Kavi Help CenterKavi® Members Help
| Chapter 19. Membership Workflow | ||
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Part I. Kavi Members Concepts and General Instructions | 
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Table of Contents
Workflow-backed software automates business tasks by electronically routing the right information to the right people at the right time. The membership workflow ensures that users are notified when their membership applications are received and when bills are issued, and helps administrators route membership approvals through the system quickly.
The membership workflow is a set of configurable states and transitions that define the membership process, and which is adhered to from the time a membership is first requested until the membership is finally archived.
Back to topKavi Members has a predefined workflow for processing new membership applications and membership renewals. Configuration options allow organizations to tailor how their memberships move through the process, but the workflow is common to all organizations.
Figure 19.1. Standard membership workflow
This simplified workflow diagram shows the order of states in the membership workflow. Each membership starts out in the 'New' state and terminates in the 'Archived' state.
Before a new membership becomes current, it needs to pass a series of tests. These tests include checks to make sure the membership has been approved, paid for and is scheduled to start. For each membership type, the organization can decide whether approval is required and whether a bill will be issued or not. If a membership's type is neither billed nor moderated, the membership automatically passes all the tests on the way to becoming current. The organization also decides the order in which the membership passes through the billing and moderation steps for each type of membership.
This gives the organization a lot of flexibility in defining its process for managing memberships. Once the process is defined, the workflow technology ensures that the process is always followed. This can be a big help if the organization needs to train new staff to manage memberships, as the system will reduce the risk of the new administrators inadvertently breaking any of the organization's business rules regarding membership management.
Back to topThe table below describes all the states in the standard membership workflow and the tests a membership must pass to move on to the next state.
Table 19.1. Membership Workflow States
| State Name | Definition | Destination State |
|---|---|---|
| Start | Memberships enter the Start state as soon as they are added to pending memberships tables in the Kavi Members database. A membership enters the Start state when a potential member submits an application for new membership, when an existing member renews, or when an administrator adds it manually. | After the start state, the Web site may be configured to send a membership through the moderation step first then the billing step, or the billing step first then the moderation step. |
| Moderate |
Memberships in this state are sent for administrative approval, or automatically approved if this is an unmoderated membership type. The administrator may need to wait for the receipt of signed legal forms or the formal acceptance of the application by the organization's board before approving the membership. The organization can define membership types that don't require approval. When these memberships enter the moderate state, they will automatically pass the moderation test and move on to the next state. |
If the organization is set up to bill first then moderate, memberships that pass the moderation test will move to the Approved state. If the membership was moderated first, an approved membership will now move to the Bill state. Denied membership applications will move to the Rejected state and be automatically deleted. |
| Bill | Memberships in this state are issued a membership bill unless the membership is free. Depending on membership type configuration, the membership may move automatically to the Approved state, or may remain in the Pending Payment state until the bill is paid. | If the workflow is configured to moderate first then bill, memberships that pass the billing test will now move to the Approved state. If the membership was billed first, the membership will move to the Moderate state. |
| Approved | Approved memberships have successfully passed moderation and billing tests. Memberships don't rest in the approved state, but instead move directly to the next appropriate state. | Approved memberships will become Current, unless they need to first wait for a prerequisite membership or their start date. |
| Rejected | Rejected memberships have failed either the moderation or billing test. Memberships don't rest in the rejected state, but are immediately deleted. A record of the membership remains in the full activity log. | Rejected memberships do not move to other states. |
| Pending Start Date | Memberships in this state will go current on their start date. Typically, these are membership renewals initiated before a membership expires. For example, if a company's current membership is good through the end of December 2005 and the company begins the process of renewing this membership before it expires, the company's new membership will be set to start in January 2006. Assuming this new membership is approved and paid for before the end of December when the old membership expires, the new membership will rest in the Pending Start Date state until January 1st, when the old membership will expire and the term of the new membership will begin. | Pending Start Date memberships will become Current on their start date. |
| Current | Memberships in this state are active. | Current memberships will enter the Expired state on their expiration date unless they are renewed, in which case they move directly to the archived state as the new membership goes current. This is to ensure that any types assigned through the old membership are removed when they should be and do not overlap in a renewal scenario. |
| Expired | Memberships in this state are past their expiration date, but have not yet been archived. Typically, organizations allow a grace period between a membership's expiration date and the day when the membership benefits are officially revoked. The membership will rest in the Expired state during this grace period. | Expired memberships are moved to the Archived state once the grace period has elapsed. |
| Archived |
This is the final state of a membership. Archived memberships are retained for historical records, but do not actively convey benefits to the member. Types are always removed from the member when a membership is archived, and this revokes roles that grant access to protected areas of the Web site. All memberships are eventually archived. This includes memberships that are renewed, even if this may not be immediately obvious. Imagine a yearly membership for 2006 that is renewed with a yearly membership for 2007. These two memberships are distinct: they have different terms, different membership fees may apply, etc. They are related because each is one of a series of memberships held by the same member. On Jan 1, 2007, the 2006 membership expires and moves immediately into the Archived state as the 2007 membership goes current. |
Archived memberships do not move to other states. |
Table 19.2. Membership workflow state messages
| State Name | Message | |
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| Billing | Link to pay bill provided at top of page. Below the membership is the message "Please pay for this membership by clicking the 'Pay Bill' link above." | |
| Pending Moderation | Displays custom message set through Membership Types configuration tools in the Super Admin area, or default text "Your request is being reviewed. If you have any questions, please contact: $org_admin_email. Thank you, $org_name Administration." '$org_admin_email' is the email alias or address of the Organization Admin, and '$org_name' is the name of the Organization Admin. | |
| Current | "Your membership is current. You can now log in to the Members Area to manage your membership. If you need a new password, visit the Password Help page to have a login link sent to you by email." | |
| Expired, Archived | "Your membership has expired. Visit the Renew Membership online form to renew your memberhsip now." |
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| Chapter 18. Membership |  |
Chapter 20. How to Set Up Membership Types |