Digital workflow: definition, examples and implementation in business
TL;DR
A digital workflow is an automated and dematerialized business process that optimizes task management, reduces errors, and improves collaboration. Its implementation involves identifying the process, mapping it, choosing an appropriate tool, and progressive deployment. Benefits include significant time savings, better traceability, and reduced operational costs.
The digital transformation of businesses inevitably involves the digitalization of processes. At the heart of this evolution, digital workflow represents a strategic lever for optimizing operational efficiency. Unlike traditional manual processes, a digital workflow relies on workflow software to automate and streamline recurring tasks. This approach not only allows for automating an existing workflow but also completely rethinking work organization through the product features of Kantree and other specialized platforms.
- What is a digital workflow?
- Why implement a digital workflow?
- How to create a digital workflow step by step?
- Examples of high-impact digital workflows
- Which tool to choose for creating a digital workflow?
- FAQ - Digital Workflow
What is a digital workflow?
A digital workflow is a completely dematerialized and automated business process that orchestrates the sequence of tasks, validations, and decisions within an organization. It is a logical sequence of activities that are executed in a coordinated manner, with predefined rules and automatic triggers.
What is a digital workflow concretely? It’s a system that allows information, documents, and tasks to circulate between different actors according to a defined path. Each step of the process is tracked, measured, and can be continuously optimized. Participants automatically receive appropriate notifications, deadlines are met, and bottlenecks are quickly identified.
How is it different from a manual process?
The fundamental difference between a manual process and a digital workflow lies in automation and standardization. A manual process depends on human intervention at each step: sending emails, manual follow-ups, tracking in separate spreadsheets. This approach generates delays, oversights, and inconsistencies.
Digital workflow, conversely, automates repetitive tasks, centralizes information, and applies consistent business rules. Transitions between steps occur automatically according to predefined criteria, notifications are sent at the right time to the right people, and complete history is maintained for audit and continuous improvement.
Concrete use cases (HR, IT, legal, etc.)
Digital workflow applications are multiple and affect all departments:
Human Resources: Recruitment process from job posting to integration, leave management with hierarchical validation, annual evaluations with validation circuit.
Information Technology: Incident ticket management with automatic escalation, equipment procurement process, new user deployment with automatic access creation.
Legal: Contract validation with multi-level approval circuit, GDPR compliance management, litigation tracking with automatic alerts on deadlines.
Finance: Supplier invoice processing, budget process with automatic consolidation, expense report management with integrated controls.
Why implement a digital workflow?
Digital workflow implementation addresses major operational challenges that directly impact company performance.
Error and oversight reduction
Workflow automation eliminates human errors related to manual entry and oversights. Controls are integrated into the process, data is automatically validated, and mandatory steps cannot be bypassed. This process reliability improves deliverable quality and reduces non-quality costs.
Time and productivity gains
Automating a workflow frees up time for value-added activities. Time-consuming administrative tasks are processed automatically, employees are proactively notified of actions to take, and processing times are considerably reduced. This optimization can generate up to 30% productivity gains on affected processes.
Better traceability and transparency
Every action is timestamped and tracked, creating a complete process history. This transparency facilitates audits, helps identify bottlenecks, and provides valuable data for continuous improvement. Managers can track progress in real-time and anticipate drift risks.
Enhanced collaboration between teams
Digital workflow breaks down silos by creating smooth cross-functional processes. Teams have a shared vision of progress, handoffs between departments are formalized, and responsibilities are clearly defined. This improved collaboration reduces misunderstandings and accelerates resolution of complex issues.
How to create a digital workflow step by step?
Process digitalization requires a methodical approach to ensure project success.
1. Identify the process to digitize
Start by selecting a high-impact process: recurring, involving multiple people, source of errors or delays. Analyze frequency, time spent, and current pain points. Prioritize a pilot process with motivated stakeholders to maximize success chances.
2. Map tasks and decisions
Precisely document each step of the current process: who does what, when, with what information. Identify decision points, conditions for moving from one step to another, and possible exceptions. This mapping will serve as the basis for designing the optimized digital workflow.
3. Choose an appropriate tool (Kantree, Notion, etc.)
Select a platform that meets your specific needs: process complexity, number of users, required integrations, available budget. Evaluate available digital workflow tools, prioritizing those that offer a good balance between ease of use and functional power.
4. Define roles, rules, and automations
Configure roles and permissions, define business rules, and set up automations. Specify triggers, escalation conditions, and notifications. This step requires particular attention to avoid operational blockages.
5. Test, iterate, and deploy progressively
Test the workflow with a restricted group of users, collect feedback, and adjust the configuration. Then deploy progressively while supporting change. Plan a period of dual operation (old and new process) to secure the transition.
Examples of high-impact digital workflows {exemples}
Automated HR onboarding
A digitized integration process includes automatic contract generation, IT access creation, training scheduling, and integration task tracking. The new employee automatically receives their integration schedule, access is provisioned on day one, and HR tracks progress in real-time.
Internal request management (IT, general services)
Support requests are automatically categorized, assigned based on skills, and escalated if necessary. Users are kept informed of progress and SLAs are met through automatic alerts. The IT service optimizes its workload and improves user satisfaction.
Contract or legal document validation
The validation circuit automatically follows governance rules: amount, contract type, involved entities. Validators receive documents with necessary context, deadlines are tracked, and blockages are quickly identified. The legal process gains speed and compliance.
Product roadmap tracking
Product evolutions follow a structured workflow from ideation to deployment. Priorities are automatically managed, dependencies tracked, and technical teams notified of new specifications. The roadmap remains aligned with business objectives.
Which tool to choose for creating a digital workflow? {choisir-digital-workflow}
Tool choice largely determines the success of your digitalization project.
Spreadsheets, low-code tools, or specialized platforms
Spreadsheets are suitable for simple processes but quickly show their limits in terms of collaboration and automation. Low-code tools offer more flexibility but require technical skills. Specialized platforms combine ease of use and functional power, ideal for most enterprise use cases.
Kantree: a no-code platform to digitize your processes simply
Kantree positions itself as a complete no-code solution for creating digital workflows without technical skills. The platform offers ready-to-use templates, an intuitive visual editor, and advanced automations. Its modular approach adapts to all types of business processes while ensuring rapid adoption.
Selection criteria: customization, integrations, GDPR, UX
Evaluate tools according to several key criteria: customization capability to adapt to your specific processes, richness of integrations with your application ecosystem, GDPR compliance for data protection, and user experience quality to promote adoption. Don’t forget to evaluate support and product roadmap to secure your long-term investment.
FAQ - Digital Workflow
What is the difference between workflow and digital workflow?
A traditional workflow can be entirely manual (paper process, emails, phone) while a digital workflow is necessarily dematerialized and relies on digital tools to automate and optimize the sequence of tasks.
What are the best tools for digitalizing a business process?
Market leaders include generalist solutions like Microsoft Power Automate, specialized platforms like Nintex or ProcessMaker, and no-code tools like Kantree or Monday.com. The choice depends on your process complexity and technical expertise level.
Can you create a digital workflow without coding?
Yes, modern no-code platforms allow creating sophisticated workflows via graphical interfaces. These tools democratize automation by enabling business users to digitize their processes without IT intervention.
Is it suitable for SMEs?
Absolutely, SMEs can even derive more benefits from digital workflow than large enterprises. Cloud solutions offer pricing adapted to small structures and enable rapid professionalization of internal processes. The impact on productivity is often more visible in human-scale organizations.