11

I'm doing a study on how to visualize a process of an application. Now I found the term workflow and workflow management but it's a little confusing.

When I searched further the term flowchart also showed up.

My question is now, is there any difference between the two because I see those two used in the same context.

Thanks

Fenton
  • 241,084
  • 71
  • 387
  • 401
Gerard
  • 111
  • 1
  • 1
  • 3

2 Answers2

10

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Workflow

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flowchart

"A workflow" is a definition of a process for how an item of work should be done.

A flowchart is a diagram for describing a process. So a workflow can be described by a flowchart.

Perhaps it is the case that workflows are commonly described by flowcharts, that some people may use the two terms interchangably.

Does that help?

Jaydee
  • 4,138
  • 1
  • 19
  • 20
  • 2
    So if you talk about workflows, you talk about a series of steps how a process should run (sum up the tasks of that process) and a flowchart is the visualization of those steps? – Gerard Sep 15 '10 at 08:30
  • 2
    Pretty much yes (AFAIK). Flowcharts can be used to visualise all kinds of things. Workflows can be defined in various ways processes, business rules, forms to be filled in etc. – Jaydee Sep 15 '10 at 10:19
0

Based on my limited experience, I would add that Workflow diagrams tend to be more relaxed in their layout. Flowcharts extremely strict and rigid; every step must be followed by a decision point (a diamond). So: A == B? (where == is a true/false question). If TRUE then proceed to process X; if FALSE proceed to next decision point, B >= C?.

Workflows, from my limited experience, are much more relaxed. they don't have to have the decision points but they often do. Basically, there are cases in which the rigidity of a flowchart just does not work and workflow diagrams seem to have that flexibility.

You also have to remember your target audiences. True flowcharts are so rigid because what they represent is so rigid. Flowcharts are very commonly used by programmers and software development leaves no room for error.

Riddhesh Sanghvi
  • 1,218
  • 1
  • 12
  • 22
dniff
  • 1