Workflow Inbox Count

Wed Jun 23 11:52:16 EDT 2004

Monique,

This may be too simple, but I have used this technique on very sick
IS-Utilities sites to get a count of work items started and work items
errored, where you might have many thousands of Service Order / Move In /
Move Out tasks started in any given week or month.

You can run report SWI2_Freq for the TS number and the time period, sort by
status if needed, then dump the results into Excel and total up lines.

best regards
Mark Huffman
Universal Webflow, Inc
Automation for your Integration

709 Bradford Ave. Kemah TX 77565
Cell: 919-656-4158
Office:  281 538-1262
Fax:  281 538-7250

----- Original Message -----
From: "Stephens, Monique S L" <moniques at bcm.tmc.edu>
To: <SAP-WUG at MITVMA.MIT.EDU>
Sent: Wednesday, June 23, 2004 10:01 AM
Subject: Re: Workflow Inbox Count

We have been using the same workflow structure since 1999.  We do not
have the resources to change our existing workflow.  We would not be
able to change the workflow so that the documents route to a specific
buyer.  Vendors are added and deleted on a daily basis.  We also have
some vendors that are shared by multiple buyers depending on what items
are getting ordered.

I guess our organization is unique and no one else has come across this
type of request.  Like I said, I will get with one of our programmers to
figure something out.

Monique

-----Original Message-----
From: Michael Pokraka [mailto:workflow at quirky.me.uk]
Sent: Wednesday, June 23, 2004 8:25 AM
To: SAP-WUG at MITVMA.MIT.EDU
Subject: Re: Workflow Inbox Count

Hi Monique,
A few ideas:
- is there (or can you add) a unique identifier to PO's for this pgrp,
adn count those?
- Count change documets incolving that pgrp for a given date
- Add a dummy workflow step which you can report on
- (zooming out onto the bigger picture) "Our purchasing group does not
use the workflow inbox to release PO's because there are so many PO's in
their inbox.". Why, oh why????? How about routing based on a vendor
responsibility? Or dropping the dialog step completely (see point 3)?

HTH
Cheers
Mike

Stephens, Monique S L wrote:
> Our Purchasing Department would like to get a count of how many PO's
> come into their workflow inbox on a given day.  All PO's are
> identified with a generic purchasing group and all PO's are routed to
> the Purchasing work center which currently has 13 people.  Once the
> actual purchasing agent processes the PO, they will change the
> purchasing group.
>
> I have used SWI5 and we created another copy of the t-code for the
> users to use.  But, that does not work in all circumstances and it
> takes a long time to run.  Our purchasing group does not use the
> workflow inbox to release PO's because there are so many PO's in their

> inbox.  The group uses ME28 and each buyer has a special variant to
> pull up only their PO's based on the vendor.
>
> I guess we will have to wait until after we upgrade to 4.7 on July 6th

> and get with one of our programmers to see what can be done.
>
> Monique Stephens
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Dart, Jocelyn [mailto:jocelyn.dart at sap.com]
> Sent: Tuesday, June 22, 2004 10:55 PM
> To: SAP-WUG at MITVMA.MIT.EDU
> Subject: Re: Workflow Inbox Count
>
> Susan,
> SWWWIHEAD is only updated once the agent has executed the work item.
> As stated previously in this trail, agent assignments are fluid up
> until the time the task is completed.
> Also you should always assume that prior to the task being completed,
> multiple agents may be assigned to the task at any one time. And
> that's before we get to substitution.
>
> This is why it's usually better to take the user to a nice workflow
> summary log (such as those provided by generic object services) and
> educate them on how workflows work, rather than try to create complex
> reports that can only approximate what is really happening.
>
> Monique, it might be helpful to talk to your users about why they want

