Kaizen #154 - Dynamically Update Picklist Values in Zoho CRM Workflows

Hello all!

Welcome back to another interesting Kaizen post.

Today, we will discuss how to add automatically or remove values from a picklist field using Deluge within a workflow. This post serves as a solution for the forum post.

Use case

The sales team migrates users from Pipedrive to Zoho CRM. In Pipedrive, the team managed deals using a Kanban view displayed based on the Closing Months (a picklist field). They automated the updating of picklist values to include current and upcoming months based on the deals' closing timelines. 

In Zoho CRM, to replicate this process, users should manually update the picklist values. The requirement is to automate updating the picklist options during record creation or editing within a workflow.

Solution

By triggering the PATCH Fields API (introduced in V6) through a Deluge function within a workflow, this process can be easily automated. Automating picklist updates saves time, reduces the chances of human error, and ensures that picklist values are always up-to-date.

• First, create a custom picklist field called "Closing Month" in the Deals module.
• Then, use the custom picklist along with the Closing Date (a mandatory field date field in the Deals module) within a Deluge function in the Workflow. 
• The PATCH Fields API can be used within the Deluge function to automate updating picklist values and to list the current and upcoming closing dates in deals.

Let us see the steps in detail on how to achieve this case.

Example

Consider the Closing Month as a custom picklist in the Deals module with three months: January, February, and March. Whenever a new deal is created and its closing month matches one of the picklist values, the record will be updated with the corresponding month in the Closing Month field and placed under the existing picklist value in the Kanban view. If the new closing month is not already in the picklist values, then the Deluge function will automatically create a new picklist value, and the record will fall under the new picklist value section in the Kanban view. 

Follow the steps below to achieve our case in Zoho CRM:

1. Create a Custom Picklist Field in the Deals module.
2. Set Up a Workflow.
3. Add a Deluge Function within a workflow.
4. Configure the Workflow.
   

1. Create a Custom Picklist Field in the Deals Module

• Go to Setup > Customization > Modules and Fields.
• Select the Deals module and the desired layout where you want to add the picklist.
• Click on New Fields and then Add New Field.
• Select Picklist as the field type, name it "Closing Month", and add a list of months (In this post, only three months have been added for example purposes).
  

                                  

• Click Done to save the new picklist field.

2. Set Up a Workflow

• Navigate to Setup > Automation > Workflow Rules.
• Click on Create Rule, select the Deals module, and name the workflow in the Rule Name.
• Set the rule to trigger on record creation or update.

                               

The workflow triggers based on the value of the Closing Date in the Deals module, executing the function when the Closing Date is not empty.

3. Add a Deluge Function within a workflow

You can either create a custom function or you can associate an existing one. Below is the Deluge code used within the workflow. 

1. //To map months with Numbers
2. month = {1:"Jan",2:"Feb",3:"Mar",4:"Apr",5:"May",6:"June",7:"Jul",8:"Aug",9:"Sep",10:"Oct",11:"Nov",12:"Dec"};
3. //To retrieve the Deal record
4. dealRecord = zoho.crm.getRecordById("Deals",dealRecordID);
5. info dealRecord;
6. //To retrieve the Closing Date
7. closingDate = dealRecord.get("Closing_Date");
8. info closingDate; 
9. //To get the predefined value from the closing month
10. closingMonth = month.get(closingDate.month());
11. closingYear = closingDate.year();
12. //To Format the Month and Year from the Closing Date
13. picklistValue = closingMonth + " " + closingYear;
14. info picklistValue;
15. //Retrieving Current Picklist Values
16. Dealsfield = invokeurl
17. [
18. url :"https://www.zohoapis.com/crm/v7/settings/fields/5725767000003664513?module=deals"
19. type :GET
20. connection:"zohocrm"
21. ];
22. info Dealsfield;
23. picklistValues = Dealsfield.get("fields").get(0).get("pick_list_values");
24. info picklistValues;
25. //Checking if the Picklist Value Already Exists
26. flag = false;
27. for each  option in picklistValues
28. {
29. if(option.get("display_value").equals(picklistValue))
30. {
31.   flag = true;
32.   info flag;
33. }
34. }
35. //Adding a New Picklist Value if It Doesn't Exist
36. if(flag == false)
37. {
38. requestBody = Map();
39. requestList = List();
40. requestData = Map();
41. picklist = list();
42. picklistobj = Map();
43. picklistobj.put("display_value",picklistValue);
44. picklist.add(picklistobj);
45. requestData.put("pick_list_values",picklist);
46. requestList.add(requestData);
47. requestBody.put("fields",requestList);
48. info requestBody + "";
49. updateField = invokeurl
50. [
51.   url :"https://www.zohoapis.com/crm/v7/settings/fields/5725767000003664513?module=deals"
52.   type :PATCH
53.   parameters:requestBody + ""
54.   connection:"zohocrm"
55. ];
56. info updateField;
57. }
58. //To update the Deal Record
59. requestBody = Map();
60. requestList = List();
61. requestData = Map();
62. requestData.put("Closing_Month",picklistValue);
63. requestList.add(requestData);
64. requestBody.put("data",requestList);
65. info requestBody + "";
66. dealreecordUpdate = invokeurl
67. [
68. url :"https://www.zohoapis.com/crm/v7/Deals/" + dealRecordID
69. type :PUT
70. parameters:requestBody + ""
71. connection:"zohocrm"
72. ];
73. info dealreecordUpdate;

4. Configure the Workflow

Create a custom function by clicking the New Function or associate an existing one to the workflow. In our case, the deluge program has already been written and configured (associated) to the workflow. 

                            

• Under the workflow actions, select Function and choose the function you created.
• Ensure that the function is set to run when the workflow is triggered.
  

Creating a Deal with a Closing Date of January 2nd (Using an Existing Picklist Value)

                                               

Creating a Deal with a Closing Date of April 1st (Adding a New Picklist Value)

The new picklist value, which was not a value previously, has now been added to the picklist.

You can add values to a picklist field using the PATCH Field API. To remove an option from a picklist, use the Update Custom Layout API. Refer to the Sample input to mark picklist options as unused section in the Layouts API documentation.​

Cheers!!!

Related Links

• Configuring Workflow Rules
• Workflow Scenarios
• Workflow Suggestions by Zia
• FAQs: Workflow Rules
  
• Functions

Additional Links

• Zoho CRM V6 APIs
• Zoho CRM V7 APIs

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