Overview

Describes how custom workflow activities are implemented in VEM2011 in order to support enhanced functionality as already offered in VEM4.

VEM2011 Workflow Jobs                 

In VEM2011 various custom workflow activities have been removed and replaced with VEM Workflow Jobs. This allows VEM2011 to work in online or hosted environments that don't support custom workflow activities and require sandboxed plugins.

In order to provide the same functionality as the old custom workflow activities, VEM2011 utilises the new 'Connections' feature in CRM2011, which allow for flexible connection of entities without any apriori relationship existing. So the principle of operation within VEM workflows is then to create a Workflow Job of the appropriate type, and then create connections to such other entity instances as required, before updating the Connected attribute to true.

VEM Email Campaign Scheduler Process

This process needs to be initially 'bootstrapped' by running on-demand from a User entity. This creates a Workflow Job of type 'Send next E-mail Batch', and as it requires no connections, immediately sets the Connected attribute. This triggers an update and starts the plugin processing. The plugin runs to check outstanding bulk email activities in need of sending and sends the next batch before waiting for 65 minutes and calling itself. Parameters for determining: Out-of-hours, Batch size, Throttling delay etc. are set in the VEM Solution Configuration Page.

VEM Create Email Sending Process

This process is triggered on creation of the Scheduled E-mail Sending entity and waits until the preset Scheduled date and time is reached before creating a Workflow Job of type 'Create Scheduled Sending' and then creating a Connection from the newly created job to the triggering entity, and finally setting the Connected attribute. This triggers an update and starts the plugin processing. The plugin retrieves the template and list and other parameters from the connected Sending instance and generates a Quick Campaign using these values.

VEM Synchronize Marketing List Process

This process is concerned with VEM Dynamic Lists, which is different from the native CRM2011 Dynamic Lists. The difference lies in that VEM Dynamic Lists are loosely-coupled to the determining Advanced Find query rather than tightly-coupled, which means recipients can specifically opt-out (using VEM List Subscriptions feature) if they wish.

This process is triggered either on-demand, which allows immediate synchronization of a Marketing List, or as a child-process to be called periodically from the VEM Synchronize Scheduler Process. When triggered the process first determines whether the User Query attribute on the list contains data and is therefore to be treated as a VEM Dynamic List. If so a Workflow Job of type 'Synchronize Marketing List' is created, and subsequently a Connection to the List instance, and finally the job Connected attribute is set. This step triggers the plugin processing that evaluates and adjusts the list members before setting the Last Sync attribute.

VEM Sychronize Scheduler Process

This process is triggered either on change of the Marketing List's User Query attribute that may point to an Advanced Find query or no data. If it contains data then the process checks the Last Sync attribute to determine whether to call the synchronise process immediately or wait until expiry of 65 minutes from this time. After this step it waits for a short time before calling itself.

VEM Add to Marketing List Workflow Job

VEM offers also an 'Add to Marketing List' type of Workflow Job with which you can create your own processes. You might typically choose to trigger your process on creation of an Email Click and first check the click-link corresponds to one of interest. You would then include steps to a) create a job of this type, b) create a connection between this job and a target list, c) create a connection between this job and a target listmember (attribute of Email Click), and d) finally update the job Connected attribute to activate it.