Slack workflow examples: 12 workflows to copy, by team

The best way to learn Slack Workflow Builder is to copy a workflow that already works and change it. Below are twelve, grouped by team, each with the trigger, every step and the variables in braces. They use only standard steps, so you can rebuild any of them in a few minutes. If you are new to the builder, start with our guide to Slack Workflow Builder, which explains triggers, steps and publishing.

How to read these examples

Each outline starts with the trigger, the event that starts the workflow. Then come the steps in order. Words in braces, such as {Person who used this workflow}, are variables: information from an earlier step that Workflow Builder fills in for you.

Two rules apply to all of them. You need a paid plan, since anyone on a paid subscription can create workflows by default unless your admins restrict it. And a step that posts to a channel only works if you have permission to post in that channel, so test each workflow in a private channel first.

Customer and support workflows

A bug report form for a customer channel

Customers describe bugs in a dozen different ways. A form gives every report the same shape, and people from other companies can use workflows in Slack Connect channels.

Trigger:  From a link (bookmarked in #ext-northwind)Step 1:   Collect info in a form            What happened?                 (long text, required)            Steps to reproduce             (long text)            How much is this blocking you? (Not at all / Slowing us down / Stopped work)Step 2:   Send a message to #int-bugs            New report from {Person who used this workflow} in #ext-northwind            {What happened?}  Blocking: {How much is this blocking you?}Step 3:   Send a message to #ext-northwind            Thanks, {Person who used this workflow}. We've logged this and will update you here.

The confirmation in step three matters. It tells the customer their bug made it to the right place, so they do not post it again elsewhere.

Route billing questions to finance

When a message mentions money, finance should see it without someone forwarding it by hand. A keyword trigger starts the workflow when a message contains words you choose.

Trigger:  When a message is posted (in #team-support, containing "invoice", "refund" or "billing")Step 1:   Send a message to #finance-requests            A billing question was posted in #team-support: {Link to message}            Please reply in that thread.

Keep the keyword list short. Every extra word adds false alarms, and finance will start ignoring the channel.

An end-of-day support handover

A handover that depends on memory gets skipped on busy days. A schedule starts automatically, and a form keeps every handover in the same shape.

Trigger:  On a schedule (every weekday at 5:30pm)Step 1:   Send a message to #team-support            Time for today's handover.            Button: "Post handover"Step 2:   Collect info in a form            Questions still open          (long text)            Waiting on customers for      (long text)            Anything urgent for tomorrow? (short text)Step 3:   Send a message to #support-handover            Handover from {Person who clicked}: Open: {Questions still open}            Waiting on: {Waiting on customers for}  Urgent: {Anything urgent for tomorrow?}

Team rituals

Monday priorities

A short written check-in replaces a status meeting for many small teams.

Trigger:  On a schedule (every Monday at 9:30am)Step 1:   Send a message to #team-growth            What are your three priorities this week?            Button: "Share mine"Step 2:   Collect info in a form            Priority 1, Priority 2, Priority 3, Anything you need help with?Step 3:   Send a message to #team-growth            {Person who clicked}'s week: {Priority 1} / {Priority 2} / {Priority 3}            Needs help with: {Anything you need help with?}

The "help" question is the one that pays off. It surfaces blockers on Monday instead of Thursday.

Friday wins

Teams rarely stop to notice what went well. A two-question form on Friday afternoon fixes that and gives you a record for reviews.

Trigger:  On a schedule (every Friday at 3pm)Step 1:   Send a message to #team            What went well this week? Button: "Add a win"Step 2:   Collect info in a form            Your win (short text)   Who helped? (select a person)Step 3:   Send a message to #team            {Person who clicked}: {Your win} Thanks to {Who helped?}

A retro you can run without a meeting

A link bookmarked in the team channel lets people add retro notes whenever something comes up during the sprint.

