Routines and Checklists

Build recurring checklists with rich field types, schedule them flexibly, assign them, and change them later.

5 min readUpdated Today
routinescheckliststasksschedulingcleaningassignunassignfields

What routines are

Routines are the recurring checklists that appear in your staff's app: opening checks, closing procedures, cleaning schedules, temperature monitoring, and anything else you want done on a schedule. Each routine has a category, a set of checklist items, a schedule, and an assignment.

Routine categories

A category groups your routines and gives each one a sensible icon and colour. The built-in categories are below, and you can add your own.

Category

Typical use

Opening

Start-of-day setup and safety checks

Closing

End-of-day shutdown and lock-up checks

Temperature

Fridge, freezer, cooking, and hot-holding monitoring

Cleaning

Cleaning schedules and clean-as-you-go checks

Fire Safety

Alarm tests, extinguisher checks, and drills

Maintenance

Routine equipment and premises checks

Pest Control

Bait station and proofing checks

Training

Learning tasks staff complete (see completion modes below)

Induction

New-starter onboarding steps

Creating a routine

  1. Go to Routines and click Create New Routine

  2. Name it and choose a category

  3. Add your checklist items, choosing a field type for each

  4. Set the schedule and the assignment

  5. Save

Field types

Every checklist item has a field type that decides what staff enter and how it is checked. There are sixteen, split into general fields and temperature fields.

General fields

Field type

What staff enter

Checkbox (Yes/No)

A simple done or not done

Text Input

A short line of text

Text Area

Longer notes or a description

Number

A numeric value

Count

A tally, for example stock quantity

Dropdown Select

A choice from a list you define

Time

A time, for example when something was done

Photo Upload

Photo evidence taken on the device

Signature

A signature captured on completion

Sound Level (dB)

A decibel reading for noise monitoring

Temperature fields

Temperature fields carry the relevant food safety limits, so an out-of-range reading is flagged and raises an alert automatically. Choose the one that matches the check.

Field type

Use it for

Typical target

Fridge / Freezer Temperatures

Chilled and frozen storage

Fridge 0 to 5°C, freezer -18°C or below

Delivery Check

Temperature of stock at goods-in

Chilled 8°C or below, frozen -18°C

Cooking and Reheating

Core temperature when cooking or reheating

75°C core, or 70°C for 2 minutes

Hot Holding

Food held hot for service

63°C or above

Chilling Times and Temperatures

Cooling cooked food down safely

Into the fridge quickly, within your set time

Probe Calibration

Checking a probe reads accurately

0°C in iced water, 100°C in boiling water

Smart fields

A few things make these fields more than a paper form:

  • Equipment linking: link a temperature field to a specific fridge or freezer from your Equipment list, so the reading is tied to that unit and the right limit is applied.

  • Conditional logic: show a follow-up item only when it is needed, for example asking for a corrective action only when a reading is out of range.

  • Automatic flagging: an out-of-range temperature is marked high priority and raises an alert without anyone having to notice it.

Scheduling

Set how often a routine appears:

Frequency

When it appears

Daily

Every day, or only on chosen days of the week

Weekly

On the weekdays you select

Monthly

On chosen days of the month

Quarterly

On chosen months and days

Yearly

On a chosen date each year

Hourly

At a repeating interval through the day

You can also set a start and end window and more than one time per day, so a check can be due, for example, at open, mid-service, and close.

Example: If different cleaning jobs happen on different days, create a separate routine for each day rather than one long list, so staff only see what is actually due.

Completion modes and quick tasks

Most routines simply recur on their schedule. Training and induction routines have two extra completion modes:

  • Recurring: the normal scheduled routine that repeats (the default).

  • One-time completion: staff complete it once and it is permanently tracked, used for an induction step.

  • Recertification required: it must be redone periodically, for example yearly refresher training.

A quick task is different again: a one-off job you raise on the spot rather than a scheduled routine, useful for a "do this now" instruction to a person or location.

Assigning routines

Assign to

Who sees it

A location

Anyone who checks in there, ideal when shifts rotate

A staff group

Everyone in that group, such as Kitchen

Specific people or managers

Only the named individuals

Changing or unassigning later

Assignments are not fixed at creation. Open the routine from Routines, edit the assigned locations, groups, or people, and click Save changes. To unassign, remove the relevant target and save.

If a routine appears twice

The usual cause is overlapping assignment, for example to a location and to a group the same person belongs to, which makes it show up once for each. Open the routine, check the assignments, and remove the overlap. If duplicates persist after that, contact support.

Try Paddl free for 14 days

Compliance, training, and daily operations in one platform. No credit card required.

Start Free TrialView all features

Related Articles

Operations

Recording Deliveries & Traceability

Record deliveries with temperatures and batch detail so you can trace stock and act fast on a recall.

Operations

Documents and Staff Sign-Off

Upload policies, require staff signatures, track sign-off, and let AI extract key data from what you upload.

Operations

Knowledge Hub and Ask Paddy

Build a searchable knowledge base that powers Ask Paddy, the AI assistant your staff can ask anything.

Operations

Staff Training & Compliance

Assign training modules, run assessments and certificates, manage renewals, and read the compliance matrix.

Back to Operations