To complete tasks and projects, we all need structure, an order of doing things, and getting them done. Things pile up, needing your attention and if you don’t have a system, you will get swamped and start missing deadline after deadline. If you pride yourself on being a professional and have a great vision for your business, it’s time to find the best workflow management tools and put them to good use.
Finding not only the best but the right workflow management tools for your company helps you improve the level of productivity, the quality of your output and gives you a structured timeline of activities that will help you get tasks and projects done more efficiently.
What is a workflow management tool?
Workflow management tools help improve the way you and your teamwork by allowing you to create workflows, streamline repetitive tasks, automate workflows and processes, identify areas where you can improve, and make you and your team even more powerful.
Once you find a system or workflow that does the job well for you in specific projects, you can save those as templates to use going forward. These can be adjusted down the line to make them better if needed.
What are the different tools in workflow manager?
Save time, increase profit and create loyal customers and employees with workflow management tools. You might have different projects going on at the same time and different teams working on them under your watch. To help you keep your head above water and maintain control of everything that’s going on, you need the best workflow management tools.
In order to be effective and useful to you and your team, you need to make sure your workflow management tools can allow you to do some, if not all, of the following:
· Design and create your own workflows
· Design work forms
· Integrate with other apps
· Enough storage (cloud-based or on-premise)
· View reports
· SLA status gauges
· Notifications
· Access control
If you’re looking at getting process flow management software for your team, you’re in luck. Here are 7 steps to find the best workflow management tools:
1. Brainstorm with the team
Since your team will primarily be the very people who will be using and benefiting from your workflow management tools, it’s just right that you begin the deliberation with them. If you don’t have a process flow management software yet, get together with your team and brainstorm about why you need one. If you already have one, it might be time to look into what’s not working before actually looking for a new one.
Be sure to take everyone’s standpoint into consideration if you want to make a sound decision. It’s very important that you get this right because this is where the core of your team’s performance will be based on.
2. Evaluate your current workflow
If you already have workflow management tools at your disposal, take the time to consider which ones are redundant and which ones are not working for you anymore. If you’re hands-on with your tasks and projects, you will have a clear idea. If not, you can get your team’s consensus.
If your system is not software-based and more pen-to-paper, you might need to get actual software, especially if your business is in the process of scaling. This will help you make sure that no task or no project goes beyond the SLA even as your business and the number of teams under your care grows.
3. Create a list of your non-negotiables
There are always a number of things that you’re not keen on living without and this goes in choosing workflow management tools for your business. Set aside some time to come up with a list of the things and tools you absolutely must have.
It would also help if you can come up with a list of goals. What are the things you wish to accomplish, the things that you envision your team achieving with your new workflow management tools? Use this list to decide on the supreme best workflow management tools that you have to have.
4. Determine the number of users
How many people in your team do you expect to use your workflow management tools? You must acquire software that can accommodate however many people need to use it at any given time without crashing on anyone. You also need software that will allow you to add external users like clients or suppliers to your workflows while also upholding everyone’s privacy and the company’s security.
Check with different vendors and service providers to see which one is best for your projected number of users whether it’s everyone in the company or just a select few.
5. Consider your budget
The good thing about the wealth of workflow management tools available in the market today is that you’re bound to find something that will fit your budget at any rate and still give you exactly what you need. Remember, you don’t need packed software so you need to be clever and wise when purchasing.
You don’t need a lot of extras or plusses that will end up adding to the cost. You can buy just the tools that you need and still make it work well for you and your teams.
6. How much support you need
No matter how tech-savvy you view yourself to be, there are new things that will stump you like a new platform or new software. There will be times when your tools crash or fail to work altogether. There will be outages and downtimes and sometimes, your team will have questions for you about the workflow management tools that you won’t be able to answer.
Consider how much support you need from your provider. Can they give it to you? Email, phone, or live chat, you need to make sure someone will be on the other end, ready to lend a hand anytime you or anyone in your team needs it.
7. What are your needs?
Apart from after-sales support, what are your other needs? Do you need comprehensive workflows that cover the entire company or small ones for specific teams that you can integrate into bigger ones? Do your needs lie more in automation?
Before you start surveying the market for process flow management software, be sure you’re guided by a list of your needs and those of your team, to make sure you will only buy the best of the best.
Your all-in-one answer
Bitrix24 offers a one-stop solution for all your needs in workflow management tools. From designing forms, assigning access roles, streamlining processes, comprehensive reports, and more, you can be sure you’re well covered.
If you’re interested and raring to go, sign up for free and give the tools a try. Visit our pricing guide for a full list of tools at your disposal at any budget you may have. Need more help or want a virtual tour of the tools? Schedule a demo and have a look around.