Creating Processes

Some of the functionality described in this article is available as part of our Petit Verdot release and will not be available if your Practifi instance is not upgraded to this release. 

Overview

Your Practifi instance contains preloaded processes that can be used as-is or modified to suit your firm's workflows. This article will guide you through how to create a process within your Practifi instance from scratch. For more information about the settings and processes, please consult our Understanding Processes article. For information about using created processes within your organization, please consult our Using Processes article. If you have any questions about establishing a process to achieve a specific workflow within your Practifi instance, please reach out to your CSM. 

• Creating a Process Type 
  • Summary 
  • Process Settings
  • Time-Based Commencement Settings
  • Portal Settings
  • System Information
• Process Stages
  • Adding Process Stages
  • Establishing the Initial Process Stage
• Rule-Based Actions
• Available Workflows
• Process Tasks
  • Process Task Creation
  • Outcomes
  • Actions
  • Preset Checklist Items
  • Predecessors

Creating Process Types

1. Click the App Launcher in the left-hand corner and enter “Settings” into the search bar.
2. Select the Settings app from the drop-down menu. 
3. Use the caret button next to the Navigation menu to select the Process Types option.
4. On the Process Types list page, select the New button on the upper right-hand side of the page. This will open a New Process Type page with Summary, Process Settings and System Information sections. 

Summary 

1. Enter the name of the process into the Process Name field. The name of the process will be what users select when choosing the process from the list of available processes. 
2. Within the Related To Available list, select the objects and areas where you would like this process to be available. The object will highlight blue when properly selected. Next, use the top arrow button to add this object to the Chosen list. The object will change placement to the Chosen list when properly added. 
3. Check the Visible checkbox if not already checked. When checked, the process will be active and immediately available to be launched within the objects and areas set in the previous step. 
4. Enter a whole number into the Order field. This defines the position in which the process appears in the list of available processes during creation.
5. Optionally, enter a name in the Group field to group this process type with other like processes. This value can be used for reporting purposes.
6. In the Description field, enter a short description of the process, which will be displayed to users when selecting the processes at launch.

Process Settings

1. For initial creation, leave the Stage field blank. This field will be revisited and set later in the process stages section below. 
2. Specify how the assignee is determined through the Assignment Type field. For further explanation behind these options, please consult our Understanding Processes article.
   • Please note: Depending on the selection made here, you may experience additional fields to select a specific user, a custom queue or a Servicing Team Member. This is covered further in the Understanding Processes article.
3. The Task Due Date Basis field is set to Trigger Date by default. You can change this to Process Due Date.
4. If you want to begin the process based on various date fields across the Entity, Contact, Service, and Deals objects, select the Enable Time-Based Commencement? checkbox.
5. The Include Active Form in launch action? field is set to Yes by default. Change this to No if you do not want the Active Form for the first task in the process to be displayed in the Start a Process workflow.
6. Select the Save button to finalize the creation of the process type.

Time-Based Commencement Settings

Please note: This section is displayed only if the Enable Time-Based Commencement? box has been checked. The following steps can be skipped if you are not using time-based commencement settings. 

1. Select the pencil icon located next to the Target Object field to set the page within edit mode. Once in edit mode, select the object from the drop-down menu. 
2. Within the Target Field field, enter the API field name of the field you would like the timing to be based on. The API field name can be found within the Salesforce backend, and to find this information use the following steps:
   1. Select the gear icon located in the upper right-hand corner and select Setup from the drop-down menu. A new browser window will open, displaying the Salesforce back-end. 
   2. Select the Object Manager button to display the objects list and locate the Salesforce object by its label name within this list. Next, click the object's name within the Label field to open the object's details page. 
   3. On the object's details page, select the Fields & Relationships tab on the left-hand side to open a list of all fields available. 
   4. Locate the date field you would like the time-based settings to be based upon and use the information in the Field Name column as this is the API name, rather than the information within the Field Label column. 
3. Within the Commencement Timing field, select whether the process will begin before or after the date on the Target Date field. 
4. Input the number of days that the process should begin before or after the date field in the Number of Days field. 
   • Please note: The numbers for this field begin at 1 and operate as calendar days and not as business days. 
5. Once Time-Based Commencement Settings have been entered, press Save to finalize this change. 

