Slaesforce FAQ

how to develop process documentation in salesforce

by Elda Weissnat Published 2 years ago Updated 2 years ago
image

Add or link the documentation to the Salesforce metadata items in the Data Dictionary. At the heart of this is the WHAT (Org Data Dictionary) which lists all the metadata items. Attached to each metadata items are the HOW (process maps, data models) and the WHY (documentation and requirements).

5 Documentation Strategies to Improve Your Salesforce Org
  1. Write Down Description/Help Text. My top tip is to create description text or help text. ...
  2. Create Data Dictionaries. ...
  3. Build Process Maps. ...
  4. Implement Change Logs. ...
  5. Organize Information in Knowledge and Chatter.
Mar 9, 2020

Full Answer

What is documentation in Salesforce?

Documentation – the What and the Why. Documentation is more than the list of what metadata you added in a new release in Salesforce. We need to add why we added it as this gives greater insight into how it is used. In the OrgConfessions, #1 business analysis is business process maps and requirements that explain why you made the changes.

How do I add document management capabilities to Salesforce?

True document management capabilities, such as approval processes, can only be added using the Process Builder or Flows (and your own logic!). Salesforce allows you to connect storage systems such as Google Drive, OneDrive, Box, or other services via the Salesforce Files Connect function. However, this tool has various limitations.

What are the document-level functions available in Salesforce?

Once a file has been transferred to storage in Salesforce, a number of document-level functions become available: Viewer: Salesforce’s default viewer allows users to preview documents.

How to add documentation to Salesforce metadata items?

Add or link the documentation to the Salesforce metadata items in the Data Dictionary. At the heart of this is the WHAT (Org Data Dictionary) which lists all the metadata items. Attached to each metadata items are the HOW (process maps, data models) and the WHY (documentation and requirements).

See more

image

How do you develop process documentation?

How to create process documentationStep 1: Define the process and its scope. Decide which process you are going to document. ... Step 2: Organize the steps. ... Step 3: Describe who is involved. ... Step 4: Note down exceptions to the normal process flow. ... Step 5: Add control points. ... Step 6: Review and test the process.

How do I create a process in Salesforce?

Create a New Process on the Account ObjectClick. ... From Setup, enter Builder in the Quick Find box, and select Process Builder.Click New.Click the Continue with Process Builder button.For Process Name, type Contact address change .For The process starts when, select A record changes, and click Save.More items...

What should be included in process documentation?

Process documentation is a detailed description of how to execute a process. It outlines the exact steps needed to complete a task from start to finish. Creating a detailed document can align teamwork around process objectives and encourage organizational clarity.

What are types of process documentation?

Examples of Process Documentation Format TypesVisual Process Maps.Flowcharts.Quick Reference Guides.White Papers.Onboarding Documents.Training Manuals.Video Tutorials.Checklists.More items...•

What is process Builder in Salesforce?

Process Builder is an automated Salesforce tool that allows you to control the order of actions or evaluate the criteria for a record. Process Builder gives you the ability to use straightforward 'If/Then' logic to easily add automation to your Salesforce environment.

What are the 11 actions in process builder?

Actions that can be performed with Process builder:Create and update records.Send an Email alert.Submit a record for approval.Invoke a process from another process.Launch a flow.We can call apex methods.Post to chatter.

Who is involved in process documentation?

Business process documentation involves three parties: The Internal team (aka project team) The stakeholders. The external parties.

How can process documentation be improved?

Process Documentation Best PracticesKeep it clear and concise. Focus on being specific without getting verbose. ... Keep documents accessible. ... Make it easy to edit. ... Control document changes. ... Review your manuals at least once a year. ... Add a timeline. ... Choose a specific, well-defined process. ... Create and use templates.More items...•

What is the purpose of a process document?

A process document outlines the steps necessary to complete a task or process. It is an internal, ongoing documentation of the process while it is occurring—documentation cares more about the “how” of implementation than the “what” of process impact.

What are 3 types of documents?

Types of documentsStructured text. Frequently asked questions and answers.Unstructured text. HTML files. Microsoft PowerPoint presentations. Microsoft Word documents. Plain text documents. PDFs.

