Managing Workflows

This article discusses creating new and editing existing workflows in AUTTO.

Table of Contents

• Prerequisite
• Creating a New Workflow
• The Workflow Editor
  • To Set Up a Start Action
  • To Use Actions in a Workflow
  • To Preview a Workflow
  • To Publish a Workflow
  • To Shift from the Published to the Draft Workflow and Vice-Versa
• Editing a Workflow
• Resuming a Saved Workflow Session
• Viewing your Tasks and Assignments
• Checking for Errors in a Workflow
• Viewing Workflow Data
• Viewing a Workflow's Publishing Status and Version History
• Other Actions that can be Performed on a Workflow
• Viewing a List of your Workflows
• Related Articles

Prerequisite

You should already be familiar with the Workflow Editor before reading this article. For more information, see The Workflow Editor.

Creating a New Workflow

To create a new Workflow:

1. Click the New Workflow button on the top-left of the Admin Dashboard.
   
   
   
   
2. On the New Workflow page, you can either select a function to view a list of Human Resources, Legal, and Operations workflows, or select a blank workflow. If you select a function, proceed to Step 3. Otherwise, skip to Step 4.
   
   
3. Select a blank workflow or a preexisting demo workflow under the selected function in Step 2.

NOTE: If you select a blank workflow, you will create the workflow from scratch. If you choose a demo workflow, you can edit the preexisting workflow to suit your requirements. Regardless of your choice, you can follow the procedures in this guide to create a more detailed workflow.

4. Enter a name for the workflow and an optional description.
   
   
   
   
5. Select from among the following publishing options:
   • Invitation Required: Only invited users can set up an account on the End-User Application and use the Workflow.
   • Registration Required: Any user with the URL can access the Workflow but they must set up an Account on the End-User Application.
   • Public: Any user with the URL can access the workflow even without setting up an account on the End-User Application, although they must accept your T&Cs, if any.
6. By default, users who will be given access to the workflow will see it displayed on their Dashboards. Users can also resume working on the workflow by default. If you do not want the workflow to be displayed on the User Dashboard, click Advanced Options, then turn off the Show in Dashboard to relevant users button. This will also remove the check from the Allow users to resume this workflow box, since it follows that you cannot resume a workflow that is not viewable on the User Dashboard.
   
   
   
   
7. You can also prevent users from resuming workflows even if the workflow is viewable on the User Dashboard. To do this, click Advanced Options and remove the check from the Allow users to resume this workflow box.

NOTE: When you allow a workflow to be resumed, it means that users can save and resume working on the workflow at their convenience.

8. To give users the ability to start the workflow from their Dashboards, check the Allow users to start from User Dashboard box.
9. Aside from the default English, AUTTO also supports French, German, Spanish, and Swedish. Change the language from the default to any of the other languages if required.
10. Enable the #NO_DATA value button and enter the required value in the box. This value will be used to replace all instances of **#No_Data#** that appear in the workflow. #No_Data# is displayed where square brackets used in the workflow do not retrieve any available information.
11. Click Create.

The Workflow Editor

The Workflow Editor has a list of the available Actions that can be added to Workflows on the left.

You can zoom in or out or go back to the original viewing size of a Workflow using the line of buttons to the right of the Actions list.

On the top-right of the Workflow Editor, there are buttons that allow multi-selection of Actions, copying of multiple Form, Email, and Page actions, locking or unlocking of Actions (locking prevents moving of  actions while unlocking allows them to be moved to another location on the Workflow editor), and deleting of Actions.

To Set Up a Start Action

All workflows have a Start action. When you create a new workflow, its Start action is already positioned on the top, marking it as the starting point for the Workflow.

To set up the Start action:

1. Position your cursor over the Action, then click the Edit icon.
   
   
   
   
2. On the Action Editor, enter a headline (or title) for the Start action and any welcome text that you want the Workflow to display to the user. For example, in the screenshot below, "This is my sample workflow" is the headline, and "Hello! Welcome to my sample workflow" is the welcome text. You can use the rich text editor to format the welcome text.
   
