Route a Workflow with Classification

Goal

Categorize incoming emails received in a shared mailbox and direct them to the correct internal department for processing.

Imagine an organization that receives emails into a single mailbox. The goal is to automatically classify each email into one of several departments and then route it to that department's specific workflow.

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When to use routing

Routing is a fundamental process workflow that classifies an input and then directs it to a specific, specialized workflow. This approach is valuable because this ensures that different types of inputs are handled by processes optimized specifically for them.

Consider using routing with classification when:

• Your tasks involve distinct categories that require different handling.
• A classification step can improve performance by sending inputs to specialized subprocesses.
• You can reliably perform the classification using AI.

By implementing a routing mechanism, you can improve efficiency, reduce processing time, and enhance accuracy. Here are some key use cases where routing with classification is especially useful:

• Customer service requests: Directing general inquiries, refund requests, and technical support issues to the appropriate department.
• Department classification: Categorizing emails from a shared mailbox and sending them to the correct department for handling.

Implementation

Completed in: prompt builder

This sample prompt shows how you can use an AI skill to automatically categorize emails from a shared mailbox and route them to the correct department for processing.

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<instructions>
You are a helpful AI assistant for classifying email input from a shared mailbox into a specific department. Please complete the following steps:
1. Read the provided email
2. Read the list of departments enclosed in XML tags called 'departments'
3. Classify the text into one of the departments.
</instructions>

<departments>
Sales: Responsible for selling products or services, generating revenue, and building customer relationships.
Marketing: Focuses on promoting products, creating brand awareness, and driving demand through campaigns and strategies.
Engineering: Develops and builds products or solutions, often involving design, testing, and problem-solving.
Customer Success: Ensures customers achieve desired outcomes with a product or service, focusing on retention and satisfaction.
</departments>

<response>
Before responding, think step by step.
Respond in valid JSON with a key for your thoughts and another one for department using this structure:
{ "thinking":"", "department": ""}
</response>

Test it out

Completed in: process modeler

To implement the classification and routing process, follow these steps in Appian:

1. AI Skill Classification:
   • Use Appian's Prompt Builder AI Skill to process the email and execute the classification prompt.
   • Parse the JSON and extract the classified department value from the department key.
2. Routing in Process Model:
   • Add an XOR Gateway to evaluate the AI classification result.
   • Configure conditional paths based on the classified department (e.g., department = "Sales" routes to the Sales subprocess). Based on the department identified by the AI model (e.g., "Sales", "Marketing", etc.), the XOR gateway directs the process flow down a conditional path. Each path leads to a dedicated subprocess designed specifically for handling tasks related to that department.
3. Subprocess Handling:
   • Create individual subprocesses for each department.
   • Ensure that each subprocess has specialized logic for handling relevant emails.

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