Regardless of industry or size, companies around the world are onboarding automated workflows into their processes to make their work more effective and efficient. A workflow is an implemented software or service that manages a business process. They help to eliminate the manual and repetitive tasks within a process, usually a document-heavy one. Workflow automation can be used in virtually any industry or department, from HR to Accounts Payable, and even Facilities Management.
So you’re a small or medium sized business owner and you’re thinking, aren’t those automated workflows complicated and usually used by large organizations? Nope! Recordsforce is considered a medium sized business and we use workflow automation on a daily basis. Here are some examples of how we, and some of our clients, use a workflow tool to automate our business processes.
Human Resources
Using a workflow, Recordsforce was able to automate our hiring process and onboard more than 50 employees in one week. Instead of manually scheduling and tracking possible candidates, our workflow moved candidates throughout the hiring process without anyone needing to manage it. For example, a candidate would apply via an e-form or digital form that then kicked off a workflow to send the resume and details to the hiring manager for review. If the candidate was approved to continue on the hiring process, they were automatically sent an invitation to schedule an interview, and from there, even schedule a training session, if necessary. This made a huge difference for us because those involved in the hiring could concentrate on their tasks on-hand, and didn’t have to worry about wasting time tracking down potential candidates and trying to navigate everyone’s schedules.
Other HR processes that can be automated with workflow include:
- Benefit Enrollments
- Payroll Approval
- Budget Approval
- Vacation/Time Off Requests
- Performance Evaluations
- Travel Requests
- Employee Termination
Accounts Payable
Accounts Payable workflows are probably the most common and known examples of workflows, specifically for invoice approval. For example, invoice approvers are automatically notified by workflow automation software of a new invoice to review. If it needs to be reviewed by another staff member, it can be automatically routed to the next person immediately. Once approved, the workflow system can even route the required data for the invoice to be paid.
Other AP processes that can be automated with workflow include:
- Purchase Orders
- Expense Claims
Legal/Contracts
An automated workflow system can be used to help submit, review, edit, sign and manage contract retention all in one place. For example, you write up a contact, and then the workflow is triggered to send the contract to the first reviewer. Once it is reviewed, the contract can then be moved immediately to the next reviewer/approver, if needed. Another option is to have the contact routed automatically to someone outside an organization for a required signature. Workflow systems like Recordsforce Cloud can even help you set renewal alerts and notifications so you’ll never miss when it’s time to review an old contract.
Other legal/contract processes that can be automated with workflow include:
- New Work Intake
- Case Tracking
- Policy Exceptions
- Bar Certification Tracking
- Self-Service NDAs
- Trademark Infringement Log
Other workflow examples by industry include:
Financial/Banking
- Client Onboarding
- CapEx Approval Requests
- Report Generation
- Mortgage Lending
- Loan Processing
- Credit Card Application Review
- Account Closure
- Expense Claims
Insurance
- Assignment Automation
- Policy Exceptions
- Claim Grievances & Appeals
- Form Registrations
- Policy Cancellations
- Claims Processing
- Incident Reporting
- Policy Underwriting
Healthcare
- Patient Admission
- Patient Discharge
- Patient Surveys
Facilities
- Move Requests
- Facility Access
- Maintenance Scheduling
IT
- IT Service Requests
- Employee Account Setup
- Software & Hardware Requests
- IT Project Requests
- Software Accessibility Requests
- Incident Reporting
Company Wide
- Client Onboarding
- Mass Email Generation
- Document Access
- Customer Support
- File Transfers
- Record Requests
Now that you see workflows can be used for any sized business and generally for any process or industry, you may fear it is too difficult to get started. Recordsforce Cloud is a no-code platform that includes document storage, document retention, workflow automation, electronic form creation and collaboration portals all in one. It is completely web-based so there is no software to install or apps to download. If you’re interested in learning more, contact us for a demo.