Everyday AI · Module 6

Count with a rule another person can repeat

Suggested time: 6 minutes.

Define the calculation before asking for a total. The numerator is the part you are counting as complete. The denominator is the whole group you are comparing it with.

Our rule is:

• Include every distinct agreed or required task in the named snapshot, once.
• Exclude repeated copies, decisions and unaccepted suggestions.
• Keep tasks with missing owners, deadlines or statuses in the denominator.
• Count a task in the numerator only when its mapped review status is Complete.
• Report missing-status tasks separately; do not call them definitely unfinished.

This denominator is a choice for the question we are answering, not a universal rule. A different question could use only tasks with known status, but it must name that different group and disclose the exclusions. If a future pack contains unresolved conflicting statuses, state in advance whether those tasks remain in the denominator and what evidence qualifies a task for the numerator. Do not silently choose the treatment that gives a more favourable percentage.

The percentage is:

Completion percentage = number of tasks recorded Complete ÷ number of distinct included tasks × 100.

Round the final percentage to one decimal place. Keep the whole-number counts visible; they let a reviewer reproduce the result. Use a calculator to verify the division and multiplication after checking which rows belong in each count.

Worked calculation using W6

W01, W02 and W03 are three distinct tasks. W6.4 is a repeated mention of W01, W6.5 is a decision, and W6.6 is a suggestion. Only W01 maps to Complete.

• Numerator: 1 completed task, W01.
• Denominator: 3 distinct tasks, W01 to W03.
• Calculation: 1 ÷ 3 × 100 = 33.333…%, rounded to 33.3%.
• Missing status: 1 task, W03, included in the denominator.

Weak report:

“The workshop is 50% ready.”

It drops the missing-status task, giving 1 ÷ 2 = 50%, and then overstates what the number measures. Even a correctly calculated task percentage would not establish overall workshop readiness.

Better report:

“One of the three distinct tasks is recorded Complete, or 33.3%. One task has no recorded status and remains in the denominator.”

Quick pause: Why does a blank status stay in this denominator but not enter the completed count?

Worked mini-case C6 Conflicting status before the capstone

Use this complete fictional snapshot only. One row is one distinct task ID. Exclude Archived tasks from the completion denominator and open-work list. Include missing or conflicting current statuses in the denominator, but count Complete only when the applicable sources agree. List every current task not confirmed Complete as open work; describe an unknown or conflict without calling it unfinished.

Neither C6.3 nor C6.4 overrides the other. There are five source rows, four unique IDs and three current tasks. C01 is confirmed Complete. C02 is unknown, and C03 is conflicted; both remain in the denominator. C04 is excluded. The figure is 1 ÷ 3 × 100 = 33.3%, rounded to one decimal place.

Open work contains C02 (status not provided) and C03 (Complete versus In progress, unresolved). Its two rows answer “what needs attention,” while the three-task denominator answers “which current tasks were counted.” Do not replace one selection with the other.

Pause and calculate: if authorised clarification later confirms C03 Complete, what changes? The denominator stays three, the numerator becomes two, completion is 66.7%, and only C02 remains on the open-work list.