What are the three major documentation styles?

The Big Three: APA, MLA, and CMS There are three main "Schools of Style" used to properly format an academic paper, referred to as APA, MLA, or CMS.

What is the first stage of documentation?

Document creation The first stage of the document life cycle is creation. People typically create new documents using word processing software such as Microsoft Word and Google Docs. They may create these documents or use an existing document as a template; they might also use a document automation solution.

A Single, 360 Shared View of Every Customer

Welcome to Salesforce Customer 360, One Integrated CRM Platform for uniting Marketing, Sales, Commerce, Service, and I.T. Departments.

Leading Through Change

Watch stories filled with thought leadership, inspiration, and insights from business leaders and our greater community.

Video documentation

Recording your screen and your voice when you want to teach an overview of a process or explain a concept is easier with these great screen recording applications:

Screenshot documentation

Using screenshots to explain step-by-step procedures (e.g. "how do I create a lead?") is easier with these great applications:

Take it one question at a time

You don't necessarily have to plan everything out with an outline, a timeline with milestones, etc. Just start by answering questions as they come in. If you get a new question that you haven't documented yet, quickly write an answer and add it to your collection.

Provide specific instructions for specific questions

When you write specific articles that answer one question at a time, you can send your Salesforce users the exact information they need when they need it (e.g. - "Here's how to create an email template "). Instead of sending a 300 page PDF manual and telling them to turn to page 156, paragraph 3 - you can send them only the information they need.

Organize and rearrange for better delegation

Documenting in small chunks makes it easy to arrange and rearrange your documentation. For example, if I want somebody to send out an email campaign they need to:

Why Do I Need Document Management in Salesforce?

As previously mentioned, the plethora of different systems within a company means documents can be created in many places. By using a document management system (DMS), users ensure consistent access to all documents across different user groups and systems.

Native Document Features in Salesforce

Salesforce already has a number of different areas in which documents can be managed. These include:

Third-party Salesforce Document Solutions

Salesforce already offers users a number of ways to work with documents. However, organizing your document storage or arranging access for external parties is often difficult. That’s why there are a number of third-party plugins that make it much easier to manage documents than in the standard edition of Salesforce.

Which Solution Should I Choose?

The question you need to ask yourself now is this: what do I want to achieve with document management in Salesforce? If the goal is simply to store the files somewhere else to reduce the need for storage in Salesforce (or something very similar), then the S3 storage apps offered by some providers will suffice.

Process diagrams: the great and the not so great

So, what are you developing in the workshop ? As discussed in the last post, clients should not be developing a huge daunting flowchart, but rather, a hierarchical process map using a very simple notation. A diagram has only 8–10 activity boxes, so that it can be easily understood by everyone.

Ask 3 simple questions

Creating great process documentation is not hard. You just need to follow the notation and ask 3 questions as you are mapping. Each question makes you pause and really think about their process.

How is approval different from workflow?

Approval processes are different from workflow rules in that users must submit a record for approval whereas workflow rules fire when their conditions are met. Each approval process specifies the steps necessary for a record to be approved and who must approve it at each step.

What type of record can you associate with a workflow?

The type of record you choose determines the rules that you can associate with the workflow task. Workflow tasks can only be associated with workflow rules or approval processes for the same type of record: contact, account, lead, and so on. If you assign a workflow task to an opportunity team role containing more than one person, ...

How to configure workflow rules?

To configure a workflow rule with scheduled actions, add time triggers and associate actions with them. The associated actions are time-dependent, executing according to the time trigger when a record matches the workflow rule criteria. You can add time triggers to a workflow rule if all of the following are true:

What is flow trigger?

A flow trigger is a workflow action that launches a flow. With flow triggers, you can automate complex business processes—create flows to perform logic, and have events trigger the flows via workflow rules—without writing code. For example, your flow looks up and assigns the relevant entitlement for a case.

What is workflow task?

Workflow tasks assign a new task to a user, role, or record owner. For example, automatically assign follow-up tasks to a support representative one week after a case is updated.