   
   
   
3. Optionally, click the Add Ts&Cs button to create the Terms and Conditions for the use of the workflow. The text that you enter here will be displayed to the user when they clicked the Terms and Conditions link on the Start action of the User Application. If you added Ts&Cs at this time, proceed to Step 4. If adding starting square brackets that will hold default values or data from another workflow, skip to Step 5. Otherwise, skip to Step 8.
   
   
   
   
4. Click Done to finish adding the Ts&Cs to the Start action. Multiple Ts&Cs can be added to a Start action.
5. Optionally, you can add starting square brackets that show default values to users or hold data passed from another workflow with a Start Another Workflow action by clicking Advanced Options. From here, click Add, then select a square bracket type from the list.
   
   
   
   
6. Set up the square bracket, then set a default value for it, if required, then click Done.

NOTE: Starting square brackets can be understood more fully in the context of other workflows seamlessly starting based on the Start Another Workflow action in existing workflows.  For more information, see Start Another Workflow Action.

7. Click the X button on the Action Editor to close and save the Action.

To Use Actions in a Workflow

All workflows are made up of Actions, or sub-processes (the Start action is one). Actions are the building blocks used in creating Workflows.

All Actions available for use in your Workflows are listed to the left on the Workflow Editor.

To add an Action to the workflow, position your cursor over an Action and drag it into the desired position on the Workflow Editor's canvas.

An Action must be linked to another Action. For example, you can link the Start action to the Action that comes after it.

For more information about working with Actions, see Managing Actions in a Workflow.

When adding an Action, you can use Square Brackets to store information saved within the action. The information stored can then be used later in a workflow. For more information, see Using Square Brackets in Actions.

Workflows can be branched through the use of a Condition action. For more information, see Branching a Workflow.

To Preview a Workflow

After creating a Workflow, you can preview it and check if it works as designed.

To preview a Workflow, click the Preview button on the top-right of the Workflow Editor. This opens the Workflow in another browser tab. You can then go through the Workflow's Actions as if you are the end-user.

NOTE:  You can also preview individual Actions that form part of a workflow.

To Publish a Workflow

After previewing the Workflow, if you find the Workflow already working as you intended, you can then publish it.

To publish a Workflow:

1. Click the Publish button on the top-right of the Workflow Editor.
   
   
   
   
2. On the Publishing workflow window, the publishing option for the workflow selected in Creating a New Workflow, and the version number are displayed. You can still change the publishing option, and either allow resuming the workflow or not at this time.
3. Enter a note for the Workflow version. Although this is optional, it is recommended to enter a note for tracking purposes.
   
4. Click Publish. Once published, a Published button appears on the top right of the Workflow Editor.

To Shift from the Published to the Draft Workflow and Vice-Versa

After publishing a Workflow, you can shift between the workflow's Published and Draft versions by clicking the appropriate buttons on the top right of the Workflow Editor.

When Published is clicked, the published version of the workflow is displayed. Although you can still view the details behind the workflow actions by positioning your cursor over an action, then clicking Edit, you cannot make actual edits to the workflow. In addition, you can view the Publishing Status and Version History of the workflow via the Status tab on the top left. For more information, see Viewing a Workflow's Publishing Status and Version History.

When Draft is clicked, the Workflow is enabled for editing (for more information, see Editing an Existing Workflow). If you publish the draft, a new version of the published workflow is created, overwriting the currently published workflow. For example, if the existing workflow version is 1.0, once you publish a draft, a new version, 2.0, is created.

Editing an Existing Workflow

Processes are often dynamic. When there is a change in a process, the associated workflow needs to change as well. Published workflows can be edited at any time.

