Situation

Goulburn Valley Water (GVW), a utility serving over 128,000 people across 54 towns in Victoria, faced a challenge in 2023 when its digital signature platform, DocuSign, was decommissioned because it had become inefficient and cumbersome. The organisation needed a streamlined solution to improve workflow efficiency, maintain compliance, and simplify user experience.

Task

GVW aimed to replace DocuSign with a more robust solution that integrated smoothly with its existing Content Manager (CM) system. The new system needed to support document approvals, enhance workflow management, and provide a user-friendly interface. It was also essential that the solution be well-adopted by staff with minimal disruption.

Action

GVW partnered with iCognition to implement Ingress Workflow, an iCognition developed solution designed to streamline workflows and automate processes.

1. Assessment and workflow design:
   iCognition collaborated with GVW to assess current processes and unique needs. iCognition Principal Consultants led the redesign of GVW’s workflows, transitioning from 65 multi-step CM actions to more efficient templates.
2. Development and testing:
   iCognition and GVW developed and tested 45 workflows in just six weeks. iCognition managed complex workflows, offering hands-on support to ensure the system leveraged Ingress Workflow’s full potential. iCognition’s expertise introduced efficiencies, addressing issues like redundant steps and parallel processes.
3. Training and user engagement:
   iCognition delivered targeted training across 20 sessions, focusing on key workflow areas. These sessions were customised to GVW’s needs, helping staff quickly adapt. iCognition provided ongoing support during training, adjusting workflows based on real-time user feedback for a smooth transition.

Result

The implementation of Ingress Workflow delivered significant improvements for GVW:

• Improved efficiency:
  The new system streamlined approvals, reducing redundancy and speeding up processes. The user-friendly interface was especially beneficial for less experienced users.
• Enhanced governance and compliance:
  The system provided detailed audit logs and tracking, enhancing governance for sensitive processes like payroll approvals. There are 25 different analytics charts to manage the workflows.
• High user adoption:
  GVW staff quickly embraced the system, thanks to iCognition’s tailored training and support. Custom templates and workflow management provided scalability and ease of use, resulting in over 18,500 workflows running per annum.

Conclusion

iCognition’s Ingress Workflow solution transformed GVW’s document approval processes, delivering increased efficiency and compliance. The close collaboration between GVW and iCognition, supported by expert training and user engagement, ensured a successful development and implementation, positioning GVW for future growth in process automation.

“Efficiency gains have been seen in various aspects, but the most resounding is having a single point of approval and the ability to have everything in one place, having associated documents encompassed within the workflow, rather than navigating to them all individually. We worked closely with iCognition and I can honestly say we wouldn’t have met our deadline without their strong commitment. They tackled the more complex workflows we’d drafted, helping us to ensure the best pathways were developed and pointing out areas that could be improved or needed further work or consultation from process owners.” Rachael Howden, Team Leader of Records Management.

Goulburn Valley Water received the OpenText Content Manager Innovation Showcase 2023 Technology Excellence Award for this solution. For more detail check out Rachael’s presentation to the OpenText Content Manager Customer Innovation Showcase 2023. There’s also an article, Unleashing Digital Workflows at Goulburn Valley Water, in Information and Data Manager magazine.