Can you use flow triggers in workflow?

Flow triggers are available only for workflow rules. You can’t use them as actions elsewhere, for example, in approval processes. Flow triggers are available on most—but not all—objects that are supported by workflow rules. Only active, autolaunched flows can be launched by flow triggers.

Who is the task assignee in a workflow?

If you assign a workflow task to an opportunity team role containing more than one person, the owner of the record that triggered the rule becomes the task assignee. If a workflow task is assigned to a role containing more than one person, the owner of the record that triggered the rule become s the task assignee.

Introduction

At all levels of detail, diagrams in the Documentation & Implementation style help viewers understand an implementation or product-related technical details.

Level 1: The Big Picture

At this level, diagrams show a wider view of a system landscape or solution. Diagrams at this level most effectively show the products or technologies involved a specific solution or implementation, but don't show many details. The focus of these diagrams is to clearly convey the 'big picture' without overwhelming a viewer.

Level 2: Piece of the Whole

Similar to the level above, diagrams at Level 2 show aspects of a solution overview or system landscape. At this level, however, users wouldn't see an entire system or solution landscape. These diagrams show a more focused subset of products or technologies involved in a solution, with added detail that a higher level diagram can't support.

Level 3: Process or Interaction View

Diagrams at this level show more fine detail than diagrams at either of the levels above. These diagrams show a limited view of the products or technologies in a solution, in order to effectively show more complex detail. Diagrams at Level 3 might show time-based interactions or data flows, or system interactions required to support a process.

Level 4: The Double Click

Diagrams at this level show the most specific detail about a piece of a solution or system. This level is the most effective at showing fine-grained technical specifications or requirements. Level 4 diagrams should be the most limited in terms of product or technical scope, so the greater level of detail shown is still understandable for a viewer.

image

Why document?

Image
Every change you make has a risk that it will break something in your Org. The impact analysis of every change with an undocumented Org is a huge time suck. Or you simply do no analysis and just hope (by the way, hope is not a strategy). I love the excitement of deleting a field and waiting for the screams Said no-one…EVER …
See more on salesforceben.com

Documentation – The What and The Why

  • Documentation is more than the list of what metadata you added in a new release in Salesforce. We need to add why we added it as this gives greater insight into how it is used. In the OrgConfessions, #1 business analysisis business process maps and requirements that explain why you made the changes. The only reason for documentation is so when you come back to it i…
See more on salesforceben.com

Why Now?

  • Why don’t we document? 3 reasons. No time. Not a priority. No business case. Let’s deal with each of them:
See more on salesforceben.com

Documentation Approach

  • The challenge we hear all the time, is “My Org is such a hot mess. I have no idea where to start”. We have this simple 3-step approach that is practical, achievable and helps you make measurable progress. It is described in detail in the free ebook Chaos to Control elements.cloud/chaos Look at the lifecycle of an object that you are struggling with. You probably have a very clear view of you…
See more on salesforceben.com

Build Strong Documentation Habits

  • The quickest and easiest time to add documentation is “in the moment”. It is fresh in your mind, you remember the rationale- the why. “I will do it later” “There is no ‘Later’” Nike said it best back in 1988. “Just Do It.” Take the example of a validation rule. It takes 30 mins to build, validate and test. It could take 2 hours to work that out 3 months later. Adding documentation takes 5 minute…
See more on salesforceben.com

Quick Wins

  • There are some quick wins that can give you a huge return in a few hours, and can build the business case for a more robust approach and tools. We wrote a book called Rapid Resultswhich sets it out in more detail. The book suggests 3 areas: 1. Remove fields from page layouts:Simplify page layouts which will speed up page load times, engage end-users and reduce data entry error…
See more on salesforceben.com

Elements.cloud Catalyst

  • What Admins and Consultants have been searching for is a simple, easily implemented and repeatable approach for clean up and documentation. It also needs to work no matter the size or complexity of Org structure. And it must be broader than Salesforce. We’ve spent the last 4 years building Elements Catalyst to provide a robust tool that support all the Org documentation issue…
See more on salesforceben.com

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9