Workflow for television
Aug 1, 2009 12:00 PM, By Brad Gilmer
Be more efficient with a loosely-coupled design.
A better way might be to develop a common language so that the services being offered can be described as such that anyone could write a description of the services, and any client could discover and use these services, regardless of the manufacturer. This is a lofty goal, but it has been achieved in other industries.
The promise — dynamic workflow reconfiguration
If common processes can be identified, and if the industry can reach a consensus on a way to define and use services, then the next logical step is to use workflow orchestration tools to redefine workflow processes on the fly. Imagine a workflow orchestration system that defines a workflow (ingest, edit, approve and move to air playout servers, for example) through a workflow diagram. A manager comes into your office with a new business plan that requires making video content available on the Web after it has gone through a separate approval process. In the future, it may be possible to add this new business to your workflow by editing the block diagram of your facility, adding the individual processes required (low-res ingest, Web approval, publish to Web). This is the promise of workflow-based facility design.
Practical considerations
Of course, this article has focused on the theoretical aspects of workflow-based design. For practical reasons, I suspect that master control will always have its own dedicated resources. Similarly, for technical or political reasons, news and post may also require dedicated resources. But it is important to realize that facilities can be designed differently from the way we have done it in the past. Doing so greatly increases our ability to respond to changes in the industry.
Brad Gilmer is president of Gilmer & Associates, executive director of the Video Services Forum and executive director of the Advanced Media Workflow Association.
Send questions and comments to: brad.gilmer@penton.com
| Want to use this article? Click here for options! |  |
