How can i create a workflow

Run a series of marketing tactics against another series to determine which is more effective. Removes a person from the Workflow. All Workflows contain an Exit step at the lowest most point. Skip Navigation Drip Try Drip free. Product Show submenu for Product. Custom Store. Learn Show submenu for Learn. Get closer to your customers with Drip. Talk to an expert Try Drip free Sign in.

Try Drip free for 14 days Try every feature of Drip for two weeks, no credit card required. User Manual. It's crazy to keep doing the same things over and over, yet we do this every single day at work. We do the same steps, go through the same process, and start from scratch expecting something different to happen when we could save hours a week implementing workflows.

What is a workflow, you ask? They're one of the most powerful productivity boosters you have in your project management arsenal. Let's dive into the basics of what a workflow is, when and where to use them, and then look at some real-world examples of how they can help streamline and optimize your workday.

Simply put, a workflow is a clearly defined, sequential process of the optimal way to get things done. What sort of "things"? Well, anything really! You can have a workflow for defining milestones, getting through your to-do list, writing content, or dealing with your inbox. Any place where there is an optimal flow between steps, colleagues, tools, or processes is a candidate for a workflow. When you put it like that, however, it doesn't sound very exciting. Yet, like most productivity tips, creating workflows are small changes that bring about huge results.

As Shane Parrish, founder of Farnham Street explains:. Instead, Parrish says success comes down to one thing: eliminating the unnecessary from our lives. We only have a limited amount of energy each day not to mention time , and the more we're able to streamline how we work, the more time and energy we have for thinking, strategizing, and doing the work that matters. The best thing about workflows it that you probably already use a number of them each day without even realizing it.

Any time you've gone through a task and optimized each necessary step, you've created a workflow. At each transition point, you can confidently say what's supposed to happen next. No more starting from scratch or doing the same thing expecting different results. Even better, you can transfer this knowledge into a checklist or template so others can follow it.

However, while some of your workflows might be pretty straightforward like paying an invoice , they can quickly get complex. Whole business workflows like planning and executing Agile sprints involve multiple meetings, managing full teams , project management, looking after stakeholders , and knowing how to react to unexpected situations.

In this case, creating and documenting the optimal workflow means knowing a few key pieces of information:. And that's really it. Answer those questions and structure them into a chart or process and you have a workflow. So far, this has all been pretty high-level. But the beauty of workflows is that they're the opposite of high-level! They're not lofty goals or strategies that you need to speak C-Suite to understand, but step-by-step guides.

Even a complex workflow tells you exactly what to do next If yes, then X; If no, then Y. Take this gigantic workflow diagram by designer Jessica Hische on Should I work for free? Spoiler alert: The answer is always NO. To get your mind thinking of all the places you can start to refine and document your own workflows, let's look at a few common workflow-worthy scenarios:. Note: These are all just starting places for you to develop your own workflows. They outline the high-level steps, but how you optimize and assign tasks to different people will depend on your own experience and business goals.

There are so many places you can create workflows to boost your personal productivity. From how you triage, organize, and work through your inbox, to how you set meetings, write to-dos, and track your progress. But one of the most powerful workflows you can create is a daily template. This all starts with what's on your calendar. A daily schedule template means each block of your day is assigned to something—meaningful work, breaks, email, project management.

It's a visual guide of how you flow from task-to-task throughout the day. If this sounds too constricting, just think about the opposite. An empty calendar is just waiting to be filled with low-value work, meetings, and calls.

But, once you have your template in place, your workflow for scheduling your day might look something like this:. Speaking of personal productivity workflows, another great one you can use is around task management.

In short, this is how you approach projects and tasks and work them into your daily schedule. In our article on Task Management , we explained how most projects fail in what's called "The messy middle. But with the right workflow in place, you can protect yourself from hitting decision deadlock and know the exact steps to take to finish any project. Here's what that workflow might look like:. Most of us don't have a workflow in place for how to plan and run efficient meetings.

And so instead, we show up, talk over each other for an hour, and end by planning a follow-up meeting. Check out this case study of how Yves Rocher used workflow automation software to transform their employee onboarding process.

Yves Rocher previously relied on a paper-based process that frequently resulted in major delays in bringing on new hires. Now, their HR department can quickly onboard new employees instead of wasting time on mailing forms back and forth. Expense reports are typically completed by employees to itemize expenses. These forms are important to track business and project spending. But a slow turnaround time bogged down by a manual process means that employees may not receive reimbursement for weeks at a time.

Automating this process with workflow software reduces time spent on paperwork and ensures employees get reimbursed in a timely manner. Purchase requests are forms that employees use to purchase goods or services. They typically require approval from a manager before the finance department starts the purchasing process. But filling these forms out by hand and chasing approvals is extremely time-consuming.

This is an example of a business process that can be digitized and automated. Teachers can simply fill out an online form and it automatically gets routed to the administrative office — no need for them to chase down signatures.

Workplace incidents can happen in any organization. The exact nature can vary from an employee who gets injured to a piece of machinery that gets damaged. With an automated workflow, employees can log incidents when they occur and escalate them to the right department for further investigation and corrective action.

Sending paper contracts back and forth means a lot of time gets spent and wasted. Such slowdowns can prevent a project from moving forward. With workflow automation, you can digitize contracts, collect signatures electronically, and have them routed to the right individuals for approvals. Check out this case study of how Initial Saudi Group completely digitized and automated their contract approvals. Automating this process helped them reduce cycle times for contract approvals from two weeks to a few days.

The admissions process is often fraught with extensive paperwork, which can be frustrating for students. An automated workflow might consist of having students fill out online forms and routing those documents to the right admissions officers. Then, students can be automatically notified as the status of their application changes.

For example, you can build a workflow that automatically routes support tickets to the customer service department. Customers can then receive a notification once the issue is resolved. Having workflows in place for devices like computers and phones allows employees to get the equipment they need to do their work.

With an automated workflow, an employee can submit a request for a loan device and have it automatically routed to I. Read on to learn more about these steps, or jump right to a specific, real-world example of creating an automated workflow with no coding.

Find one business process and get that first, quick workflow creation win. Ideally, the first automated workflow you create will be repetitive, reasonably frequent, and have simple routing rules.