Maximize your company’s efficiency by using NetSuite SuiteFlow to automate workflow-driven tasks ranging from simple alerts and data input validations to very complex, multistage processes—and everything in between.
Did you know that 62% of every workday is spent handling repetitive, mundane tasks? Some of the most detested jobs include data entry, document filing, report compiling and invoice management. Financial departments are particularly prone to excessive manual work, with most spending over 500 hours per year on manual accounting tasks like invoice processing, supplier inquiries and purchase order matching.
By leveraging technology to handle the mundane, companies can unlock a new level of efficiency and empower their finance teams to focus on what matters most: strategic financial planning and analysis. The same approach can be applied in other departments, and particularly those that are bogged down by too much manual work, repetitive tasks and data errors.
NetSuite has the answers. A built-in tool for automating workflows within the NetSuite cloud business software platform, SuiteFlow helps companies streamline and automate tasks in their financial departments (and others) without needing to write code. The tools help organizations maximize efficiency by automating workflow-driven tasks—from simple alerts and data input validations to complex, msultistage processes.
Using the platform’s intuitive point-and-click interface, business users can craft and optimize responsive workflows to automate all standard and custom processes their companies rely on. Once in place, the platform helps businesses seize opportunities to improve workplace communications, make more timely decisions, increase transparency and accountability, and eliminate redundant tasks.
Understanding that every business has unique requirements, NetSuite Solution Provider ScaleNorth can adapt the platform’s automated processes to fit with each individual organizational structure and operational design.
Here are some of the different ways the application can be configured to meet your company’s specific requirements:
| Workflow Element | Example Topics | Included Examples |
| Actions | Action Examples | • Using Buttons to Execute Transitions • Using Buttons for Navigation • Executing an Action with a Saved Search Condition • Using Conditional Fields with Actions • Setting Field Values in Action Definitions • Creating and Subscribing to a Record |
| Transitions | Transitions Examples | • Blank Transition Trigger • Executing a Transition with a Saved Search Condition • Specifying States for Child Workflow Transitions |
| Conditions | Condition Examples | • Referencing Old (Pre-edit) Values in a Workflow • Defining Conditions for Customer Credit Hold Field |
| Context types | Context Type Examples | • CSV Import • User Event Script • Custom Mass Update |
| Event types | Examples of Event Types | • Print Event Type • Mark Complete Event Type • Drop Ship Event Type |
| Search | Workflow Search Examples | • Using the Button Filter in a Workflow Instance Search |
Lead nurturing is one business process that tends to require a lot of manual intervention and work to get from the initial contact to the closed deal. Here, Oracle outlines exactly how a fictitious security supplier called “Wolfe Electronics” can use SuiteFlow to drive the manual work out of the lead nurturing process and give employees hours back in their days to address more strategic projects:
The workflow executes the following basic steps after a lead is created in NetSuite, if the lead is part of the software industry:
1. Send a webinar invite. The workflow sends the lead an invitation to a webinar titled “Trends in Internet Security”, with a link to an online registration form.
If the lead does not respond to the webinar invitation in 14 days, the workflow sends an email message titled “Best Internet Security Services of 2014” and the workflow completes.
If the lead responds to the webinar invitation, the workflow waits one day and proceeds to the next step.
2. Email a case study. The workflow sends an email with a link to a case study that describes Wolfe Electronics security offerings.
If the lead does not click through to the case study, the workflow sends an email 7 days later with a free trial offer and the workflow completes.
If the lead clicks through to the case study, the workflow waits 3 days and proceeds to the next step.
3. Email a customer testimonial. The workflow sends an email with a customer testimonial and the workflow completes.
By automating the routine tasks and processes associated with lead nurturing and many other processes, SuiteFlow frees up associates to manage more important tasks. It also reduces that “62% of the workday spent on manual tasks” number and supports a more enjoyable work experience. In today’s labor-constrained marketplace, these results simply can’t be overstated.
SuiteFlow also improves accuracy, provides a clear visual representation of workflow steps, simplifies the tracking of task progress and streamlines approval processes by routing tasks to the appropriate people (and notifying them when action is required).
If you’re ready to reduce the manual labor bottlenecks in your organization, reach out to ScaleNorth to learn how our consultants can automate your routine tasks with SuiteFlow.
