The SilkFlo pipeline is a stage-gated view of every AI and automation idea in your organisation, from submission to the value it delivers once it’s live. Each stage has its own dashboard, built around the one decision you need to make at that point: is this worth assessing, what is it worth, should we fund it, is it on track, and did it deliver?
Open Pipeline from the side menu. The pipeline is for Admin roles; Standard Users follow their own ideas from their Personal Dashboard.
Why a stage-gated pipeline #
Most AI and automation programmes don’t fail for lack of ideas. They fail because ideas get funded on enthusiasm, then nobody checks whether they paid off. A stage-gated pipeline fixes that by asking for a little more evidence at each step:
| Stage | Evidence you have | Decision you make |
|---|---|---|
| Review | A short description and a Potential Score | Is it worth an analyst’s time? |
| Assess | Estimated annual value, hours saved, ease of implementation | Is it worth building a full business case? |
| Decision | A full business case: cost, ROI, payback | Do we fund it? |
| Build | Budget, progress, risk status | Is delivery on track? |
| Deployed | Realised value against forecast | Did it deliver, and how good were our forecasts? |
The point isn’t bureaucracy. Cheap checks come first, so you only spend serious analyst and finance time on ideas that have earned it. And the last stage closes the loop: comparing realised value with forecast tells you how far to trust the next business case.
The six views #
| View | What’s in it | The question it answers |
|---|---|---|
| All | Every idea, at every stage and status | What’s in our whole portfolio? |
| Review | Ideas in the Idea stage, waiting for a first look | Is this idea worth assessing properly? |
| Assess | Ideas being assessed in detail. Includes ideas moved on from Review, and ideas submitted through a Smart Assessment, which land here directly. | What is it really worth, and how hard is it? |
| Decision | Ideas in the Qualify stage with a full business case, waiting for a funding decision | Which initiatives should we approve and invest in? |
| Build | Approved initiatives being delivered: Analysis, Solution Design, Development and Testing | Are our projects on track and on budget? |
| Deployed | Initiatives that are live | Did they deliver the value we forecast? |
Your organisation may use different names for these stages. Admins can rename them under Settings > Platform Setup > Terminology. See How to set up SilkFlo for your organisation.
What you can see in the pipeline depends on your role. For example, cost information is only shown to roles with View cost info in the pipeline. See User roles and permissions in SilkFlo.
Working with the pipeline #
These controls work the same way across the views:
- Search to find an idea by name.
- Filter Data to narrow the view, by Value Drivers, Business Units, Teams, Submission Path, Tags, Applications, Time Range and Location. The number on the button shows how many filters are on.
- Export CSV (All view) to download the list.
- Stage and Status dropdowns on each row let you move an idea to another stage or update its status without leaving the list.
- Action menu (⋮ on each row in the All view): Manage Stages, View Details, Edit, and Delete. Delete is only available to roles allowed to delete ideas.
Click any idea name to open its full idea profile.
All #
All Pipeline Ideas lists every idea with its primary goal, business unit, area, Potential Score, Total EAV (estimated annual value), stage, status, time in the current stage and process owner.
Use it to find a specific idea, spot ideas that have been sitting in one stage too long, or export the whole portfolio.
Review #
For triaging new ideas.
Tiles
- Total Ideas in Review: how many ideas are in the Idea stage.
- Awaiting Triage: ideas nobody has reviewed yet. This is your to-do list.
- Potential Score Average: the average Potential Score of ideas in Review, a quick read on the quality of what’s coming in.
- Top Incoming Drivers: the value drivers that come up most in new ideas, as a percentage.
Charts
- Idea Quality Matrix: each idea plotted by Impact Score against Clarity and Feasibility Score. Ideas in the top right are clear, feasible and high-impact: the ones to move forward first. See Understanding the idea Potential Score.
- Strategic Goal Distribution: the mix of primary goals across new ideas.
Ideas table: idea name, submitter, business unit, primary goal, Potential Score, submission date, stage and status.