To edit a Workflow:

1. On the Admin Dashboard, click the Edit button on an existing workflow.
   
   
2. On the Workflow Editor, the workflow is displayed, already ready for editing.
3. To add a new Action to the Workflow, drag an Action from the list on the left to its desired position on the Workflow.
4. To reposition an Action on the Workflow, drag the Action from its current location to the new desired location on the canvas of the Workflow Editor.
5. To edit an Action in a Workflow, position your cursor over it, then click the Edit icon that appears over the Action. You can then edit the Action's settings.
6. To link two Actions together, position your cursor over one Action, then click the Link icon that appears over the Action, then select the other Action.
   
   
   
   
7. To disconnect an Action from another Action, position your cursor over the connecting Action, then click the Break Link icon that appears over the Action. This deletes the link between the two actions.
   
   
   
   
8. To copy an Action, position your cursor over it, then click the Copy icon that appears over the Action. This copies the Action onto the canvas. You can then drag the Action to the desired position on the canvas before editing it further.
   
   
   
   
9. Once satisfied with the new design, click Preview to display the edited Workflow in a browser tab. For more information, see To Preview a Workflow.
10. Once you are done editing the Workflow, click Publish to publish the Workflow. For more information, see To Publish a Workflow.

Resuming a Saved Workflow Session

When a workflow is allowed to be resumed (see Creating a New Workflow), it means that users can leave the workflow and resume working on it at a later time. The workflow is saved automatically at the point the user stopped working on it.

To resume working on a saved workflow:

1. On the Admin Dashboard, open a published workflow.
2. Click the Published tab.
3. Click the Address tab, then click the workflow address.
4. When the workflow is launched, click the hamburger menu on the top right.
5. Click My Dashboard.
   
   
6. Click the Resume button below an incomplete task to start working on the workflow again.

Viewing your Tasks and Assignments

The User Dashboard also contains a list of your tasks and assignments.

To view this list:

1. On the Admin Dashboard, open a published workflow.
2. Click the Published tab.
3. Click the Address tab, then click the workflow address.
4. When the workflow is launched, click the hamburger menu on the top right.
5. Click My Dashboard.

Checking for Errors in a Workflow

AUTTO automatically checks for errors while you are working on a Workflow and saves the error details in the Workflow Check Report.

You will know if your workflow has errors by looking at the Check tab on the Workflow Editor.

To display the Workflow Check Report, click the Check tab on the top left. You can then correct the errors accordingly.

Viewing Workflow Data

AUTTO logs the number of times a workflow is executed and saves the data it gathers every time it is executed. The data is downloadable as a CSV or XLSX file. For more information, see Workflow and User Data.

AUTTO also generates analytics reports that show the number and percentage of users and the amount of time it takes these users to make it through a workflow's nodes. The analytics reports can be saved or downloaded as a PDF file. For more information, see Analytics in AUTTO.

1. On the Workflow Editor, click the Data tab on the top-right.
2. To view the execution progress of a workflow, click the Progress tab.
   To view the data for a workflow, click the Workflow Data tab.
   To view a workflow's users, click the Users tab.
   To view a workflow's analytics, click the Analytics tab.

Viewing a Workflow's Publishing Status and Version History

You can only view a workflow's publishing status and version history from the workflow's Published version (see To Shift from the Published to the Draft Workflow and Vice-Versa).

To view the publishing status and version history:

1. Click the Published button on the top-right.
2. Check the Status tab.
3. To view the publishing status or version history, click the appropriate tabs.

NOTE: On the Publishing status tab, you can also view and/or copy the workflow address.

Other Actions that can be Performed on a Workflow

On the Admin Dashboard, you can see what other actions you can perform on a Workflow by clicking the menu icon to the right. From here, you can rename, preview, copy, or delete the Workflow.

Viewing a List of your Workflows

All your Workflows are listed on the Admin Dashboard. This list might get overly long once your administrators and managers have set up all your workflows.

If you can remember the name or a word used in the workflow, you can filter the workflows on the Admin Dashboard using the Search box on the top right.

A more streamlined list of your organisation's workflows are also viewable by clicking the Admin Menu on the top right, then Administration, then clicking the Workflows tab.

Related Articles

• Branching a Workflow
• Managing Actions in a Workflow
• Using Square Brackets in Actions
• The Workflow Editor