A workflow system is provided in which one person in charge efficiently processes each activity assigned to successive nodes. When a client request management program execution unit 330 of a workflow server 30 receives a request to terminate processing for a node from a user's computer terminal for operation 20, a definition for the node is referred to by a project management program execution unit 310. If processing of a process management program execution unit 320 is completed within a consecutive processing standby time t.sub.1 defined for the node, and it is determined that a next node can be processed by the user, a client request management program execution unit 330 requests a computer terminal for operation 20 to start processing of a next node.

A system and method for detecting errors in a document transfer scheme. A user submits an electronic document transfer scheme to the document processing device including document handling instructions. The electronic document transfer scheme is then received by the document processing device and parsed, via the controller, to extract data representative of the destination designated by the scheme. Preferably, the destination data contained in the scheme provides the document processing device with a location to which a copy of an electronic document is to be sent. The source/destination information is then input as an arc on a graph, so as to generate a representation of the workflow associated with the document transfer scheme. A determination is then made, from the graph, whether the submitted electronic document transfer scheme represents at least one cycle on the graph. When it is determined, from an algorithmic query of the graph, that an infinite document transfer scheme exists, a notification is sent to the user submitting the most recent document transfer scheme.

A business process is defined as a sequence of process steps where each process step is performed by an assigned user. A workflow route to support the business process provides a sequence of steps where each step corresponds to a business process step and has an associated user to execute the step. The user can be a set of users or an automated program. A workflow system can implement the business process by executing the corresponding route. A route is defined before the route is executed. However, the routes for some business processes cannot be completely defined before start of execution because of organizational boundaries, complexity of business process, number of choices, etc. The execution of a route can be adapted to a business process through use of a step in the route where the user associated with the step can specify subsequent steps and associated users for execution in the route.