Your Comprehensive
Workflow Guide
What Is a
Workflow?
A workflow process is a predictable and repeatable set of tasks between two or more people or systems.
A workflow is a sequence of approvals and inputs where each task is dependent on the previous one being completed.
Workflows are one of two main parts of a process; the other is the form that captures the data to be processed. The form is the 'What' of a process and the workflow is the 'How'. Read More
In a manual workflow, data has to be passed back and forth between people. This could mean handing a paper form to someone, or sending an email. The sender must remember whom to send the data to and push it directly to them.
What Is an
Automated Workflow?
In an automated workflow, as soon as someone is finished with a task, the system knows exactly whom it should go to next and takes care of transferring the data. It’s like a conveyer belt that goes around in a specific path and people just pick the tasks that has their name on it.
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What Are the Advantages of an Automated Workflow?
A manual workflow is slow, prone to errors, often bottlenecked, difficult to measure, and lacks an audit trail.
Automated workflows give:
Faster processing
Fewer errors
Better tracking
Detailed reports
Reduced costs
Automated workflows can also delegate many trivial jobs to machines so humans can be more involved in strategy and innovative projects. If you use cloud workflow tools, your processes can be blazing fast, globally accessible, and more secure than ever before.
How To Model an Automated Workflow?
Workflow management is the process of digitally modelling the tasks in a workflow and creating the appropriate connections. Here are a few things to keep in mind as you model a workflow.
01
Create Every Task in the Process
02
Define Task Owners
03
Determine Permissions
04
Set Deadlines
Create Every Task in the Process
Some tasks might happen simultaneously and some might happen conditionally.
Define Task Owners
You can create deadlines and SLAs for each task that include when notifications occur.
Determine Permissions
Figure out what data a task owner needs in order to complete a job.
Set Deadlines
You can create deadlines and SLAs for each task that include when notifications occur.
How Do Workflows Help With Digital Transformation?
Without automation, digital workflows are just replica of a paper trail. If you are looking to reap the benefits of digital transformation, make the shift away from manual, paper-based workflows to an automated world. Read More.
Businesses that leverage automated workflows achieve:
greater agility in their operational capacities
service-driven intelligence in their strategies
increased efficiency and innovation
How Workflow Automation Glides Across the Board?
At its core, automation offers same results to every team - efficiency, control, and accountability. But at a department-level, it might seem like a tailored recipe made to suit your team’s unique tastebuds.
What Types of Automated Workflow Tools Are There?
If you are looking at workflow tools, you may be amazed at how many different types there are or how a workflow process can look different in different systems.
There are three main types of workflow tools.
Human-Centric Workflow Tools
Workflows that use a human-centric tool often have a lot of approvals or tasks that need human involvement. These workflows might have automated tasks, but they still keep humans at a higher pedestal.
System-Centric Workflow Tools
System-centric workflow processes involve high interoperability between multiple systems; they are also known as integration-centric BPM, or IC-BPM. They focus on how different systems communicate and perform tasks.
Document-Centric Workflow Tools
These workflows are popular among businesses that place high value on documents, such as law firms, financial institutions, contract management companies, healthcare agencies, engineering firms, etc.
Top 10 Features Every Workflow Tool Should Have
When it comes to offering features, not all workflow tools are made equal.
Here’s an overview of the 10 most important features that your workflow system should have.
1. User-Friendly Process Designer
Instead of only programmers, everyone in your organization should be able to create their own workflows.
2. Simplified Form Builder
A good workflow tool includes plenty of fields to choose from, a drag-and-drop designer, and a clean layout.
3. Deployment On Cloud
A cloud workflow tool costs less, has no maintenance, is more agile, and is more secure than on-premise options.
4. Built-In Reporting
The best workflow tools come with reports you can customize to track any item, user, or task with a click.
5. SLA Status Indicators
SLAs keep your processes on track and a workflow tool should let you configure deadlines and urgency.
6. Real-Time Notifications
Customizable automated notifications will keep participants on the same page and alert them of new tasks.
7. Flexibility in Creating Processes
Some workflows can be complicated and require formulas, conditional steps, and parallel branches.
8. Role-Based Access Control
For confidentiality and security, you should be able to make data fields editable, read-only, or invisible.
9. Integration Capabilities
A workflow tool should have easy connections to common platforms and open APIs for custom integrations.
10. Easy Pricing
Choose an option that you can pay on a monthly amount to get lower prices and a consistent spend.
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