Some of the most commonly used workflow templates that SAP provides are the purchase requisition (PR) and purchase order (PO) release workflows. With minimal configuration, the workflow lets you both control and accelerate the release strategy process, pushing requisitions and orders requiring release to the relevant approvers. You can often use the original workflow definition unchanged. However, both of these workflows have one little problem: The instructional texts sent along with the work are annoyingly uninformative. This is an easy problem to fix — if you know how.

One of the nicer benefits of workflow is the ability to send instructions along with the work. Good instructions help the agents — the people sent work by the workflow — to quickly assess what work needs to be done and its urgency. They also provide reminders of good business practice and reduce the training required when introducing new agents to the workflow. The standard programs to send email reminders to agents that work is sitting in their workflow inbox can also echo this text in the message.

Even if the SAP-provided instruction texts were more informative, you might still want to change them to, for example, include reminders of company policy or provide the help desk number the agent should call if they have any problems completing the work. So, it's handy to know how to change these texts. Let me show you how.

Changing the Text

Every piece of work, a "work item" in workflow terms, has at least two texts: a subject text and a long text. The subject text is the one-line title shown when looking in a workflow inbox at the list of all work to be done, as shown in Figure 1 (transaction SBWP). The long text may have as many lines as you like, and you can see it in the work item preview or when you view the work item details. Viewing the details of the work item is optional. Experienced agents do not have to reread the instructions every time, while inexperienced agents can refer to the texts as needed.

Figure 1

The work item subject text and long text in the inbox (Click on image to enlarge in new window)

Both the subject and long text are defined in the matching workflow task. The workflow task designs how the work item looks and works. Each time a work item such as "release purchase requisition 5555" is created, the workflow task determines how this work is performed and what it looks like. The texts use variables called "expressions" to pick up the requisition number. For example, the expression for the requisition number of a PR is &_WI_OBJECT_ID.Number&. Fortunately, you never have to remember the technical format of an expression. You just select the variable Purchase requisition number, as you'll see shortly.

The easiest way to find and change the correct workflow tasks is to access the tasks via the workflow itself. For instance, you could use the Business Workflow Explorer (transaction SWDM) to find the workflow and then double-click on the workflow ID to see a list of all tasks used within it. Or you could use Workflow Builder (transaction SWDD) to view the workflow flowchart and drill down through the relevant workflow steps until you reach the task itself. You know you are at the task level when you see a screen similar to Figure 2.

Figure 2

The workflow task (Click on image to enlarge in new window)

The task is linked directly to the workflow step as part of the workflow design. So, you don't want to copy every task just to change texts, because then you would have to change the workflow itself to create a new link to your new task. To avoid this unnecessary work, the best way to replace the provided SAP texts with your own texts is to use the Redefine Text options in the workflow task.

The redefine icon for the subject text appears just below the SAP-provided work item text. Selecting it brings up a window showing the SAP-standard text versus your own text, the Customer definition text (Figure 3). If you want to enter or change your own text, use the display/expand icon to open the customer definition text. You can then type in your text.

Figure 3

The customer definition text

To bring in variables, position your cursor where you want the variable to go and click on the insert expression icon. This shows you all variables available to this particular task (Figure 4). Find your variable and double-click on it to bring it into your text. If you have difficulty finding a suitable variable, you may need help from a workflow developer or to ask him or her to create a new variable for you.

Figure 4

The expression list of variables available to this task

To change the long text, go to the Description tab of the task (Figure 5) and click on the change text icon. Use the Insert> Expression menu to add variables in the same way you inserted expressions into the subject text. Figure 6 shows the long-text entry screen.

Figure 5

Click on the change text icon under the Description tab

Figure 6

The long-text entry screen

The next time a work item is created based on the task, your new texts will be used instead of the standard SAP texts. Using the same techniques, you can adjust the texts for any SAP-provided workflow task.

You can change the texts for any tasks created specifically for you by your workflow developer in a similar manner. Of course, you don't need to "redefine" the texts on your own tasks as there's no SAP-provided texts. You just change the work item text and long text directly using transaction PFTC_CHG.

Jocelyn Dart

Jocelyn Dart is a senior solution consultant at SAP Consulting working in Australia/New Zealand. She currently specializes in workflow and Supplier Relationship Management (SRM). As well as speaking at various SAPPHIREs and at ASUG, Jocelyn is a co-author of the book, Practical Workflow for SAP.

You may contact the author at jocelyn.dart@sap.com.

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