What does workflow management mean and what advantages and challenges does your company face?
Workflow management – this buzzword covers measures that you can use to make everyday work in your company more efficient. Digitalization also helps improve work processes in this area.
You can optimize processes in your company through standards, process automation and software support. In this article you will learn what workflow management looks like in practice. We also show how we at redIT can help you with implementation.
What exactly is Workflow Management?
The term workflow refers to all work and business processes in a company. Workflow management is therefore about managing these processes. Management follows a clearly defined structure and transfers this to the individual processes.
This starts with defining a process. Workflow management first analyzes the process and determines the start and end points of it. The next step is to consider all possible intermediate steps. It is then identified which actions start or trigger a workflow. This creates a flowchart for the individual processes in your company.
The actual management of the workflows then begins. This phase is about finding digital or automated alternatives for the respective processes. The overarching goal is to replace processes that currently take up a lot of manual working time with digital, i.e. automated, solutions.
What are the goals of workflow management?
The goals of workflow management are the following:
- Digitization of manual or analog operations/processes
- Improving the quality of business processes
- Unification of processes and business procedures
- Increasing flexibility in business processes
- Shortening of processing times and lead times
- Increasing the transparency of business processes
- Increasing the availability of information
- Reduction of costs
Workflow management in detail: This is how the optimization of a process works – a concrete example
The procedure for workflow management becomes clear using a concrete example. It's about all kinds of messages and mail that arrive at the company every day. In addition to digital messages such as internal chat or emails, there is still classic letter mail. The entire inbox is therefore viewed as a single workflow.
Workflow management begins with capturing all possible routes of messages. This ranges from emails to letters that reach the office by post. Workflow management offers a solution that combines all news channels in one digital inbox.
The first step in setting up digital inbox is to provide a messaging system. It contains a personal account for each of your employees. Then the integration of all news channels takes place. For digital messages such as emails, this can be solved quickly via interfaces.
There are also solutions for digitizing classic correspondence. The aim is to digitize incoming mail directly and transfer it to the system. We offer a complete solution for this. In the video below you can see how we use artificial intelligence to process and digitally distribute mail for our customers.
However, workflow management does not end at this point. Internal delivery of messages is another aspect that can be automated. The system scans the contents of incoming messages. On the one hand, this is used to forward the message to the respective recipient.
On the other hand, the digital inbox is also able to categorize the messages. This is helpful for forwarding general messages directly to the right place. For example, such systems recognize that it is an invoice. The system forwards this to the accounting department using artificial intelligence.
All workflow management solutions work according to this concept. Analysis is followed by centralization and automation.
What are the advantages of digital inboxes?
The advantages of one digital inbox show up very quickly in practice. First, all news is available in one central location. This saves time by eliminating the need to check multiple inboxes and channels. At the same time, it prevents employees from neglecting or even overlooking messages.
Another advantage is that all news is now available regardless of location and at any time. The storage takes place in the Cloud. Every employee has permanent access to their own digital inbox. This is particularly advantageous for classic correspondence. Without a workflow solution, employees would have to collect the letters personally from the office and process them manually. This makes it possible to integrate the home office at the same time.
Another advantage that should not be underestimated is that you can do without a classic paper tray. On the one hand, this saves space, and on the other hand, you also meet all legal requirements regarding archiving and retention requirements.
What is also accelerating significantly is the search for old processes. The often hours-long search through file folders is no longer necessary. Instead, you can search for data, keywords or other factors. You can find processes within seconds.
What advantages does workflow management have in practice?
Workflow management offers the following advantages for your company:
- Time savings through fewer analog and manual work steps
- faster processing times through optimized processes
- Access to data from anywhere and at any time through digitalization and the cloud
- Saving space by eliminating an archive
- high transparency because all work processes are recorded
What is a Workflow Management System?
A workflow management system (WfMS) is a software that takes over the implementation of the goals. There are a number of commercial products designed for this task. The WfMS is not necessarily the software solution that is ultimately used for the digitalization of processes. Rather, the software primarily handles the analysis and design of planned workflow processes.
These platforms usually have a graphical user interface. It makes it possible to get an overview of a specific business process. The individual processes from start to finish are graphically entered - including other possible paths.
