Workflow Management Tools-1

Worker empowerment is one of the traditional tools employed for managing workflow. It is seen that this empowerment involves doing away with the difference between designing and carrying out the concerned work. In this, the worker is allowed to manage as well as design their work. In such a scenario, the worker is not carrying out a series of tasks that is already programmed, but made to judge the suitable tasks that are required to be carried out at a specific time in order to accomplish customer satisfaction.

Several web-based solutions allow an organization to effectively manage its workflow. This is a very useful tool that could be used for creating jobs, ensuring timely completion of projects, storing important information, in short, having the control of the organization. It also increases productivity and thus profitability of any organization.

Workflow management tools can be used to control long-term scheduled transactions that are to take place on specific dates. Workflow management tools are designed to control all projects within the organization.

Workflow provides detailed information on Workflow, Workflow Software, Workflow Management, Workflow Automation and more. Workflow is affiliated with Workforce Management Solutions.

Ref: workflow management

Workflow Management Tools

Today we are going to discuss on important part of the workflow management and that is workflow management tools. The information about workflow management tool is very helpful for any organization as well as every small business. Workflow is the manner of managing office work based on the specific requirement of the individual work item. It thus involves timely and effectual response. For example for a blinds company who are selling vertical blinds, roller shades, faux wood shades. For them workflow is to get order form customer, confirm measurement, get products of customer order and deliver it to customer. Hence this assures analyzing, providing solutions and expediting all transactions.

Workflow has to focus on the entire transaction and not just single transaction or part. The end result of any workflow is customer satisfaction. This involves empowerment of the worker, resulting in proper management of the workflow. Workflow of any organization is also based on relationships that exist between the partners.

In some offices and work places, there is a dominance of point of view of a workflow. There is no set flow in the work schedule and the exigency and character of the incoming procedures restrain the job. It is noted that in such a work atmosphere, events that occur are given a lot of importance and the entire action is aimed at reacting to them. We can take example of Term life insurance Rates Company who provides term life insurance rates online. For them there is no set flow in the work schedule. Major parts of their business are done on internet.

Ref: workflow management

Workflow Open Service

The Workflow Open Service Interface Definition (OSID) is an O.K.I. specification which provides the means to define a Process composed of Steps. OSIDs are programmatic interfaces which comprise a Service Oriented Architecture for designing and building reusable and interoperable software. Each Step has Input Conditions and Output States. A Process exists to advance Work from an initial to a terminal Step. The advance is affected by events that are performed as part of a Step, the result of which is a new Step Output State. Work events are the result of Agents performing a specific role in the Process.

Part of the service providers responsibility is to define the Process and its Steps. Other parts of the service are intended to capture the events of a user in the Process. Separate applications for designing and using Workflow are likely to be written, each of which will rely on one or more OSIDs.

The Workflow OSID provides an application, or set of applications, with the means for coordinating and managing workflow based on some predetermined logic, among one or more actors (Agents). Abstracting and separating the workflow from the application insulates the application from changes in the workflow logic. Common tools for displaying, monitoring and maintaining workflow could be used in conjunction with the application, saving the application from delivering this functionality.

Ref: Wikipedia

Workflow Application-1

Today we continue our talk on workflow application. Languages that can be used for workflow definition in this way include:
1. Job Definition Formats
Another approach to develop workflow applications is to use a programming language in conjunction with libraries and interfaces that capture abstractions for task coordination. The following are examples of such libraries and interfaces:
1. Windows Workflow Foundation
2. Workflow OSID
It is also possible to use languages designed for business process modeling (e.g. the Business Process Modeling Notation) to specify workflows. However, to fit the purpose of workflow specification, such notations need to be enhanced with additional constructs to capture data passing, data transformations and routing conditions, to bind tasks to their implementation, etc... Indeed, business process modeling is about capturing business processes at a higher level of abstraction in order to enable their analysis through methods such as simulation. For example, for a blinds company who manufacture vertical blinds and roman shades blinds, taking customize side order from customer till installing blinds, that require proper workflow management. Meanwhile, workflow specification is about capturing processes at a level of detail that is sufficient to enable their execution.
For the purpose of static analysis, e.g., to detect semantic errors at design-time, it is also possible to represent workflow in a mathematical form using formal notations such as Petri nets. For any business weather it is life insurance agents or motel, manufacturing or servicing, work flow management is most important part of business.

Workflow Application

A workflow application is where various applications, components, and people must be involved in the processing of data to complete an instance of a process. For example, consider a purchase order that moves through various departments for authorization and eventual purchase. The orders may be treated as messages, which are put into various queues for processing. It is critical that the state of the queues are captured.

