Skip navigation

Manage workflows

7 min read
Download PDF

Set up workflows to keep track of your content production progress and support collaboration. You can create separate workflows for different content types and collections. For example, marketing and legal content can have different workflow steps, transitions, and role permissions.

Table of contents

    How to set up a workflow

    When setting up workflows for your team, we recommend you think through establishing roles for your users and then use those roles to set up workflows for effective content strategy.

    You can make your workflow as simple or as complex as your content creation process requires:

    • For each step, you can define workflow transitions so your content creators have clear steps to follow. For example, Draft > Review > Approved Published.
    • For each step, you can specify which roles can work with it. For example, only Reviewers can move content from Review to Approved.

    Once your workflow is set up, the people on your team know exactly how they fit into the process.

    List of available workflows in Project settings

    Create a workflow

    Adding new workflows requires Multiple workflows enabled for your subscription.

    1. In Environment settings > Workflows, click Create new.
    2. In Workflow name, type a clear descriptive name of the new workflow.
    3. (Optional) In Use this workflow for, choose whether you want to limit the workflow scope to combinations of content types and collections.
    4. Set up the workflow steps.
    5. Click Save changes.

    Define workflow scopes

    For each workflow, you can define combinations of content types and collections it can be used for. 

    Example workflow scopes

    • Marketing workflow can be used for items of the Blog post type in the Website collection.
    • Legal workflow can be used for items of the Article type in the Global collection.
    • Default workflow can be used for all other content item types in any other collection.

    Here are a few tips for working with the scopes:

    • If you select Any content type, the workflow can be used for any type that isn’t limited to other workflows.
    • If you select Any collection, the workflow can be used for any collection that isn’t limited to other workflows.
    • In case of a conflict between generic and specific rules, the most specific one is always used.
    • In case of multiple conflicting rules that are similarly specific, all those rules are used.

    No limitations in the default workflow

    The default workflow cannot be limited to specific content types or collections. This ensures that every content item has at least one workflow available.

    You can use the default workflow only for content items based on the content types and assigned to the collections that aren’t specified in any workflows. The same logic applies to workflows without limitations.

    Add workflow steps

    1. In Environment settings, select Workflows.
    2. Next to a workflow step, click .
    3. Configure the step as you desire.
    4. Click Confirm.
    5. Click Save changes at the top right.

    Change workflow transitions

    When configuring transitions for a workflow step, make sure the step can still eventually transition to the final Published step.

    To change the transitions of a workflow step, click the step name and select transitions to and from the step. Then confirm and save your changes to the workflow.

    Configuring transitions for a workflow step

    Limit workflow steps to roles

    You can limit which roles can work on content in each workflow step. This includes the ability to move content items to the next workflow step. By limiting steps to roles, you can set up a complex workflow where, for example, only the editor and the legal team can move content items to the Approved step and then publish them.

    Multiple workflows and restrictions on the first workflow step

    If you have multiple workflows enabled in your project, role restrictions on the first workflow step work a bit differently.

    When a user creates a content item in a workflow where they can't work with the first step, the item gets created in the first step anyway but the user can't work with the item because of their role permissions.

    In case you don't have multiple workflows enabled, users whose role can't work with the first workflow step create content items in the first step they can work with.

    By default, the predefined workflow steps (Draft, Published, and Archived) are limited to the Project Manager role but you can always change that.

    To limit a workflow step to specific roles, click the step name, and select one or more roles from the list. Then confirm and save your changes to the workflow.

    How to assign roles to a workflow step.

    When changing the workflow step of an item, you always need to assign at least one contributor whose role allows them to work with the new workflow step.

    Control who can create new versions and unpublish

    Choose which roles can create new versions of content and which roles can unpublish. To do this, edit the Scheduled / Published step and select roles for each action.

    Where to set up limitations for creating and archiving content

    Delete workflow steps

    There must always be at least one other step for editing content. By default, workflows come with the Draft step for this purpose.

    If you want to stop using a workflow step, you can delete it when no content item is in that step.

    1. In  Environment settings, select Workflows.
    2. Open for editing the workflow in which the step is.
    3. Click the workflow step.
    4. Click Delete.
    5. Click Save changes at the top right.

    After deleting a workflow step, make sure that content items can still reach the final Published step.

    The following workflow steps are always present and cannot be removed:

    • Scheduled – for content already planned for publishing
    • Published – for content that is released
    • Archived – for content that is withdrawn and obsolete

    What's next?