> this information and what their concerns are, and then think outside
> the square a little.
>
> Remember SWI5 can do a workload analysis by date that will at least
> show how much is being processed, or to be processed by a particular
user.
> And there is also a WAPI that counts the work items currently in a
> user's inbox.
>
> Jocelyn
>
> -----Original Message-----
>> From: SAP Workflow [mailto:Owner-SAP-WUG at MITVMA.MIT.EDU] On Behalf Of
> Kunkel, Susan
> Sent: Wednesday,23 June 2004 7:07 AM
> To: SAP-WUG at MITVMA.MIT.EDU
> Subject: Re: Workflow Inbox Count
>
>
> Monique, Mike et al,
>
> I'm a new workflow admin and had a similar request from one of my
> customers.
> Unfortunately, the AGENT field in SWWWIHEAD sometimes contains the
> agent's name and sometimes it doesn't. But when I drill into the
> detail of the specific task of a workflow I see the agent name. I
> haven't determined why the field in SWWWIHEAD isn't getting updated
> and which table contains the REAL agent data...
>
> Susan Kunkel
> Technical Development Lead
>  and Workflow Administrator
> City of Tacoma
> 1551 Market St
> Tacoma, WA 98402
> (253) 382-2643
>
> -----Original Message-----
>> From: SAP Workflow [mailto:Owner-SAP-WUG at MITVMA.MIT.EDU] On Behalf Of
> Michael Pokraka
> Sent: Monday, June 21, 2004 6:28 AM
> To: SAP-WUG at MITVMA.MIT.EDU
> Subject: Re: Workflow Inbox Count
>
>
> Hi Monique,
> So that leaves two options: Evaluate SWWWIHEAD for the particular
> workflow and check against the objects to see which workf centre it is

> assigned to.
> Alternatively, could you eveluate it from the business side? i.e.
> Purchase Req's for a purchasing group on a particular day?
>
> Cheers
> Mike
>
> Stephens, Monique S L wrote:
>> Thanks for the response.
>>
>> Actually, the users that are most interested in this count are those
>> in a work center (our Purchasing department).  Therefore, some of the

>> issues you mentioned below would not apply.  These users will want to

>> know how many documents arrived in the work center on a particular
>> day
>
>> even if they also happened to be released on that day.
>>
>> Monique Stephens
>>
>>
>> ________________________________
>>
>>> From: Michael Pokraka [mailto:workflow at quirky.me.uk]
>> Sent: Mon 6/21/2004 5:24 AM
>> To: SAP-WUG at MITVMA.MIT.EDU
>> Subject: Re: Workflow Inbox Count
>>
>>
>>
>> Hi Monique,
>> The short answer: No.
>> The slightly longer version: This isn't as simple as it sounds since
>> agent assignments are fluid, nothing really goes "to someone's
inbox".
>> Instead, someone's inbox provides a view of workitems which one could

>> possibly execute. I'm afraid you're stuck with writing your own, but
>> there are still a number of issues.
>> What about forwarded items? Do they count for both people? A user
>> gets
>
>> a workitem, but someone else executes it - does that count? Yes, it
>> did 'arrive in her inbox', but... Oh, and what about substitution?
>> Someone
> could
>> substitute for someone in a different work centre and then it really
>> gets messy. Agents are evaluated at runtime, and the work centre can
> subsequently
>> change too...
>> I think you can see why there is no 'standard report' in SAP for
this.
>> An idea might be a custom report on the underlying data instead.
>>
>> Cheers
>> Mike
>>
>> Stephens, Monique S L wrote:
>>> I sent the message below to the group but no one responded yet.
>>>
>>> I need to know if there is a transaction code, report, or table that

>>> will give me the following data:
>>>
>>> Count of documents that have come into a particular user's or work
>>> center's workflow inbox on a particular date even if the document
>>> has
>
>>> already been released by that user or work center.
>>>
>>> For example, I can run SWI5 to get a current list of documents.
>>> But,
>
>>> if some documents arrived today and were released today, they would
>>> not be on the list.  The workplace workflow inbox has a column for
>>> creation date (date document arrived in that particular workflow
>>> inbox) but it does not allow you the ability to subtotal by date and

>>> it will only show current documents (not those already released).
>>>
>>> Monique Stephens
>>>
>>>
>>> ________________________________
>>>
>>>> From: Stephens, Monique S L
>>> Sent: Friday, June 04, 2004 4:34 PM
>>> To: SAP-WUG at LISTSERV.MIT.EDU
>>> Subject: Workflow Inbox Count
>>>
>>>
>>> Is there a standard report or transaction code that can be run in
>>> 4.7
>
>>> that will allow a user to determine how many documents have come
>>> into
>
>>> their inbox on a particular day even if they have already been
>>> released? I was hoping that workplace would allow a subtotal by the
>>> creation date column.  But, I have been unable to change that column

>>> other than sorting it by date.
>>>
>>> Monique Stephens
>>>
>>> SAP Analyst
>>>
>>> Baylor College of Medicine
>>>
>>> 713-798-1349
>>>
>>> 713-798-1326 (FAX)
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>
>