Portal Settings

Check the Enable for Portal Users box to make this process type available in a client-facing portal.
Please note: This setting applies only to organizations with the Practifi Portals add-on service. To learn more about adding this functionality, please contact your CSM.

System Information

1. Within this section, the Locked checkbox can be enabled to prevent any edits from being made to the process type by users within your firm. We recommend only enabling this checkbox after fully creating and testing your process type. 
   • Please note: If a locked process needs to be unlocked for changes, this can only be completed by the original creator. Once unlocked, all other Admin users can provide updates.  
2. Created By and Last Modified By will be auto-generated by the system and can not be manually modified. 

Process Stages

Each process has open configuration options for custom stages for each transitional state, and as few or as many as needed can be created. 

Adding Process Stages

1. Select the hyperlinked Process Stages heading located above the Summary section. This will direct you to the Process Stages list view for this process. 
2. Select the New button located on the right-hand side to create the process stage. 
   • Please note: You can also access the creation of new Process Stages by using the caret button next to the hyperlinked Process Stages heading. This article guides users through the list view process since it offers a better view of all the stages built.
3. Enter a stage name into the Process Stage Name field. 
4. The Process Type field will auto-default to the related process type. 
5.  Enter a whole number into the Order field. This defines the position in which the process stage appears in the list of available process stages. 
6. Set the Group to the option that makes the most sense based on the information input into the Process Stage Name field to group the stage with other stages. The group definitions are as follows:
   • Not Started - The process has not begun and is not being worked on by any team members within the firm.
   • In Progress - Team members at your firm are actively working through the process tasks.
   • Completed - All process tasks have been completed, and the overall process is now closed.
   • Canceled - The process has begun but is closed before all process tasks have been completed. 
7. Select Save to finalize the process stage creation. Select the Save & New button to create multiple process stages to save the created process stage while opening a new process stage creation page.

Establishing the Initial Process Stage

1. On the original Process tab, navigate back to the Process Settings section. 
2. Select the pencil icon located next to the Stage field to set the page within edit mode.
3. Within the Stage field, begin typing the stage name of the stage that you would like the process to initially start in and then select the stage from the drop-down menu. Select Show All Results from the drop-down menu if the process stage is not initially displaying. 
4. Select Save to finalize this change. 

Rule-Based Actions

In the Rule-Based Actions area of the Process Type record, you can create rules with criteria that trigger actions at the process level. To learn more about how to build rules, please see our Understanding and Using the Rule Builder article.

Available Workflows

In the Available To area of the Process Type record, you can click the New button to specify Team Members, Divisions and Financial Products where you want this process to be available. Each of these relationships has a different impact on workflow availability:

• If a process type is related to a Team Member, that user will see the item appear in the Start a Process action wherever it’s been exposed (as per the item’s Related To options).
• If a process type is related to a Division, any user who’s a member of that Division will see that item appear in the Start a Process action wherever it’s been exposed (as per the item’s Related To options).
• If a process type is related to a Financial Product, any user will see that item appear in the Start a Process action for an Entity that has one or more related Asset/Liability records which are themselves related to that Financial Product (via either the Financial Product or Parent Financial Product lookup fields).

Process Tasks

Process tasks are the main components of a process that help build each step and set various outcomes that progress the process forward through actions.

Process Task Creation

1. Select the Process Tasks heading located above the Summary section. This will direct you to the Process Tasks list view for this process. 
2. Select the New button located on the right-hand side to create the process task. 
   • Please note: You can also access the creation of new Process Tasks by using the caret button next to the hyperlinked Process Task heading. This article guides users through the list view process since it offers a better view of all the process tasks built.
3. In the Subject field, set a short description of the task. 
4. Select the immediate status for the process task from the Status field's drop-down.
5. Set the priority of the task in the Priority field drop-down menu to indicate the importance of the task. 
6. Enter a short description of the task within the Description field. 
7. Specify how the assignee is determined through the Assignment Type field. The assignment types follow the same definitions as the assignment type for the overall process. For further explanation behind these options, please consult our Understanding Processes article.
8. Set the Due Date Interval to the number of days between when this task is created and when it should be due.
9. The Suppress At Launch checkbox sets whether this process task should be kicked off immediately on the process creation or wait for an action to trigger the task later. If this checkbox is checked, the task will not be triggered upon the initial process creation. Typically when creating a process, the first process task will not have this checkbox enabled. 
10. Press Save to finalize the creation of the process task.

