VOLUME 1, NUMBER 2 | SUMMER 1998
The term workflow is being used in every area of business, from shop floor to executive suite. Here�s why you should care.
by Tom Inglesby
What is workflow? Work we all understand. Flow might remind us of rivers and streams. Workflow could therefore be thought of as the movement of work, like the water in a river, from one place to another in a continuous flow. However, like many rivers, there are rocks along the way, representing points of transaction, that disrupt the flow and slow the pace of our information river. In some extreme cases, they cause a rapids effect, totally upsetting the ship, i.e., our company. If we can smooth the flow by removing the bumps and rocks in our way, we can create an even movement of work or, in the digital age, an even flow of information. The technique to do this is workflow, and the method of achieving it comes packaged in the best software systems.
Workflow is not a new concept, nor is it industry specific. For example, besides manufacturing, workflow concepts are being used successfully in such fields as healthcare. Doctors are able to streamline patient care, manage disease prevention and handle clinical care delivery better by utilizing these methods. They, too, use software systems developed to implement the concepts of workflow.
In fact, the Delphi Consulting Group defines workflow in terms of the software systems that implement the process. They use two criteria: application type and development environment. Applications are divided into mail-enabled, document-based and process-centric while the development environments are ad hoc, transaction-based, object-oriented or knowledge-based.
According to Hugh Green, president of New York-based Image Consulting Group, another definition identifies the types of workflow. There is the production version, which deals with predefined processes; the coordination or collaboration method that focuses on organizing and facilitating group work; the administration variation that deals with internal operational processes; and the ad hoc style where the information is user-directed and typically used only once.
If we draw similarities between these two definitions, the one common term, at least, is ad hoc. Ad hoc systems tend to be best used in projects that are unstructured or have limited structure and those that have a temporary nature. In many cases, these will be project-oriented and both the members of the team and the information itself will be different in each subsequent project.
When the project is more tightly structured or repeated, the production methodology of workflow surfaces. As the formal approach favored by many companies, it is best applied where information must pass from one person or team to another in the same pattern regardless of the project. This is found in the more regulated industries where an audit trail for every aspect of the production or process must be available for each product or project.
But defining the term workflow this way is not very fulfilling since we still aren't sure what the flow carries along. Green finds that workflow provides the connectivity tools to manage, organize and distribute specific business tasks and the associated, required information needed to complete those tasks successfully. This flow of tasks and information might include images of documents, video and any number of information media, including multimedia.
So in reality, workflow is a modern method for passing information from source to user in a continuous stream of data. It is analogous to passing paper from person to person to get opinions, review and comments, leading to authorization and signing off on the information contained on that paper. In our fast-moving communications world, paper has been supplanted by digital images, either in the form of text or graphics, that are passed around by means of network systems, not interoffice envelopes.
Ovum, a United Kingdom-based consulting firm, sees the use of computers for workflow as being a very logical application of technology toward automating business processes. In a recent report, Ovum noted that the key elements of any workflow system are that it matches people and tasks, provides information resources for those tasks, offers process design, implements process management techniques, and manages the scope of the project.
If we consider workflow to be an adjunct to the normal flow of information, then it makes sense to acknowledge that the root of workflow is the document. This appears in the definition of workflow generated by the Workflow Management Coalition (WfMC), an international group in the U.K. They say, "Workflow management consists of the automation of business procedures during which documents, information or tasks are passed from one participant to another in a way that is governed by rules or procedures."
