Kaizen 215 - Workflow APIs - Part 3
Welcome back to another week of Kaizen!
Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve joined Zylker Cloud Services as they review and improve their workflows. In Part 1, we discovered and audited their sprawling workflow landscape. In Part 2, we learned how to use the Configuration API to understand valid triggers and actions, preventing errors before they happen.
Now, it is time to take action. Zylker has identified the "VP Alert - High Value Deal" workflow as a prime candidate for an update. It is old, has never run, and its logic might be too narrow. We will also explore how to create a new workflow from scratch to handle a new business requirement.
STEP 5: Update an Existing Workflow
From our audit in Step 2, we know that the existing ‘VP Alert - High Value Deal’ workflow (id: 4876876000016390024) hadn’t triggered even once. The original $50,000 threshold missed many valuable deals. Most winning opportunities actually land above $30,000. It has never executed, suggesting the criteria are too strict.
Let us use the Update Workflow Rule API to fix it. We'll change the criteria to trigger for deals greater than or equal to $30,000 and add an additional email notification.
What you can and cannot update
When working with the Update Workflow Rule API, not every field in a workflow is open for modification. Think of it like editing an existing automation blueprint. Some foundations are fixed, while others are flexible.
You can update:
Name and Description
Trigger : You can update triggers, but only within the same trigger type. For example, you can change a Record Action trigger from create to edit, but not from a Record Action trigger to a Score-based trigger. For more details on this, please refer to our detailed help documentation here.
Conditions and Criteria : add, remove, or refine them.
Actions : add new ones, remove existing ones, or update their configuration.
Status : activate or deactivate a workflow rule.
What cannot be updated
There are a few key restrictions to remember:
You cannot change the module associated with the workflow.
You cannot switch trigger categories (e.g., from Record Action to Email Trigger).
You cannot retain unsupported actions when changing to a trigger that doesn’t support them. For instance, if you change a trigger from Edit to Delete, but keep an Assign Owner action, the update will fail, because “Assign Owner” isn’t valid for Delete triggers.
Updating an existing workflow is not about replacing everything. it is about editing precisely what needs to change.
Here is how to do it:
Fetch the workflow details using the Get Workflow Rule API. This gives the full structure, including condition IDs, action IDs, and trigger details.
Identify what needs to change.
In this case, to fix the “VP Alert - High Value Deal” workflow, we can update the Workflow rule to:
lower the threshold to $300,000
change the comparator to greater_than.
To make the workflow more useful, Zylker has also decided to add a few new actions.
But before doing that, the developers needed to confirm which actions are supported for this workflow’s trigger type. That is where last week’s Configuration API comes in handy. Since we already know this is a Record Action trigger (create_or_edit), we can refer to the configuration response we explored in Part 2 to see which actions are valid.
{ "api_name": "create_or_edit", "deprecated": false, "name": "CreateorEdit", "scheduled_actions_supported": true, "actions": [ "field_updates", "assign_owner", "add_tags", "remove_tags", "email_notifications", "tasks", "create_record", "create_connected_record", "add_meeting", "webhooks", "functions", "circuits", "flow" ] }, |
The response clearly shows that email notifications, field updates, and tags are all supported for this trigger type. With that confidence, in addition to updating the condition, we can also add a 'Priority' tag to those records that trigger the Workflow. This makes the workflow more visible and actionable across the sales hierarchy.
Sample Request:
PUT {{api-domain}}/crm/v8/settings/automation/workflow_rules/4876876000016390024
{ "workflow_rules": [ { "description": "Notify sales leadership and track strategic opportunities", "name": "VP Alert - High Value Deal.", "conditions": [ { "sequence_number": 1, "criteria_details": { "criteria": { "group_operator": "AND", "group": [ { "comparator": "greater_than", // change in comparator operator "field": { "api_name": "Amount" }, "value": "300000" // Lowered threshold }, { "comparator": "equal", "field": { "api_name": "Stage" }, "value": "Negotiation/Review" } ] } }, "instant_actions": { "actions": [ { "type": "add_tags", "module": "Deals", "details": { "tags": [ { "name": "Priority" } ], "overwrite": true } } ] }, "id": "4876876000016390025" // id of the condition to be updated } ] } ] } |
After this update, the workflow now triggers for any deal worth more than $300,000 in the Negotiation/Review stage. Apart from sending the email notifications and adding the follow up task, it also tags these deals as Priority.
Edit vs Add:
To edit an existing condition or action, include its existing id in your update payload. Zoho CRM will recognize it as an update to that object.
