{"id":907663,"date":"2026-05-23T03:12:47","date_gmt":"2026-05-23T08:12:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/23\/why-ai-is-making-workflow-automation-trendy\/"},"modified":"2026-05-23T03:12:47","modified_gmt":"2026-05-23T08:12:47","slug":"why-ai-is-making-workflow-automation-trendy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/23\/why-ai-is-making-workflow-automation-trendy\/","title":{"rendered":"Why AI is making workflow automation trendy"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/German\/article\/warehouse-worker-2-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg\" data-credit=\"pressmaster - stock.adobe.com\"  width=\"520\" height=\"173\" alt><\/p>\n<p>pressmaster &#8211; stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"content-header\">\n<h2>As a technology that has been around for decades, workflow automation might finally have found its place<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"content-center\">\n<ul>\n<li><i data-icon=\"1\"><\/i><\/li>\n<li><i data-icon=\"2\"><\/i><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"contributors-block\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/Cliff-Saran-Sep-2022-140x180px.jpg\" alt=\"Cliff Saran\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.techtarget.com\/contributor\/Cliff-Saran\">Cliff Saran,<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Managing Editor<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\n\tPublished: <span>21 May 2026 14:56<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<section id=\"content-body\">\n<p>Thanks to artificial intelligence (AI) and an industry standard from 2006, the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/blog\/CW-Developer-Network\/AI-workflows-Camunda-BPMN-as-a-tool-for-creating-orchestrating-AI-workflows\">Object Management Group\u2019s Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) <\/a>workflow automation looks set for a renaissance. Some 20 years on, BPMN is being used alongside agentic AI to deliver what the industry sees as adaptive process automation.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>This was a hot topic at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/366643396\/Why-business-process-reinvention-is-needed-for-agentic-AI-workflows\">CamundaCon 2026 conference<\/a> in Amsterdam. During his presentation, Forrester principal analyst Bernhard Schaffrik showed a five-step evolution from basic scripting for workflow to a fully autonomous organisation. \u201cAutonomy is only possible if you directly relate [the workflow] to what\u2019s going on in real time, and your approval process is ideally autonomous,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Speaking to Computer Weekly about his experience of how workflow automation has evolved, James Fernandez, co-CEO of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fairlink.io\/partner\">Fairlink<\/a>, said: \u201cI remember, and I was doing some stuff in logistics, which lends itself to process mapping.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But, he recalls, the workflow tools of the time were basic mapping tools. \u201cYou could run models, but you couldn\u2019t do anything more. As a 20-year-old, I was absolutely blown away that nobody was doing this properly,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Fairlink was established to tackle the exploitation of immigrant workers. It aims to provide transparency in recruitment and throughout the employment journey using three integrated platforms that work together to make recruitment safer and more accountable at every stage of the process.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>It has worked with IT consulting firm Casci to develop these platforms, which provide governance and guardrails to connect jobseekers with employers, to reduce the risk of the workers being exploited.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/James-Fernandez-Fairlink-140x180px.jpg\" alt=\"Photo of James Fernandez, co-CEO of Fairlink\">\n <\/p>\n<p><span><strong><span>\u201cAfter 30-something years of having tried to do enterprise workflow, there\u2019s convergence now, and I can talk in business language and bring together all facets of an organisation\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span>James Fernandez, Fairlink<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Discussing the workflow engine required by Fairlink, Fernandez said: \u201cFor one of the first times in my career, I have very few people as opposed to thousands of people in the business. I have a small organisation, and we are focused on the business problem we have to solve.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This frames the conversation Fairlink has around the software it needs for workflow orchestration and the use of AI, as well as if and when agentic AI should be used. \u201cHaving the combination of the right tools and the right humans is really important for us because we are dealing with humans, and we\u2019re dealing with vulnerable humans who don\u2019t know about the journey they\u2019re going on,\u201d he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In a demo at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.camundacon.com\/\">CamundaCon 2026<\/a>, Casci and Fairlink showed how a migrant worker interacts directly with the system using WhatsApp and Instagram. \u201cIf you have ever seen migrant workers use WhatsApp, they won\u2019t be texting. They\u2019ll all be using voice notes,\u201d said Fernandez.<\/p>\n<p>As a result, he said the back-end system sends WhatsApp voice notes to workers communicating with Fairlink via Twilio. The demo showed a voice note conversation in Hindi, which was being used to generate a CV for the worker. All the coordination between the immigrant worker and the employer is handled via the Camunda workflow orchestration platform.