Use the date range (for example Past 90 Days) to change the period shown. Turn on Include One Time Cost to include ideas’ one-off investment (CAPEX) in the page’s calculations.
Assess #
For building a realistic picture of value and effort.
Tiles
- Total Ideas in Assess
- Total Estimated Annual Value: the combined annual value of every idea in Assess, across all value drivers.
- Total Estimated Hour Savings: the combined hours ideas in Assess are expected to save.
- Assessments in Progress: ideas being actively worked on.
- Strategic Mix in Assess: how many ideas sit under each value driver, so you can see if the portfolio is balanced.
Charts
- Value vs. Effort Matrix: each idea plotted by Potential Value / Impact against Ease of Implementation. High-value, easy ideas are your quick wins.
- Ease of Implementation Breakdown: how many ideas are Easy, Moderate or Difficult.
Ideas table: idea name, process owner, business unit, primary goal, estimated annual value, ease of implementation, stage and status.
Decision #
For leadership to review full business cases and make funding decisions.
Tiles
- Total Initiatives in Decision
- Total Potential Value: the combined value of everything awaiting a decision.
- Total Estimated Implementation Cost: what it would cost to deliver all of them.
- Average Portfolio ROI: the average return across initiatives in Decision.
Charts
- Value vs. Effort Matrix (Enhanced): the same matrix as Assess, for initiatives with a full business case. Bubble size shows ROI.
- Investment By Strategic Goal: how proposed investment splits across value drivers, so you can fund a balanced portfolio.
Ideas table: idea name, primary goal, total estimated value, estimated implementation cost, ROI (%), payback period (months) and decision status.
To decide, use the buttons in Actions: Approved or Rejected. Once an initiative is approved, click Move to Build to start delivery.
The ROI and payback figures come from each idea’s business case. See The Business Case Builder.
Build #
For tracking approved initiatives through delivery.
Tiles
- Total Initiatives in Build
- Total Budget Allocated: the combined budget of everything in Build.
- Projects In Progress vs. At Risk
- Average Time in Build
Charts
- Build Portfolio Health: one bar showing the total value in Build, split by status: In Progress, At Risk, Delayed and Not Started. It shows at a glance how much forecast value is at risk.
- Portfolio Health By Value Driver: the same split for each value driver, so you can see if delivery problems are concentrated in one area.
Ideas table: idea name, project lead, primary goal, budget, expected completion, % complete, Total EAV, stage (for example Solution Design, Development or Testing) and status.
Deployed #
For checking whether live initiatives delivered what they promised.
Use the timeframe dropdown at the top to choose the period. The tiles show which timeframe they cover.
Tiles
- Initiatives this stage
- Total Realized Benefit (Gross): the value delivered by live initiatives.
- Average Forecast Accuracy: how close realised value came to the forecast. Use it to check how reliable your business cases are.
- Average Time to Deploy
Charts
- Value Realization: each initiative plotted by forecast value against realised value. The dotted line marks perfect accuracy. Initiatives above the line beat their forecast; those below fell short.
- Realized Value By Strategic Goal: where the delivered value came from, by value driver.
Initiatives table: idea name, primary goal, deployment date, forecasted annual value, realised annual value, variance (%), time to deploy (days) and benefits realisation status.
FAQs #
How do I see which ideas to prioritise? #
Use the Value vs. Effort Matrix on the Assess dashboard. It plots each idea by potential value against ease of implementation, so the high-value, easy ideas stand out as quick wins. On the Review dashboard, the Idea Quality Matrix does the same job earlier, before detailed figures exist.
How do I approve an idea for funding in SilkFlo? #
Open the Decision dashboard. Each initiative shows its value, implementation cost, ROI and payback period from its business case. Click Approved or Rejected in the Actions column. Once approved, click Move to Build to start delivery.
Can SilkFlo show whether an initiative delivered its forecast value? #
Yes. The Deployed dashboard compares forecast value with realised value for every live initiative, shows the variance, and tracks your average forecast accuracy over time.
