"When I have to develop an IT solution, I always ask myself whether I should use Workflow technology. Actually, we have used this technology in practically all of our developments in the last five years," said Marcela Fernández, GeneXus Consulting Project Director.
Even though the Workflow technology is applicable to most of the applications, Fernández said that it is particularly important in large projects that handle key processes for a business. "The more critical the process being handled by the system, the more convenient it is to use the Workflow technology, especially when the intention is to develop a whole system," she explained.
She also added that the decision of whether or not to use the Workflow technology should be made in the first stages of analysis because it changes the way to go about programming.
"What I find attractive about the tool is that it makes business-process automation easier." Regardless of the type of business, the flowchart is drawn and the programs appropriate for solving each of the tasks, as well as the related roles in order to run them, are all specified. Moreover, there are aspects of the process that can be subjected to parameterization, which means that the changes that the company requires -for instance changing the roles associated to each of the tasks- do not generate programming-related costs.
Automatic task allocation is one of the advantages that are highlighted by Fernández as offered by this technology. It is handled in the same way as e-mail, that is, by having a uniform visualization of pending tasks and their execution, which appears in the in-tray of each worker within the company depending on the role. Moreover, this feature saves the history of the process in a repository and there is no need to program it, which actually enables later follow-up and management analysis.
The Project Director of GeneXus Consulting said that by applying the Workflow technology, her experience has revolved around working together with the Organization and Methods department of companies requesting an IT solution for managing processes in their respective businesses. "It is important for the definition of roles to be made according to a real operative model that is consistent with the company's corporate culture."
She concluded by adding that using the Workflow technology in the development of systems that are compatible with it will result in added value for generating better-quality products.