<\/p>\n<section data-menu-title=\"Modern workflow automation\">\n<h2><i data-icon=\"1\"><\/i>Modern workflow automation<\/h2>\n<p>Toby Cook, founder and chief technology officer at Casci, who previously worked at Deloitte\u2019s public sector consulting practice, said the Fairlink software works in real time. \u201cWe are able to translate Hindi in real time and respond in a voice note, enabling someone to effectively have a conversation with Fairlink,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Behind the scenes, the software enables Fairlink to build the information required for that person.<\/p>\n<p>Regarding <a href=\"https:\/\/www.techtarget.com\/searchcontentmanagement\/definition\/workflow-automation\">workflow orchestration<\/a> in modern enterprises, Cook observed that organisations no longer need to force unwieldy monolithic systems into configurations that become nearly impossible to support. The rise of the microservice-based architecture lends itself to a far more lightweight, horizontally scalable enterprise system that was not possible before.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re in a world where systems are far more malleable, and you can externalise orchestration and bring in workflows, which is really driving the experience from a user perspective,\u201d he said. This orchestration of workflows makes it possible to connect to and update multiple systems of record.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Fernandez believes the functionality available in a modern enterprise workflow engine is profound. \u201cAfter 30-something years of having tried to do enterprise workflow, there\u2019s convergence now, and I can talk in business language and bring together all facets of an organisation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/section>\n<section id=\"DigDeeperSplash\">\n<h4>\n\t\t\t<i data-icon=\"m\"><\/i>Read more on Artificial intelligence, automation and robotics<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/podcast\/Agentic-orchestration-A-Computer-Weekly-Downtime-Upload-podcast\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/German\/article\/acquisition-winner-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/German\/article\/acquisition-winner-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/German\/article\/acquisition-winner-adobe.jpg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>Agentic orchestration: A Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast<\/h5>\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/Cliff-Saran-Sep-2022-140x180px.jpg\" alt=\"CliffSaran\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By: <span>Cliff\u00a0Saran<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/366643396\/Why-business-process-reinvention-is-needed-for-agentic-AI-workflows\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/German\/article\/data-analysis-business-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/German\/article\/data-analysis-business-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/German\/article\/data-analysis-business-adobe.jpg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>Why business process reinvention is needed for agentic AI workflows<\/h5>\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/Cliff-Saran-Sep-2022-140x180px.jpg\" alt=\"CliffSaran\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By: <span>Cliff\u00a0Saran<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/blog\/CW-Developer-Network\/Camunda-CTO-Agentic-automation-orchestration-has-reached-enterprise-grade\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/digdeeper\/3.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/digdeeper\/3_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/digdeeper\/3.jpg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>Camunda CTO: Agentic automation &#038; orchestration has reached \u2018enterprise-grade\u2019<\/h5>\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/Adrian-Bridgwater-60px.jpg\" alt=\"AdrianBridgwater\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By: <span>Adrian\u00a0Bridgwater<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/blog\/CW-Developer-Network\/Camunda-CEO-Enterprise-grade-agents-need-enterprise-grade-orchestration\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/digdeeper\/4.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/digdeeper\/4_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/digdeeper\/4.jpg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>Camunda CEO: Enterprise-grade agents need enterprise-grade orchestration<\/h5>\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/Adrian-Bridgwater-60px.jpg\" alt=\"AdrianBridgwater\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By: <span>Adrian\u00a0Bridgwater<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/366643402\/Why-AI-is-making-workflow-automation-trendy\" class=\"button purchase\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Read More<\/a><br \/>\n Yuri Kucera<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>pressmaster &#8211; stock.adobe.com As a technology that has been around for decades, workflow automation might finally have found its place By Cliff Saran, Managing Editor Published: 21 May 2026 14:56 Thanks to artificial intelligence (AI) and an industry standard from 2006, the\u00a0Object Management Group\u2019s Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) workflow automation looks set for<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":907664,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1510,46,93565],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-907663","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-making","8":"category-technology","9":"category-workflow"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/907663","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=907663"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/907663\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/907664"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=907663"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=907663"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=907663"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}