To implement workflow in silicon requires a method to replace paper trails with electronic ones. Jon Leslie, workflow product manager for DataWorks Corp., a San Diego-based ERP vendor for mid-range companies, sees the value of software in workflow as being the way to electronically map and control business processes by mapping those processes directly to the software. "We have combined the best methods from process-oriented workflow with the collaborative or groupware approach as represented by Lotus Domino or Notes," Leslie explains. "We support documented tasks or events and collaborative document sharing in a process-related, task-oriented environment where we are routing actual tasks throughout the company, not just documents."
|
ORCHESTRATING PROCESSES |
|
In the course of any given day, information, knowledge and materials must be collected, organized, routed, disseminated and acted upon to deliver any type of product or service. Whether a company sells insurance, designs chemical plants, manufactures sporting goods or manages investment portfolios, a series of carefully orchestrated processes must occur for work to be accomplished. That's workflow. — Karl Doyle, FileNET Corp. |
Workflow software products have evolved from many diverse sources, including systems for image management, document management, relational and object databases, and e-mail. Regardless of their origins, the systems propose to provide benefits in the way of improved efficiency by automating many business processes to eliminate unnecessary steps, and better control over the processes by standardizing the work methods. By making the processing of information more consistent, workflow techniques and systems tend to improve customer service because there are now more predictable levels of response to customers.
Indeed, in many cases, there were no standards employed by companies to deal with customer service prior to implementing workflow. Again, the system used was the ad hoc method � whatever it takes to solve the immediate problem. Each customer service representative acted in his or her own way. Workflow techniques help define the company methodology for this important function, and management can be assured that responses are similar in similar situations.
Everybody who needs information, or needs to modify information, has access to it through workflow technology, Leslie observes. People can work on the same document simultaneously by means of checklists that tell the user what tasks are required. "Our system is much more intelligent than a paper document," he explains. "It can bring the proper work to the user, the data necessary to accomplish the task, and the application or module needed. This is a big step forward from the common application interface of menus. It means no more hunting and pecking your way through menu after menu to find what you need. With our workflow engine installed, you have a ready queue or in-tray � much like the Microsoft Exchange inbox � but instead of getting e-mail messages line by line, you get your tasks or check lists, line by line. These are the things you need to work on during the current work period. Every time you complete a step, the screen increments the status so you, and any other member of the team who is working on the same project, can see the status and the next steps.
"This is a whole new methodology where we are getting away from the menu system into more of a push system," Leslie continues. "The idea is to push the work to the user while giving the user the tools to accomplish the tasks being assigned at each stage."
One DataWorks user is Michelle Lee of Silicon Wireless, a manufacturer of spread spectrum wireless equipment in Mountain View, Calif. Lee is implementing workflow in the Avant� system the company installed in 1997. "We are currently working on an ECO (engineering change order) system that will provide an on-line form for each stage of the approval cycle," she says. "Engineers and managers can check the document, review the change and authorize it. There will be no need for meetings and interfacing in person unless a significant disagreement is found.
"This will be particularly important for us," Lee continues, "since many of our managers and engineers travel extensively. It's hard to impossible to get documents reviewed and approved with important members of the process out of town. The electronic workflow system allows people on the road to review and approve documents on their laptop via e-mail."
Silicon Wireless is developing the metrics they will use to assess the success of their workflow project. "I expect to see more time efficiency," Lee claims. "I'm going to measure time on the actual procedures we implement. We can measure the time it takes to accomplish a task now and compare it to the online time with workflow implemented. Since several agencies � the FCC, European and Canadian regulatory agencies, Underwriters Laboratory � require us to have solid audit trails, that will be an important part of what we hope to get from the software system."
There is an additional challenge facing Silicon Wireless and its workflow implementation. "We are going through the ISO 9000 certification process while we are implementing workflow," Lee notes. "That's actually a good thing because we can see how workflow helps our quality efforts. ISO 9000 requires extensive documenting of all systems, and workflow is just what we need to meet that requirement. We're going faster on the ISO certification process because we have workflow."
The next step in workflow development is a move toward a more customer-centric business model where the Internet is the focal point. The vast connected virtual enterprise called the Internet or World Wide Web holds both awe and delight for technologists. What it holds for business is another thing. Companies can offer more service, more support and more choice by enabling their workflow system to access and become part of the Internet. This gives the customer and supplier sides of the supply chain an entry point to the information queue. Instead of reviewing documents, these trading partners pull down information about their orders, about the orders being placed against them, and the status of manufacturing in general.