Trigger:  From a link (bookmarked in #team-eng)Step 1:   Collect info in a form            What went well?   What didn't?   What should we try next sprint?Step 2:   Send a message to #team-eng-retro            Retro note from {Person who used this workflow}:            Went well: {What went well?}  Didn't: {What didn't?}  Try: {What should we try next sprint?}

At the end of the sprint, the retro channel already holds a week of honest notes. Managers can also download the form responses to sort and group them.

Operations and requests

Software access with a one-click approval

Access requests stall when nobody knows who approves them. A button pauses the workflow until someone clicks it, so the approval is part of the process.

Trigger:  From a link (bookmarked in #it-help)Step 1:   Collect info in a form            Which tool?   Why do you need it?   By when?Step 2:   Send a message to #it-approvals            {Person who used this workflow} needs {Which tool?} by {By when?}: {Why do you need it?}            Button: "Approve" (only @it-leads can click)Step 3:   Send a message to {Person who used this workflow}            Approved by {Person who clicked}. IT will set it up within a day.

Restrict the button to the people who can actually approve. Otherwise anyone in the channel can click it.

Report an office problem

Small office issues, a broken screen or an empty printer, get mentioned in hallway conversations and forgotten.

Trigger:  From a link (pinned in #office)Step 1:   Collect info in a form            What's wrong?   Where?   How urgent? (Today / This week)Step 2:   Send a message to #office-ops            {What's wrong?} at {Where?} ({How urgent?}), reported by {Person who used this workflow}

Start an incident channel conversation

When someone flags a top-severity incident in the incidents channel, the right people should hear about it straight away.

Trigger:  When a message is posted (in #incidents, containing "SEV1")Step 1:   Send a message to #incident-leads            Possible SEV1 posted by {Person who sent the message}: {Link to message}            @eng-oncall please acknowledge in the thread.

People and onboarding

Welcome new starters

A trigger for when someone joins a channel makes a reliable welcome. Point it at the channel every new hire joins on day one.

Trigger:  When a person joins a channel (#new-starters)Step 1:   Send a message to {Person who joined}            Welcome! Your first-week checklist is pinned in #new-starters, and Priya is your onboarding buddy.Step 2:   Send a message to #team-people            {Person who joined} just joined #new-starters. Say hello.

Time off and cover

Holiday notices in DMs leave the rest of the team guessing. A form puts them in one place, with the person covering named.

Trigger:  From a link (bookmarked in #team)Step 1:   Collect info in a form            First day off (date)   Last day off (date)   Who's covering? (select a person)Step 2:   Send a message to #team-out            {Person who used this workflow} is off {First day off} to {Last day off}. {Who's covering?} is covering.

Kudos

Public thanks costs nothing and is easy to forget. A kudos form makes it a ten-second habit.

Trigger:  From a link (bookmarked in #general)Step 1:   Collect info in a form            Who are you thanking? (select a person)   What for? (short text)Step 2:   Send a message to #kudos            {Person who used this workflow} thanks {Who are you thanking?} for {What for?}

Start from a template instead

Slack's template gallery has ready-made versions of several of these, including welcomes, requests and check-ins. Some templates are labeled Advanced and open in the full builder, where you can change and add steps before publishing. A template is a good starting point when it matches your trigger; otherwise, building from one of the outlines above is just as fast.

When an example needs more than Workflow Builder

Every example above runs inside Slack alone. Workflows can also connect to other apps you use through connector steps, for example to create a ticket in another tool. Those require you to authenticate your account with that service, and your admins may need to approve them first.

For logic Workflow Builder cannot express, developers can write custom steps. Slack's developer documentation describes custom steps built with the Deno Slack SDK or the Bolt framework. Most teams never need them.

One kind of reminder is out of reach for workflows: a nudge that should only fire if nobody replied. A workflow runs on its trigger, not on what happened afterwards. For that, see our guide to Slack reminder bots.

For the forms, variables and branches used throughout these examples, our guide to Slack workflow forms, variables and branches goes into each step in detail. And for everything else, the main Workflow Builder guide covers how the pieces fit together.

Questions people ask