To add a new condition or action, simply omit the id. CRM treats any object without an ID as a new addition.
STEP 6: Create a new Workflow Rule
With the “VP Alert - High Value Deal” workflow now fixed and performing as expected, Zylker’s sales team quickly began to see results.
But their sales team noticed that deals often stall after proposals are sent, with no systematic follow-up. Zylker has hence refined the requirements for a new Workflow.
They want to automatically trigger follow-up actions when a high-value deal (above ₹30,000) is marked “Closed Lost” due to pricing reasons. This workflow must ensure that every lost opportunity is reviewed, tagged, and re-engaged after a cooling-off period. To achieve this, they want to create a workflow to be triggered whenever a deal’s Stage is updated to Closed Lost. It must perform the following actions:
Add tags Lost due to Pricing and Re-engagement Pending.
Send an email alert to the Sales team, with the details of the failed Deal, so they can look into the reasons.
After 30 business days, automatically create another “Lost Deal - Feedback” task to remind the owner to re-contact the customer for feedback, and for future opportunities.
Before proceeding, Zylker makes an API call to the Workflow Configuration endpoint. This ensures that their chosen trigger type and actions are supported. From the response snippet below, it is clear that a field_update trigger supports scheduled actions and the required action types.
{ "api_name": "field_update", "deprecated": false, "name": "FieldUpdate", "scheduled_actions_supported": true, "actions": [ "field_updates", "assign_owner", "add_tags", "remove_tags", "email_notifications", "tasks", "create_record", "create_connected_record", "add_meeting", "webhooks", "functions", "circuits", "flow" ] } |
With these details validated, we can now move on to adding a new workflow for Zylker using the Create Workflow Rule API request.
Understanding the input JSON structure
Every workflow definition follows the same hierarchy - defining when the rule runs, what conditions it checks, and which actions it performs.
The top-level input object contains a workflow_rules array. You must include just one workflow rule object per request. Each workflow rule defines its name, trigger type, and one or more condition blocks, each with its own criteria and actions.
Here is a breakdown of what is inside a single workflow rule:
{ "workflow_rules": [ { "name": "VP Alert - High Value Deal.", //name of the workflow rule "description": "Notify leadership when high-value deals are lost due to pricing.", "module": { "api_name": "Deals" }, //module to which the workflow applies "execute_when": { ... }, //trigger configuration (e.g., on record edit, field update, etc.) "conditions": [ { "sequence_number": 1, // order of execution. this is the first condition "criteria_details": { ... }, // condition logic (criteria group) "instant_actions": { "actions": [ ... ] }, //instant actions executed instantly cheduled_actions": [ // schedules actions executed after a delay { "execute_after": { ... }, // delay period for the scheduled action "actions": [ ... ] } ] }, { "sequence_number": 2, // second condition "criteria_details": { ... }, "instant_actions": { "actions": [ ... ] } } ] } ] } |
Associative vs. Non-Associative Actions
Every workflow rule performs one or more actions like sending an email, creating a task, or updating a field, etc. These actions fall into two broad categories: associative and non-associative.
Type | Description | Example Actions |
Non- Associative Actions | These are defined inside the workflow rule itself. They do not need to exist beforehand. You can configure their details directly within the workflow payload. | Create record, schedule a call, add a meeting, convert records, social actions, create record on email received, assign owner, |
Associative Actions | These are reusable actions created separately in CRM and referenced by their IDs. They can be used across multiple workflows and other automation tools. | Field updates, Email notifications, tasks, Webhooks, Add/Remove tags |
When you create or update a workflow via API, the associative actions require you to pass their existing action IDs. These IDs can be fetched using the corresponding Actions APIs : Field Updates, Email Notifications, Webhooks, and Tasks. In the coming weeks of Kaizen, we will take a closer look at each of these Actions APIs. We will see how to create, manage, and delete them within your workflow automation strategy.
