If you’re looking for more organizational efficiency, setting up workflow processes is the way to go.
This beginner’s guide will break down everything from what is a workflow process to what it can do for your business. We’ll also talk about a few workflow process use cases so that you can grasp how workflows work within an organization. By the end, you'll have enough know-how to set up one for your organization or company.
What is a workflow?
Most tasks at an organization can be broken down into steps. A workflow is a sequence of tasks or steps aimed at achieving a specific outcome. Creating workflows helps businesses and organizations keep track of mountainous amounts of processes and information while speeding up those processes in turn.
How can a workflow process help a business?
The success of a business relies on all the smaller daily tasks and processes. A workflow process tightens up these daily tasks and processes in the following ways.
Makes the task more efficient and effective
Setting up a workflow process improves the efficiency of tasks and, as a result, the effectiveness of a business. By providing a structured roadmap for things that need to be completed, workflows minimize confusion and streamline operations.
Employees can navigate through their responsibilities with clarity, reducing errors and delays. This systematic approach ensures that each step is taken in the correct order, promoting a smoother workflow and ensuring fewer wasted actions.
As a result, productivity is heightened and organizational resources are utilized more effectively, contributing to overall business success. A well-defined workflow process empowers teams to accomplish tasks with precision.
Reduces time and cost needed to complete tasks
A workflow process minimizes the time and cost required to complete a task within a business. When you map out the sequence of the steps needed to finish a task, redundancies and inefficiencies can be eliminated. This accelerates the overall process.
In the business world, this reduction in time translates into significant cost savings. As streamlined procedures reduce unnecessary expenditure, workflow processes empower businesses to allocate resources in other areas for growth.
Provides more consistent outcomes
Businesses don’t just need to complete tasks—they also need them completed thoroughly and consistently. Further, the processes involved in completing tasks have to be replicable in the future.
A workflow process sets a standardized approach. When employees follow the same steps to complete a particular task, the chances of variations or errors are reduced. This consistency enhances the quality of results and builds a foundation of trust among stakeholders. It’s also crucial in meeting customer expectations and ultimately contributes to the business's long-term success.
What are some workflow process use cases?
Here are examples of the processes for which you can easily set up workflows at your organization with a bit of help from automation.
Create approval workflows for important forms
Organizations rely on forms for internal administrative tasks like sanctioning time off, enrolling employees in training, etc. Let’s map out the steps of such a process:
- An employee fills out a form with an objective (leave/training/salary slip, etc.).
- The appropriate sanctioning authority receives the form with an option to approve/disapprove the request.
- The approval/disapproval is communicated to the employee and stored for documentation.
If your organization uses Google Forms for the initial form, the entire process can be automated and converted into an approval workflow with the simple addition of a tool: Form Publisher.
When an employee fills in a Google Form with an initial request, Form Publisher notifies and sends an email to the approving authority, like an HR manager. The approving authority can then approve or disapprove the request, which will be instantly communicated to the employee.
Streamline your order forms or payment requests
The same process can be followed for streamlining payment requests or order forms. Order forms are filled in by the buyer, and payment requests are submitted by the vendor, but both involve approval. Here are the steps:
- A customer fills in the order form created in Google Forms with all the required item details.
- The vendor receives the request and accepts/rejects the order.
- The action of the vendor is communicated to the customer by manner of an email notification.
The above steps can be automated by using Form Publisher with Google Forms. What’s more, Form Publisher will save the filled-in forms in your preferred location and file format so that they may be retrieved later with ease. Also, imagine all the paperwork you’ll save.
Speed up employee onboarding
Employee onboarding is another process you can automate with Google Forms and Form Publisher. Organizations have different processes for employee onboarding that can vary in complexity and the steps required. Form Publisher caters to all requirements.
As shown in the above use cases, you can create a simple employee onboarding process with Google Forms and Form Publisher. Even for complex onboarding procedures that involve e-signatures, Form Publisher provides a seamless solution.
You can easily automate the generation of onboarding documents, generate approvals, collect e-signatures, and conduct entire multi-step onboarding workflows. Creating such workflows empowers businesses to ensure a smooth and efficient experience for HR professionals and new hires.
Create a workflow process with Google Forms
If you’re using Google Forms and are ready to upgrade the efficiency of your organization, creating workflows is simply one step away. Add Form Publisher, and you’re all set to transform daily, paper-heavy, and time-consuming processes into fast and paperless workflow processes.
If you work with forms, Form Publisher can help you get the most out of your form responses. Explore Form Publisher today!