How would you? A request needs a second party to finish the form fields

[Lyndsy-Denk]

I'm curious to hear if others have tried to solve this problem:

I have been tasked with creating a request queue in which a requestor provides the first batch of information, but then another role type has to fill in a bunch of additional custom form data. In other words, this is a request that needs to be passed off to a second-level requestor before the team can get to work. Both custom forms are pretty big and have some complex logic. I do envision that this request will be converted into a project.

If you've done this type of thing before, what was your creative solution?

[Richard_Le_ · Accepted solution]

Hi Lyndsy,

With native Workfront functionality, you have 2 options as I see it:

1. You set up your request queue with multiple routing rules so that when the request is raised by requester 1 it is then routed through to requester 2 to complete the remaining parts of the form. I would then build a dashboard for the delivery team that shows all requests where the form has been completed (i.e., If field "is this brief complete" = yes, show the request in the dashboard). 
2. The same as option 1, but instead of routing rules you train your requesters to reassign the request to the next person that needs to fill in the remainder of the form, and then reassign again to the team/person responsible for delivering that request. 

Neither of the above 2 options are ideal in my opinion. There could end up being ALOT of routing rules/queue topics which just might not be feasible.  It also means giving requesters access to reassign their own requests and also training people to make the correct assignments. I can see this being problematic if you have a lot of requesters.

The optimal solution would be to use Fusion, if you have it. You could build a scenario that automatically routes the request to a person mentioned in this request form (i.e., requester 2 could be a typeahead field and the request would be automatically assigned to this person when the request was first submitted). You could then automatically route the request onto the correct delivery team/person once the form has been complete or the request status has changed. All handled in a hands-off fashion, without the need for relying on people to manually reassign their requests to the correct person.

Best Regards,

Rich. 

[Lyndsy-Denk]

Thanks, Richard. Fusion is not in scope unfortunately. I agree that your two options would require a lot of training and oversight—so it's helpful in ruling out approaches.

I'm starting to think that, if we have a consistent lineup of second-level requestors, I might add them as approvers. If they approve, the assignee creates a project and assigns a task to the approver to complete the second level of information.

[Lyndsy-Denk]

For the folks following along, here is where I landed:

1. Requestor A submits through the Request Form.
2. Workfront routes the request to Intake User/Team, who
   1. Manually adds the second custom form to the request.
   2. Assigns the request to Requestor B (based on alignment governance that is too convoluted to apply to a routing rule). Best practice: Intake User also tags Requestor B in an update to clarify the call to action. (I thought about adding an approval flow as the notification to Requestor B, but Workfront requires that any outstanding approval be resolved before anyone can update a custom form.)
   3. Creates a single-use approval flow that is triggered when the status changes to In Progress. (Again, I can't created an automated approval flow because the number of people who would need to be tapped for this approval flow is not simple.)
   4. Changes the status to Awaiting Feedback (which equates to On Hold).
3. Requestor B completes the secondary custom form, then changes the status to In Progress, which triggers the single-use approval flow.
4. Approver makes a decision.
5. If approved, Intake User converts the request into a project from template and completes work.

Added bonus: Requestor B can monitor their responsibilities through the Home Work List or a dashboard I have called "Requests I'm Assigned to." Still, Intake User will need to monitor the request to ensure things move along in a timely fashion. We're also going to need to build documentation and deliver training for all these people involved as none of them are active Workfront users.

Ultimately there are a few Ideas I could probably draft to make this whole thing more efficient, automated, and easier for users who are being asked to use Workfront outside of their normal operations.