Sample Request:
POST {{api-domain}}/crm/v8/settings/automation/workflow_rules
{ "workflow_rules": [ { "execute_when": { "details": { "trigger_module": { "api_name": "Deals", "id": "4876876000000002181" }, "criteria": { "comparator": "equal", "field": { "api_name": "Stage", "id": "4876876000000002565" }, "type": "value", "value": "Closed Lost" }, "repeat": false, "match_all": false }, "type": "field_update" }, "module": { "api_name": "Deals", "id": "4876876000000002181" }, "description": "Triggers tasks, tags, and follow-up reminders for high-value deals lost due to pricing", "name": "Lost Deal due to Pricing - Follow Up", "conditions": [ { "sequence_number": 1, "instant_actions": { "actions": [ { "name": "Lost Deal - Feedback", "id": "4876876000016794047", "type": "tasks" }, { "details": { "module": { "api_name": "Deals", "id": "4876876000000002181" }, "over_write": false, "tags": [ { "name": "Lost due to Pricing", "id": "4876876000016794071", "color_code": "#658BA8" }, { "name": "Re-engagement pending", "id": "4876876000016794075", "color_code": "#879BFC" } ] }, "type": "add_tags" }, { "name": "Deal Lost Alert", "id": "4876876000016794062", "type": "email_notifications" } ] }, "scheduled_actions": [ { "execute_after": { "period": "business_days", "unit": 30 }, "actions": [ { "name": "Lost Deal - Feedback", "id": "4876876000016794047", "type": "tasks" } ] } ], "criteria_details": { "criteria": { "group_operator": "AND", "group": [ { "comparator": "greater_equal", "field": { "api_name": "Amount", "id": "4876876000000002557" }, "type": "value", "value": "30000" }, { "comparator": "equal", "field": { "api_name": "Reason_For_Loss__s", "id": "4876876000002440001" }, "type": "value", "value": "Price" } ] } } } ] } ] } |
The execute_when defines when the workflow should fire.
type = field_update means this rule runs when a field’s value changes.
criteria : Stage = Closed Lost so the rule triggers whenever the Stage field is updated to Closed Lost.
repeat = false ensures it will not trigger multiple times for the same record.
In simple terms: “Whenever a deal is marked as Closed Lost, run this workflow.” The criteria_details section refines the trigger. The workflow only runs when the Amount ≥ ₹30,000 AND Reason for Loss = Price.
The instant_actions section inside the conditions array has the actions to be executed immediately when the criteria are met.
Add Tags : labels the record for easy filtering and reporting.
Send Email Alert : notifies the sales team instantly about the lost deal.
The scheduled_actions defines what happens after some time has passed. In this case, after 30 business days. Here, the workflow automatically creates a “Lost Deal - Feedback” task, reminding the deal owner to follow up with the customer to get feedback, and for future opportunities.
- The Amount is greater than or equal to ₹30,000, and
The Reason for Loss is “Price.”
By combining these elements, this workflow achieves a full closed-loop follow-up system.
Conclusion:
Zylker’s updated and new workflows make their automation smarter and more responsive. They are now able to spot key deals and ensure lost opportunities are revisited.
We hope you are now well on your way to mastering Workflow APIs. Share your thoughts in the comments or write to us at support@zohocrm.com.
Additional Reading:
- Workflow APIs - Part 1 - Auditing Workflows
- Workflow APIs - Part 2 - Find out what actions and triggers are supported for each module
Topic Participants
Anu Abraham
Sticky Posts
Kaizen #216 - Actions APIs : Email Notifications
Welcome to another week of Kaizen! For the last three weeks, we have been discussing Zylker's workflows. We successfully updated a dormant workflow, built a new one from the ground up and more. But our work is not finished—these automated processes areKaizen #152 - Client Script Support for the new Canvas Record Forms
Hello everyone! Have you ever wanted to trigger actions on click of a canvas button, icon, or text mandatory forms in Create/Edit and Clone Pages? Have you ever wanted to control how elements behave on the new Canvas Record Forms? This can be achievedKaizen #142: How to Navigate to Another Page in Zoho CRM using Client Script
Hello everyone! Welcome back to another exciting Kaizen post. In this post, let us see how you can you navigate to different Pages using Client Script. In this Kaizen post, Need to Navigate to different Pages Client Script ZDKs related to navigation A.Kaizen #210 - Answering your Questions | Event Management System using ZDK CLI
Hello Everyone, Welcome back to yet another post in the Kaizen Series! As you already may know, for the Kaizen #200 milestone, we asked for your feedback and many of you suggested topics for us to discuss. We have been writing on these topics over theKaizen #197: Frequently Asked Questions on GraphQL APIs
🎊 Nearing 200th Kaizen Post – We want to hear from you! Do you have any questions, suggestions, or topics you would like us to cover in future posts? Your insights and suggestions help us shape future content and make this series better for everyone.
Recent Topics
Translation Blueprint & Picklists with Custom Values
Hello everyone, I downloaded the translation file and I'm not finding the blueprint transitions. Does this means that the transitions cannot be translated? Also, the picklist values to be translated in the document are not the same that are actually used the in module. For exemple, for my lead module, the picklist values for Lead Status are : Not-contacted, contacted, junk and lost lead. In the translation document (English to French), this is what I see: PicklistValues.Leads.Lead_Status.ContactHow to create a custom sales signal?
