Workflow Improvement Theories

A workflow is a depiction of a sequence of operations, declared as work of a person, work of a simple or complex mechanism, work of a group of persons, work of an organization of staff, or machines. Workflow may be seen as any abstraction of real work, segregated in work share, work split or whatever types of ordering. For control purposes, workflow may be a view on real work under a chosen aspect, thus serving as a virtual representation of actual work. The flow being described often refers to a document that is being transferred from one step to another. A blinds company with roller shades and woven wood shades product require giving steps by steps instruction document to the end user.

The key driver to gain benefit from the understanding of the workflow process in a business context is that the throughput of the work stream path is modeled in such a way as to evaluate the efficiency of the flow route through internal silos with a view to increasing discrete control of uniquely identified business attributes and rules and reducing potential low efficiency drivers. Evaluation of resources, both physical and human is essential to evaluate hand-off points and potential to create smoother transitions between tasks. Several workflow improvement theories have been proposed and implemented in the modern workplace. These include:
1. Six Sigma
2. Total Quality Management
3. Business process reengineering
4. Lean systems

As a way of bridging the gap between the two, significant effort is being put into defining workflow patterns that can be used to compare and contrast different workflow engines across both of these domains. For example, motels-hotels have different workflow than term life insurance Company. Workflow improvement helps in generating more profits for any business.