Edit a process

Once you create a process, use the Edit tab to add or edit process details.

Processes can be edited by Promasters A Nintex Promapp system administrator who administers a Nintex Promapp site and has rights to view and edit all areas of a Nintex Promapp site., Business Analysts A user who can create and edit all processes if not restricted by permissions, view all reports and edit Roles and Responsibilities., and the Process Owner A user responsible for ensuring the process is operating effectively, and continuously improving. Not necessarily a subject matter expert, but empowered with organisational authority to approve changes as needed. or Expert A user who performs day-to-day process management on behalf of the Process Owner. This role requires detailed understanding of the process.. Additional process editors can be assigned through the process group. If you are using the Process and Document Approval Add-on, anyone assigned as a group Process Approver A user responsible for reviewing and approving changes made by process editors. Additional approvers can be specified at the process level. or Process Publisher A user responsible for publishing after a process has been approved. If no publishers are named for a group, then once the final approval is obtained, the process will automatically publish. will also have editing rights.

On this page:

To edit a process Process summary Triggers and inputs Outputs and targets RACI stakeholders Timeframes and costs Process dependencies Automation

Procedure: activities, tasks, and notes Add activity Assign a role or responsibility Add tags Add tasks Add notes Add todo items Add documents Add process links

To edit a process

Navigate to the process you want to update and then click Edit. The Edit page displays the tabs described in the following sections on the left pane to add or edit your process details.

Process summary

The Summary tab displays editable fields with the details entered when you created the process. The following additional fields are available:

Triggers and inputs

Triggers & Inputs (along with Outputs & Targets) define the scope of your process and identify processes, activities and requests that are related to your process:

Triggers are situations or events that start the process. For example: staff need to purchase an item worth less than $20.

Capture inputs and outputs

Procedure: activities, tasks, and notes

The body of a process is made up of activities, structured into tasks and supported by notes. The Procedure tab is where you outline what a process actually involves and displays the area where you will define the activities and tasks in your process.

Video: Capture process and procedure details

Add activity

Activities are a major step in the process. Start an activity with a verb. For example: Log complaint, Check details.

• Click Add Activity to add a numbered step to the process.

• To update the details you have added, hover over the activity, task, or note and click to make the necessary changes.

• Delete an item by clicking .

• Move an item around by selecting it and dragging and dropping it to its new position. You can move multiple items at once by moving an Activity - all the tasks, notes, documents in the activity will move with it.

• Undo/Redo changes by clicking Undo/Redo at the top right of the Edit page. All changes made within the current editing session can be undone or redone, but once you exit the editing session the ability to undo/redo those changes is lost.

• Convert an activity, or task by clicking on . The options include add/remove an activity from the next or previous parallel set, and converting an activity to a task and vice versa. Parallel sets are denoted by a blue line to the left of the activities included in the set.

Copy an activity

You cannot copy an activity, you can copy the individual activity text or export procedure text.

Assign a role or responsibility

Click on the Assign a role field and select the required details.

Add tags

Tags are used to identify specific terms and systems relevant to your organisation. They can also be used to identify process improvement opportunities through Lean methodology.

Before you start Configure the required settings and create the necessary System tags and Lean tags for your Nintex Process Manager site. For more information, see Manage systems and Lean/Process tags.

Tag a System by including its associated tags in your process. Tags may include the actual system names, acronyms, or other aliases for the System.

Do one of the following to add a system tag:

• Click on the Assign a role field, type the tag name or select it from the drop-down list. For example: CRM.
• Click on an activity, task or note and type the System tag name.

Lean tags

Categorize an activity, task or note with Lean tags by hashtagging. It must start with a hashtag symbol (#) followed by any text without spaces. For more information on lean tags, see See Using Lean tags in a process.

To add a lean tag, click on the field and type the tag name starting with a #. For example: #Nintex-Automated.

Add tasks

Add the tasks that must be followed to complete the activity. Tasks explain how to complete the actions required by an activity. They’re the step-by-step instructions to follow. The best tasks also start with a verb to emphasize the action required.

1. Hover on the activity and click Add Task.
2. Type the description and click .

Add notes

Add additional content that describes how to complete the activity or handle exceptions.

Notes give more information on a task or activity, and highlight exceptions or minor variations where they exist. A note is usually written in a question-and-answer format.

For example: Note description: What if there are no coffee beans in the grinder?

Note details: Coffee beans are kept in the cupboard under the coffee machine.