I want to create a custom sales signal for a custom module. is it possible to create one? If anyone know please let me knowOnly show products in offers based on lead source
We work with several lead sources, each with their own products and different pricing. For example, one product might have two or three different prices. Sometimes, when creating a quote, the wrong product is accidentally selected. Is there a way to onlyNarrative 7 - The importance of data sharing
Behind the scenes of a successful ticketing system - BTS Series Narrative 7 - The importance of data sharing Definition Data sharing requires a commitment to preserving the integrity and dependability of shared data throughout its entire lifecycle. ThisTrueSync regularly filling up my local disk
Seems that WorkDrive's TrueSync randomly starts filling up my local hard drive space. None of the folders have been set as "Make Offline" but still it seems to randomly start making file offline. The settings of the app is so minimal and is of no realCheck out in Meetings
Why there is no check out in Meetings of Zoho CRM, very difficult to trackIssue with Zoho Projet
Zoho Project on all the cellphones of my customer is crashing. He has mixed brands (Samsung and Pixel). Everything is fine on website and mobile website. Could not reproduce the issue in workshop using Samsung/Pixel/iPhone Uninstallation of Zoho ProjectSecurePass email English language issue -- please hire someone to correct the English language issues sprinkled throughout your interface
I wrote previously about some incorrect English in your SecurePass offering. After about six months it was corrected. I have never revoked permission before today and just discovered another language mistake that was not corrected. When you revoke a SecurePassPublished Components
@zoho team, Checking if we can add a password for the public links as we have non-licensed usersZoho Creator customer portal users
Hi, I'm in a Zoho One subscription with our company. I'm running a project now that involves creating a Zoho Creater application and using the Zoho Creator Customer Portal. At most we need 25 customer portal users. In our Zoho One plan we only get 3Please Enable Snippets for Agents Adding Comments
Snippets and templates are currently enabled for agents when they use the reply functionality. There is currently no way to add a template or snippets when an agent comments. This is really weird. Our agents don't use the reply functionality, only theTip of the Week - Extracting Data from JSON Columns
Let's say you are importing a CSV or Excel file into Zoho Analytics. What if the file contains a few columns in JSON format? This is where Zoho DataPrep, embedded right within Zoho Analytics, comes in handy. This week's tip explains how to extract dataDeluge UI Updates
Are there any updates planned for the Deluge UI in Zoho Desk? It feels quite dated and lack-lustre after you've spent some time in the CRM Deluge UI.Zia Agents - Follow Ups
It would be nice to have Zia Agents do follow ups. A lot of times agents are trying to schedule things with users and they say "can we set your printer up tomorrow?" and the user never says anything. A way to have a personalized reminder to the user automaticallyHide Agents name in Ticket Responses in "My Area"
We were able to hide the agents name in the emails, however, the customer is able to see which agent has responded to a ticket in the thread of emails by going into their Help Center thread. Is there any way we can hide that information?Option to Automatically Update Extensions
Hello Zoho Desk Team, We recently received an email notifying us about an extension update that must be done manually. We’d like to request a feature that allows extensions to be updated automatically without requiring manual intervention. This wouldEmbed Report with Auto Height
Hello Developers, When we embed report within Page, we are getting one awesome feature to adjust the report height. "Auto" and "Custom' height. This "Auto" option works well when we have no records. But I want to embed report based on some conditionsZoho Payroll: Product Updates - August 2025
This month’s updates to Zoho Payroll bring enhanced efficiency and smarter features, simplifying payroll management for users in India, UAE, KSA, and US. Read on to explore how these updates can streamline your workflow. Filter Pay Runs by Type (India,Numerical Rating for Interviewer Assessments
Introducing Numerical Rating, a powerful new addition to interviewer assessments that brings precision and flexibility to candidate evaluations. ✅ What is Numerical Rating? Numerical Rating lets interviewers assign a score for each question in the assessment,User Tips: Adding Multiple Products (Package) to a Quote v2.0 (with Client Script)
This solution is an improvement on the original idea which used deluge. My solution was posted in the comments are: https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/community/topic/adding-multiple-products-package-to-a-quote The updated version uses client script insteadAre downloadable product available in Zoho Commerce
Hi all. We're considering switching to Zoho Commerce for our shop, but we sell software and remote services. Is there a features for downloadable products? I can't find any information about this. Thank you very much AliceNeed Faster Help? Try Live Chat Support
