Introduction
Workflow management system steps in when you feel that you are overwhelmed with your job responsibilities. From project manager to a new member, everyone seems to be lacking time to complete their tasks on time. Inefficiency is widespread & there never seems to be a way out. This is where workflow management systems appear as saviour. Taking time to get a hold over such systems may prove to be beneficial in the long run. Initially, it may appear cumbersome to learn a new software, and for what? – Benefits could not be felt as yet. But hold on, stay focused, it may take some time to get things on groove, but once they are, there will be no looking back. In this blog, I will tell you many things – what is workflow management? How to know when to take help of a workflow management system (WMS)? & Features of such a system. I will also introduce you to WovVFlow – a cloud-based, unified & lightweight WMS. I will also discuss its features & benefits. So, here it goes, I am laying it upon you.
What is workflow management?
Workflow management refers to finding-out organization & harmonization of a set of tasks to produce a desired outcome. Workflow management deals with augmenting, refining & automating workflows in an organization to remove bottlenecks, elevate output, remove repetition & eliminate errors. It has a start & finish and may include any number of steps. It involves a combination of people, processes & machines with the ultimate aim of efficiently completing the work with maximum output.
How to know it’s time for a workflow management system?
Here I have tabulated 10 indicators which say when it’s time to go for a workflow management software.
- Cash flow issues – Your organization is plagued with persistent cash flow issues and there never seems to be a way out.
- Employee inefficiency – Employees don’t seem to get a hold over their tasks. They are either overworked or tired.
- Customer Complains – Don’t want to hear that – that’s your reaction about it. But it’s a tell-tale sign that everything is not alright.
- Projects delays – A very striking sign that your projects are not on the right track and they need streamlining.
- Legacy systems – You hear so much about the innovation in the project management & around but your team is still using old world spreadsheets and is paper-based.
- Repetitive tasks – A recent process evaluation revealed that a lot of time goes in doing repetitive tasks like data entry.
- Ad-hoc requirements – Tasks don’t appear to be pre-planned. Sudden requirements force you to hire transient workers like contractors.
- Miscommunication – The main project components don’t communicate with each other. There is even miscommunication between team members.
- Lack of responsibility – Employees don’t know what their managers expect from them. There is no clarity about roles & responsibilities.
- Lack of collaboration – Everybody is working but there seems to be a lack of coordination amongst them. Lack of collaboration is creating many disadvantages.
Features of an actual workflow management system
Here I am delineating features which will help you in choosing the right workflow management system.
- Creating workflow: Ease of usability is a must in any WMS. So, when you create simple workflows, such as producing an NDA form, or any other tasks, it should not be a burden on the people who are creating it. Workflow should stay compliant with regulations and drive efficiency & tuning through all stages with tracking & reporting features.
- Flexibility: In a project, different workflows may govern different processes. This means, an effective WMS should be flexible enough to allow defining, organizing & changing the workflows to best suit the project.
- Notifications: This is a common feature in all advanced WMS. Such systems send customized notifications whenever required or as customized by you, without your intervention in any way. System can send notifications in any form – through emails, push notifications, sms, and others about important events in the workflow such as approvals & upcoming deadlines to ensure smooth project execution.
- Integration: A recent report in the Wall Street Journal says that businesses around the globe are using more & more applications for work. The average number of apps in an average organization may go up to dozens in number. The best workflow management software doesn’t work independently, it doesn’t work in silos, there are no boundary walls. Therefore, your WMS should fit well with the existing tech stack in the ecosystem to create synergy.
- Access permissions: A successfully employed WMS will have many stakeholders spread across roles & accessing it across many locations. This needs to be kept in mind. Many outside stakeholders, like contractors, sub-contractors, vendors, partners, support providers & others will be accessing this system as well. This needs to be kept in mind too. The bottom line is, it should well allow managing access permissions.
- Reporting: This is a key feature without a clear, easy-to-use reporting feature, your WMS is not going anywhere. Well chosen, pre-conceived reports are a must in any WMS; it should also have an intuitive, customizable & flexible dashboard with analytics & insights based on which clever business decisions will be made.
WovVFlow
I have talked a lot about what is workflow and other related things about it. Now it’s time to come to the main point – I am introducing you to WovVFlow – a cloud-based, free workflow management software from WovVTech, which is a business productivity software company. There must be some reasons why I have chosen it over so many other vendors. Well, the difference is in feelings, but here let me delineate for you some pointers.
Features of WovVFlow
What makes this workflow management tool preferable over others?
- A single, consolidated view of all tasks, statuses & communication
- Free information flows to it, through it and from it
- Create projects, work flows & tasks simply through forms and create dynamic flows in minutes
- View tasks in grid, board & calendar
- Do task-wise time tracking & create a timesheet for employees
- Consolidated employee & time information
- Track activities & audit task journeys
- Instant, timely & multi-channel notifications for all important events
- Available on mobile – Work on the move, manage from anywhere
10 benefits of using WovVFlow
- It eliminates project related risks. Whether it is a human resource or work completion, all risks are mitigated and there is certainty.
- It provides a grip over projects. There is a better understanding of the workflow & minimal need to intervene in the processes.
- When you configure your business processes in WovVFlow you scrutinize them leading to optimization and improvements in processes.
- Gives complete, end-to-end access to the processes from the top-end. Managers can intervene whenever there is a requirement.
- Makes everybody well aware of their responsibilities & the deadline by which tasks have to be completed.
- This workflow automation software will help you tell in the very beginning all the future estimates like project completion time, cost, effort and other inputs.
- Create transparency. Every stakeholder gets complete visibility of the relevant processes as and when required.
- Saves time which can be channelized towards other important works like future strategy making.
- Provides a complete audit trail of every activity. Keeps you compliant and on top of inefficiencies.
- Workflows based on predefined processes and not on the whims of any person. This removes guess work and brings certainty.
Conclusion
From simple task creation to complex portfolio management, an enterprise workflow management system helps you in everything. In this blog, I have taken you through different aspects of a WMS – what is it? When to go for one of them? What are its features? And then I have also written about WovVFlow which will save your time in zeroing in on a suitable WMS for your organization. Though I have covered the important points, there is still a lot to be explored by yourself. For this reason, this software is available in FREE-FOREVER format. Which means you can try it for free for as long as you want without paying anything. So, why not give it a try?
