Oracle IPM Workflow Software: Overuse of Custom Forms

With a product such as Oracle IPM software the temptation arises to develop a new front end to feed an existing software solution the client may have in place. The IPM product has a GUI which allows easy rule based routing, e-mail notification, trigger events and others with no programming skill required. The solution does allow for considerable development to take place as well, which is where the temptation to over develop can occur.

The workflow is powerful in aiding the processing of incoming content, be it Web based forms submitted or scanned documents, and it provides the tools to facilitate data entry.  Its ability to create custom forms allows for data entry to occur solely within the IPM platform. Care should be exercised though, since it should never be the goal to simply substitute an existing data entry method with a new face. This leads usually to excessive coding of the workflow form in trying to mimic all the functions and rules of the existing product, creating a bond between the two products which will require more effort in the future when the platforms undergo upgrades.

In many instances the workflow will be at its best when it is used as a simple delivery mechanism for the content, this will give the organization the advantages of an electronic workflow and minimize if not eliminate the need for custom coding. In other instances there is a happy medium; usually this is when a separate mechanism such as Kofax KTM has been used to extract data or if the input mechanism is a web form where the data has been captured already. In these instances a Workflow form and a script event which subsequently uploads the data after review can be extremely efficient; again the caution needs to be made to not try to recreate an already existing program

The delineation between how much custom code is enough and how much custom code is too much can be tough to ascertain, but with experience and some common sense evaluation on how much gain is really being realized for the end users experience in processing a balance should be obtainable, cutting development costs and time to implement for your solutions.

Jeff Doyle
Sr. Systems Engineer
ImageSource, Inc.