A workflow in Document360 is a crucial tool designed to streamline the management of knowledge base documentation. It enables you to establish an internal business process for creating, editing, reviewing, and publishing articles or category pages.

Why use workflow?

Workflow management facilitates collaboration among team members, including writers, editors, illustrators, and subject matter experts. Organizations can ensure consistency, accountability, and efficiency throughout the documentation cycle by implementing a structured workflow.

Using workflow in Document360

Workflow functionality in Document360 consists of two main modules:

1. Workflow designer
2. Workflow assignments

Here's a quick guide to using the Workflow designer efficiently.

Workflow designer

The workflow designer feature helps project team members to create and maintain a step-by-step stage for any new or existing documentation. This makes collaboration easier between the writers, editors, illustrators, subject matter experts, and other project team members.

The workflow feature allows the admins or project owners to design a workflow that best suits their business requirements.

Accessing the Workflow designer

To access the workflow designer page, follow the below steps.

1. From the Knowledge base portal, navigate to Documentation () > Content tools.

2. In the Documentation section, click Workflow designer.

You can view the existing built-in workflow (Draft – In review – Published). You can create additional workflow statuses here. You can also edit the existing statuses (including system status) and reorder/delete the custom statuses anytime.

Workflow status

A Workflow Status represents a checkpoint or stage in the documentation cycle within Document360. There are two types of statuses:

• System Status: These are predefined start and end statuses (e.g., Draft and Published) that cannot be deleted or reordered.

• Custom Status: These are user-defined statuses that offer flexibility in creation, editing, reordering, and deletion at any time. You can also turn on the read-only toggle for the statuses you added. This restricts the other team members from editing the article(s) or category page(s). They can only view and comment on it.

Adding a new status

1. From the Knowledge base portal, navigate to Documentation () > Content tools.

2. In Documentation section, click Workflow designer.

3. Click  the Create workflow status button at the top-right.
   Alternatively, click the (+) button found between the statuses to create the workflow status.

4. Type in a Name (required) and Description (optional) for your status.

5. Turn on/off the Read-only toggle to allow or restrict editing the article when it is set to the specified status.

   NOTE

   If the Read-only toggle is enabled, team members will not be able to edit the article or category page content when the article is set to the specified workflow status. Additionally, team members will not be allowed to publish the article. However, they can still add comments on the articles or category pages.

6. Click on the Add button at the bottom.

   The workflow status will be added in the intended section of the workflow.

Editing an existing status

1. From the Knowledge base portal, navigate to Documentation () > Content tools.

2. In Documentation section, click Workflow designer.
   The existing statuses in the workflow will be listed.

3. Click on the Edit icon () and an Update status blade will open.
   

4. You can edit the Name, and Description and update the Read-only option (for statuses you have created (or) statuses for which the Read only is turned off).

5. Click the Update button at the bottom once you are done.

Reorder status

You can reorder the custom statuses dragging and dropping them within the workflow. The reorder icon is available on the left adjacent to each status.

NOTE

You cannot reorder system workflow statuses.

Deleting an existing status

1. From the Knowledge base portal, navigate to Documentation () > Content tools.

2. In the Documentation section, click Workflow designer.
   The existing statuses in the workflow would be listed.

3. Click on the Delete () icon.

4. Click Yes to confirm.

NOTE

• The workflow status cannot be recovered once deleted. All the due dates and assignee data would also be lost.

• Users cannot delete the two system statuses (Start* and end*) provided.

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