A workflow process involves constant change and update. You can introduce new components into the operation without changing any code.
There are two ways of developing workflow applications. The first one is to design workflow models in a dedicated language and then to link the tasks in these models to worklist handlers (for human tasks) or software applications (for automated tasks).

Workflow languages usually come with an associated graphical notation, but some are textual or XML-based. Languages that can be used for workflow definition in this way include:
Dedicated workflow specification languages:
1. XPDL
2. YAWL
3. SCUFL
Executable process definition languages based on Web Services:
1. BPEL
2. BPML
3. WSFL
4. XLANG
5. Wf-XML
6. SWSL

Ref: wikipedia

Workflow Operation

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 workflow is a model to represent real work for further assessment, e.g., for describing a reliably repeatable sequence of operations. Another example of workflow operation is online business of roller shades, woven wood shades, blinds store; they also need to have proper workflow than and than they can do business online. More abstractly, a workflow is a pattern of activity enabled by a systematic organization of resources, defined roles and mass, energy and information flows, into a work process that can be documented and learned. Workflows are designed to achieve processing intents of some sort, such as physical transformation, service provision, or information processing.

Workflow concepts are closely related to other concepts used to describe organizational structure, such as silos, functions, teams, projects, policies and hierarchies. Workflows may be viewed as one primitive building block of organizations. The relationships among these concepts are described later in this entry.

The term workflow is used in computer programming to capture and develop human to machine interaction. Workflow software aims to provide end users with an easier way to orchestrate or describe complex processing of data in a visual form, much like flow charts but without the need to understand computers or programming.

Workflow Features

1. Modeling: Workflow problems can be modeled and analyzed using graph-based formalisms like Petri nets.
2. Measurement: Many of the concepts used to measure scheduling systems in operations research are useful for measuring general workflows. These include throughput, processing time, and other regular metrics.
3. Specialized connotations: The term workflow has specialized connotations in information technology, document management and imaging. Since 1993, one trade consortium specifically focused on workflow management and the interoperability of workflow management systems has been the Workflow Management Coalition.
4. Scientific workflows: Found wide acceptance in the fields of bioinformatics and cheminformatics in the early 2000s, where they successfully met the need for multiple interconnected tools, handling of multiple data formats and large data quantities. Also, the paradigm of scientific workflows was close to the well-established tradition of Perl scripting in life-science research organizations, so this adoption represented a natural step forward towards a more structured infrastructure setup.
5. Human-machine interaction: Several conceptualizations of mixed-initiative workflows have been studied, particularly in the military, where automated agents play roles just as humans do. For innovative, adaptive, collaborative human work the techniques of human interaction management are required.

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.

Workflow Features and Phenomenology

1. Modeling: Workflow problems can be modeled and analyzed using graph-based formalisms like Petri nets.
2. Measurement: Many of the concepts used to measure scheduling systems in operations research are useful for measuring general workflows. These include throughput, processing time, and other regular metrics.
3. Specialized connotations: The term workflow has specialized connotations in information technology, document management and imaging. Since 1993, one trade consortium specifically focused on workflow management and the interoperability of workflow management systems has been the Workflow Management Coalition.
4. Scientific workflows: Found wide acceptance in the fields of bioinformatics and cheminformatics in the early 2000s, where they successfully met the need for multiple interconnected tools, handling of multiple data formats and large data quantities. Also, the paradigm of scientific workflows was close to the well-established tradition of Perl scripting in life-science research organizations, so this adoption represented a natural step forward towards a more structured infrastructure setup.
5. Human-machine interaction: Several conceptualizations of mixed-initiative workflows have been studied, particularly in the military, where automated agents play roles just as humans do. For innovative, adaptive, collaborative human work the techniques of human interaction management are required.

Workflow Components

A workflow can usually be described using formal or informal flow diagramming techniques, showing directed flows between processing steps. While talking with owner of Roller shade blinds and woven wood shades blinds company, he says Single processing steps or components of a workflow can basically be defined by three parameters:
1. Input description: the information, material and energy required to complete the step
2. Transformation rules, algorithms, which may be carried out by associated human roles or machines, or a combination
3. Output description: the information, material and energy produced by the step and provided as input to downstream steps.

Components can only be plugged together if the output of one previous (set of) component(s) is equal to the mandatory input requirements of the following component. Thus, the essential description of a component actually comprises only in- and output that are described fully in terms of data types and their meaning (semantics). The algorithms' or rules' description need only be included when there are several alternative ways to transform one type of input into one type of output – possibly with different accuracy, speed, etc.

When the components are non-local services that are invoked remotely via a computer network, such as Web services, additional descriptors (such as QoS and availability) also must be considered.

