Salesforce Business Process Flow: Strategies For Efficient Automation

April 7, 2022

Team Copado

Icons of employees and dev ops icons surround a computer screen representing a Salesforce business process Flow

Automation plays a significant role in enterprise-level businesses. It can drive value and conserve resources, whether you choose to automate the software development life cycle (SDLC) or business operations. For this reason, many companies have embraced the advantages of a Salesforce business process Flow. This article will guide project managers through Salesforce Flow features, functions, and implementation.

Salesforce Business Process Flow: Q&A

Q: What is Salesforce Flow?

Salesforce Flow is a product that uses automation to help companies build, run, and maintain business processes. It’s comprised of two primary tools

Flow Builder	Flow Builder is the declarative interface. It provides users with a point-and-click tool to build customized Flows. Salesforce Flow Builder can build code-like logic without code, no programming experience necessary.
Process Builder	Process Builder automates standard operational tasks, like emails and record updates. As you configure processes, the Process Builder provides a graphical representation of each one. It’s also used to launch Flows, trigger processes, and execute quick actions, such as call logging.

Q: What is a Salesforce business process Flow?

A Salesforce business process Flow is a workflow built to streamline business processes through the Salesforce Flow product. “Flows” within the Salesforce Flow application fall into one of two categories: Screen Flows and Autolaunched Flows.

Screen Flows are most helpful in automating business processes that collect data from people through user interaction. For example, you can use Screen Flows to create and run guided tutorials.
Autolaunched Flows allow you to launch a workflow internally via a trigger — like a button click or a record change.

Q: How do you automate a business process in Salesforce?

There are three steps to automating a Salesforce business process Flow:

Set up your Flow in Flow Builder. You’ll begin with a canvas that allows you to add screen elements, actions, and integration information.
Build a Flow. Map out the business process you’d like to automate. Then, you’ll use Flow Builder features to add suitable options like user input fields or a file upload page. Before the next phase, you should also test the Flow (don’t worry, we’ll cover Flow testing in just a moment).
Activate your Flow. Now, you’ll distribute your Flow to the appropriate members of your organization by activating it and adding it to the Home page.

Need a technical walk-through? Check out this Salesforce Flow Builder guide and circle back here for the implementation strategy!

Why Companies Use Salesforce Flow

Using Salesforce Flow is the closest a company can get to having Salesforce developer capabilities. Use cases for Salesforce business process Flow are near-limitless, so implementation will vary from company to company. However, there are a few applications that most businesses can benefit from:

Automating data entry and maintenance duties.
Streamlining complex, cross-departmental business processes.
Record keeping and organization.
Increasing efficiency of sales funnels by removing the responsibility of repetitive manual tasks.

Key Point

The most important thing to keep in mind about Salesforce Flow is its ability to increase the accuracy and efficiency of business processes. Think about how crucial the processes above are to your company’s value stream. Disjointed or inefficient workflows can be detrimental to your company’s business model. Additionally, time currently wasted on repetitive manual labor like reporting and monitoring duties can be reallocated to matters that require human judgment.

How to Get the Best Results from Salesforce Flow Automation

Introducing automation to your business processes can be highly lucrative. Artificial intelligence (AI) has not only alleviated the burden of monotonous manual labor but equipped companies with the data they need to make more intelligent decisions. There is no reason for enterprises using the Salesforce interface not to take advantage of Salesforce business process Flow.

Nonetheless, no action occurs without an equal and opposite reaction. Automation initiatives are no exception, especially without strategic implementation. In the following few sections, we’ll walk project managers through three action items they can take to mitigate the growing pains of an automation-based digital transformation.

1. Evaluate Organizational Readiness

Your company’s DevOps capabilities determine how smoothly a Salesforce Flow implementation will go. A significant benefit of both Salesforce Flow and DevOps is accessibility. People don’t need technical expertise to follow along with a Salesforce business process Flow someone else has built. However, project members need to feel comfortable contributing to and monitoring Flows. DevOps principles, like increased transparency into business processes and enhanced collaboration, can pave the way for Salesforce Flows.

Need DevOps management help? Check out our previous blog post, “Best DevOps Infrastructure Tools That Add the Most Value” for additional guidance.

2. Extend the Scope of Software Testing Coverage

It’s critical to understand that expanding your company’s technological portfolio also means extending the scope of testing. Automation creates many opportunities for business growth — but testing ensures that growth is sustainable. The following two testing areas are crucial in any Salesforce business process Flow initiative:

Flow testing. This type of testing refers to validating the actual Flows you’ll build after implementing Salesforce Flow. Before a new Flow is activated, it must undergo tests to verify its functionality. The Salesforce Help section provides a step-by-step breakdown of how to test a Salesforce Flow.
Salesforce testing. Testing basic Salesforce applications may not pose a problem initially. However, as your infrastructure grows, you’ll need to implement end-to-end automated Salesforce testing to monitor your system in its entirety. Integration troubles and dependencies can cause avoidable defects. Because Salesforce processes are business-critical, it’s important to test your system’s ability to support them both inside Salesforce and in the rest of your tech stack.

3. Strategize Your Toolkit

Salesforce’s dynamic features demand an automated testing solution that’s as versatile as it is user-friendly. The automation tools you choose to support your Salesforce business process Flow project must anticipate the unique challenges of Salesforce testing. For example, Copado Robotic Testing is #1 in DevOps and testing tools for Salesforce. Here’s why: