Design example 1: tornado warning

We're going to start with a fairly simple example, but we'll touch on many design elements typically used in more complex workflows. We want to design a workflow that deals with the following set of facts:

  • Your organization operates in one or more locations that are subject to tornadoes, among other potential environmental events.
  • In addition to yourself, users with the following roles need to be able to initiate the form: Developers, Scenario Initiators.
  • The form should be simple for the form sender to fill out under pressure, with as much predefined information as possible, including message handling options.
  • The Operations group and a user should be predefined as recipients, and the message sender should have the ability to modify the recipient list as required.
  • Location, threat to life, tornado intensity, response instructions and other such information should be sent to recipients.
  • The form should provide the ability to include attachments.
  • By default, messages should be sent to all devices, but the message sender should be given the ability to modify the targeted devices.
  • Messages should include information that provides context and information to the recipient.
  • Responses should be simple, with a focus on whether the recipient can follow the response instructions.
  • The Operations group should receive a notification when the form is initiated, and Terry Kent should receive notifications on form initiation and conclusion.

Now let's take these facts and use them to build a form called Tornado Warning.