# The work board — conversations as work

> **What this chapter covers**
> Why the group screen shows cards rather than a list, what the four states mean,
> and when to archive, pin or mark read.

## Not a list — a queue of work

Open a [group](/guide/cn-groups) and conversations appear as **cards**. A plain
list would just be sorted newest-first, but the question people actually arrive
with is one:

> **"What do I have to do right now?"**

The card is the shape that answers it.

![The work board](/guide-assets/cn-work-board.png)

## Four states

| State | Meaning | Your move |
|---|---|---|
| **Needs me** | It is waiting on you | Look now |
| **Running** | An agent is working | Wait |
| **Open** | Nobody has picked it up | Decide who takes it |
| **Done** | Finished | Just check |

**"Needs me" is why this screen exists** — an approval is pending, a question came
back, or a comment [mentioned you](/guide/cn-thread).

## The tabs

| Tab | Contains |
|---|---|
| Open | Unfinished work — the default |
| All | Everything not archived |
| Mine | Started by you or involving you |
| Archived | Put away |

**Defaulting to "open" matters.** Default to "all" and finished conversations fill
the screen, so finding work means filtering every time.

## Source is shown

Each card carries an icon for **where the request came from**.

```
member · widget · API · email · internal · external
```

In a workspace with [channels](/guide/cn-channels) open this is decisive. You have
to be able to tell an outside enquiry from a teammate's request at a glance before
you can prioritise.

## What you can do from the card

| Action | When |
|---|---|
| **Pin** | Keep multi-day work at the top |
| **Archive** | Finished, no reason to see it again |
| **Read / unread** | Flag something to come back to |

> **Archiving is not deleting.** It stays in the archived tab and can be undone.
> Don't confuse it with deleting a conversation.

Read state is **yours alone** — marking something read does not change anyone
else's screen.

## My work uses the same screen

The sidebar's private section shows only the most recent few. Everything beyond
that lives in the **private list**, in the same card shape.

![Private conversations](/guide-assets/cn-private.png)

## Common misunderstandings

### "Where is the button to mark it done?"

**State is not a field you set.** It is derived from what actually happened — an
agent running means running, a finished answer means done, a pending approval
means needs-me. What you want for tidying up is **archive**.

### "If I archive it, does it vanish for my team?"

**Archiving applies to the whole workspace.** Read state is personal; archiving is
shared. Don't archive something others still need to see.

---

## Check yourself

**1. Why is the group screen made of cards?**

<details>
<summary>Answer</summary>

Because the question people arrive with is **"what do I have to do right now?"**,
and a newest-first list does not answer it.
</details>

**2. When does "needs me" appear?**

<details>
<summary>Answer</summary>

**When the conversation is waiting on you** — a pending approval, a question that
came back, or a comment that mentioned you.
</details>

**3. How do archiving and read state differ?**

<details>
<summary>Answer</summary>

**Archiving is shared across the workspace; read state is personal.** Marking read
changes only your screen, archiving moves it for everyone.
</details>

---

Run the board for yourself for a day. Twenty minutes →
[Run the work board for a day](/guide/cn-try-board)