The Workflow functionality maps out the lifespan of an item by establishing transition rules for changes in the item's status. There are two types of workflows:
Organization and
Review Center. Organization Workflows can be modified and customized on a Project by Project basis.
These two workflow functionalities are not compatible. If you have enabled Organization Workflow, Review Center Workflow Batch Transitions are recommended instead of Review Status Workflow.
Setting Up/Enabling Organization Workflow
To set up Organization Workflow, go to
Admin > Workflow.
From this main page, you can access the settings for workflow, which include enabling the functionality for the Organization, and permission for Project Managers to override a workflow within a project. A list of currently active workflows is displayed beneath these settings.
Any workflow created at the Organization level will be available to every project within that Organization. If the
Allow Project Managers to override workflows on a project box is checked, users with Manage Project permissions will be able to edit Workflows at the Project level to better suit their needs. To access workflow from a project level, click on the gear icon next to the project name in the top left, and select
Project.
This will open a pop-up window. Select the
Workflow tab to see a menu of active workflows similar to the one located in the Admin Section. By clicking
Override, the Project Manager can make changes to, but not delete, the workflow.
Please note: workflows are not retroactive. Items that were created prior to a Workflow will show transitions, but locks and user restrictions that were created with the Workflow will not show up on these items. Creating a new WorkflowCreating a new Workflow can only be done under the Admin tab. Start by clicking
Add/Edit, and select an Item Type you would like to create a Workflow for. Items can include any that have been enabled for your project that a picklist configured, as well as custom items created under
Item Types.
Please note: only items that have a picklist configured, such as Status or Priority, will be eligible for Workflow. 
Next, select a status picklist you want your item's workflow to apply to. Standard picklists, as well as custom-created ones that have been configured to an item type, will show up in this dropdown. Some examples of commonly-used picklists are:
Priority: Unassigned, Low, Medium, High
Status: Select One, Draft, Approved, Rejected, Completed
These statuses are standard in Jama but can be edited to suit your company's business process if need be.
Mapping TransitionsOnce you have chosen an item type and a picklist, you must map the Workflow's transition. This includes:
- How the item's status can change
- Who is notified when changes are made
- Who can transition an item's status
- When an item is locked after a transition
For our example, we will create a workflow for this business process:
A Workflow that represents the above image would look like this:
Now to explain this Workflow process:
When a Requirement is created, it is mapped to the status will immediately be set as "Draft." If you were to create a new Requirement with this Workflow active, you would notice that the option to change the status is not available.
After creating a new Requirement, a small box will appear at the top right of the item window. Clicking on it will reveal the transition options available for the workflow. In the case of our example, a Requirement that is a Draft can go one of two ways: it can be Approved, or Rejected.
If the item was approved, a pop-up box will open, giving users the option to leave a note about this transition.
If you notice #3 on the example workflow, it has been set so if the item is Approved it is automatically locked. This can be adjusted in either the Admin or Project Configuration Workflow menus, as well as notification settings.
After the Requirement is approved, it can be transitioned to Completed.
As it is set up in the example workflow, Completed Requirements have no further transitions available in the workflow. If a Draft Requirement is "Rejected," the only transition it can make it back to a "Draft" state. This can be changed to best fit your business process if need be.
Review Center Workflow
A Workflow can be created for Review Center items that are participating in a review. It should be noted that like the Organization Workflow, this can only be set up by a Jama Admin, and not a Review Center Admin. This workflow is based on the status of the review and will change the workflow field once the review has been finalized. The Review Status Workflow is separate from the Organization Workflow; an Organization Workflow will override a Review Center workflow if both are set up for the same item type and picklist field.
To set up the Review Center Workflow, navigate to
Admin > Review Center Settings. At the bottom of the page will be the option to set up a Review Status Workflow. These are simpler than Project Workflows to set up, as they can only have one transition. The example below shows a workflow for Use Case Status to be changed to Approved once a review containing Use Cases has been finalized.
Next, we'll send a use case for review that has a status of "Draft."
After a review is completed, it will need to be "finalized" in order for Jama to transition the statuses of the items. A "finished" review and a "finalized" review are not the same things; you will need to enter the review and manually change the status. This can be achieved under the "Tools" dropdown while inside a review.
Note: Only the review Moderator can finalize a review. It is possible for the moderator to revoke the finalization of the review if need be.
After finalizing the review, the status of the Use Case has been changed to "Approved."
If the Review Status Workflow is set to update the item once the review is set to
Not Finalized, you must first Finalize it. Once
Finalized, you will see the option under Tools to mark as
Not Finalized.
A pop-up box will notify you of the changes that will be made to items belonging to this workflow.
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