# Playbooks

> Apply a playbook template to a customer, work through its stages and tasks, and manage the owner and team.

import { Steps, Aside } from '@astrojs/starlight/components';

A playbook is a [playbook template](/projects/playbook-templates/) applied to one customer: a fixed series of stages, each with its own tasks. Use it for repeatable work such as onboarding or a renewal run-up.

## Apply a playbook to a customer

<Steps>

1. Go to **Projects › Playbooks** (or the **Playbooks** tab on a customer's page) and click **Add playbook**.
2. Under **Customer**, pick the customer. On a customer's page this is already filled in.
3. Under **Select a playbook**, pick the template.
4. Click **Apply playbook**, then click again on **Apply this playbook?** to confirm.

</Steps>

The playbook starts right away:

- You become its **Owner** (the assigned CSM).
- The first stage begins, and its tasks are created and assigned to you.
- The playbook's due date is the start date plus the estimated days of all its stages.

No template fits? **Add new playbook** in the same window opens the template builder.

## The playbook page

Click a playbook in the list to open it. At the top you see its name, the customer, and a status: **In Progress**, **Overdue** or **Completed**. Below that:

- **Description**, from the template.
- **Owner**, with **Switch** to hand the playbook to someone else.
- **Shared with**: the other members of the playbook's team.
- **Date applied**.
- Counters for **Open tasks**, **Completed tasks** and **Overdue tasks**.

The tabs:

| Tab | What it's for |
|---|---|
| **Tasks** | The tasks of a stage. Use **Previous stage** and **Next stage** to move between stages. Each stage shows **Stage Progress**, days **In stage** and days **Until due**. |
| **Timeline** | All stages and tasks on a timeline, as a **List** or a **Gantt** chart. |
| **Discussions** | Messages for the playbook team. Type `@` to mention someone; they get a notification. |
| **Team** | Who works on the playbook. See [Team](#team) below. |
| **Files** | Files attached to the playbook. **Upload file** adds one. |

## Work through the tasks

- Tick the checkbox on a task to complete it. You're asked for a short completion note; click **No comment** to skip it. Tick it again to reopen the task.
- **Add task** adds an extra task to the stage you are looking at.
- Each task's menu has **Manage** (open and edit it), **Mark as Completed** and **Delete**.

Playbook tasks are assigned to the playbook owner and get **Medium** priority. You can reassign them. For dates, reminders and editing, see [Tasks](/projects/tasks/).

## Complete a stage

<Steps>

1. On the **Tasks** tab, go to the current stage.
2. Click **Complete stage**.
3. Confirm with **Complete**. **All tasks of the stage are marked as completed**, including any still open.

</Steps>

The next stage starts immediately, and its tasks are created. On the last stage the button reads **Complete playbook**: completing it marks the whole playbook completed.

<Aside type="tip">
If the template names a follow-up playbook (*"After this playbook is finished, automatically start this playbook"*), that playbook is applied to the same customer as soon as you complete the last stage.
</Aside>

## Change the owner

Click **Switch** next to **Owner**, pick a person under **Search team member**, and click **Switch**. The playbook moves to the new owner's lists. You can't switch the owner of a completed playbook.

## Team

The **Team** tab lists everyone on the playbook. To add someone, click **Add member**, choose **Team member** (a colleague) or **Customer contact** (a person at the customer), pick them, and click **Add**. Remove someone with the remove icon next to their name.

- Colleagues on the team are listed under **Shared with** and get playbook notifications such as **New message in playbook**.
- Assigning a playbook task to a colleague who isn't on the team adds them to it.
- Adding a customer contact shares the playbook with your customer. See [Share a playbook](/customer-portal/share-a-playbook/).

View-only users can't be added to a team.

## Pin, remove

The menu next to a playbook in the list has:

- **Manage**: opens the playbook.
- **Pin for Customer** / **Unpin**: pins this playbook on the customer. Completing a pinned playbook unpins it.
- **Delete**: *"This action will remove all associated stages and tasks."* If the playbook was shared, your customer loses access first.

## Notifications

Playbooks send these notifications (each one can be turned on or off in [Notification settings](/settings/notifications/)):

- **Playbook Stage Approaches Due Date**: to the owner, one day before a stage is due.
- **Playbook Stage Completed**: to the owner.
- **Tagged in playbook**: when someone mentions you in Discussions.
- **New message in playbook**: to the playbook's team, except the person who wrote it.
- **Task Assigned** and **Task Approaches Due Date**: see [Tasks](/projects/tasks/).