Contemporary employment -1

1. A more skilled executive assistant may be required to type at high speeds using technical or foreign languages, organize diaries, itineraries and meetings and carry out administrative duties which may include accountancy. An executive secretary / assistant may also control access to a manager, thus becoming an influential and trusted aide. Executive assistants are available for contact during off hours by new electronic communication methods for consultations.
   
   
2. The largest difference between a generalized secretary and skilled executive assistants is that the executive assistant is required to be able to interact extensively with the general public, vendors, customers, and any other person or group that the executive is responsible to interact with. As the level that the executive interacts with increases so does the level of skill required in the executive assistant that works with the executive. Those executive assistants that work with corporate officers must be capable of emulating the style, corporate philosophy, and corporate persona of the executive for which they work. In the modern workplace the advancement of the executive assistants is codependant on the success of the executive and the ability of both to make the job performance of the team seamless whereas the job place evaluation is reflective of each others performance.
   
   
3. Executive assistants are normally required to maintain job skills at the current state of the art. It is a normal requirement of the executive assistant to be required to complete continuing job education on their own time, with reimbursement for tuition and class supplies.

Contemporary Employment

In a business many job descriptions overlap. However, while administrative assistant is a generic term, not necessarily implying directly working for a superior, a secretary is usually a personal assistant to a manager or executive. Other titles describing jobs similar to or overlapping those of the traditional secretary are office coordinator, executive assistant, office manager and administrative professional.

1. At the most basic level a secretary may need only a good command of the prevailing office language and the ability to type, and may spend a large part of his or her time filing and fetching papers (or the equivalent regarding electronic files and database information) or answering telephones.
   
2. A more skilled executive assistant may be required to type at high speeds using technical or foreign languages, organize diaries, itineraries and meetings and carry out administrative duties which may include accountancy. An executive secretary / assistant may also control access to a manager, thus becoming an influential and trusted aide. Executive assistants are available for contact during off hours by new electronic communication methods for consultations.

Secretary

A secretary is either an administrative assistant in business office administration, or a certain type of mid- or high-level governmental position, such as a Secretary of State.

The executive secretary (sometimes called administrative assistant or associate) has a myriad of administrative duties. Traditionally, these duties were mostly related to correspondence, such as the typing out of letters. The advent of word processing has significantly reduced the time that such duties require, with the result that many new tasks have come under the oversee of the secretary. These might include managing budgets and doing bookkeeping, maintaining websites, and making travel arrangements. Secretaries are supposed to get good salary. Kentucky Real Estate gives good example of it.

Secretaries might manage all the administrative details of running a high level conference or arrange the catering for a typical lunch meeting. Often executives will ask their assistant to write original documents for review and also to collaborate with others. They may also do personnel paperwork which used to be thought of as a Human Relations function; this might also include understanding the complex rules regarding Visa and Immigration.

To be successful today the executive assistant must have a broad level of skills and be creative in managing new situations. As such a 4 year degree (Bachelors of Arts) is often preferred and a 2 year degree is usually a requirement.
We continue our talk in next post.

Personal assistance for non-rich people - 1

Personal assistance we are talking here is part of workflow management software. In last post we talked about personal assistance for non reach people. Today we continue our talk on the same.

Most companies offer secretarial personal assistance as well as basic assistant services like research, scheduling, travel arrangements, and more. Businessman in insurance industry can use insurance software like insurance crm and insurance sfa or insurance lead management software to help them in business. Costs of a part-time employee can end up exceeding how much it would have cost to hire a full time employee. Other companies charge a flat monthly fee for personal assistant services, based upon the number of requests you think you will place each month. In addition to the personal assistant services that are provided with the membership, other incentives such as local discounts, concierge services, dining recommendations and overall knowledge and expertise may even outperform the skills of a regular personal assistant staff member.

Smaller companies, especially start-up and real estate development companies, may desire the services of a Personal Assistant to "manage" an individual executive or to assist in the office as the new company goes about setting up their new business. These Personal Assistants may develop great skills at the "birth" of a new company and have opportunities for advancement. Other Personal Assistants will have garnered incredible knowledge and experience if they choose to move into other positions.

ref: Insurance software, wikipedia, Insurance CRM Software

Personal assistance for non-rich people

Workflow management is important aspect of sales force automation software or sales force management software. Insurance Software like Insurance CRM software with Insurance SFA software helps to manage workflow management . Agency Management System include Personal Assistance which is part of work flow management . We talked personal Assistance and Need for personal Assistance. Today we are going to talk about Personal Assistance for non-rich people.

