Check the current status of any process in real-time

One of the great benefits of having a workflow system in place is that all the information about a process is captured in a database. This means that in theory, you should be able to look up exactly where a particular item is situated in a workflow at any time.

The standard functionality in LiveCycle Workspace provides an audit facility that allows users to view the progress of a process that they initiated or participated in. This limited visibility is a good thing, since it prevents breaches of privacy and security that might occur if there was unrestricted access to data. However, sometimes a broader level of visibility is required. For example:

• in a call center environment, anyone should be able to view the progress of a process regardless of whether they have previously participated in the process;
• a supervisor in a team should have visibility into the current status of all processes that the team is responsible for, even though the supervisor may not personally participate in any of the processes;
• a supervisor should also be able to reallocate a task currently assigned to one team member to someone else.

Avoka's Enquiry Tool provides you with the ability to look up any process (subject to security privileges), its status and data. Via a simple Flex interface, you can enter search criteria and the tool will display the results that match those criteria.

The Enquiry Tool runs an enquiry on processes using custom searching criteria specific to the process you are searching on, (e.g. Applicant name, invoice number, etc.), as well as a set of standard process criteria, such as its start time, who initiated it, etc. There are no complex configuration screens – simply mark a process variable as “Searchable”, and it will automatically appear in the search screen as one of the search criteria. Marking a process variable as “Visible” will mean it shows up as a column in the table of matching process instances.

Upon installing the Enquiry Tool, an additional tab is displayed on the Workspace screen. The processes are displayed in the left menu:

After selecting a process from the left menu, the enquiry page is shown. Custom criteria can be configured to search the process by simply setting the process variable as “Searchable”.

The search result shows matching items (process instances).

Upon selecting a search result, the user can choose to display the current state of any of the forms within the process, or to view the item's workflow history and status:

When selecting to view the form, a read-only copy is loaded, showing the current state of the form.

When choosing "View Actions", the tool shows all operations (tasks) that the selected item has gone through, its status and its current location in the workflow:

From here, the user can claim any active tasks, providing he/she has the appropriate permissions:

When double-clicking on a task, all task details are shown. The screen has three sections: Task Attachment(s) showing all accessible attachments (downloadable); Task Notes; and Task Assignment History:

Key Features

1. The Process Enquiry Tool allows users to search on processes using custom fields or custom criteria set up in a process.
2. The search is not restricted to users participating in the process. "Read" permissions can be given to anyone that needs to view the data.
3. The columns in the search results screen are sortable for ease of use. The particular columns to be displayed in the search results can easily be configured through custom fields.
4. The task detail screen shows the overall status of the process item and the status of all its current actions, allowing users to find out where the process is at and find any breakages or bottlenecks.
5. Users can drill down search results to view submitted form(s) and download a read-only copy of it.
6. Users can easily drill down the search result to view all process details.
7. Process activities can be claimed by a user.
8. The tool shows task attachments, task notes, and task assignment history. Depending on user settings, attachments can be displayed and downloaded by authorized users.

Simple - Requires no sophisticated configuration of search screens - simply select "searchable" and/or "visible" attributes when you define a process variable. Standard search criteria include: equal, not equal, greater than, less than, contains, starts with, between, and ignore.

Visible - The tool's search capabilities allow you to search for processes/tasks that you or others have participated in. This makes it extremely suitable for process owners and supervisors, who often need visibility into all process instances, regardless of whether they participated or not.

Secure - Only users who have read rights to a particular process type can search on that process type. A task can only be claimed of the user has the appropriate authorizations.

Comprehensive - Allows you to view all actions in a process, including both tasks and non-task (automated) actions.

User Interface - The tool has an intuitive and simple user interface.

Control - Ability to claim any task you can see (subject to Access Control Restrictions at the User Assignment level).

If you would like to discuss your specific requirements, please contact us.

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