Effective workload management is at the heart of any organisation that aims to deliver results consistently, and it all begins with good workflow design. Workflow systems need to be tailored to specific needs, combining best practices with a clear understanding of the value versus cost for the organisation. The approach is not one-size-fits-all, as every team and business has its own unique challenges, but a set of guiding principles can ensure that your workflow system delivers value. 

Key considerations for a successful workflow system 

The design and configuration of a workflow system requires assessment from multiple specialist perspectives. Designing a system without a thorough understanding of the key considerations that should shape it will likely impact performance in important areas. The design needs to consider key inputs into resource management, performance management, and reporting functions. It also needs to facilitate or automate the process as much as possible. Consideration of vital design choices such as distribution method (push vs pull) requires skill and analysis.  While not all factors will be equally important for all situations, our checklist of considerations ensures the design is broad enough to meet your needs and practical enough to support efficient operations.  

The two key considerations for good workflow systems are: 

1. What does best practice look like? 
2. What will best deliver the value versus cost for the organisation? 

What does best practice in workload management look like? 

At its core, workload management includes centralised oversight of decentralised processing. This ensures that all tasks are progressing as they should and nothing falls through the cracks. This is where workload management tasks come into play. These are sometimes referred to generally as managerial controls, but there are very specific tasks required for good workload management. 

While each team manager is responsible for their team’s tasks, there must be oversight of centralised reporting and ongoing assessment of all work items. A dedicated individual, often the senior manager or a designated team manager, takes on the responsibility of ensuring that tasks are progressing as expected. 

The Workload Manager has a vital oversight role, acting as the second line of defence. Their focus is to ensure that nothing is left behind or neglected. In large, complex organisations, this may be a dedicated role, but in smaller teams, it’s often an additional responsibility handled by someone with managerial duties. 

Principles and practices for effective workload management 

To ensure the smooth operation of your workflow system, certain principles must be articulated into business rules and procedure such as: 

• Positive touches only: every task should be picked up with the intention of progressing it as far as possible without overservicing. Avoid the waste of revisiting tasks without making meaningful progress. If you touch it, finish it, or progress as far as it can be. This eliminates inefficiencies and helps maintain momentum. 
• Key workflow rules: these need to be tailored for each organisation or client. Key considerations include: 
  • How is the workflow distributed across teams and individuals? Is it push vs pull or a combination?
  • How long an item should be put on hold (or asleep) before it becomes active again (awake)? What are the criteria and reasons behind each variation.
  • How many attempts at contacting customers or third parties before work item is closed due to inactivity? 
• Work item prioritisation: which work item should be worked on next.

Ensuring effective workload control 

A Workload Manager’s primary goals are to ensure that the entire process runs smoothly and that all tasks are completed in an efficient and timely manner. To achieve this, the manager has recurring tasks such as identifying any reporting inconsistencies or errors by regularly cleaning up any sub-statuses or fields that don’t make sense or by redesigning the workflow if necessary.

The manager should go through a checklist periodically, which might include tasks like: 

• Oldest items: are there any tasks lingering too long? 
• Stuck items: is any task sitting idle where it shouldn’t be, such as tasks left unresolved because someone is on leave and their responsibilities haven’t been reassigned? 
• Employee leave: is anyone about to go on leave? If so, do work items need to be redistributed? 
• Backlog issues: if one team member is swamped while others have less to do, it might be time to redistribute tasks to maintain balance and prevent bottlenecks. Don’t assume this is a performance issue, it’s just as likely a distribution or natural variation issue.

Creating value vs cost for your organisation 

While good workflow management practices ensure operational efficiency and effectiveness, it’s crucial to evaluate the cost-benefit trade-off of any system. The best workflow system is one that delivers maximum value without unnecessarily inflating costs. To balance these, it’s essential to: 

• Continuously assess the system to make sure it’s functioning well, and check for any inefficiencies from poorly designed workflows or unnecessary complexity.  This includes measuring average completion time, and typical areas of waste such as average number of touches, piloting effort and refresh time.
• Focus on the key metrics that drive your organisation’s success and ensure the workflow system is optimised to support those goals. 

In the fast-paced business world, workflow design and workload management is no longer just about moving tasks from point A to point B. It’s about creating a system that supports efficiency, creates great customer experiences, drives value, and minimises waste. By focusing on best practices such as centralised oversight, regular reporting, and continuous improvement, organisations can not only meet today’s needs but also position them for long-term success. 

Wanting to improve how your organisation manage workflow? Let’s talk.