Workflow is the automation of the work processes that a company carries out on a day-to-day basis, i.e. it is the set of activities that are carried out in a certain order to achieve an objective. Tasks are passed from one worker to another following a hierarchy and pre-established rules.
This technique consists of defining in advance the steps that must be followed to complete a project or task and reach the agreed objective. The rules imposed will help your employees to be coordinated from the beginning to the end of the process.
Competition in today's market is very high, so companies need to stand out and be more productive to gain a foothold, which is why different processes and techniques are carried out to achieve this goal effectively.
In this post we tell you what workflow is, what types exist and how it can help you to implement it in your company. Keep reading so you don't miss anything!
what is a workflow for your company?
Workflow is used to guide all the members of your company to do things in the same way and in the best possible way, to organise all the information in the company, to hierarchise processes and to work in a coordinated way. This leads to avoiding fewer errors, as all your employees know the objective and follow the same rules to carry it out.
The workflow methodology often uses software applications to make this process automation possible, which will help your company to eliminate time and resource costs, eliminate errors, achieve the goal faster and replace manual tasks.
Automating your business processes does not mean having to use technological tools to do so, but although it is not strictly necessary, many of the activities that need to be carried out have to be done through certain platforms.
The objective of your company is to be more productive, because as we have mentioned, there is a lot of competition. Workflow improves the planning of tasks, helps to make better decisions and speeds up the information and communication processes of your team. Having all your workers coordinated in the same task or project facilitates the coordination between them.
Types of workflow
We review, the workflow is the automation of the tasks of your company, following a previously established order and hierarchy. Its main purpose is to improve communication between all areas of your business, and by having this logical movement of tasks, the fulfilment of these tasks is guaranteed and also, with greater efficiency and speed.
There are three types of workflow that will depend on the activity you are involved in and the type of tasks you want to organise. Here we share with you the existing ones:
- ad Hoc Workflow: Here the rules can be created or modified during the work process, i.e. during the work process and according to the needs that arise, the system of rules is modified, at this point they are not rigid.
- production Workflow: In this workflow the rules are less flexible than the previous one, it is a more limited system. Here your company follows a pre-established direction, focusing on fixed actions that are already known to all employees. In this case, there is not much room for change.
- administrative Workflow: This system is the intermediate between the other two. This method is usually applied to tasks that do not have a defined structure. It focuses on tasks that are predictable and repetitive by imposing rules that are easy to understand and accept.
Advantages of implementing workflow in your company
Throughout this article we have told you what a workflow is and what types exist, now we show you the benefits of automating workflows for your brand.
- better internal communication: By having clear objectives and implementing rules to follow, communication is more agile, simple and secure.
- more transparent work: within your company, your employees will be clear about their responsibilities and the way to proceed, making it easier to check and follow the status of each process.
- increased productivity: By having the stages well defined, your workers focused on their responsibilities, the process becomes agile, which leads to better productivity.
- avoid mistakes: Following the steps and having workflows makes it less likely that serious mistakes will be made.
- cost reduction: You eliminate unnecessary steps, improve communication and increase productivity, thus creating savings in time and human resources.
In conclusion, a workflow is a system that aims to automate work processes within the work environment. Workflow is a perfect tool to keep your company growing in today's landscape and not lagging behind.
We recommend that you measure the results when you implement this methodology in your company, because as you well know, everything that is not measured cannot be improved. There are many tools for you to do so, and to know if your actions are working or if you need to make changes.
Now it's your turn, if you want your business to be as productive as possible, incorporate the workflow methodology to improve production, reduce errors, improve communication and save time.
we hope you've enjoyed this read!
