Workflow Engineering and Buildout

What is a workflow?

“Workflow” is the term our industry applies to a repeatable sequence of administrative tasks through which a piece of paper passes. These tasks can include:

• The use of a document/form as an initiator of a sequence of events that involve the use of other documents/forms.
• The sharing of data from the document with different departments and/or software products.
• The use of the data from the document to kick off other workflows.
• The approval of the document by department heads and/or other business entities.
• The need for copies of the document to be made and distributed programmatically.
• The accrual and tracking of documents as part of a file or set of files.

Workflow example: (simple paper-based example)

1. An employee collects business expense receipts over the course of a month and puts them in an envelope.
2. Once a month, the employee completes a corporate expense report template.
3. He opens the template, completes it, and then prints it off. (1 Page)
4. The employee makes a copy of his/her receipts and staples them to the request. (4 Pages)
5. The employee makes a copy of the expense report and the receipts for themselves. (5 pages total)
6. The employee hands their manager the original.
7. The manager reviews the copy and approves it.
8. The manager makes a copy for himself and hands the original to the accounts payable team. (5 Pages total)
9. The accounts payable team reviews the approvals and paperwork.
10. The accounts payable team issues a check to the employee.

• This process created 15 pages of information, of which 10 pages were duplicates.
• The material cost of this transaction, exclusive of time = $1.50

What is workflow engineering?

In the example above, we would use a combination of currently owned technologies (cell phone and MS office) in combination with the ImageFreeway platform to make the process outlined above more efficient and less costly.

1. The employee takes a picture of expense receipts with their phone as they occur. Pictures are auto-uploaded to ImageFreeway in a folder called “Receipts” for that employee/user. The employee adds 3 index fields at the time of ingestion.
2. At the end of the month, the employee completes the expense report template.
3. The employee prints the template into ImageFreeway, initiating the expense report workflow.
4. The employee receives an email asking him/her to add their receipts to the document and sign the document.
5. The employee attaches the pictures from step 1 to the expense report from within ImageFreeway and signs the document.
6. ImageFreeway sends the employee’s manager an “Expense Reimbursement Request” link via email.
7. The manager reviews the report and receipts for accuracy from within ImageFreeway and approves the report using a drop-down box.
8. ImageFreeway sends a link via email to the accounts payable team to pay the expense report.
9. The accounts payable team reviews the report and pays the employee.
10. The expense report is moved into a file folder that sits in a cabinet in the AP department.
11. Defined users would have access to the report.

• This process created 5 pages of electronic information.
• The material cost of this transaction, exclusive of time = $0.00

100 expense reports per month this workflow SAVES YOU: $150.00 plus 100 hours of time

What are the benefits of a digital workflow vs. a paper-based workflow?

• Reduced transactional costs.
• Reduced processing time.
• Track expenses in real time (reporting).
• Eliminate lost documents.
• Eliminate floor space.
• Eliminate the cost of file folders and file cabinets.