Automate Jobs with rules

Automation rules do routine Job updates for you. Each rule has a trigger (When), optional conditions (Only if) and one action (Then). An owner or admin manages rules in Settings → Automations, and rules count toward your plan’s automation allowance. See pricing for plan details.

This article covers rules that act on Jobs. Rules can also create a Job when a client is added or a proposal is accepted, see Automate client onboarding, and handle incoming email, see Automate incoming email.

Create a Job automation rule

1. Go to Settings → Automations and click New rule.
2. Enter a Name your team will recognize, such as “Flag Jobs due this week”.
3. Under When, choose what starts the rule.
4. Under Only if, click Add condition if the rule should only run for some Jobs.
5. Under Then, choose what the rule does and fill in its details.
6. Click Save & Close.

The Quick templates at the top of a new rule fill in common setups, such as Start date passed → Ready to Start. Job automation rules run on Jobs only, never on subtasks or Job templates.

Job automation triggers

A Job automation rule starts from one of these triggers under When:

• A date has passed: runs when the chosen Date field (Start Date, Due Date, Internal Due Date or Extended Due Date) is before today. Tidyflow checks date rules every hour.
• A date is approaching: runs when the chosen date is within the number of Days before you enter.
• A tag is added: runs when the tag you choose is added to a Job.
• A Job status changes: runs when a Job moves to the status you choose, from any screen, the board, a bulk edit or another rule.
• A Job is created: runs when a new Job is created. Under Created, choose Any way, By a repeat, From a template or Added directly. Added directly covers the New job form, duplicating a Job, the API and Tidyflow Agent. Jobs imported from a spreadsheet do not trigger it.

Date triggers skip completed Jobs.

Limit a Job automation rule with conditions

Conditions under Only if narrow which Jobs a rule acts on. A Job must match every condition:

• Status is or Status is not: one or more statuses.
• Status is not set: Jobs with no status yet.
• Has tag or Does not have tag: one tag.
• Assignee: Job has no assignee or Job has an assignee.

For example, a rule that assigns new work can use Job has no assignee so it never replaces someone your team already chose.

Job automation actions

A Job automation rule does one of these under Then:

• Set job status: moves the Job to the status you choose. Choosing Completed completes the Job.
• Add a tag or Remove a tag.
• Assign a user: adds a teammate or an agent teammate to the Job. When you assign Tidyflow Agent, describe the work in Agent instructions. See Agent teammates.
• Set dates: sets or clears the Job’s dates. See the next section.

Workspaces with webhooks turned on also see Send webhook.

Set a Job’s dates with an automation rule

The Set dates action handles each of Start date, Internal due date, Due date and Extended due date separately. For each one, choose:

• Don’t change: leaves the date as it is.
• Clear: removes the date.
• Day it runs: sets the date to the day the rule runs, in your workspace’s time zone.
• Days after it runs: sets the date the number of Days you enter after the day the rule runs.

A rule never sets a start date or internal due date later than the Job’s due date, or its extended due date when the Job has an extension. A date that would land later is set to the due date instead.

Dates set by a rule apply to that Job only. They do not change when a repeating Job’s next start date or internal due date falls, so a rule that clears those dates on each repeat keeps working every time. See How recurring jobs work.

How often a Job automation rule runs

Each rule runs once per Job. Moving a Job back to a status, or removing and adding a tag again, does not run the same rule a second time.

Date rules are the exception: if you change the Job’s date, the rule can run again for the new date.

New date rules start turned off. When you save or turn on a date rule that already matches Jobs, Tidyflow asks Apply to existing jobs? and shows how many Jobs match. Click Run on existing jobs to apply it to them now. Other triggers only run for changes made after the rule is saved.

Example Job automation rules

These rules show how triggers, conditions and actions combine. Create any statuses and tags they use first in Job statuses and tags.

• Flag work due soon: A date is approaching, Due Date, 7 days, then Add a tag “Due this week”.
• Mark overdue work: A date has passed, Due Date, then Set job status to a status such as “Overdue”.
• Route new work from a template: A Job is created, From a template, Only if Job has no assignee, then Assign a user.
• Start the clock when the client’s information arrives: A Job status changes to a status such as “Information received”, then Set dates with Start date Day it runs and Internal due date Days after it runs, 14.
• Leave dates blank on each repeat: A Job is created, By a repeat, then Set dates with Start date and Internal due date set to Clear.
• Hand reviewed work back: A tag is added “Review done”, then Set job status to a status such as “Ready to file”.