Outcomes

1. On the Process Task overview page, select the Task Outcomes heading. 
2. Select the New button located on the right-hand side to create a task outcome.
   • Please note: You can also access the creation of new Process Outcomes by using the caret button next to the hyperlinked Process Outcome heading. This article guides users through the list view process since it offers a better view of all the process outcomes built.
3. Enter the name of the outcome in the Name field. 
4. Enter a whole number into the Order field. This defines the position in which the task outcome appears in the list of available task outcomes. 
5. Press Save to finalize the creation of the task outcome. To create multiple task outcomes for this process task, select the Save & New button to save this task outcome while opening a new task outcome creation page. It is best practice to create all task outcomes before creating task actions. 

Actions

1. On the Process Task overview page, select the Actions heading located beneath the Task Outcomes heading.
2. Select the New button located on the right-hand side.
   • Please note: You can also access the creation of new Process Actions by using the caret button next to the hyperlinked Process Action heading. This article guides users through the list view process since it offers a better view of all the process actions built.
3. Enter the name of the action in the Name field. 
4. From the drop-down menu within the From Outcome field, select the outcome that should then trigger this action when selected upon task completion.
5. Set the action to occur when the task is completed with the specified outcome from the Action Type field drop-down menu. To learn more, see Understanding Action Types.
   The complete list of options available are:
   • Create New Task in the Process
   • Start a New Process
   • Set Process Stage for this Process
   • Create a New Service
   • Set Service Stage for Related Service
   • Set Client Stage for Related Client
   • Create a New Service and a New Process
   • Save to Related Record
   • Create a Deal
   • Create an Event
   • Post to Noticeboard
   • Send a Notification
   • Send an Email
   • Send to Quik
   • Create an Asset/Liability
   • Create a Person
   • Create a Client Entity
     
   • Create a Reference Document
   • Create an Asset/Liability Role
   • Create a Relationship
   • Create a Record
   • Create Envestnet Proposal
   • Promote Envestnet Proposal to IGO
6. Once the action has been specified, select the appropriate task, process, service, service stage or client stage within the rendered fields to direct the action to the specific value. 
7. Click the Execution Rules tab to set criteria that must be met before the action is triggered. To learn more about creating rules, please see our Understanding and Using the Rule Builder article.
8. Press Save to finalize the creation of the action. 

Preset Checklist Items

Checklists help end users track the jobs to be done for a given task. There are two types of items you can add to a Task record:

• A manual item is considered complete when the task owner checks its box.

• An automatic item is considered complete when its criteria have been fulfilled. Criteria logic is handled by a checkbox field located elsewhere, which gets automatically checked using either formula logic or other automation; the automatic checklist item simply reflects the status of that field.

When process tasks are completed, you can report on checklist items using the Completed By and Completed On fields with the following report types:

• Checklist Items
• Checklist Items with Process Task
• Checklist Item History

To add a Checklist item to a task, do the following:

1. On the Process Task overview page, click the drop-down in the Preset Checklist Items area and select New.
   
2. Enter a description of the item in the Label field. 
3. Enter a number in the Order field. (This dictates the order in which the item appears in the Checklist side panel on the Task record.)
4. In the Help Text field, you can enter short instructional text for the item. This text will appear within a tooltip at the end of the checklist item's label.
5. From the Action Type drop-down menu, select Manual or Automatic. Manual is selected by default.
6. If you selected Automatic, enter the path for a checkbox field in the Criteria Location field using Salesforce syntax.
7. For automatic items, click the If Criteria Location Isn't Accessible drop-down and select Don't display this item or Display this item as incomplete.
8. If you want the item to be fulfilled before the task can be marked as complete, check the Required box. 
9. Press Save to finalize the creation of the Checklist item, or Save & New to add another item. 

Predecessors

Most information within the Predecessor section will be system-generated and will not need setting. However, this section is where process tasks can be linked together in spaces where a group of tasks runs concurrently, and all tasks must be completed to begin the next task. To group tasks, the following steps must be followed:

1. On the Process Task overview page, select the Predecessors heading.
2. In the action row, select the caret button located on the right-hand side and select Edit from the drop-down menu.
3. Enter your group name in the Group field. 
4. Press Save to finalize this change. 
5. Repeat the above steps for each task you would like grouped, entering the same value into the Group field.