Workflows are powerful tools that help you automate and manage your organization's repeatable processes with efficiency and consistency. This guide walks you through setting up a new workflow from start to finish.
Creating and Customizing Your Workflow
Naming and Describing Your Workflow
A clear title and description are essential for making your workflow easy to understand for your entire team.
Workflow Title: Choose a title that is short and highly descriptive (e.g., "New Volunteer Onboarding" or "Facility Maintenance Request").
Workflow Description: Provide a brief explanation of the workflow's purpose (e.g., "A process for welcoming and integrating new volunteers into our church").
A clear title and description allows team members to grasp the workflow's purpose at a glance.
Customizing Your Workflow Steps
Every workflow is built from a series of steps, with a maximum of 20 steps per workflow. Each step represents a distinct stage in your overall process (e.g., "Application Review," "Interview Scheduled," "Background Check Complete").
For each step you create, you have several powerful customization options:
Step Title: A concise name for the stage of the process.
Step Description: An explanation of the tasks involved in this specific step. (Example: "Contact the applicant and arrange a time for a phone or video interview.") This provides instant clarity for anyone working on a Card at this stage.
Color Picker: Assign a unique color to each step to help your team visualize the status of Cards quickly. (Example: Use Green for the final completion step, and Red for a step requiring urgent action.)
Checklists: Add a checklist of required tasks to any step. (Example: For a "Schedule Interview" step, the checklist might include: "Call applicant," "Send calendar invite," and "Confirm interview time"). Checklists ensure all requirements are met before a Card can advance.
Default Assignee: Set a Default Assignee to automatically assign incoming Cards to a specific team member. (Example: You can set the "Background Check Complete" step to automatically assign to your Administrator. Requirement: The assignee must have an Admin or Workflow Manager user role. Benefit: Automating assignment saves time and ensures instant accountability for new tasks.
Due Dates: Configure a step to automatically set a Due Date for any Card that enters it. (Example: You can set a step so that Cards are due 3 days after they enter that step.) Due dates appear on the Card, help your team prioritize, and move the process along. The Card status will show as Overdue if it passes the designated due date.
Connect a Form to a Workflow
Connecting a form to a workflow is a powerful way to automate administrative tasks. With this feature, every time a form is submitted, a new Card can be automatically created in your workflow, instantly assigning the task and data to your team.
This automation is perfect for:
Visitor Management: Automatically starting a follow-up process when a new visitor fills out a Connect Card.
Request Management: Processing room reservation, maintenance, or volunteer requests.
Data Entry: Turning submitted information into an actionable task without manual transfer.
How to Connect a Form to a Workflow
Follow these steps to link an active form to your desired workflow:
Access the Connection Settings
Navigate to the workflow you wish to connect.Click Edit Workflow.
Click the Connect a Form button. A pop-up window will appear, listing your active forms.
Choose Your Form
Select the active form you want to link from the list provided.
Set Card Creation Triggers (The Key Step!)
This setting determines when a new Card is created in the workflow based on the form submission. You have two options:
Trigger Option | When to Use It | Example |
Every Time the Form is Submitted | Select this if every submission requires an action or task. | Use for a Room Reservation Request form, where every request must be processed. |
When a Specific Field Matches a Value | Use this for conditional creation, where a Card is only needed if the submitter selects a specific option. | On a Connect Card, set it to only create a Card if the user selects the "I am a new visitor" option in a specific field. |
Save Your Connection!
After selecting your form and defining the trigger, save your changes. Your form is now connected, and new Cards will begin creating automatically based on your trigger!
Where to View Your Form Connections
Once connected, you can easily verify the link from two locations:
On the Workflow Board: A visual indicator will appear on your main workflow board view, showing exactly which form is linked to the process. This provides a quick reference for where new tasks are originating.
On the Forms Dashboard: Within the Forms area of your system dashboard, you will see a clear indication of which forms are actively feeding data into a workflow, helping you manage your automation setup.
Important Considerations When Archiving:
If you try to archive or make significant edits to a form that is connected to a workflow, a warning message will pop up. This is to alert you that your changes could affect the workflow connection. If a connected form is archived, a red error badge will appear on the connected workflow. This alerts users that the source of new cards has been removed and the connection is no longer active.
Manage Cards in a Workflow
Workflow cards are the central element of your automated processes. Each card represents an individual task, request, or person moving through your system. This article will guide you through the key features for viewing, managing, and advancing these cards through your workflow.
The Workflow Board
Your workflow is organized as a Kanban board, which provides a clear, visual overview of your entire process.
Columns = Steps: Each column on the board represents a specific step or stage in your process (e.g., "Application Review," "Interview Scheduled").
Cards = Tasks: Cards are placed in the columns vertically to indicate their current progress and status.
Moving Cards Forward
You can advance a card to the next stage using two simple methods:
Drag and Drop: Simply click and drag a card from one column (step) to the next. This is the quick, intuitive way to move cards forward.
Complete Step Button: Click this button from the card's detail view once all tasks are finished. This is the recommended method to ensure all step requirements are met before advancing the card.
Interacting with a Card: The Detail View
Clicking any card on the board opens its Detail View, your hub for managing information and executing actions related to that task.
Key Card Features
Key Person: This identifies the person linked to the card (essential for processes like "New Visitor Welcome"). Their name and contact information are immediately visible.
Access Profile: A direct link to the Key Person's full profile is provided. Quickly view their history, group memberships, and other vital details without leaving the workflow.
Tasks Checklist: This lists the required tasks for the card's current step. Check off tasks as you complete them to ensure all necessary actions are taken before moving forward.
Reassign the Card: Allows you to delegate the task by changing the Card's assignee. This clearly sets accountability for the next set of actions.
Complete Step Button: The final action for a step. Clicking this automatically moves the card to the next column on the Kanban board, advancing the process.
The "Workflow Manager" Role
Click to Expand
Click to Expand
The "Workflow Manager" user role is specifically designed for team leaders or volunteers who need to manage workflows without having access to all sensitive data within the platform. A user with this role can:
View and Manage Workflows: They have full access to create, edit, and delete workflows.
Access People and Forms: They can see and interact with the "People" and "Forms" sections of the dashboard, which are essential for managing workflow cards and creating connections.
Limited Data Access: Unlike an "Admin," a "Workflow Manager" cannot perform sensitive data tasks such as importing, exporting, or merging people profiles. This is a key feature that helps protect your church's data while still empowering team leaders.
Visit our Managing Dashboard Users article for more information about adding and editing users on your dashboard