Skip to main content

Triage the project backlog

Capture proposed work, decide what is ready, and move it into delivery without confusing assignment with execution.

2 min read

Use Backlog for proposed work the team has not committed to yet. It is a normal task status, shown first in the board and list. A proposal can already have an assignee; assignment alone does not make it active work. A proposal assigned to you still appears among your tasks in Home, marked Backlog.

Capture a proposal

Open the project’s Tasks and create a task. Choose Backlog in the status picker; new tasks otherwise default to To do. Give the proposal a title describing the outcome and enough context for someone to decide whether to pursue it.

For example, “Check the mobile checkout error” is easier to triage with the affected page, a reproducible symptom and a screenshot than with a title alone. Leave implementation detail open until the problem is understood.

A project agent with the task-creation tool can also create a proposal. That tool allows initial Backlog or To do status, not a working or finished status. The same boundary applies when an automation uses the project’s task tools.

Decide what happens next

DecisionAction
More information is neededKeep Backlog and explain the missing information in the description or a comment.
The team accepts the workSet To do and choose an assignee.
Work has startedMove to In progress.
The proposal will not be pursuedSet Cancelled, preserving the task’s discussion.

Change status in the task detail or drag the card between board columns. These are the same controls used for other tasks; Backlog has no separate accept or reject workflow.

Hand the task to an agent

Choose an agent from the same project and make the expected result explicit before clicking Start agent. Assigning it does not replace that start action. Use Task automation for prerequisites, progress and review.

Understand where proposals come from

The shipped Triage GitHub issues automation returns a ranked report. It does not create project tasks or fill Backlog automatically. A person or an appropriately equipped agent must turn a selected issue into a task. This keeps the decision to accept work separate from the report that recommends it.

Manage project tasks covers task details, comments, dependencies and the rest of the board.

© 2026 Tale by Ruler GmbH — ISO 27001 & SOC 2 certified.

Tale is MIT licensed — free to use, modify, and distribute.