A workflow is a process that electronically passes documents and instructions from user to user. For example, an employee might initiate a travel expense report; another employee might review it and return it for revision; and a third employee might approve it. A workflow automates the process, ensuring that the right file goes to the right people in the right order.

To start a workflow, you choose the workflow template that specifies the sequence of tasks you want performed. The template might specify the users to perform each task or might let you specify the users. The template might include automatic tasks, which are tasks the system performs before sending the workflow to the next user.