Workflow Overview
Darwin is not just a place to calculate costs.
It is a system for governing how cost decisions move through a project.
The core workflow is:
request → clarify → estimate → review → approve → track → learn
This workflow matters because a cost outcome is not only a number. It is a chain of context, assumptions, reviews, decisions, and execution feedback.
The workflow layer currently includes:
- request intake and clarification
- estimation workspaces
- revisions
- work requests
- tasks and notifications
- approvals
- active baselines
- actual costs and variance
- comments, attachments, and activity history
The operating model adds the discipline around that journey: handoffs, readiness checks, quality gates, exception handling, and recurring maintenance habits.
Why Workflow Matters
Section titled “Why Workflow Matters”Without workflow structure, teams lose:
- traceability
- ownership
- revision clarity
- approval discipline
- auditability
Darwin keeps that structure inside the same environment as the estimate itself.
Main Workflow Objects
Section titled “Main Workflow Objects”Work Requests
Section titled “Work Requests”Work requests capture intent. They explain what needs to be estimated, clarified, reviewed, changed, or approved.
Estimation Workspace
Section titled “Estimation Workspace”The estimation workspace brings together summary, reports, comparison, requests, and activity around a single estimation.
Approvals
Section titled “Approvals”Approvals formalize the decision that an estimate is accepted or rejected.
For project approval, the key meaning is: an approved estimate becomes the committed cost-control baseline.
An approval request may begin as a work request and may create tasks, but the approval decision is the formal approve or reject record.
Revisions
Section titled “Revisions”Revisions preserve the evolution of an estimate instead of encouraging silent overwrites.
Cost Control
Section titled “Cost Control”Cost control uses the active approved baseline to track actual costs and explain variance.
Operating Model
Section titled “Operating Model”The operating model defines how teams hand work off, decide whether a stage is ready to move forward, handle exceptions, and maintain trustworthy project records.