Personal assistants are no longer only available the extremely wealthy or celebrities. Assistants who help with the management of schedules and errands for families in which both parents work are often called household managers and are in short supply. Occasionally wealthy people hire foreign "au pairs" to look after their children and Personal Assistants must work within the tenuous network of a household and the company. People who cannot afford to hire their own personal assistant to run errands or answer phone calls full time can hire a concierge company or part-time assistant to help manage their lifestyle.

we will talked more about personal assistance for non-rich people in our next post.

ref: wikipedia, agency management software, Insurance Software

Need for Personal Assistance

Insurance software includes agency management system, insurance crm, insurance sfa and workflow management. We are talking workflow management here. As a part of that we talked about Personal Assistance in our last post. Today we are going to talk about Need for personal assistance.

The more high-profile a person is, whether a celebrity, professional athlete, minister, politician, attorney or entertainment executive, the more necessary it is for him or her to be able to concentrate on performing the most important tasks of their career. The proper management of their lifestyle can favorably or adversely affect his or her success and career prosperity.

The more efficiently and effectively the celebrity performs the important tasks involved in their work, the greater the benefit to career endeavors and any business enterprises he or she might own. He or she should be able to concentrate on those important tasks if relieved of some other duties involved in the job which, while still needing to be performed, can be done by somebody else on his or her behalf or under her or his supervision. In other words, the business person or celebrity needs assistance, and that can be provided by at least one Personal Assistant.


ref: wikipedia, agency management system, Insurance Software

Personal Aide - Workflow Management

Workflow management we ar talking here as part of leadorganizer and lead management software. Agency Management System (AMS) includes workflow management and lead management. we are talking about Personal Assistant in our last post. Today, we continue our talk on Personal Assistant or Perosnal Aide.

Today, a Personal Assistant may be responsible for screening incoming calls, checking emails, reviewing documentation, sending mail, doing research, scheduling reservations, booking meetings, etc. The term is often used to describe roles which would previously have been referred to as secretary. The title of Personal Assistant is not the same as a "PA". A "PA" is a Production Assistant, which is a completely different job. Personal Assistant job duties can range from menial tasks such as picking up the dry cleaning to more important tasks such as attending contract negotiations, briefing journalists on which questions can and can not be asked during interviews, travelling etc.

A Personal Assistant is their employer's "go to" person. The position normally covers a variety of positions. They are Receptionists, Administrative Assistants, Runners, Managers, Publicists, Agents etc. The job has a wide range of requirements and can often be extremely demanding as employers normally expect their assistants to be there whenever they need them. In older business parlance, the current Personal Assistant" was called at various times a "Girl Friday" or a "Man Friday."


ref: agency management system, insurance crm & sfa software, wikipedia

Personal Assistant

Agency Management System consist of workflow management. we are talking here different component of workflow managemet like office automation, task management, Time Management, Scheduling etc.

Today we are going to talk Personal Assistant as part of workflow management.

A personal assistant, or personal aide, is someone who assists in daily personal tasks for a busy or successful person. For example, a businessman or businesswoman may have a personal assistant to help with his correspondence and run errands. The role of a personal assistant has expanded as the business environment has required more responsibilities. Today, a Personal Assistant may be responsible for screening incoming calls, checking emails, reviewing documentation, sending mail, doing research, scheduling reservations, booking meetings, etc.

We continue talk on Personal Assistan in our post.

ref: Agency Management Software, wikipedia

Time Management - Time Management Software

We are talking here Workflow Management. As part of our talk on Workflow Management, we talked Office Automation and Task Management.

Today we are going to talk about Time Management.

Time management can refer to all of the practices that individuals follow to make better use of their time, but such a definition could range over such diverse areas as the selection and use of personal electronic devices, time and motion study, self-awareness, and indeed a great deal of self-help. As narrowly defined, it refers to principles and systems that individuals use to make conscious decisions about the activities that occupy their time.


ref: time manageent software, wikipedia

Office Automation - Workflow Management Software

We are talking here Workflow Management. As part of our talk on Workflow Management, today we talk about Office Automation.

Office Automation refers to the varied computer machinery and software used to digitally create, collect, store, manipulate, and relay office information needed for accomplishing basic tasks and goals. Raw data storage, electronic transfer, and the management of electronic business information comprise the basic activities of an office automation system. Office automation helps in optimizing or automating existing office procedures.

The backbone of office automation is a LAN, which allows users to transmit data, mail and even voice across the network. All office functions, including dictation, typing, filing, copying, fax, Telex, microfilm and records management, telephone and telephone switchboard operations, fall into this category. Office automation was a popular term in the 1970s and 1980s as the desktop computer exploded onto the scene.


ref: Office Automation Software, wikipedia