7 min read

Who can use this feature:

Available for Enterprise plans only

ℹ︎ This feature is in beta. We are gradually releasing it to Enterprise accounts. If you would like to try this feature, you can request access using this form.

In this article, we'll use an example to walk you through the process of transferring a workflow from inboxes, messaging apps, memos, and water cooler conversations to an efficient and thoughtful process on monday.com.

To make the most of monday workflows, you'll likely have to start with a switch of perspective. Use this article to workshop your first workflow.

Our use case

The HR team at a local theme park is hiring a new Director of Fun. The hiring committee is:

Andrea, Lead Recruiter
Brian, Recruiting Assistant
Carmen, HR Intern

They usually manage this process on monday.com, their HR platform, their company website, various recruitment platforms, and in a series of meetings at each step of the decision-making process. The team wants to centralize the process in monday.com.

Step-by-step

First, write down every step of the process. What is the typical flow for this process and where are there deviations? It may be best to do this on paper or in a text editor. As you begin writing down the process in such simple terms, you may begin to realize that you have redundancies in your usual process or that it would be better to reorder the steps. Note these changes.

For our use case, this is the initial notation of the step-by-step process:

Applications submitted on the company website
Completed fields are populated in the company database
The HR intern, Carmen, pulls this information from the database daily
Carmen sends the new applications as line items in an Excel document to Brian
Brian makes a cup of coffee and reads through the new applications
Brian highlights the applicants who meet the minimum requirements
Brian sends the highlighted applicants to Andrea, the Lead Recruiter
Andrea selects the candidates who she finds to be promising and sends their names to Brian and Carmen
Carmen sends an email to all of the applicants confirming that their application has been received and is in review
Carmen sends an email to the selected applicants and begins to schedule a phone interview, cross-referencing Brian's calendar for availability
Brian interviews candidates over the phone
The next day, Brian rates the candidates and gives his yes or no for each one; he sends his notes to Andrea and Carmen and he identifies the Yes candidates for Carmen
Carmen sends an email to the chosen candidates and begins to schedule the first in-person interview, cross-referencing Andrea's calendar for availability
Andrea interviews the candidates
The next day, Andrea rates the candidates
Carmen averages Brian and Andrea's ratings; if the candidate averages above a 4 (on a scale of 1 to 5), she sends their name to Andrea and Brian to confirm that they would like a final interview
Carmen sends an email to the chosen candidates to begin scheduling the final interview cross-referencing Andrea and Brian's calendars
Andrea and Brian interview the final candidates
The team meets to discuss their impressions and their choices
Andrea sends an offer to the Finance Team
The Finance Team emails to approve or deny the compensation and benefits package (A)
Andrea calls the candidate to make the offer
Carmen follows up via email with the offer letter
Carmen submits the candidate for background check
Carmen calls the candidate's references (and invites Andrea or Brian if they express interest)
If all goes well, the candidate accepts; there's a new Director of Fun!
Carmen schedules their first day and sends them the necessary HR forms
Carmen emails the other applicants and expresses regrets and well wishes

And if necessary, rinse and repeat! 😮‍💨

Did you catch all that? This entire process usually takes the team about a month, usually longer. Let's begin to streamline it!

Measure twice, cut once.

Take five seconds before you build your boards. Do you want it horizontal or vertical? Take time now to save time later. Measure twice, cut once.
Do they need to take 2 seconds to draw something out? Show them how to draw something out.
Build your boards AROUND your human elements.

How to think

It's easiest to do this next part on a fresh monday.com board or on a monday doc or on paper. If you're doing this on paper, collect markers or highlighters to begin organizing your workflow. If you're using monday.com, you can use status labels to code and prioritize steps based on these questions.

Once you're ready to go, use each of these questions as a guide and consider them in relation to your own workflow:

What is your deliverable?
- At the end of the process, the team wants to hire a new Director of Fun.
- ☆: Put a star next to this. This is the very end of your workflow. You should be able to work towards this point. The path backward from this point should also be clear.
Where is it essential to have a human touch?
- Interviews, making the offer.
- ⃝: Highlight or circle these steps in an obvious color. We're using red-orange. You'll need the People column for these steps. 😉
Where do you want to focus your team's energy?
- On evaluating soft skills, on thoughtful consideration of how a candidate might fit into their potential team based on their interview.
- _: Underline the steps where this occurs.
Which parts of the process require a simple action?
- Sending an email to confirm a message was received, evaluating whether or not a candidate meets basic requirements, scheduling a phone call, rejecting unqualified candidates.
- (A): Write an "A" next to these steps.
Where are your objective points of data? How are you measuring?
- After each interview, rating a candidate on a scale of 1 to 5 based on a communal rubric.
- #: Put a hashtag, "#", next to these items.

Here's what this ends up looking like for our use case:

Frame 1261161256.png

Revised step-by-step

You're likely trying to automate a process that has been handled by multiple people at every step. Remember, building a workflow is an opportunity for everyone on your team to work smarter. Consider ways that you can build or revise your boards for greater efficiency.

Now, eliminating redundancies where possible and consolidating lesser processes, write a new step-by-step of the ideal flow. Reorganize, if needed.

In this use case, the team is also consolidating processes using the tools available on monday.com. Here's what the revised step-by-step process looks like:

In this revised step-by-step, all of the necessary actions or activities by the team are preserved. These are highlighted in yellow. Everything else is automated. And better yet, they can now plug this entire workflow into monday workflows, set it and forget it. 🤩

The workflow

HR team managing new applicants for job posting

Posting is Director of Fun

Create job posting - write description, requires prerequisites, compensation range, etc. CREATE FORM

Publish to website

Application received - send email to applicant confirming received; if all fields are complete, notify the recruiter's intern who is reviewing applications; if not, write to applicant to fulfill materials; when approved by intern, send to recruiters for review; both will score; if applicant receives 4 or higher, send to intern to schedule interview; when interview date is posted, send notifcation to assigned interviewer in slack