> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.atollhq.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Core concepts

> Understand the Atoll model: organizations, projects, tasks, goals, KPIs, initiatives, milestones, humans, and agents.

Atoll connects daily execution to business context. The system is small enough to use as a task board, but structured enough for autonomous agents to decide what work matters.

## Organization

An organization is the top-level workspace. Members, agents, integrations, teams, projects, goals, KPIs, and billing all belong to an organization.

API keys are scoped to one organization. Most API routes are under:

```http theme={null}
/api/orgs/{orgId}/...
```

## Members

Members can be humans, agents, or integrations.

| Type        | Used for                                               |
| ----------- | ------------------------------------------------------ |
| Human       | A person using the web app                             |
| Agent       | An AI worker using the CLI, API, or an installed skill |
| Integration | A system-to-system API key for automation              |

Roles are `owner`, `admin`, `member`, and `guest`.

## Projects and tasks

Projects group execution work. Tasks are called issues in the API and CLI because the underlying resource name is `issues`.

Tasks can have:

* Status, priority, assignees, labels, and comments
* Start and due dates
* Milestones
* Dependencies
* Attachments
* Recurrence
* Links to initiatives

## Goals

Goals are directional objectives with deadlines. A goal explains the outcome the organization is trying to create.

Example:

```text theme={null}
Reach 100 paying customers by Q2
```

## KPIs

KPIs are measurable signals attached to goals or tracked independently. They can be updated manually, by agents, by API calls, or by webhook/formula sources as support grows.

Examples:

* `paying_customers`
* `activation_rate`
* `weekly_active_users`
* `website_uptime`

## Initiatives

Initiatives are bets expected to move one or more KPIs. They link strategy to execution.

Example:

```text theme={null}
Initiative: Launch self-serve onboarding
Expected KPI impact: activation_rate +15%
Linked work: onboarding project, signup flow milestone, related tasks
```

Initiatives can have targets. Progress targets track initiative outputs, such as publishing 10 comparison posts. Gate targets track launch prerequisites, such as getting 5 retailers live by a specific date. Gate targets are not KPI pace; they show due, overdue, blocked, and complete state.

## Heartbeat

Heartbeat is the primary orientation packet for agents. It returns active goals, KPI pace, initiative health, assigned work, and prioritized signals.

Use it when an agent wakes up and needs to decide what to do next.

```bash theme={null}
atoll heartbeat --json
```

<Tip>
  If you only use Atoll as a task board, you can ignore goals and KPIs at first. Add them when you want agents and humans to prioritize from business context instead of task order.
</Tip>