Hello there, We understand that sometimes, whether you’re facing an issue, exploring a feature, or need quick clarification, sending an email and waiting for a response just doesn’t cut it. You need answers, and you need them now. That’s exactly why weCustom image for each contact using merge tag
Hi, I'm wondering if it's possible to set up an email campaign to display a different image for each contact using a custom field for the image url. I tried inserting custom html: <img src='$[UD:APP_IMAGE_URL||]$'/> but the editor seemed to reject this and did not actually add anything to the email template. Has anyone got any ideas? cheers, JeremyComment Reactions like a Thumbs Up
Can we please have the ability to emoji react on comments or at the very least, thumbs a comment up? Literally every other project management system out there can support this and it is very much needed to just acknowledge a comment instead of completelyZoho Mail Search Engine Sucks
Hello There! I really like all the features of Zoho Mail and I believe is way better than Gmail except for the Search Function. I believe Zoho Mail has a very poor search function, if you misspelled a word in the search box, Zoho Mail won't display anyAllow Subtasks and Task Lists to have their own Layout
I'd like to have the ability for subtasks and task lists to have their own layout. A subtask for us doesn't require all the fields that a parent task has. The subtask seems cluttered with all the extra fields. Within a project Task List had different purposes. I'd like the task layout to be different for some task lists.How to update Customers in Zoho Books through Zoho Flow?
Updating customers in Zoho Flow using a "update customer" action is deleting contact persons in Zoho Books.Conect chat of salesiq with zoho cliq
Is there any way to answer from zoho cliq the chat of salesiq initiated by customers?How to transfer credit between customers?
Hi All, We have a slightly odd situation. It happens that we have two separate customers that are related to each other personally. One customer has an amount of credit, and would like to use that credit to pay the *other* customers invoice. How wouldZoho Books Reports: Basic report with total items sold and Cost of goods sold
How can books show a report with Item Name || Qty Sold || Total Revenue || Total Cost of Goods Sold || Margin I need to factor in also invoices that have been credited where customers returned good. This seems like such a basic report, I'm sure I'm missingThe amount entered is more than the balance due for the selected bills."
Hi Team i am trying to record payments for vendors using API and getting this error in response as { "code": 28011, "message": "The amount entered is more than the balance due for the selected bills." } JSON is prepared according to Documentation andVBA handling named ranges
In VBA I'm able to work with a single cell named range. E.g. Set Jr = Range ("Year").Value. Also other options are working fine, like Range("Year").Address shows $L$3. However a named range refering to multiple cells is not working for me. Eg. tbl_TestKaizen #176 - Optimizing the Use of Record ID Variables in Zoho CRM Queries
Hello everyone! Welcome to another week of Kaizen! Since the release of Queries, we have covered Handling Query Variables in Zoho CRM, Serialization and Schema Management, and Leveraging the 'crmAPIResponse' object in Queries in previous posts. Today,Unbilled Items Report?
Hello! Is there any way to display a list of items that remain unbilled, without creating an invoice for each customer to see if the unbilled items box is displayed? ;-) BenConsolidation of Multi currency
Would like to discuss on the possibility of consolidating the ZOHO companiesLanded Cost Allocation / Custom Duty manual data entry
My client is an import business. They must manually enter the duty for each item with landed cost allocation in Bill. This is because customs duties cannot be allocated based on Quantity, Value, Weight, and Dimensions. Manual data entry is highly time-consumingTerritories Just Don't Work
I have been on chat and screenshare support for the past 3 days and am getting no resolution so hopefully, someone here can help me. I am the Super Admin of my organization. We publish books globally. I want to break down the books into territories soNegative Opening Balance
How can I add Negative Opening balance - meaning a credit balance to a Customer or a debit balance to a vendor? If I go thru Sales-->Customers, and if the opening balance is Rs. 1000 (credit balance), it does not allow me to enter a "minus" sign or mentionSingle-Line Invoicing from Sales Order Despite Multiple SKUs Shipped
We deal mostly with Government Tenders And Lets say we got a tender that needs 125 XYZ Laptops Then we found 95 Laptops with a different SKUs and 30 Laptops with different SKUs We talk with the IT department of the government company and they approve📣📣 Zoho Bookings Schedulathon 2025 is here!
Hey Zoho Bookings fam, We're excited to invite you to our first-ever hackathon: Yes, Zoho Bookings Schedulathon 2025 is live now. This is a virtual event and you can participate anywhere from the world. Businesses should be able to set up meetings fromNext Page