approach—rolling out targeted enhancements based on usability testing and contextual inquiries that surfaced hidden pain points.

Key Improvements



  • Assignee Statuses: Introduced granular status tracking at the individual level (e.g., one tech Paused, another In Progress), enabling more accurate labor insights within shared tasks.




  • Expanded Task Editor Tabs:

    • Consumables: Linked inventory usage directly to tasks, improving cost tracking.

    • Comments & Media: Unified communication and documentation in one space—supporting media uploads, mentions, and in-app alerts.

    • History: Logged task-level changes for better accountability and operational clarity.


  • Responsive Redesign: Reworked the layout to adapt fluidly across screen sizes, ensuring admins and techs could access key workflows on any device.


Each release was tested with real users in their actual work environment, allowing us to validate improvements and prioritize what mattered most.

Editor sketch
Editor sketch
Editor sketch

Initial sketches to improve on beta

v1
v1
v1

Task Editor v1: Introduced a refreshed UI with status dropdowns, detailed work instructions, and per-assignee time logging. Collapsible sections for comments, metrics, and media improved focus and space efficiency.

v2
v2
v2

Task Editor v2: Replaced the drawer with a modal to improve task focus, based on usage patterns. Added task "watching," team lead assignment, a tabbed layout, bulk time tracking, and a side panel for streamlined work instructions.

v3
v3
v3

Task Editor v3: Replaced the side panel with top modules for a cleaner, more responsive layout. Improved accessibility of edit states and bulk actions, while unifying comments and media into a single, streamlined feature.