Preparing for Process Automation

If you are moving from a manual to automated process, it is important to identify every task that is completed within a given process. Although a given task may not be represented in the workflow built into Integrify, it is still part of the process in some fashion and all responsible parties will need to understand what is required of him/her when they are assigned a task to complete in Integrify.

Documenting the process does not require the use of special tools or costly software (any word processor or spreadsheet will do).

Workflow Creation at a High Level

1. Sketch out what you believe the process currently looks like
2. Include any people/positions that have a place in the workflow
3. Include touchpoints/forms/data entry places

The following example is just a bulleted list of the steps a company needs to put into place for an approval process when employees make purchases. The workflow proceeds as follows:

Example: A Purchase Order Request

• An employee will start the Purchase Order Request and be taken to the first task which
  is the P.O. Request Form. The requester will enter information about the
  item(s) that need to be purchased, such as the type, quantity, and cost.
• Once the P.O. Request Form is complete, the requester’s manager is assigned the task,
  Manager’s Approval. In this task, the manager will choose whether to approve the
  request, deny the request, or ask the requester to revise the form.
• If the manager denies the request, the manager is taken to a form to the task, Manager
  Deny Comments to explain why the request was denied.
• Alternatively, the manager may request more information from the requester and in that case, the manager is taken to the task, Needs Revision Comments where the manager describes
  the additional information needed, then the original form is assigned to the requester to
  update.
• If the manager, instead, approves the request and the order is for less than $10,000, the flow
  proceeds to the task, Approval Notification, which sends out an email to the requester
  notifying them that the request was approved. After the email is sent the purchasing
  department receives the task Purchasing Dept. Form where they enter in the
  information about the order that was placed.
• If the manager approves the request and the order is greater than $10,000, the CFO is
  given the task, CFO Approval where the CFO can either approve or deny the request.
• If the CFO approves the request, the task, Approval Notification sends out an email
  notifying the requester that the order was approved.
• Once the Approval Notification task completes, the task, Purchasing Department is
  assigned to the purchasing department and they complete a form indicating the order and
  shipping information.
• After the purchasing department competes the Purchasing Department form, the task,
  Order Placed Notification is started which send an email to the requester informing
  them that the order has been placed.
• The workflow will end if either the manager or the CFO rejects the request, or when the
  Order Placed Notification is sent out.

Once the steps have been documented, it is very helpful to have a visual representation of the process flow. If you have Microsoft Visio, using it will be the easiest way to create a workflow chart. If you do not own a copy of Visio, Microsoft Word’s “AutoShapes” will let you draw simple shapes and arrows. There are also many freely downloadable programs to create drawings such as Dia (https://wiki.gnome.org/Apps/Dia ) or UML Pad (https://umlpad.jaleco.com/).

Below is a Visio diagram for the purchase order example that we will use:

Now that your process has been well defined and you know what tasks are required within your workflow, it is recommended you record, at a minimum, the following additional attributes for each task:

• Task Name
• Task Type/Purpose
• Recipient(s) - The group or individual(s) responsible for completing the task
• Start Rules - The conditions indicating when the task should be assigned / is applicable.

You can create a simple chart like the following to have on hand while you are building your process:

Other items you might want to consider for each task might be:

• Verbiage/text for email notifications for each task requiring user interaction, including any data values contained in them that should be retrieved from the workflow
• Rules or conditions that might drive a subsequent task (if/then)
• Will the task be repeated if the next step dictates it? (for instance, a rejection or re-work needed)

Now that have a well-defined process it is time to socialize it.

Socializing the Documented Process

Call a meeting (virtual or in person) for all individuals listed in your sketch.

1. Display what you have sketched out to the team
2. Go over the process in detail from what you know
   1. Ask for clarification on steps, forms, and people/positions if what you have sketched is either incorrect or missing information
   2. Acknowledge that each group or individual is the subject matter expert (SME) of the task(s) they are to be assigned within the workflow
3. Document all the changes with information learned & distribute to team members.

Repeat the above, including new team members, if needed, that were not included in the original workflow as known to you.

Documents & Details Gathering

Meet individually with each person in the workflow to understand what their part in the workflow consists of.

1. Get a copy of the form(s) or screenshots of any data entry that is done for each step
2. Take note of any potential overlaps, bottlenecks or dual data entry points that you notice

Workflow Finalization & Implementation

1. Create the workflow within Integrify
2. Call a meeting with the entire team to go over the workflow at a high level
3. Individually or in group sessions, conduct training for each step
4. Celebrate & Go Live!