Workflow in Experience Space

In Experience Space, you can view current workflow activities and perform workflow tasks from the Workflow Activities list.

Workflow Activities list

The list shows a variety of details for current activities. The following screen capture illustrates an number of activities that are in progress:

The numbered icons in the screen capture highlight the following key features of this view:

  1. If a number appears at the top of the Activities tab, there are new activities assigned to you (or a group you belong to) since the time you last refreshed or opened the activities list. Click the (Refresh) button to show the latest data.
  2. Use the (Customize data request...) button to set filters that will remain in effect for future sessions (until you change them).
    • Select a user or group from the Assignee or performer list to change which activities will appear in the Workflow Activities list.
    • Select the activity states that you want to see in the list. By default, the list hides completed activities.
  3. The buttons at the top of the list enable you to start, finish and assign one or more selected activities. You can also perform these actions from the context menu (right-click).
  4. The filters, together with the sort and column configuration options, enable you to refine the displayed data according to your current needs. From the Filters list, select the filters that you want to use and then select values for the individual filters.
    You can also use the free-text filter to quickly filter the list across all of the following details:
    • Activity
    • Task process
    • Primary item
    • Assignee
    • Performer
    • Publication
    The filtering includes both the field name and the URI and applies to data regardless of whether the related column appears in the list. It is also handy to know that the text filter can be used in combination with other filters.
  5. In the Insights area, you can view additional detail for the selected activity. For more information, refer to the "Insights area" section of this topic.
  6. In the STATUS column, you can quickly check the status of activities. The three primary statuses are as follows:
    • ASSIGNED indicates the activity is currently assigned to a group or individual user but has not yet been started. Depending on your rights in the system, you may be able to reassign an activity to another user or group.
    • IN PROGRESS indicates the activity has been picked up but is not yet finished.
    • COMPLETED indicates the activity is now completed.

Insights area

The following screen capture illustrates some of the key things to know about each of the panels:

  1. Information panel — Provides general information on a selected item, including several details that are not visible in the list view. Certain details appear only when they are relevant to the specific item you have selected.
    The following definitions describe some of the details that may not be self explanatory:
    Approval Status
    The approval status determines whether or not the item(s) associated with this item can be published to a specific Target Type.
    Performer
    If the activity is still in progress, the name of the user who is currently performing the activity. If the activity is completed, the user who most recently performed the activity.
  2. Related items panel — Shows the list of items associated with the current activity. Typically, these are content items on which the activity requires some type of work, such as a content review.

    Note the following:
    • If the primary item is a bundle, it will appear first in the list followed by all the items in the bundle.
    • Each related item can be opened directly from the list so that you can view the item and perform the requested task.
  3. Process history panel — Shows all activities that are part of the same, active process.
    • They activities are in order by most recent on top. Initially, only the selected activity is expanded to show its details. As needed, you can expand and view other activities to see their details as well.
    • The filter enables you to show a subset of all the activities, such as those containing the text "Review". This is handy if there is a long history of previous activities.

Completed processes

Activities remain in the list as long as the overall process is still active, meaning there are still remaining activities that are not yet finished. As soon as all activities in a process are finished, all activities will disappear from the list.

If you want to see information on a completed process and you have the required workflow management rights, you can do so by switching to the Classic user interface and going to the Workflow Management > Completed Processes list.

Workflow management

With the appropriate system access, you can perform some basic workflow management tasks in Experience Space. These tasks include assigning or reassigning activities to users other than yourself (or to a group you are not a member of) and restarting activities that are in a failed state.

To perform workflow management tasks, you must have System Administrator privileges or Workflow Management rights. With Workflow Management rights, you can perform these actions only on items that are in Publications for which you have the right. .

Advanced options for workflow management are available only in Content Manager Explorer under Administration > Workflow Management. These include the ability to manage workflow process definitions and associations. For information on this area and workflow administration in general, refer to the Administration section of this publication.