In the world of managing multiple projects, there is a lot to handle, from tracking due dates and managing task approvals to addressing CSATs and handling form responses. But what if you could manage these workflows through automation?

That is where Rocketlane comes in. Automations seamlessly integrate into your projects. They keep an eye on due date changes, task approvals, and status updates, stepping in to prevent project delays due to manual intervention.

You are in control. These automations can be customized to match your unique workflow. If you are not sure where to start, Rocketlane offers a carefully curated library of automations that you can plug into your projects.

Do it the Automations way

With automations as your sidekick, you can streamline your workflows effortlessly. So, what can these powerful automations do for you?

Let's quickly learn automations through an example.

An automation rule consists of a trigger, a condition, and an action.

• Trigger: The component that sets the automation rule in motion.
• Condition: The set of requirements that the automation must meet to run.
• Action: The resulting outcome of the automation rule running successfully.

Short on time? Watch the video below.

Let's consider a scenario where the project owner needs to act on any overdue task that exceeds three days.

Here:

• When any task is overdue is the trigger.
• Exceeds 3 days is the condition.
• Notify project owner is the action.

Add a trigger

Automations are always on the lookout for an event to happen to get triggered. In our example, the trigger will execute when the system identifies an overdue task. You can start by setting up this trigger.

Set up the condition

The automation then checks for certain conditions it needs to meet before firing.

• In our example, the task should have been overdue for 3 days for it to match the condition. Set it up.
• You can add more conditions to the automation rule. If any of these conditions are not met, the automation will fail to execute.
• The conditions can be set to match All or Any of the filters.

For example, you can choose Matches All and add conditions like Where at risk is true and Where priority is high.

Execute the action

The action that results from the automation being triggered and meeting the conditions is the success of the automation. In our example, if the project owner is notified of the overdue task within three days, it is the result of a successfully executed automation.

You can also update the project owner as an assignee for this task by adding another action.

You can have multiple action blocks for your workflow. For example, if the same task exceeds 5 days and 7 days, other project stakeholders like the BU head and CEO can also be notified using automations.

Now that we understand the capabilities and workings of automations, let's explore the various ways Rocketlane empowers you to implement them.

Rocketlane offers various ways for you to use automations. You can create a standardized automation blueprint that can be applied to specific projects by configuring automations at a template level. Click here to learn more.

Alternatively, if you want to optimize workflows across all your projects, phases, and tasks, you can use Global Automations to configure account-wide automation rules. Click here to learn more.

Here is how Rocketlane uses triggers, conditions, and actions in automations.

Using Automation Triggers

Triggers look out for events like status changes, task approvals, and CSAT ratings to kick-start an automation rule. These events can take place on a project, phase, task, or form. Rocketlane enables you to set up triggers specific to projects, phases, tasks, and forms.

For example, whenever a status change happens on projects and you have set up a status changed project trigger, it will kick-start the automation rule. The same applies for phases and tasks. Rocketlane also enables triggers to be set up on forms, so that you can automate the next set of actions that follow form response submission.

Here is a quick breakdown of how triggers work in Rocketlane.

A trigger can be set off for a phase but carry out actions on projects, phases, or forms. Here is a quick example:

Trigger: When the status of the phase Go-live changes to Completed, then mark the status of the project as Completed.

Project triggers

More on how to set up automations that run on project triggers here.

Phase triggers

More on how to set up automations that run on phase triggers here.

Task triggers

More on how to set up automations that run on task triggers here.

Form triggers

Form triggers include all task triggers, plus the triggers listed below.

More on how to set up automations that run on form triggers here.

Using Automation Conditions

Automations can be customized and made more flexible by using conditions to control their flow. Conditions are specific criteria that must be met for an automated rule to take effect. They act as checkpoints, determining when actions should be executed and under what circumstances. If the conditions are satisfied, the automations will run successfully. Otherwise, they will remain inactive.

You can add as many conditions as required and ensure All or Any of the conditions are met for the automation rule to trigger.

Example for Match All conditions:

Trigger: When assignee is updated.
Condition: Where At risk is true and where Priority is high.
Action: Then notify Project Manager.

Here, the automation will notify the project manager only if the task is at risk and has a high priority.

Example for Match Any conditions:

Trigger: When assignee is updated.
Condition: Where At risk is true or where Priority is high.
Action: Then notify Project Manager.

Here, the automation will notify the project manager if the task is at risk or has a high priority.

Here is the list of conditions, filters, and advanced options.

Using Automation actions

When it comes to automations, actions are the specific steps that are carried out in the automation rule. These actions are the end results of an automated workflow and can cover various activities, such as sending emails, updating assignees, notifying someone, and more.

These actions can be performed on projects, phases, tasks, and forms. An automation rule can also perform more than one action.

For example:

Trigger: When assignee is updated.

Action block 1:
Condition: If the assignee updated on a task is empty.
Action 1: Update assignee as Customer Success.
Action 2: Notify project owner.

Rearrange and delete actions

• You can rearrange actions inside an action block using the sort icon.
• Click the cross mark to delete any action.

Action block 2: You can have more than one action block set up for an automation rule and use one rule to perform a set of actions if the predefined conditions are met. For example, if assignee is not empty, send a new message on task to initiate the task.