A workflow can be a sequence of activities for an individual or an entire production process. Simple workflows can be linear or parallel, and using technology like macros or layout editors can simplify tasks.
A workflow is a sequence of activities designed to make your work easy and efficient. A workflow can involve the entire production process or be a sequence used by an individual. A simple workflow will often be the workflow used by one individual for a small task or the workflow of a very small project involving several people. While some simple workflows are designed to employ technology, others are employed by people without computers or other similar devices. When designing a simple workflow, there are some basic considerations to think about.
One of the key decisions about a simple workflow is whether to use parallel tasks or linear tasks. For example, suppose you have a small business with five employees and you have a mail service to go out and no fancy gear. You might have a linear process where the first employee fills the envelope, the second seals it, the third affixes the address label, the fourth applies a stamp, and the fifth stacks it in the appropriate mailing tray. In this process, each person’s job is simplified because they only have to think about one thing, yet each piece of mail is handled by five different people. In a parallel process, all five employees went through the sequence at the same time: filling, sealing, labeling, stamping and stacking, but each piece of mail was handled by one person.
Sometimes, taking a few slightly complex steps ahead of time can help create a simple workflow. For example, a macro is a single computer instruction that triggers a sequence of events. By taking the time to set up a macro, a complicated sequence that needs to repeat can be greatly simplified.
Using a layout editor to change the mapping of a computer input device (mouse, keyboard, tablet, or stylus) is another possibility to consider when creating a simple workflow. For example, you can temporarily change the buttons on a mouse to map them to the shortcuts needed to perform a certain task, making it unnecessary to switch keyboards from one keyboard to another. Alternatively, you could create new keyboard shortcuts that would allow you to control all actions from the keyboard and avoid the mouse for a certain activity.
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