Production Workflow Template

About the Production Workflow Template

Whether you’re producing a podcast, a marketing campaign, a TV show, or a piece of content, establishing a production workflow is crucial. A production workflow is a step-by-step process that allows you to understand how components must come together to produce a finished product. Production workflows are important for training new team members, scaling your business, and doing good work without having to reinvent the wheel.

There are many ways to create a production workflow. In general, though, it can help to answer the following questions.

Who are the stakeholders? It’s important for the whole team to understand their roles before you begin production. Define your stakeholders and lay out the scope of their role. Who are the gatekeepers? Who owns the review cycle? Who steps in if there’s a bottleneck?

How do you brainstorm ideas? Where does content come from? If you’re working on a marketing or design team, or if you’re producing a TV show, podcast, or any other creative endeavor, it’s crucial to decide on the format of brainstorming sessions on the outset. It’s also helpful to figure out where you store your ideas, who compiles them, and who makes editorial decisions.

What is your timeline? Sketch out your key milestones and a rough timeline for a given project. Make note of any reviews that must occur and the deadlines for each review. Create checklists for each milestone so you know when you’re ready to go on to the next one.

How will you communicate with the team? Will you have weekly check-in meetings? Who needs to be involved in those meetings? Would it be better to send out a weekly email update? Decide on a game plan, but you can always iterate later.

What resources do you need to succeed? Resources can include tools, cross-functional partners, budget, and other needs.

Is the workflow digestible and scalable? Review your workflow periodically. Make sure everything is up-to-date and that the workflow can scale with your business. Incorporate any feedback from new hires who may have been trained on the workflow.

When should you use the production workflow template?

You can use the Production Workflow template anytime you’d like to share how a process works in a simple and easy-to-follow way. You may find it useful when trying to understand where inefficiencies or problems occur in your existing process, when planning a new workflow or process, or when training new team members or providing an overview to stakeholders. 

4 Benefits of using a production workflow template

Collaborate effectively - Production is a messy, complicated process. It can be difficult for stakeholders to know their roles and responsibilities -- and where they overlap and collide. A good production workflow reduces uncertainty. When in doubt, your team and cross-functional partners can refer to the workflow to understand your next step.

Train new hires - A production workflow makes it easier to train new hires. Instead of having to remember each step in a complex production process, you can walk your new hire through the workflow. This ensures consistency in your training and allows new hires to hit the ground running.

Find flaws in your processes - Documenting a production workflow is an opportunity to understand the flaws in your processes. Are there gaps? Do you need more resources? Is there a bottleneck? Mapping out your production flow is the best way to get a sense of your team’s needs. 

Scale your processes - Production workflows help you scale. When processes live in your team’s head, it can be difficult to secure resources, get buy-in, or hire new employees. Laying out a workflow makes it easier to grow your company as you build.

How do you use the production workflow template?

Start with our pre-made template, making any changes you’d like to suit your particular needs. Invite team members to join your board and collaborate. Use the @mention or video chat if you need to get input from others. You can upload other file types such as documents, photos, videos, and PDFs to store all the relevant information in one place.