Based on this model, the software solution is modeled. Workflow management systems come with their own applications. They can be used to design workflow concepts that can then be used as a solution in your company. Such processes usually work strictly according to the “if/then” principle. This means that a process is activated by a specific trigger and then follows a schedule.
Implementation and possibilities of a workflow management system in practice
A practical example can be a workflow for automation be payment of bills. Such a workflow is already quite complex as it goes through various checks. This also shows that interfaces to other automated workflows are necessary or possible. It therefore makes sense to use a system that is as uniform as possible as a WfMS.
If your company receives a paper invoice, the inbox digitizes this letter. An invoice is tagged with the appropriate tag and forwarded to accounting. This triggers a new workflow. The system carries out a formal and factual check. Manual checking is still necessary for payments. Therefore, the system triggers a notification to the responsible person.
If the invoice is correct, the employee approves the payment. Then the automated system takes over again. An entry is made in the bookkeeping or a comparison is made with it Accounts payable workflow. This is again a separate workflow with its own process flow. The system can also trigger the actual payment automatically, taking into account the discount and payment deadline.
With a WfMS you can automate a variety of daily recurring tasks that employees currently process manually. Thanks to the digital solution, processing is quick and precise. A WfMS helps you automate a wide variety of processes. Intuitive systems allow you to create your own workflows without external help.
What does a good workflow management system have to do?
A good WfMS should master these eight points:
- Intuitive workflow designer that works without program code
- Creation of workflows
- Easily integrated into cloud applications
- Reporting with KPIs
- automatic notifications
- Access control with rights system
- cloud-based infrastructure
- a central dashboard with an overview of all active workflows and a system for priorities
What challenges do companies face when implementing workflow management?
The introduction of a workflow management system is associated with a number of challenges. They begin before concrete workflows are modeled. Above all, there are organizational and technical challenges that you must first eliminate.
A central point here is integration into existing systems. Most companies have an established one IT infrastructure, which consists of different programs and systems. Both the workflow management system and the workflows created must be compatible with this infrastructure. This influences both the choice of WfMS and the design of the individual workflows.
Investments in new programs or hardware may be necessary. The implementation of a digital inbox requires, for example, a suitable scanner or a corresponding software solution. This leads to changes in the company, which may require employee training.
It may also be necessary to reorganize some operational processes. This is the case if the analysis shows that changes to the structures make sense or are necessary. This changes the work processes in your company to which employees have become accustomed. At the beginning of the changeover, there may be difficulties in implementing new structures.
A central challenge is the design of the individual workflows. Experience in dealing with the workflow platforms and with the concept itself is required here. It is also necessary to deal with the work processes themselves. Therefore, the support of an experienced IT service provider makes sense in this regard.
The central challenges for companies when introducing a workflow management system
Companies have to deal with these tasks when they want to introduce a WfMS:
- Purchasing additional ones Hardware or software
- Creation of workflows
- Change of usual work processes
- Integration of the WfMS into the existing IT landscape
- Training of employees
We at redIT are your competent partner for the implementation of workflow management
As an experienced IT service provider with a focus on digitalization, we at redIT are the right contact when it comes to workflows. We have helped design and implement corresponding systems for numerous customers. We take a practice-oriented approach when creating solution concepts. The focus is on intuitive user interfaces, innovative solutions and systems that reduce your costs.
We at redIT act in a future-oriented and customer-friendly manner. Digitalization processes like that Workflow management are not short-term projects, but ongoing developments. That's why sustainable business relationships and ongoing contact with our customers are important to us. In this way, we can reliably move you forward. We work with you to build IT that gets you to your goals.
Drafts of workflows: We at redIT will help you with the implementation
The creation of specific workflows requires an analysis of the requirements and current processes. That's why we are present in all phases of workflow management. We advise you, analyze the existing situation and then suggest concrete solutions. We also accompany you through the design of the workflows and support you with the implementation.
We are at your side in every phase of workflow management. Are you interested in workflow management or would you like to automate processes? Take now Contact us and we will help you implement your project.
«It takes a successful digital inbox a partner who handles IT and business management Understands and can combine requirements. Have it with redIT we found this competent and experienced partner.”
Andreas Nitschke
Global Operations Director, Arval (Switzerland) AG
«The accounts payable workflow is an important one for Pistor AG and an indispensable step towards the digitalization of lawmentation system.”
Jean Pierre Arnold
Head of Finance + Controlling, Pistor AG