1. Hover on the activity and click Add Note.
2. Type the note description and details.
3. Click .

Add todo items

‘@todo’ can be used as a placeholder to highlight sections of a process that need more work. When you use @todo in the text, it will create a notification in your dashboard to remind you to come back to it. Mark content you need to come back to complete with "@todo" in the Activity, Task, Note, Objective, Background, or Input and Output fields.

If you don’t enter any text in an activity or task, it will automatically add an @todo tag.

This will be saved against your name and you will be able to view a list either in the Dashboard, process Edit tab or process Map tab > @Todo.

An @todo can be reassigned to a different user by clicking the 'Reassign' option available in the Todo List panel while editing the process.

Use @TODO tags

Add documents

Documents are used to support your processes with more information, supplying images, videos, explanations, forms or web links.

1. Hover over the activity, and click Add Document.
2. Click the type of document you want to add.
3. In the Attach / Upload / Link Form dialog, select the required options and click Attach.

For more information, see Add documents.

Add process links

Your process can be linked to other processes in a number of ways, showing the relationship between processes or linking them into a longer sequence or ‘mega’ process.

In each case, you can connect an existing process, or create a new one to link, adding a ‘shell’ process you can come back to and fill out later.

Link to another process, add a conditional process link or a decision box.

• Link to a Process: Process links connect processes that occur in sequence. This is useful if you have a step in your process that is too complex to capture in an activity. You can expand a linked process in the Map view to see the additional steps.
• Add Conditional Process: Conditional processes are a sequence of extra steps that only apply in certain circumstances. It’s an ‘if needed’ step, not part of the usual process, but more complex than can be covered in a note.
• Add Decision: You can add a decision diamond into your process for major decision points. Decision links can lead to an alternate process, or to an activity when the resulting alternate flow can be contained in a single step.

Tip: Use only for major decisions.

• Click on the Add Process Link drop-down list and select one of the following options:
  • Link to a Process
    1. Select the process you want to link.
    2. Click Select. The process link is added.
    3. Click .
  • Add Conditional Process

    1. Select the process you want to link.

    2. Click Select. The process link is added.
    3. Click .

    The map view of a process displays the conditional process link having bidirectional arrows. However, if the linked conditional process is assigned as an input to the process, the bidirectional arrow changes to one directional, with the arrow pointed into the process flow. Similarly, assigning the linked conditional process as output changes the bidirectional arrow to one directional with the arrow pointing outwards from the process flow. In the case that the conditional process is an input and output to the process, the arrows display as bidirectional.

  • Add Decision

    Caution: You cannot add a decision as a first step in the process as decision points are major steps in a process. It is expected that any decision will be preceded by an activity providing context and meaning to the decision.

    1. Type a description.
    2. Click on the Assign a role field and select the required details.
    3. Select Yes or No from the drop-down list and select Activity or Process. If you select process, click Add Process, select the process, and then click Select.
    When the alternate flow from a decision results in a single step, you can add an activity link instead of an entire process. Additional information can be added as an output to indicate the next steps following this branch of the process.

Outputs and targets

Outputs & Targets (along with Triggers & Inputs) define the scope of your process and identify processes, activities and requests that are related to your process:

Outputs are items created by the process and can be used as inputs for other processes. For example: a completed form.

Timeframes and costs

Add time estimates required to complete each activity in the process. Users can add active time and wait time for the assigned activity. Process Editors can add variance details impacting the overall process time frame. For more information, see Process timeframes and Process costs.

RACI stakeholders

Manage stakeholders from this section. Stakeholders can be users who are not directly involved in the process, but are involved in processes affected by changes to your process. Add a stakeholder when you want to notify them of any changes to your process. The stakeholders of each process are displayed using the RACI:

• Responsible - Roles that perform process activities (participants - swimlane roles)

• Accountable - Roles that ensure a process is effective and improving (roles such as the global process owner, global process expert, variation expert, and process approvers assigned under the Summary, Manage Stakeholders, and Edit variations sections)

  • If the Process Approval Type under Manage Stakeholders is set to sequential, the roles are numbered as per the approval workflow sequence.

  • If a risk applies to a process, the risk manager is the first approver in the sequence.

  • Click to add process approvers.

• Consulted - Roles whose opinions are sought for a process (named stakeholders and linked stakeholders - owner and expert of a linked process)

• Informed - Roles notified of changes to a process through dashboard notifications. (Includes the RAC roles from above and system stakeholders, if applicable.)

Process dependencies

The Process Dependencies section lists Process Links From This Process and Process Links To This Process.

There are five types of links:

• Process
• Conditional
• Decision
• Input
• Output

Automation

Use Automation in Nintex Process Manager to integrate workflows with your processes. A workflow is an automated sequence of steps required to move a task from one stage to the next until completion of a process.