At the core of Creative Force is our Workflow Management system. With Workflow engine V2, we introduced unrivaled flexibility and control, and with the Derived Workflow function, we offer more ways to break past roadblocks and manage your Productions exactly how your studio needs.
➕ Workflow V2: Derived Workflows are a feature that integrates with Workflow Engine V2. If you are interested in using it in your studio and have not yet converted to Workflow V2, please contact your CSM.
Overview
A Derived Workflow is a step function within Workflow V2. Derived Workflows allow a branch path for assets to be inherited starting from a chosen Workflow Step, and then run parallel to the primary Workflow.
Derived Workflows also allow the user the ability to define conditional rules, which set specific conditions when the Derived Workflow should be run or not.
After the assets are branched out to their Derived path, unique Workflow steps (different from the primary Workflow) can be assigned.
The assets can also be processed using a unique ‘Derived Style Guide’ which allows the studio to define any specific Presets, file naming conventions, and Delivery Locations they should be associated with.
Derived Workflow Setup
Derived Workflows can be set starting from any step within the primary Workflow prior to Asset Delivery.
Branch from Primary
From the point where you would like the assets to branch from, select one of the side points, then click the Derived Workflow icon 
Add Derived Steps
On the right-hand side of the Workflow builder, a new slide-in menu will appear. Here, you can begin to select the Workflow steps the derived path will follow.
Just as with the primary path, you will have the ability to click through and select any necessary Workflow steps and configure them as needed.
🗣️ Tip: In the Derived Workflow, Final Selection is optional. As the Derived Workflow inherits all assets from the related step of the primary Workflow, Final Selection can be utilized in the Derived Workflow path to pare down any assets that are not necessary for the Derived path.
Derived Workflow Settings
In addition to the Workflow steps, several options can be configured for how the overall Derived Workflow should function. To access these options, click directly into the outlined area around the Derived Workflow in the builder:
Derived Setting | Function |
Name | Add a name for your Derived Workflow to help users identify it in the builder.
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Description | Add a description to your Derived Workflow to help users understand its context when reviewing the builder.
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Workflow Type | Select a Workflow Type from the drop-down, choose between:
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Production Type | Select a Production Type for the Derived Workflow and its related assets.
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Style Guide | Open the Derived Style Guide and enter a new screen. More information on this option can be found in the Derived Style Guide section of this page. |
Conditional Rules | Set up conditional rules for when the Derived Workflow should be made active or inactive.
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When you have completed configuring your Derived Workflow and Primary Workflow, you can 'Save' your Workflow and add it to relevant Style Guides to begin using it in Productions.
For more information on adding Workflows to a Style Guide, see our dedicated article at the link below.
Conditional Rules
As noted in the Derived Workflow Settings section of this article, conditional rules can be set to dictate when the Derived Workflow should be triggered.
To add a conditional rule, select the 3-cube icon → then, in the pop-up menu, set the conditions that will trigger when the Derived Workflow becomes active.
In the example shown above, we have set the conditional rule to: When the property value 'Product Comment' is equal to 'Extra Retouching,' the Derived Workflow will be triggered.
We also set the Derived Workflow to branch out from the Internal Post QC step in the primary Workflow.
This means, when the Product moves through the primary Workflow and reaches Internal Post QC, if it's property value for Product Comment is 'Extra Retouching,' the Derived Workflow will automatically begin to run.
However, if the Product moves through the primary Workflow and reaches Internal Post QC, and its property value for Product Comment is 'No Retouching,' or is left blank, the Derived Workflow will not be triggered.
For more information on conditional rules and their operators, see our dedicated article on the subject at the link below.
Derived Style Guide
When configuring your Derived Workflow, you will have the option to build out a unique Derived Style Guide for the Productions' associated assets. In this section, we'll cover the available configuration options.
To access these options, click directly into the outlined area around the Derived Workflow in the builder → then, in the slide-in menu on the right, select 'Edit' under the Style Guide section.
In the resulting pop-up menu, a number of tabs will become available. Which tabs appear depends on the relevant Workflow steps that have been added to the Derived Workflow.
📝 Note: The delivery tab will not appear in the Style Guide until a delivery location has been added for the Asset Delivery Step in the Derived Workflow.
In the table below, find each potential Style Guide tab and a link to learn more about general configuration options for this step.
Style Guide Tab | Function | Learn More |
Presets & Naming | Add a Preset, and set the naming convention to be used for the related assets. | |
Delivery | Use the Delivery Matrix to define which assets should be sent to which Delivery location. | |
Properties | Define any Style Guide-specific properties for the Derived Workflow. | |
Internal Post | Add instructions that will be available for retouchers, and upload good or bad examples. | |
External Post | Use tokens to set new folders in the path where the assets will be deposited. |
Photography Position Note
With Derived Workflows, all assets are grouped into a single photography position, called 'Standard Position.' This means it is not currently possible to set different presets or naming for individual photography positions.
Managing Derived Workflows
Production Visibility
When viewing a Product with a Derived Workflow in the Product Tab, head to the Product Overview → Productions, and you will see both the primary and derived productions listed as active Productions.
⚠️ Important: If the Derived Workflow is set to trigger with conditional rules, the Derived production will be visible, whether it meets the conditions or not.
It being visible does not mean that the Derived production will necessarily be triggered. Whether or not it is triggered occurs at the point of the branching Workflow step, and after the system has checked the conditional rules.
However, in the Production Tab view, only the primary will be listed.
The derived production will not be visible until it has been triggered as active, and can be noted by the curved arrow icon next to the Production Type name.
Reset & Apply Updates
When resetting or applying updates to Productions or Products related to a Derived Workflow, the same general steps can be followed as in the normal process:
3-dot menu → Reset Production / Apply Updates
However, when the production is related to a Derived Workflow, an additional pop-up menu will appear after confirming the initial action.
In this menu, the user will have the ability to define how they would like to handle the associated derived production independently.
In the table below, we will cover the options available when selecting to reset a Workflow related to a derived production.
Reset Option | Function |
Reset all Derived Workflows | Delete the existing derived workunit and auto-generate a fresh one when the parent workflow reaches the stem step again (ideal when you want updated derived content) |
Preserve All Derived Workflows ↓ | Keep your existing derived work intact. |
→ Regenerate New Derived Workflow | Generate a new duplicated version of the derived production alongside the existing one. |
→ Don't Generate a New Workflow | Prevent creation of a new derived Workflow for this instance. |
Regenerate New Derived Workflow
In the working example, when selecting Reset + Preserve All Derived + Regenerate:
The primary production is reset back to Capture
The existing derived production stays as it was prior to reset
A new derived production is created and set back to its initial Workflow step
