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Create Item Summary

TL;DR: Create a task at the item level titled “Create Item Summary” or “Create Expanded Summary” and assign it to AVA. She will generate a clear, structured summary of the record—and, if expanded, include related items for full context.

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Written by AVA
Updated over 2 weeks ago

Overview

The Item Summary Assistant converts complex Podio item data into a readable, structured HTML report that combines both narrative explanation and quantitative insight.


Its purpose is to help users and auditors quickly understand the history, content, and analytical status of any record—without having to manually interpret every field, comment, or linked relationship.

This assistant supports two operating modes, each triggered by the task title or action:

Mode

Task Title Example

Focus

Scope

Standard Summary

“Create Item Summary”

Single item view

Summarizes one record’s fields, comments, files, and activity.

Expanded Summary

“Create Expanded Summary”

Multi-item contextual view

Includes relationships, patterns, and analytics derived from related records.

The final summary is written to the Item Summary field within the Podio item. If that field is not already present, AVA will create it automatically before updating it with the generated summary.

How to Use It

  1. Create a Podio Task

    • Assign it to AVA.

    • Title it either “Create Item Summary” or “Create Expanded Summary.”

  2. Add Optional Instructions
    You may specify focus areas or calculations directly in the task’s description.
    AVA dynamically adjusts the output to your request, including:

    • “Calculate totals for all cost-related fields.”

    • “Show comment statistics.”

    • “Summarize relationships across related apps.”

    • “Highlight record health and activity metrics.”

  3. Wait for Processing
    AVA reviews all available data from the Podio item (and related items if applicable), calculates insights, and generates the HTML summary.

  4. View the Results

    • The formatted summary appears in the Item Summary field.

    • A confirmation comment appears on the task, describing what was analyzed and added.

Dynamic Analysis and Calculations

AVA supports a wide range of analytical operations that can be explicitly requested within the task description or inferred automatically based on field types.

Supported Calculations and Metrics

Category

Description

Example Output

Totals and Counts

Adds numeric or monetary fields and provides summary totals.

“Total project cost: $85,400”

Averages and Ratios

Computes averages (e.g., per record, per phase) or ratios.

“Average task duration: 4.2 days”

Durations and Date Intervals

Calculates record age and time since last modification.

“Record active for 127 days; last updated 3 days ago.”

File and Comment Metrics

Counts attachments, authors, and activity volume.

“18 files attached; 72 comments by 5 contributors.”

Cross-Record Patterns (Expanded Mode)

Identifies trends across related records or apps.

“17 related tickets; 82% resolved within 30 days.”

User-Directed Analytical Focus

Users can direct AVA to emphasize specific types of analysis by including terms like:

  • Totals or Sum → aggregate numeric or monetary fields.

  • Average or Mean → compute average values.

  • Trend or Change Over Time → summarize chronological progression.

  • Health, Stats, Metrics, or Ratios → highlight record performance.

  • Compare or Correlate → identify relationships or proportional differences (when cross-record data exists).

Summary Modes

Standard Summary (Single-Record Focus)

In this mode, AVA focuses entirely on one record’s information.
It provides:

  • A narrative description of the record’s content and purpose.

  • Summary of key fields (status, owner, stage, category).

  • Highlights of recent comments and major activity.

  • File and attachment statistics.

  • Analytical metrics derived from numeric or date fields.

  • A list of recommended next steps and any missing or incomplete data.

Standard summaries are ideal for single tasks, clients, or assets that do not require context from related records.

Expanded Summary (Cross-Record Context)

Expanded summaries include everything in the Standard Summary, plus additional data from linked items.
They identify relationships and cross-app patterns, such as:

  • Volume and type of related records (e.g., linked tasks, inspections, invoices).

  • Repeated statuses or categories among related items.

  • Aggregated comment or file activity across relationships.

  • Detection of recurring trends (e.g., frequent follow-ups, unresolved cases).

  • Relationship distribution by app (top linked apps or entities).

Expanded summaries read like a full project overview—ideal for leadership reports, audits, or AI-based knowledge extraction.

HTML Summary Structure

Each HTML summary includes the following sections:

  1. Header — <h2> title identifying the summary type.

  2. Main Narrative — A contextual overview describing the record and activity patterns.

  3. Data Insights — Key metrics, totals, and computed analytics (auto-included when data is sufficient).

  4. Recommended Next Steps — Practical suggestions or follow-up actions.

  5. Assumptions or Missing Information — Clear disclosure of data gaps or inferred details.

  6. Signature Line — Attribution identifying the creator (for example, “— AVA AI, Podio Assistant”).

All HTML output is clean, semantic, and compatible with Podio’s text-area rendering.

Dynamic Behavior

The assistant automatically adapts its summarization style and analysis depth based on:

  • Data richness: Larger payloads trigger more condensed summaries.

  • Task complexity: Analytical keywords expand the Data Insights section.

  • Mode selection: Expanded mode includes relationship analysis; Standard mode does not.

  • Focus hints: If “budget,” “hours,” or “communication” is mentioned, AVA emphasizes that topic throughout the narrative.

Output Details

Each execution produces two deliverables:

  1. summary_html — A complete, valid HTML fragment structured for display within Podio.

  2. task_comment — A short, professional comment confirming the summary creation.

Example Comment (Standard Mode)

I reviewed this item’s fields, comments, files, and relationships and added a structured summary to the item’s summary field.

Example Comment (Expanded Mode)

I reviewed this item’s fields, comments, files, and related records across connected apps and added an expanded summary to the item’s summary field.

Error and Failsafe Handling

If minimal data is available:

  • AVA still generates a structured summary with all required sections.

  • The Assumptions section lists missing or incomplete components (e.g., “No comments available,” “No relationships provided”).

  • If numeric data is requested but unavailable, AVA notes the limitation rather than inventing values.

  • Output remains fully valid HTML with all required section headers.

Recognized Task Titles

The following task titles will automatically trigger this assistant:

  • Create Item Summary

  • Create Expanded Summary

  • Generate Summary Overview

  • Summarize Record

  • Summarize Relationships

  • Create Analytical Summary

Purpose and Value

The AVA Item Summary Assistant helps teams transform raw Podio data into actionable insight.


Its narrative-driven summaries make complex records easier to understand, audit, and act upon.


By supporting embedded analytics, contextual relationships, and automated field updates, it forms the foundation for ThatApp.io’s broader Agentic AI and RAG-aware automation ecosystem—bridging human comprehension with intelligent system learning.

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