HR Transactions workflow

HR Transactions workflow

Overview of the Workflow for the Staff Request Approvals in the Recruitment Module 

HRplus Everywhere has an advanced workflow engine which allows an organization to embed the approval processes of their standard operating procedures within their electronic Recruitment Staff Request transactions.
 
The Workflow allows for the automation of the approval flow from transaction initialization to completed approvals for the following Recruitment Transactions: 

1. Manager Staff Requests 

The Workflow allows for multiple approval roles (e.g. Approver 1, Approver 2, Approver 3 etc.) and approval stages (e.g. 1st Approval Stage, 2nd Approval Stage, 3rd Approval stage etc.). 

If roles are not used, then the system uses the Reporting Relationships for the workflow approval process.
 
How it works:
 
1. Once the workflow is set up and a Staff Request is entered by the Manager, the system ‘searches for and locates' the employees at the various stages of the workflow process. 
2. The system then generates email messages to these employees via their Inbox, informing them that a transaction needs to be approved. 
3. Once the transaction is approved, the system continues the process, moving the workflow along until final approval. 


Navigation: Systems Configurations>>Workflow 



A Guide to setting up Workflows for HR Transactions
 
The steps are as follows: 

1. Set up Letter Templates. 
2. Set up Workflow Processes.
3. Set up Workflow Definition. 
4. Set up Workflow Roles.  
5. Define Workflow Roles. 
6. Set up Workflow Stages - Overview. 
7. Link Workflow Stages to Workflow Processes. 
8. Use Roles for Workflow Stages. 
9. Auto-Escalate Workflow Stages. 
10. Workflow Stages Add-Ons. 
11. Activate Workflow. 


Before using this module, please ensure that: 

1. Reporting relationships (Employee to Direct Supervisor) have been set up and are accurate (Navigation: Personnel>>Positions>>All Positions (Filled and Vacant)>>[Edit Position Supervisor]) 
2. Employees have valid user accounts (Security>>User Administration) 
3. The user-defined Workflow Roles for the various HR Transactions are identified. 
4. The user-defined Workflow Stages for the various HR Transactions are identified. 


Step 1: Set up Letter Templates 

Navigation: Personnel>>Personnel>>Letter Templates 

Letter Templates 

The Letter Templates and Generate Letters options allow for the one-time setup of user-defined letter templates (Salary Increases, Job Letters, Promotions, Confirmations etc.) and for the automatic generation of these letters whenever required. 

The Letter Templates are used in conjunction with the HR Transactions workflow so that letters are automatically generated and attached as the approval process moves along the workflow. At the final stage of the workflow (posting of record), the letter is automatically saved to the employee’s documents. 

How it works: 

1. The Workflow is set up for the various Transaction Types (Acting, Position Changes, PT/FT Changes, Salary Changes etc.). 
2. Letter Templates are created for the various Transaction Types. 
3. Transactions are entered for employees and go through the defined Workflow process for the particular Transaction Type. 
4. At the final workflow stage, once the record is posted, the system automatically generates and stores the letters in Employee Profile (Personnel>>Employees>>Toggle Additional Details>>Documents). 

1: Set Up Date Formats 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Company Parameters>>System Constants>>System Interface Codes
 
  1. The Date Format generated for Letters is determined by the configuration selected in System Interface Codes.
    1. For example: 
      1. Application Date Format (Short) - dd-MM-yyyy
        1. Template Placeholder - DATE_PRINTED 
        2. Generated Date Format - 13-09-2024 
      2.  Application Date Format (Long) - dd-Mon-yyyy
        1. Template Placeholder - DATE_PRINTED_Long 
        2. Generated Date Format - 13 September, 2024 
2: Enable Add space on generated letters 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Feature Management>>Add space on generated letters 

This feature adds a 2.5 inch space allowance for the printing of letterheads. 



3: Upload Image 
 
Navigation: Personnel>>Personnel>>Letter templates>>Letter Template Images 



4: Create Letter Template 

Personnel>>Personnel>>Letter Templates 







▪ Transaction Type: From the drop-down list, select the Transaction Type (Personnel>>Transactions>>Transaction Types), for which you wish to set up a template. These are the same types that will be displayed, when setting up the Workflow Definition, in the HR Module Type field. How do I set up transaction reasons? 
▪ Trans Reason Desc: this drop-down list will display the transaction reasons that have been set up for the selected transaction type (Personnel>>Transactions>>Transaction Reasons). 
▪ Default: select Yes or No to indicate if the template is the default template. 
▪ Save the record. The record will be displayed in the list. Double-click to open. 


Repeat the process to create Letter Templates for all Transaction Types for which you wish to implement Workflow. 

5: Configure Template Layout 

Configure the template layout for the letter by defining both the content as well as the layout of each letter template. 

Navigation: Personnel>>Letter Templates>>[double-click to open record] 



Enter the content of your letter. Use the formatting options to format as you wish.
 
