Alfresco Workflow Extension (Advanced Workflow Solutions)

What is Alfresco Workflow Extension?

The Workflow Extension addon for Alfresco enhances the ability of workflow to include non-standard features that are useful to most companies. This addon includes notifications, custom reassignment of tasks, the ability to save an active workflow form for later, previews for workflow attachments, and the ability to recover a canceled workflow form.

Why is Alfresco Workflow Extension so important?

• Notifications– alerts users when reassignment happens in a workflow task
• Flexible – at the end of the day, incomplete tasks are saved for recovery at a future date
• Visible – can see a tracked log of cancelled workflows and reboot start process activity
• Convenient – users can preview relevant documents in the same screen as workflow activity
• Control – managers can control permissions for workflow activity

The Benefits of Alfresco Workflow Extension

Skytizens has developed the Alfresco Workflow Extension addon so that Alfresco can be used in certain real-world situations that are not provided for by the standard version. Alerts keep people on task and improve workflow allocation. Custom reassignment makes Alfresco more compatible with a company’s own business processes. Previews make the work easier and quicker. The abilities to save and recover canceled workflows simply mirror daily work occurrences such as not completing a task on time or circling back to a stalled project due to priority shifts.

How Does It Work?

Once the Skytizens Workflow Extension addon is implemented, system admin and workflow managers will have access to toggles for some of the features. Other features will appear automatically in the workflow form as buttons or configuration options. Permissions will be controlled from the Task menu. Notifications will be sent automatically.

Main Features

Reassign Alert– Alerts signal workflow route activity so Alfresco sends an email to the new task owner when a user has reassigned a task.Alerts can be determined by an allocation strategy specific to the company.

Save Incomplete Task– If a user doesn’t finish a task by the end of the business day, they can save their workflow for later. Restarting the task will require manual activity from the same user. This module saves the task as an electronic form and provides a field for notes so the activity reboot goes smoothly.

Recover Task – Users can recover workflow task forms and protect expired sessions. There is a field on the recovery form that informs the user where the activity left off or if there was an event wait activity responsible for the task being on hold.

The Recover Task feature can also be used to create work queues without subscribers. These queues can be used to retrieve work for future projects. Managers can set future dates to begin action on tasks and assign the tasks at a later date.

Preview Task Documents– This feature allows users to preview documents attached to a workflow from within the workflow feature. The pop-up preview allows for convenient viewing and makes work easier without cluttering up a user’s screen.

Initiate a Workflow from Site– Standard Alfresco offers workflow initiation from only two locations–the Tasks menu and the action menu in the Document Library. This Workflow Extension module provides an additional page to initiate workflows from the Site work area of Alfresco.

Alfresco Email Queue – A feature that allows for mass mailing to users of the module. This feature allows you to manage the email queue, resent failed emails at a later date, and manage the load of emails sent. In the case of some mail servers, a large email load causes problems because Alfresco attempts to send them too fast. We have fixed this issue with the queue feature.

Restrict Workflow Initiation– This addon enables administrators and managers to control permissions for who can start workflows AND who can see defined workflows. This feature reinforces procedure and ensures that employees go through the proper channels.

1. Permissions Control – The ability to initiate a Workflow is managed by Groupand Role.

• Group Access – Permission to use the feature is given by the client’s administrator by designating members of a group.
• Role Access–Permission to use this feature on certain files is given by managers based on role access in the Alfresco system.

Define evaluator for workflow visibility– This feature allows clients to define a specific site as the initiation location for workflow in the Alfresco system.

Conclusions

Frustrated that your workflow software doesn’t parallel your real business processes? Bring the entire company onboard in one fell swoop.

The Alfresco Workflow Extension addon was developed by Skytizens to enhance workflow adaptability and accommodate real-world issues that affect workflow. This module adjusts the Alfresco workflow software to better mirror functional business processes and reinforce company procedure.
From notifications to workflow recovery capabilities, this module amplifies the Alfresco workflow software in just the right ways. This module makes workflow more flexible to customization and increases the ability to control permissions in the workflow area of the system. More than just doing things by the book, workflow is at the heart of how companies do business. This module helps companies get stuff done.