The Time period field type allows you to configure and easily use certain date ranges across airfocus. Learn how to add the Time period field and its benefits.
Adding a Time period field
Navigate to the Fields tab in your Workspace Settings (or Team settings if this is a field you’d like to use across multiple workspaces) and click "+ Add field".
There are two preset options in the Add field dialog:
- Time period: Select this for any kind of time period.
-
Sprint: Select this for a pre-created configuration for sprints.
Time period
Selecting this option adds the current quarter, plus the next three, by default. This is completely configurable - edit these to create semesters, trimesters, or whatever other time period you work with.
After one time period is entered, the system will automatically detect the length, and when you add subsequent time periods, the start and end dates will reflect this length accordingly.
Here, we have renamed our field to "Quarters" and added another quarter - Q2 2025 - where the system automatically suggested start/end dates. Happy with this, we click "Add field".
Note: You can select multiple time periods for a single item. This is particularly useful for initiatives spanning multiple quarters or semesters. For example, an item can be assigned to both Q1 and Q2 simultaneously, eliminating the need for duplicate items.
Sprint
Selecting the "Sprint" preset instead, we are taken to the same screen as above, except with some differences preconfigured:
- There are two time periods configured, called Sprint 1 and Sprint 2
- The duration between start/end date is two weeks (again, auto-detected and configurable)
- Enable iterations is checked
Enable iterations: What it does
Enabling iterations lets you organize your Sprints into clear time periods that can be marked as Active or Completed.
Active: Current work in progress.
Completed: Finalized sprints stored for reference.
This feature streamlines task management by making it easy to move items between intervals and stay organized across multiple sprints.
Using a Time period field
General use
While time periods are similar to date range fields, they carry some additional benefits:
- Time periods specific to your company context can be created and managed in one place. Conversely, currently with date range fields, you have to manually define the start and end date.
- Board columns can be configured based on Time period fields.
- It is possible to group by time periods.
- It is easy to update items from one time period to another.
How Time Period fields enhance your workflow and apps
Capacity planning
Time periods are a cornerstone of the Capacity Planning app. Capacities for various resources can be forecasted and planned for specific time periods. For example, below is a team that is planning the number of Days allocated to certain features per Quarter.
Sprint planning
Story points (and any other resources) can be added to items and organized into their respective sprints for effective planning. With iterations enabled, Sprints can be set as "Active" or "Completed", and items can easily be moved between each.
Current limitations of Time period fields
Each of these things below are on our radar to address.
- Not mappable for integrations.
- Time periods for the Objectives app need to be created and managed separately within the Objectives app settings.
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