• Insert Placeholder: placeholders are the system field names that are retrieved from the HRplus database and displayed in the drop-down list. Place the cursor in the letter where you wish to put the field. Select the field name from the dropdown and click the Insert Placeholder button. These placeholders will be replaced by the actual field values when the letter is generated. 
• Insert Image: click this button to select and insert a saved image (company logo, signature) into the letter: JPG, PNG and any other picture formats are supported. 
• Save when completed. Repeat to set up additional letters. 


Step 2: Set up Workflow Processes 

Unlimited user-defined workflow processes or steps are defined here. Having understood and identified your company’s workflow steps, you can now enter them here. 

For example, a simple workflow process can be: 
1. ENTER HR RECORD 
2. PROCESS HR RECORD 
3. POST HR RECORD 

OR 

For workflows that use the Reporting Relationships (Employee to Direct Supervisor), the workflow processes are the following two (2) steps: 

1. ENTER HR RECORD 
2. APPROVE AND POST HR RECORDS 


Navigation: System Configurations>>Workflow>>Workflow Processes 



• Process ID: Enter a user-defined number that identifies the sequence of the workflow process. 
• Repeat the process to enter all of your company’s workflow processes. 

Step 3: Set up Workflow Definition 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Workflow>>Workflow Definitions 

Workflow Definitions 

Define the workflow by entering a name, the organization units to which it applies and the Effective Date on which it should be initiated. 

It is recommended that the setup of the workflow be completed before the workflow is made active. 

Enter the Workflow Definition 



• Country, Company, Division, Department, Section: select the workflow criteria - the appropriate combination of Country, Company, Department, Section for which the workflow applies. 
• HR Module Type: select, from the list, the specific Transaction Type or ALL HR TRANSACTIONS to which the workflow applies. This list is populated by the list of transaction types set up via Personnel>>Transaction Types. How do I set up transaction reasons? 
• Effective Date: select the date on which the workflow will become effective. On initial insert, the workflow is Inactive. 
• Save the record and it will be displayed in the list. 


It is advised that the workflow be made Active only when the setup is complete. 

Step 4: Set up Workflow Roles 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Workflow>>Workflow Roles 

Workflow Roles 

Set up the roles involved in the workflow process. Roles indicate the part or function played in the workflow approval process. 

For example, in a simple workflow, there may be Roles of: 2nd Approver and 2nd Alternate Approver.

 For more complex workflows, roles may be increased or may be in a different company or country or department. 

At each workflow stage, if there is no-one to forward the record to, the system will display an alert message. 

Skip this step if Roles are NOT being used. 

The system will use the Reporting Relationships in HRplus (Employee to Direct Supervisor) as the 2-step approval process. 

Enter a Workflow Role 





Role Code/Name: Enter a user-defined Code and Description to identify each role in the workflow. 

Step 5: Define Workflow Roles 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Workflow>>Workflow Roles 

Role Definition 

At this step, the job/s and scope of each Role must be defined. Each Role can have more than one job linked to it. 


The system, when sending the approval form along the workflow, will retrieve all employees who meet the Job and Job Scope criteria and send the form to them at the appropriate stage of the workflow. 

Skip this step if Reporting Relationships are being used INSTEAD OF roles. 

Enter a Role Definition 





• Job: select the Job you wish to link to the Role. Unlimited jobs may be linked to a Role. 
• All jobs defined in a Role will be part of the approval process. 
• Repeat the process to link additional Jobs. 



The system will retrieve all employees who meet the specified criteria of Job and Job Scope and send the approval form to them at the appropriate stage of the workflow. 

 
Step 6: Set up Workflow Stages - Overview 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Workflow>>Workflow Definition>>[expand record]>>Workflow Stages 

Workflow Stages 

The stages of the Workflow determine the movement of transactions from one person to the next in the approval process. 

The Stages start at 1 and are numbered consecutively. You may set up an unlimited number of stages but a minimum of 2 is required. 

Two (2) workflow stages MUST also be set up for workflows that ONLY use Reporting Relationships. 

Enter Workflow Stages 




The setup of Workflow Stages is broken up into multiple articles (Steps 6 to 10), each describing the fields/components on the Workflow Stages screen as follows: 

Step 6 - Overview. 

Step 7 - Stages. 

Step 8 - Roles.  

Step 9 - Auto-Escalate. 

Step 10 - Add-On. 


Step 7: Link Workflow Stages to Workflow Processes 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Workflow>>Workflow Definition>>[+]>>Workflow Stages 

Workflow Stages 

The Stages start at 1 and are numbered consecutively. You may set up an unlimited number of stages but a minimum of 2 is required. 

You MUST set up Stage 1 and Stage 2 for workflows that ONLY use Reporting Relationships. 

