Utilizing technology and associated tools to execute repetitive organizational tasks by streamlining, optimizing, and mechanizing them is workflow automation.
Workflow automation abstracts the manual steps in any repetitive business process. Doing so provides enhanced efficiency, productivity, and increased speed of process execution in an enterprise.
Typical business processes are:
Diligent workflow automation is the solution to overcome the inefficiencies and impediments in manual workflow execution.
Workflow automation works by harnessing software or tools to automatically execute manual processes. It streamlines, optimizes, and reduces the turnaround time of processes in an organization.
Stakeholders get deeper insights into processes, and get more visibility into their responsibilities.
Due to reduced redundancies, you can improve the organizational efficiency.
You can accomplish more tasks in less time. This greatly improves personnel's throughput.
Shorter turnaround times increase customer satisfaction, as their requests and organizational transactions get processed sooner.
Streamlined processes mean boosted profits.
You need a methodical approach to workflow automation. Merely automating the steps in a process will not suffice. There are some practices to adhere to for workflow automation to be effective.
Let's take a look at some of the best practices for workflow automation.
Workflow automation can be feasible and effective only if the organizational processes are clearly and thoroughly understood. You need a deep understanding of the following:
1. Inputs and outputs: Each workflow consists of a set of inputs and their corresponding expected optimal outputs. You need to identify these and exactly specify them while automating workflows.
2. The transitional stages in workflows: From inception to completion, a workflow will have multiple stages in it. You need to define these stages clearly, as they govern the process flow within a workflow.
3. The approvers involved: The stakeholders for each workflow can approve or reject the transitions between workflow changes, and are responsible for determining the flow of a workflow.
An understanding of the organizational processes will assist in the creation of efficient, productive, and optimally automated workflows.
A sketch or a brain map of the workflow will assist in the proper visualization of it. Once the automation team maps out the workflow from start to finish, they will have an idea of:
Who the approvers are
What the transition stages are
What the required inputs will be
What the expected output will be
The frequency of workflow execution
Mapping out the workflows in this way is one of the best practices in efficient workflow automation.
Only when the users of the automated workflows can execute it without a hitch or without much training required can you deem the effort to be sustainable. This requires empathy on the part of the team that automates the workflow. From a user perspective, you need to consider the following:
You need to ensure that you answer this question: Does the automated workflow meet all the process requirements? This includes the below factors.
You need to test the automated workflows with users before deployment for two reasons. The first is to assess whether the workflows execute as intended. The second is to ensure that you get the proper feedback from the users. This will permit the removal of missing requirements or unwanted process bloat in workflow execution after automation.
Any workflow which after automation brings with it additional effort is an exercise in futility. The intent is the simplification of processes, not to bring in additional complexity. An optimally automated workflow is one that gets executed in as few steps as possible.
Empathizing with users will ensure the creation of efficiently and optimally automated workflows. The users’ perspective on how to automate the workflows will be invaluable, as they are the intended beneficiaries of the entire effort.
Multiple departments in an organization, such as IT, human resources, finance, pre-sales, sales, and marketing, will each have their own requirements. It’s essential that you segregate workflows by department to avoid overlaps and process conflicts. Segregating workflows by department for effective workflow automation comprises:
Once you categorize the workflows by department, then you can automate them easily. This process improves efficiency and saves time.
When the workflows are visually mapped out, well-defined, and segregated by their respective departments, then comes the phase of automating them.
There are several ways to accomplish workflow automation.
This software is prebuilt for specific workflow automation use cases. It has the advantage of being easily available, however you cannot customize it according to your organization’s unique business requirements. Buying off-the-shelf software from a particular vendor will also lock you in with the vendor’s technology stack and product repertoire. If you want to upgrade or change your automated workflows, you will have to contact the vendor, which will entail additional investment of time and money.
This is the process of automating your workflows from the ground up. This method, though it provides a bespoke automation solution, has the following disadvantages:
Low-code platforms make the entire process of automating workflows very simple.
Low-code means the usage of minimal coding to automate workflows and streamline business processes.
What are the advantages of low-code platforms?
To learn more about the on-premises-based AppCreator low-code platform, click here.
Workflow automation brings unparalleled efficiency to the table. Implementing it on a low-code platform like ManageEngine AppCreator is a win-win choice to improve the speed of workflow automation as well as to reduce operational expenditure.