¶ Creating & Configuring Workflows
Key Note: In Planally, creating a "project" can mean creating a contract, tender, research initiative, product, audit, or any other entity defined by your workflow. The steps below apply universally, but examples here use projects for clarity.
Workflows are the foundation of Planally: the structure behind how work runs. Every project and activity exists within a workflow, so creating one is the first step. A workflow defines the phases, roles, terminology, and visibility rules that every project under it will follow.
¶ What You'll Set Up
- Create the workflow: name, terminology, colour, logo, phases, and visibility, in a three-step wizard.
- Assign Workflow Admins and Workflow Users: who configures the workflow and who can view all of it.
- Add Roles: the governance roles used in projects and roadmaps.
- Set up Simple Config: the lookup lists used for categorising projects and in forms.
- Then build the rest: forms, templates, swimlanes, activities, registers, and roadmaps. See the Workflow Builder Overview.
¶ Step 1: Add a New Workflow
Click Add Workflow on the home page (or in a workspace's ⋮ menu). Only administrators can add workflows. The Add Workflow panel opens with three steps: General, Phases, and Visibility. Use Next and Previous to move between steps, and Save on the last step.
¶ General
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Name (required) | The workflow's name, e.g. Project Delivery or Contract Management. |
| Project Label (required) | What one item in this workflow is called, e.g. Project, Contract, Case. |
| Project Label (Plural) (required) | The plural, e.g. Projects. Filled in for you; change it if needed. |
| Activity Label (required) | What one piece of work is called, e.g. Activity, Task, Step. |
| Activity Label (Plural) (required) | The plural, e.g. Activities. Filled in for you; change it if needed. |
| Workflow Accent Color | The colour used for the workflow's card and highlights. |
| Upload Workflow Logo | An image for the workflow card (JPEG, PNG, or GIF). |
The labels you choose replace "Project" and "Activity" across the workflow: in menus, buttons, page titles, and notifications. For example, a Contract Management workflow can show Contracts and Tasks instead.
¶ Phases
Add the phases every project moves through, in order (e.g. Initiation, Planning, Execution, Closing). Click Add Phase for each one, and drag phases to reorder them. A workflow needs at least one phase.
Important: The number and order of phases can't be changed after the workflow is created. You can rename phases later, but not add, remove, or reorder them. Plan your phases before you save.
¶ Visibility
Workflow Visibility controls who can see the workflow:
- Public: visible to all users in your organisation. (Default)
- Private: visible only to invited users.
Project Visibility Policy controls the visibility of every project in the workflow:
| Option | What it means |
|---|---|
| Per Project (default) | Whoever creates a project chooses whether it's Public or Private. |
| Public | Every project in the workflow is public: visible to all users. |
| Private | Every project in the workflow is private: visible to assigned users only. |
Important: The Project Visibility Policy can't be changed after the workflow is created. It's shown read-only in Workflow Settings. Choose Per Project if you're unsure.
Click Save to create the workflow.
¶ Open Workflow Configuration
Everything else is set up from Configuration, at the bottom of the workflow's side menu. Only Workflow Admins (and administrators) see it. It has two groups:
| Group | Items |
|---|---|
| Projects (shows your workflow's plural label, e.g. Contracts) | Dashboard, Phases, Swimlanes, Forms, Activity Templates, Roadmaps, Roles, Registers |
| Workflow | Simple Config, Workflow Users, Settings |
¶ Workflow Settings
Go to Configuration → Workflow → Settings to change:
- Name
- Project Label and Project Label (Plural)
- Activity Label and Activity Label (Plural)
- Visibility (Public or Private)
- Workflow Color and logo
The Project Visibility Policy is shown here for reference but can't be changed.
Click Save to apply your changes, or Reset to undo them.
¶ Delete a workflow
At the bottom of Workflow Settings, click Delete Workflow and type DELETE to confirm.
Important: Deleting a workflow permanently removes everything in it, including its roadmaps, projects, activities, and documents. This can't be undone.
¶ Rename Phases
- Go to Configuration → Projects → Phases.
- Select a phase and click Update.
- Edit the Phase name. (The sequence can't be changed.)
- Click Save.
¶ Workflow Admins and Workflow Users
Give people a role across the whole workflow, without adding them to each project.
| Role | What they can do |
|---|---|
| Workflow Admin | Configure the workflow (everything under Configuration) and work in every project in the workflow with full access. |
| Workflow User | View every project in the workflow, including private projects, without being added to each one. Read-only, unless they also hold a Key Role in a particular project. |
¶ Steps
- Go to Configuration → Workflow → Workflow Users.
- Click Add. The Add Workflow User panel opens.
- Search for and select the User.
- Choose the Role: Workflow Admin or Workflow User.
- Click Save.
To remove someone, select them and click Delete. To change someone's role, delete them and add them again with the new role.
Tip: Use Workflow User for leadership, PMO, and auditors who need to see everything but shouldn't change anything. Review the list regularly if some projects contain sensitive information.
See Roles & Permissions for how these roles fit with project and activity permissions.
¶ Create Roles
Roles define governance and responsibility in projects (e.g. Project Manager, Approver). They're used in project teams, activity permissions, and roadmap permission policies.
¶ Steps
- Go to Configuration → Projects → Roles.
- Click Add.
- Enter a Name (it must be unique) and a Description.
- Click Save.
Tip: Define roles before building roadmaps, so you can use them in permission policies straight away.
¶ Simple Config
Simple Config holds the lookup lists your workflow uses, such as Business Segment, Project Area, Asset Type, Currency, Document Type, and Document Category. They're used to categorise projects and documents, and they feed Data Source fields in forms, so a list you maintain here appears in every form that uses it.
¶ Steps
- Go to Configuration → Workflow → Simple Config.
- Click Add. The Add Simple Config panel opens.
- Fill in Name, Abbreviation, Type, Parent (if the value sits under another value), and Description.
- Click Save.
¶ Best Practices
- Plan phases and the Project Visibility Policy before you save: neither can be changed later.
- Choose labels your teams already use. If people say "contract", call it Contract.
- Assign at least one Workflow Admin, and a second as backup.
- Use Workflow User for oversight roles instead of adding people to every project.
- Create roles early for smooth roadmap and activity configuration.
- Keep Simple Config tidy: forms and filters are only as clean as the lists behind them.