This definition does not discriminate among technologies or applications and most importantly, it ties workflow to the business or mission through a transaction. As a way of illustration, original users of e-mail were often dismayed when expected productivity giants did not materialize from new software use. What the e-mail vendors overlooked was the fact that automation of individual tasks did not mean a business activity had been finished. For example, a memo sent out did not help productivity because actions were not tracked and results verified. Many companies and government agencies process high volumes of paper or electronic forms.
Business processes includes input, manipulation and completion of the form's information.
This type of activity is not only routine, but contains significant rules and standards regarding the data and the processing itself. Claims processing, personnel records handling, ordering and inventory control are examples of document-based activities. Document automation is one of the oldest workflow activities. Contents were quickly rearranged since the terminal screen often could not handle all the data on a form. About the same time, workflow processes themselves were addressed by linking various screens to specific tasks in the flow of a transaction.