Enter Workflow Stages 






1. Stage No.: the system will automatically display each Stage number, starting with 1 and continuing in a sequential number for all the stages of the workflow. This cannot be edited. 
2. Process: select the workflow process from the drop-down. These processes were set up in Step 2. 
  1. At Stage 1 - the data entry stage or initialization stage - the workflow process to ENTER a record - ENTER HR RECORD - should ALWAYS and ONLY be selected. 
  2.  At Stage 2 - the workflow process to APPROVE a record - APPROVE HR RECORD -should be selected for this stage and any other stage thereafter as it can be used more than once. The workflow supports an unlimited number of approvals. 
  3. At the Final Stage, the workflow process to POST a record - POST HR RECORD - should ALWAYS and ONLY be selected. 
3.     Form: The following are the two (2) default letters displayed in the drop-down list. You can select either one at any Stage in the workflow: 
  1. HR Transaction Approval Form: the form on which the employee’s transaction is approved/rejected/voided. 
  2. HR Transaction Approval Form with Letter: the form on which the employee’s transaction is approved/rejected/voided in addition to the system-generated letter. If this option is chosen and a template has been set up via Personnel>>Letter Templates, the system will automatically generate the letter and save it in employee documents (Personnel>>Employees>>Toggle Additional Details>>Documents) 
Step 8: Use Roles for Workflow Stages 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Workflow>>Workflow Definition>>[expand record]>>Workflow Stages 

Roles for Workflow Stages 

Set up the roles involved in the workflow process. Roles indicate the part or function played in the workflow approval process e.g. 1st Approver, 2nd Approver or Level 1, Level 2 etc. 

Enter New Workflow Stage 





Stage Approver: There are two options to select from for the workflow: 

1. Reporting Relationships - Employee to Direct Supervisor 
2. Role / Alternate Role - A selected Job Position and an Alternate Job Position 

The system will send the HR Transaction to the employee’s Direct Supervisor for approval/review as set up in the reporting structure of HRplus (Personnel>>Positions>>All Positions (Filled and Vacant)). Or, the system will send the HR Transaction to the Position or Alternate Position for approval/review as set up in Step 5: Define Workflow Roles. 

4. Stage Approver: Select Reporting Relationships or Role / Alternate Role: 
  1.  At Stage 1, the Approver should ALWAYS be set to Reporting Relationships as this is the record creation or initialization stage. 
  2.  At Stage 2 and thereafter, the Approver can be set to Reporting Relationships or Role / Alternate Role. If Role / Alternate Role is selected, then select the 1st Approver and 2nd Approver from the drop-down list. 
  3.  At the Final Stage, the Role can be set to Reporting Relationships or Role / Alternate Role. If Role / Alternate Role is selected, then select the 1st Approver and 2nd Approver from the drop-down list. 

Step 9: Auto-Escalate Workflow Stages 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Workflow>>Workflow Definition>>[expand record]>>Workflow Stages>>[open record] 

Auto-Escalate Workflow Stages 

The Auto Escalate option allows the system to automatically accelerate a workflow stage so that records are not stuck or halted at a particular stage. 

For example, if an approver fails to or is taking too long to approve/reject a record, the system can advance the request to the next person in the workflow. 

The Auto Escalate option: 

• MUST be turned on by the user, as, by default, the option is set to No. 
• Should ALWAYS be set to NO at:
  1. Stage 1 as this is the data entry stage or record creation stage - the record has not yet gone anywhere and therefore CANNOT be escalated. 
  2. The Final Stage of the workflow as this is the last stage and therefore CANNOT be escalated. 
• Can be set to Yes at Stage 2 and onwards if required. 


The Auto-Escalate option MUST be set to No for the two (2) Workflow Stages when Reporting Relationships are used. 

Set Up Auto-Escalate
 

Auto Escalate Action: the options for selection are: 

▪ GO TO NEXT STAGE: the record will move to the next stage in the workflow. 
▪ REJECT AND STOP WORKFLOW: the record will be disallowed and stopped. 
▪ UPDATE MODULE: the record will be posted and HR Transactions updated. 


Auto Escalate (Days): the number of days after which the record should be automatically moved forward. 
Void After (Tries): the number of attempts after which the record can be cleared or invalidated if escalation fails. 

 
Step 10: Workflow Stages Add-Ons 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Workflow>>Workflow Definition>>[expand record]>>Workflow Stages 

Workflow Stages Add-Ons 

For multinational and conglomerates, workflow processing may span across several companies and/or departments/locations. 

The Workflow Add-On allows you to define where workflow records should be processed - at the Home of the workflow (the company to which the employee belongs) or otherwise. 

Select Workflow Stages Add-On 


Process at Home of Workflow: Check Yes to process the workflow records in the Country and Company to which the employee belongs. 

Step 11: Activate the Workflow 

Activating the Workflow 

Once the workflow setup has been completed and checked for accuracy, it must be made Active via the following two (2) options: 

1. Company-Workflow Links. 
2. Workflow Definitions. 

1. Company-Workflow Links 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Workflow>>Company-Workflow Links 



2. Workflow Definition 

Navigation: System Configurations>>Workflow>>Workflow Definitions>>[Open the Record] 



Both options MUST be used to activate the workflow. 


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