workflow

[wurk-floh]

noun

1. the flow or amount of work to and from an office, department, or employee.

Word History and Origins

Origin of workflow¹

First recorded in 1945–50; work + flow

Example Sentences

"It's just a matter of how we can incorporate that productively into our workflows, how can we leverage that to take our games to the next level."

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The platform allows organizations to go beyond chatbots to create complex AI agents that can automate multistep workflows from their own internal data.

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Choosing to participate in FICO’s new program would require new workflows in an industry historically resistant to change.

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Interrupting this workflow was the limited storage space on the prison-issued laptops.

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In terms of woodworking, he avoids table saws because they interrupt his workflow, and he favors interlocking joinery for strength.

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When To Use

What is a workflow?

A workflow is most often a series of repeatable steps in completing a work project, such as creating a product (like a computer) or performing a service (like writing an article). For example, the steps in writing a news article might include:

1. Receive an assignment from your editor.



2. Research the topic.



3. Interview people involved.



4. Write an outline of the article.



5. Write the article.



6. Edit the article.



7. Hand in the article to your editor.

When a workflow involves more than one person, it will describe all the steps to be done as well as who will do them. It might also describe how long each step should take, where any physical objects should be moved to (as in manufacturing), and other details important to managing the workflow.Workflow is also the amount of work one or more workers or an entire organization has at one time, as in The machine shop’s workflow was so high that they hired temporary help.Example: The consultant was able to change the steps in our manufacturing workflow, and now we are sending out product orders on time.