Repeating Workflows are workflow templates that are set to automatically repeat and enter the workflow for a specific time period which you can assign to a team member. Creating a more efficient workflow.
Creating a Repeating Workflow will follow a very similar process to creating a One-Off Workflows, with a few exceptions:
Dext has 2 types of Repeating Workflows:
- Event driven workflows
- Workflows created using Tags
- Updating existing repeating workflows with the new functionality listed above
What you need to know
- Before you start, repeating workflows must always use a Workflow Template. However, you can create one during workflow creation if you haven’t already done so.
- If a template linked to a Repeating Workflow is edited, you’ll receive a warning with a list of affected Repeating Workflows.
- You can not schedule a repeating workflow template to repeat on the same day you are setting up the template. For eg. if it’s 25th July you can’t use this date as the scheduled date in the repeating workflow template. It will not enter the workflow list until the next scheduled date which would be 25th Aug.
- Any changes to a Repeating Workflow template will take effect on the next scheduled date, and will not affect any Repeating Workflows that have entered the Workflow List.
- Any checks added to templates that require parameters will be added to Repeating Workflows with the default parameters applied, unless the Repeating Workflow is edited to update the default parameters.
By specific event
Repeating workflows can be created using a “specific event” to determine when workflows should repeat for each client assigned to the repeating workflow. This allows clients with different year end or vat return periods to be included in a repeating workflow together and will repeat at different times based on the individual client’s configuration.
Steps to set up a repeating workflow:
- Go to Workflows (under the Practice account).
- Then go to Creator.
- Click the create a repeating workflowbutton.
- Name your workflow.
- Select a template that you’ve created or you can build your own at this point in the process.
- Click Next.
- The Set Cadence section is where you’ll define the Repeating workflow started by option:
- Scheduled Date (choose from a selection of different reporting period options)
- Specific Event (Year end or VAT return period)
Currently the available events that can be used for a “specific event” repeating workflow are Year end and VAT return period. When a repeating workflow is created using these specific events, the workflow reporting periods will be either the last complete financial year for “Year end” and last complete VAT period for “VAT return period”.
- Next the following settings must be set by the user:
- Scheduled Date: The number of days/weeks after the selected reporting period that the flow will be created. (Note: You cannot schedule a repeating flow template to repeat on the same day you’re setting up the template. For eg. if it’s 25th July you can’t use this date as the scheduled date in the repeating flow template. It will not enter the Flow list until the next scheduled date which would be 25th Aug.)
- Complete Within: This will set the due date for the flow once it has been created.
- Reporting Period: Choose either Year end or VAT return period (UK).
- Repeat this Flow every: The frequency of repetition for the Flow. This begins from the Scheduled Date.
- Next Add Clients, by clicking on the clients or you can add by tags (explained in next section of this article).
- The last step is to Review & go. Check the flow is set up correctly then click Publish. When the workflow is ready to be started your team member will need to select it in their workflow list, which is found in the Practice account under Workflows, Lists then clicking the Viewworkflow button and then the Start workflow button.
Workflows using a “specific event” cadence will show in the repeating workflow list with a message stating “repeats on specific event” instead of the next start date that regular repeating workflows show.
Where a repeating workflow has been created using the “VAT return period” specific event, when adding clients to the repeating workflow, if clients don’t have a tax period start date, tax scheme or tax frequency set in Dext, the “Select Clients” screen will provide a new section at the bottom of the page which allows the user to set those settings for each client as seen in the screenshot below.
Use Case Examples
Example 1: Year-end Accounts
Some customers using Repeating Workflows for their year end accounts, as it stands, have to maintain 12 repeating workflows (one for every month of the year). The reason they need to do this is because their clients have year-ends spread throughout the year.
As it stands today, the schedule date is a fixed calendar date, as part of this change we would be looking for the option to set this schedule date, in relation to the Reporting Period as well as by fixed calendar date.
Example 2 : Quarterly VAT Returns
A customer has 50 VAT Return Clients, they follow the following cadence:
- 2 are monthly VAT Return Clients
- 45 are quarterly of which, 20 start in January, 15 in Feb and 10 in March.
- 3 are Annual VAT Return Clients (April and June) Start
When using workflows currently the customer has a ‘VAT Checklist’ Template, this then gets applied to 6 Repeating Workflows to work out the scheduling. The new changes should reduce this to 1 Repeating Workflow.
Repeating Workflows – (using Tags)
Please follow Steps 1-10 as above however when you come to choosing the clients you want for your workflows you have the option just like One off Workflows to create Repeating Workflows by Tags. This will simplify the process of adding clients to a repeating workflow.
Selecting By Tag on the Add clients screen when creating a repeating workflow will show a list of the available tags to choose from.
Adding a tag to a client after the repeating workflow has been created will automatically add the client all repeating workflows that have been created using that tag.
When a tag is selected, all of the clients associated with that tag are added to the selected clients list.
Multiple tags can be used at the same time.
Tags that are in use with a repeating workflow can not be deleted. When on the tags management page, if a user attempts to delete a tag that has been used with a repeating workflow, the following message will be displayed.
Please note: When you add new clients to Dext and assign a tag that has a Repeating Workflow set up related to that tag the new client will automatically be added to the existing repeating workflow for that tag. This also applies if you remove a tag from a client we will remove any related existing repeating workflows. This option is not available for One Off Workflows
Updating existing repeating workflows with the new functionality listed above
Note: Before getting started on updating your existing workflows we highly suggest that you update all your client Tags. If you have tags that are broken up into VAT Quarters ie Jan-Mar, Apr-Jun etc. you’ll no longer need these tags you will just need a tag that is VAT Client. This applies to any Year End tags you may have created too. You may just want a tag called Year End Work as an example.
Steps to update your existing workflows:
- Within the practice account, go to Workflows and then Repeating.
- Choose the Workflow template you wish to update.
- Click the 3 dots on the far right of the flow and then select Edit workflow.
- Click the Set cadence section on the timeline.
- Select Specific event and choose Year End or VAT return period.
- Next, if you want to assign repeating workflows to clients using Tags then go to the Add Clients section and choose By Tag, select the tags (you may need to remove already selected tags by click on the X under selected tags and assign the new tags if applicable)
- Go to Review & Go and click Save.
This will save the report as the name shown. If you change the name of the workflow it’ll be updated to the new name. It will NOT create a new workflow. If you require a new workflow you’ll need to create a new repeating workflow template.
Once you’ve updated your repeating workflows you may have quite a number of workflows that are now redundant. Ie: You may have several different workflows reflecting VAT Periods or Year Ends. Dext will know when to move your workflows, based on the new settings, into your workflow lists. To delete your redundant workflows click on the 3 dots to the right of those repeating workflows and click Delete Workflow. This will have to be completed one workflow template at a time as we don’t have a bulk delete feature at the moment.
Important to note:
Important Note: Admins can EDIT repeating workflow templates for clients, but you can only DELETE repeating workflow templates that YOU have created.
Once a repeating workflow enters the workflow list to be processed anyone with visibility over the workflow can edit certain fields for that workflow. Such as reassigning them to other team members and reviewers and the due date. However, the due date can’t be updated once the workflow is in progress/or started.
