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About Document Workflow

Proliance provides a comprehensive document workflow structure that provides the checks and balances required for a collaborative workspace environment. A workflow recognizes that different people may play a different role at each phase of a document's life cycle. For example, a secretary creates a new rough draft document and then hands it off to a subcontractor who enters detailed information. The subcontractor then sends the completed document to the general contractor for approval and acceptance.

At the heart of the document workflow process is the concept of document states and the configurable action and distribution planning around those states. A configured workflow can define any or all of the following:

• Specifies the default and/or required recipients to perform the next action on the document
• Assigns permissions dictating who is authorized to move a document to the next workflow state
• Describes the recommended action that should be taken next on the document
• Enforces the entry of values into certain fields for a given state
• Specifies the default and/or required distribution (cc) for the document as it moves through workflow

Workspace members collaborate on the document and perform the necessary workflow actions to advance the document through the workflow.

Configured Workflow Plan

Configured workflows offer the greatest structure: for each document subtype, you predefine who will receive the document in each workflow state and who is permitted to perform specific actions. Proliance then routes the document according to the workflow plan; the recipients only need to follow the steps.

Even when a workflow plan has been predefined, you can often take "shortcuts" by advancing the document directly to a later state, if your security role permits it.

Ad Hoc Workflow Plan

When a workflow plan has not been predefined, Proliance allows you to perform a workflow action on a document if you have the appropriate security permission. Then, you can choose who should receive the document next and the action that should be performed. If you meet the following conditions, you can participate in an ad hoc workflow:

• You have a security role that permits you to edit the document type in question. For more information, see "About Security Permissions".
• You have a security role that permits you to perform a particular workflow action on a document in a specific workflow state.

For more information on how to perform an ad hoc workflow, see "Setting up a Document for an Action".

Ad hoc workflows are flexible enough to handle the rapidly changing needs of a workspace, while ensuring that every document has followed the appropriate life cycle.

Ad Hoc Distribution

In addition to the formal document workflow, Proliance also allows you to informally forward a document without altering its state. You will normally do this if you require further input before changing the state, or if you want to hand over the responsibility for state change to someone else. For example, when a subcontractor receives a document, he may choose to forward the document to a fellow subcontractor for assistance, even if that other subcontractor is not formally involved with the document. For more information, see "Forwarding a Document".

People involved in an ad hoc distribution can still perform a workflow action, if their security role permits it.