Detect the trigger
New email, form, order, deadline, status change or webhook.
Workflow automation: Connect systems, events and approvals reliably.
When an event occurs, the right workflow starts automatically – with data handovers, rules, tasks and human approvals.
In short: Workflow automation connects your existing systems. A trigger – such as an email, a form, a new order or a deadline – starts defined steps. AI comes in where content needs to be understood or unstructured data processed.
Starting point
Where time is lost today.
- System to systemYour staff transfer data by hand from one system to the next.
- Remembering instead of triggeringFollow-up tasks depend on someone remembering them.
- Approvals by emailWho approved what is buried in email threads.
- No statusNobody can see whether a workflow has finished.
- Recurring system actionsThe same clicks in the same screens – every day.
How it works
What the solution does, step by step.
Read data
From the triggering system and the data sources involved.
Apply a rule or AI step
Fixed rules; AI where content needs to be understood.
Carry out the system action
Update the CRM, create a task, file a document, prepare a message.
Obtain approval
A person confirms at defined points.
Log and complete
Record results, errors and retries in a traceable way.
Before – after
What changes in day-to-day work.
Examples from the workflow – no percentages, as only a measurement in your business can provide those.
| Situation | Today | With the solution |
|---|---|---|
| New email | read, retype, forward | data extracted, CRM updated, task created |
| Approval | “Can you quickly sign this off?” by email | approval step in the workflow, documented |
| Errors | silent failure, nobody notices | retry, escalation, log |
| Status | unknown | visible for each workflow |
Benefit
What this use case improves.
Less switching between systems
The handover runs without anyone switching screens.
Reproducible workflows
The same workflow, the same way every time.
Defined approvals
Who confirms what and when is part of the workflow.
Error handling
Retry, escalation and logging instead of silent failures.
In action
What working with it looks like.
Sample images from our visual library – the interfaces shown are illustrations, not client data.
Responsibility
What stays with people.
Approvals at the defined points, handling of escalated errors and the rules themselves. The workflow carries out what you have defined.
The solution prepares, sorts and hands over – your staff make decisions and grant approvals, following rules you set.
Systems & integrations
Where the solution connects.
For example – what exactly gets connected depends on interfaces and permissions and is checked in the AI potential assessment.
- API-enabled CRM, ERP and DMS systems
- Email
- Webhooks
- Forms
- Calendar
- Databases
Building blocks & products
The technology behind it.
Solution building blocks are the technical components of the Swiss AI Platform, combined by process.
Process automation
Triggers, handovers, approvals – configured in Swiss AI Studio.
View building blockAI agents
For steps that need to understand content.
View building blockDocument AI
Unstructured attachments in the workflow.
View building blockCustom AI applications
Integrations that no standard covers.
View building block
Control, data & operation
Control stays part of the system.
Depending on the product and interfaces, we run the solution on your premises, in a Swiss cloud or as a combination. Before the pilot, we clarify data flows, access rights and compliance requirements. Background: Private AI and On-premise & hybrid (running on your own servers or a mix of both).
| Topic | Implementation |
|---|---|
| Data | The data in the connected systems – internal to confidential, depending on the workflow. |
| Approvals | A person confirms at every point with external impact or financial consequences; approvals are part of the workflow, not email traffic. |
| Roles & permissions | The workflow acts with defined technical identities and only the permissions the step needs. |
| Logging | Planned runs can be logged with trigger, steps, result, errors and retries. |
| Operating model | Running on your own servers, in a private cloud or a mix – the systems’ interfaces determine the architecture. |
Industries
Where this use case is typical.
- Accounting & fiduciary
- Manufacturing
- Trades & building services
- cross-industrythe workflow is not tied to a single industry
Standard approach
How a trial run (pilot) can start.
The pilot does not cover the whole process straight away. We pick a clearly defined part, set approvals and success criteria and test it with real data and the people who work with it. This approach is the same for every use case.
- Choose a processA clearly defined part of the workflow that takes up time today and can be measured.
- Clarify data and systemsWhich data, which interfaces, which permissions – and what is missing.
- Implement a defined workflowWith defined approvals and success criteria, not the whole process at once.
- Measure in real operationWith real data and the people who work with it; then expand or stop.
Related use cases
Related pages.
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions: workflow automation
Is this the same as process automation?
No. Workflow automation is the technical orchestration of specific steps. Process automation looks at the entire business workflow.
What happens if an error occurs?
Workflows need retry, escalation and logging rules instead of silent failures.
Does every system need an API?
A stable interface is preferable. Without an API, we check case by case which integration is reliable.
Which companies is this use case suitable for?
Companies with several systems that have interfaces, and with recurring workflows held together by email and copy/paste today.
Next step
Check this task for your business.
Describe your current workflow in two sentences. We check the benefit, data situation, integration effort and risks and show whether a product, a solution building block or a custom solution makes sense.