> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://developer.collibra.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://developer.collibra.com/workflows/workflows-at-collibra.md).

# Workflows at Collibra

Collibra workflows are automated business processes that guide users through a series of steps to achieve specific data governance objectives. They are fundamental to ensuring consistency, efficiency, and compliance across your data landscape.

Workflows are central to how work gets done in Collibra for business users working with data, data stewards managing assets, administrators configuring your environment, or developers building custom solutions.

A Collibra workflow represents a defined sequence of activities, tasks, and decisions that automate and enforce data governance policies and procedures. Workflows transform manual and often ad-hoc processes into structured, repeatable, and auditable flows, offering distinct advantages such as:

* Automation: They automate complex data-related processes, reducing manual effort and potential for human error.
* Guidance: They guide users through required steps, ensuring all necessary information is provided and proper approvals are secured.
* Enforcement: They enforce data governance policies, such as checking for data quality, assigning data ownership, or providing compliance approvals.
* Integration: They can interact with assets, attributes, and relations, and also integrate with external systems.
* Auditing: They can log every step and decision within a workflow, providing a clear audit trail for compliance and reporting.

## Key capabilities and use cases

Collibra workflows are highly versatile and can be tailored to a wide range of use cases:

* Manage data request and approval processes:
  * Request access to data assets.
  * Approve new data definitions or changes to existing ones.
  * Onboard new data sources or datasets.
* Automate data quality and stewardship:
  * Route data quality issues to relevant data stewards for resolution.
  * Initiate cleansing processes based on data profiling results.
  * Assign data ownership or stewardship roles.
* Enforce policy and compliance:
  * Ensure data privacy regulations, such as GDPR and CCPA, are followed for sensitive data.
  * Trigger legal or security reviews for high-risk assets.
  * Manage data retention policies.
* Streamline operational tasks:
  * Send automated notifications or reminders.
  * Create new assets, domains, or communities programmatically.
  * Update asset properties based on external events.
* Integrate with external systems:
  * Trigger processes in external applications, such as ticketing systems or ETL tools, based on workflow events.
  * Receive data from external systems to update Collibra assets.

## How workflows work

Workflows orchestrate interactions between users, the Collibra platform, and potentially external systems.

You often get to interact with workflows through:

* Tasks: Specific actions assigned to one or more users.
* Forms: Dialog boxes where you provide information or make a decision, often pre-populated with relevant data from the platform.
* Notifications: Automated emails or messages that inform you about new tasks or workflow status changes.
* Email tasks: Custom emails that are sent to you as part of a workflow email task.

Workflows start depending on their configuration:

* Manually: You start a workflow from an asset page, a community, a dashboard, or the global **Create** button.
* Following an event: Workflows start automatically when specific events occur in Collibra, such as the creation of a new asset, a change in an attribute value, or the addition of a relation.
* Scheduled: Some workflows are configured to run at specific intervals.

Users interact with workflows by completing tasks in their individual task lists or directly on asset pages, which moves the process forward. Administrators monitor the status of running workflows and manage workflow instances.

## How workflows are built

Collibra workflows use an industry-standard Business Process Management Notation (BPMN 2.0) engine. This engine enables both visual modeling and running and managing complex processes.

As a workflow designer, you interact with the following tools and elements:

* Workflow Designer: A visual tool that allows you to design and model workflows using standard and custom elements:
  * **Start and end events**: Define the beginning and end of a process.
  * **User tasks**: Represent points where human interaction is required.
  * **Service and API tasks**: Automate actions performed by the workflow engine, such as calling Collibra APIs or external REST services.
  * **Script tasks**: Run custom Groovy code for complex logic, data manipulation, or specific Collibra interactions.
  * **Gateways**: Control the process flow based on conditions, such as exclusive or parallel gateways.
  * **Forms**: Design user forms, allowing you to link form fields to workflow variables and Collibra attributes.
* **Variables**: Store information used throughout the workflow.
* **Java APIs**: Workflows connect with Collibra through APIs, enabling actions such as:
  * Reading and writing asset information, including attributes and relations.
  * Creating, updating, or deleting assets.
  * Listening for and responding to Collibra events.
  * Managing user permissions and roles.
* **Listeners**: Components that respond to specific workflow events, such as task creation or workflow completion, to perform additional actions.

Once designed, you publish workflows to your Collibra environment, where they are available for configuration and execution.


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