Note: You can now migrate to the new Certifications experience in Processes. Workiva will soon auto-archive artifacts for all historical certifications created from the beginning of the account. Learn more about migration and specific timelines.
Creating a new Certifications process involves a few quick and easy steps. Name your process and select appropriate dates. Create a letter with the questions that need to be asked. Determine exceptions that need to be reviewed.
Add individual and group signers. Send the letters in sequential order and track progress using the Certification tracker feature.
Start a new process
To create a new Certifications process:
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- Click the Processes tab.
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- Click Start a New Process.
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- Enter a title for the process and required dates. Click Next.
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- On the Start a New Process step, select dates for email reminders to signers.
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- Click Finish.
You can send additional reminders manually, as well as customize the message. You can also edit reminders later from the Letters list.
Edit the contact for a process from the dashboard via the Edit Process button. Edit a contact for an individual letter by clicking on the Contact field.
Create letters
To create a letter:
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- Click on the Processes tab.
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- Click the process to which you’d like to add a letter.
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- From the Letters tab in the process tracker, click Add a Letter.
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- Enter the needed information, set reminders and choose Create.
Learn how to Create and edit letter templates.
To edit a letter prior to sending:
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- Return to the Letters tab in the process tracker.
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- Click the letter’s name. This will bring you to the letter editor.
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- Edit the title, content, or other details.
To edit a letter after sending:
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- Return to the Letters tab in the process tracker.
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- Click the letter’s name. This will bring you to the letter editor.
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- Update the letter and resend.
Add recipients
To add recipients to a letter:
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- Select a process, then view the Letters page.
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- In the Recipients column, click the number representing the recipients.
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- Click the down arrow on the Create Certification button.
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- Choose a recipient option from the drop-down menu.
The following list describes the options on the Create Certification menu.
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Individual Signer: Choose this when you do not need to create a workflow and want to add a recipient. If you add multiple recipients this way, each is notified at the same time, and each can sign any time without following steps in a workflow.
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Ordered Signers: This option is for workflows with an individual signer assigned to one step in the workflow. When the letter is ready, the first person assigned to the letter signs the letter and routes it to the next person assigned, and so on. If any of the signers disagree with or change a previous signer’s response, the letter is routed back to the person assigned to step 1.
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With Approver: Opens the Add Recipients dialog box with fields for adding both signers and approvers.
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From Group: Allows you to include an existing group of users as the recipients of a letter.
Recipients can also be edited later if you need to add signer to or remove signers from the process.
TIP: You can reorder steps in the Add Recipients dialog box by dragging them to the location you want.
Send letters and reminders
To distribute your letter:
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- On the Processes tab, click the process name to open its dashboard.
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- Click the Letters button.
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- In the recipient's column for the letter, click on the number of recipients.
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- Click the Remind button or choose from other options in the drop-down menu under More.
To send letters, do either of the following:
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Click Send on the row of a recipient to send it to a recipient who has not yet signed the letter.
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Click Send All to send it to all active unsigned recipients. If the letter has individual signers, all of them will receive the letter. If the letter has a workflow, the first signer will receive the letter.
The status changes to Unsigned, and you can return to this same page to manually send reminders using the Remind button. These reminders will be in addition to the reminders you set up when you first created this process.
Title and other parameters of letters and processes can be modified after letters are sent, though the content of letters cannot be changed. Affected recipients will receive notification emails alerting them to changes. Possible changes include dates, process recipients and approvers.
Monitor progress
If you are an approver of a letter, you receive email notification when a recipient signs the letter. The email indicates the status and displays any exceptions. It also provides a link that takes you to the Certification Tracker to manage the letter.
An administrator or approver can log into Certifications at any point in the process to view signing status for letters. Administrators can access tracking for all processes. Approvers can access tracking for the letters that are assigned to them.
To track a process:
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- Click the Processes tab.
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- Click the name of the process you want to track.
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- In the dashboard, click View Tracker in Process Health.
The Tracker groups letters in three sections, with traffic-light colors that indicate the status. Green indicates signed and approved letters, yellow indicates letters that are signed but pending approval, and red indicates letters that are unsigned. Approvers and admins can click on a user to see their signing details and the letter that was sent to the signer.