Change Workflow

Workflow Introduction

Every change is processed through a series of steps that requires some activity and decisions. The whole life cycle is called the change workflow. In an organization, the change management is applicable on activities, infrastructure, processes, environments, etc. In a change management system, there is a workflow to track the activities and the decisions at various stages of the change. Based on the requirements, the workflow can be default for instant use or customizable to meet the business needs.

A simple change workflow has the following states:

note

Custom statuses of Change Requests can be hidden using the "Hide Options" Action of the Change Form Rule.

Workflow in our system has a pre-defined structure. Its characteristics are as follows:

• The workflow has 6 stages.
• These stages are fixed.
• You cannot move back to the previous stage from the current stage.
• The system locks certain functions once a stage is complete. For example: In the approval stage, you cannot make changes in the planning schedule or add notes.
• Once a change is rejected at any stage, the workflow can be initiated again from the submitted stage.

The Workflow States

Submitted: This is the first stage of the workflow. The state is assigned automatically to every new change request. At this stage, a concerned person will review the request and may add more details to it. Also, someone will take a decision. The decisions can be: Requested, Accepted, and Rejected.

Submitted	Requested	- First and default stage. - Concerned person will accept or reject the change.
	Rejected	- The change is rejected and no action will be taken on it. - The change workflow is terminated.
	Accepted	- A technician should be assigned before accepting the change. - The change is accepted and someone will work on it. - The change request moves to the Planning stage.

Planning: In the planning stage, a concerned person decides how to implement the change. The activities related to the planning can be managed in the tabs at the bottom.

Planning	In Progress	- Default status of the stage. - Concerned person will complete or cancel the planning.
	Cancelled	- The change is rejected and no action will be taken on it. - The change workflow is terminated.
	Completed	- The planning is completed with all necessary details. - The change request moves to the Approval stage. - Planning, Tasks, and Relation tasks are locked to prevent editing.

Approval: In the approval stage, the concerned people need to give the approval. In this stage you can change the Technician, Assignee, and collaboration items only. If you do not see the Approval tab at the bottom of the page, you need to ask for approval. For more details, see Change Approval.

Approval	In Progress	- Default status of the stage. - Concerned person will approve or reject the change.
	Approved	- The change is approved. - The change request moves to the Implementation stage. - Tasks, Work log, and Relation tasks are opened again for editing.
	Rejected	- The change is rejected and no action will be taken on it. - The change workflow is terminated.

Implementation: In this stage, the change actually takes place. The activities related to the implementation can be managed in the tabs at the bottom of the page.

Implementation	In Progress	- Default status of the stage. - Concerned person will perform or reject the change.
	Rejected	- The change is rejected. - The change workflow can be initiated again from the Planning stage. - The change workflow is terminated.
	Completed	- The change is completed and move to the Review stage.

In Review: In this stage, the change review takes place. The collaboration and work log can be managed in the tabs at the bottom of the page.

In Review	In Progress	- Default status of the stage. - Concerned person will review the change.
	Failed	- The change review is failed. - The change workflow is terminated.
	Completed	- The change is completed and move to the Closed stage.

Closed: In this stage, the change process is closed. This stage is automatically assigned when review is completed. After close, you can reopen the change request.