The extension of the enterprise onto the Internet means that there will soon be no limit to the number of rocks in the flow of information. All the more reason to implement workflow techniques and technologies to smooth them over and make the flow of work a rapid, rushing river of productivity, not a whitewater rapids with danger lurking at every turn.
Tom Inglesby is the executive editor of Evolving Enterprise.
| Evaluating Workflow Characteristics |
By Karl Doyle Workflow automation requirements at the enterprise level require the integration of production, ad-hoc and e-mail-oriented workflow solutions for specific requirements. Workflow-enabling applications will not be enough to satisfy productivity-conscious organizations. The intelligent management of workflow will rise to the top of the list as the prime directive of workflow solutions. Specifically, workflow will be an invaluable asset by being responsible for the achievement of optimum productivity throughout the enterprise. All workflow products have five basic characteristics that should be evaluated independently:
Information Assembly. Information assembly is the function of making the necessary documents, notes and data available to each user in a workflow process, and to the workflow software. The techniques vary widely in different workflow software solutions. One of the most significant characteristics to watch for is the ability to support any data type: image, COLD (Computer Output to Laser Disk), video, audio, word processing files, mainframe data and spreadsheets. The other characteristic to be aware of is how data communication is handled. This may be done via the management of queues between different systems or packaged into a single item in object-oriented software solutions. The benefit of object packaging is the reduction of network traffic for communicating data as well as the ease of management. Work Routing. One function common to all workflow solutions is the routing of work to users. The variety of techniques seems endless � from e-mail to shared databases. Work can follow a sequential path, a series of manual selections by each user, or dynamic rule-based routing calculated at runtime. Work can be routed to an individual user, a group of users or a shared queue supporting a specific user task, server process or device. Work needs to be returned, rerouted, delegated or shifted to special priority or exception handling routes. Application Integration. Individual actions in a work process may involve many computer applications and human actions spread over a range of platforms, from common desktop applications to client/server databases to host-based legacy systems. Workflow software that actively integrates these applications into a process, allowing them to function in a coordinated manner, provides much more value than messaging services alone. Many products support multiple development environments or communications interfaces � such as Microsoft's Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) or Object Linking and Embedding (OLE) � but some do not, so be cautious. The wider the range of applications that can be integrated will dictate an easier implementation now, and it will usually protect against future obsolescence as new development and communication standards evolve. Workflow. The greatest benefits of workflow software come from its workflow capabilities. These capabilities include tracking, reporting, modification and administrative functions. "Where is my loan application now?" or "What's still missing?" are questions a customer service representative can answer immediately over the phone. Abilities such as dynamic load balancing to smooth out the peaks and valleys of volumes of work or seasonal factors should be easily monitored and modifiable. Customization. Workflow software is either packaged as a set of tools and services for application developers or as customizable turnkey solutions for end users; ideally, both methodologies should be offered. Packaged tool sets can be more attractive short-term but quickly fall short of expectations, because nearly every organization has unique requirements. Look for tools that can be easily customized but also have most of the basic functions packaged for rapid implementation. Intelligent Workflow. A new level of management control is achieved by combining all data, process instructions and status into a single work object that can be managed throughout the enterprise-wide information system. It parallels the benefits of manual workflow methodologies combined with those of classic automated production workflow into a whole new realm of automated workflow. The intelligence is in the packaging and communication of work. The workflow is in the easy assembly of component software (business tasks) into an automated business process. The management capabilities provide the ability to analyze, report and modify instances or selected groups of these work objects in real time. Workflow automation is a process, not a project. More than 50 percent of all productivity increases will likely be a direct result of the ability to react to required process changes in an expedient manner. Minimizing the time to deliver automated workflow becomes paramount to a successful implementation and to insure that the automation satisfies current business requirements. Benefits of a successful workflow implementation in a corporation are enormous because of the broad reach of this technology to manage business process productivity. The best way to measure the return on investment for a workflow automation project is to track actual costs associated with business processes before and after workflow automation. Costs involving development, time to market, support, implementation, training, modification, reporting and management are just some of the variables that can be tracked in both manual and later automated methodologies. Direct savings will be specific to design goals and actual implementation, but overall benefits will be realized by both IT and Line Of Business management. The benefits to IT include:
|
| Automate Or Stay Flexible? |
Information lies at the heart of any business. Manufacturers realize that they are not making enough use of information that they already hold. How far should a manufacturer's administrative procedures be automated by means of software? It's not easy to judge. Some might say "as far as possible." Admittedly, the likely benefits are impressive: increased speed of transactions, reduction of paperwork, improved visibility of current processes and traceability of historical activity. However, as with other types of automation, there's a downside: it's hard to change � either now, if flexibility is required, or in the future, if processes change. There's also, by definition, a surrender of control to the system. In addition, modeling a company's internal transactions, authorizations and overall workflow is not simple. Particularly in larger companies, this knowledge is likely to be spread around various departments (although firms with ISO 9000 will have compiled a procedures manual). When moving from paper-based to computerized systems, companies are usually advised to take the opportunity to revisit their processes, rather than producing a computerized replica. This is because computers can do things that paper-based systems can't; for example, exception reporting means managers don't have to trawl through run-of-the-mill work to find tasks that require their attention. Also, if processes are flawed, automation may speed them up, but won't improve them. Most MRP II packages come with numerous modules for different parts of the business. These are popular, as they interface directly with the core system, and also contain an element of workflow management. However, this generally needs to be set up by the vendor as part of the implementation; any amendment usually requires reprogramming by the vendor � and further reprogramming when upgrading to a new release. One company which believes it has cracked this problem is DataWorks. The current release of its Avant� manufacturing software contains a package called Workflow. This routes information around a company according to rules set by the user. Consider an example: an engineering change suggestion from the shopfloor. This is passed to the engineering manager's Workflow in-tray. He reviews it, and decides it's worth implementing. But others need to be involved; it involves buying a new component, so the purchasing manager needs to evaluate its feasibility. It would also require reworking some of the existing stock, so the inventory manager's approval is needed. And while they don't need to take any action yet, it's probably worth warning the planning department. Once these first reviews are completed, the system alerts the engineering manager. He can then set the change order in motion: Engineering clerks are triggered to update the revisions of the products affected and update the bills of material; purchasing, inventory control, manufacturing and accounting departments update their systems to take account of the engineering change, and issue their approvals. Workflow alerts the engineering manager as soon as all these approvals have been obtained, or it can prompt him to chase them up. In this example, some actions are chosen by the engineering manager (such as which departments to consult), and some happen automatically (such as the alerts that all the approvals have arrived). Because the user models the process, the Workflow system can be set to exactly the level of human intervention required � and the user can choose how quickly to apply the system across the company. Workflow also automatically takes users to the part of the main system that they need to access or update so navigation is greatly simplified. As well as managing the flow of work, the system records what has happened, ensuring full traceability � an important aid in complying with quality management systems. One early user of Workflow is Flight Refueling, which manufactures aerospace equipment at its site in Wimborne, Dorset, in the U.K. It is using the package to support a number of business process changes, including the introduction of cell-based manufacturing. It is also looking to Workflow to improve its management of customer-facing activities; it expects the system to be able to allow system and procedures to be modeled painlessly as changes occur in the future. |
Web Site © Copyright 2020 by Lionheart Publishing, Inc.
All rights reserved.
Lionheart Publishing, Inc.
2555 Cumberland Parkway, Suite 299, Atlanta, GA 30339 USA
Phone: +44 23 8110 3411 |
E-mail:
Web: www.lionheartpub.com
Web Design by Premier Web Designs
E-mail: [email protected]