Description:

The Send Msg workflow step sends a message to a specified Slack channel.

This step can be used to bring workflow notifications, status information, alerts, and other process-related communication into Slack, allowing users and teams to receive workflow information without having to monitor the FlowWright application directly.

The step supports:

• Sending a message to Slack.
• Specifying the Slack channel that should receive the message.
• Using workflow values to construct the message.
• Sending workflow status updates to a team.
• Sending notifications when important workflow events occur.
• Routing workflow alerts to an appropriate Slack channel.
• Returning a True or False result for subsequent workflow processing.

Usage:

The Send Msg step is typically placed at points in a workflow where users or teams need to be informed about an event.

Typical workflow pattern:

Workflow Event → Send Msg → Continue Processing

For example:

Approval Completed → Send Msg → Update Record

The message can communicate the result of the preceding activity while the workflow continues executing.

The step is particularly useful for keeping operational teams informed about workflow activity without requiring them to open individual FlowWright process instances.

A typical workflow might look like:

Typical Workflow Suggestions:

Approval Notification

Send a Slack message when an approval has been completed.

Example:

Approval Task → Send Msg → Continue

Message:

Purchase request PR-1045 has been approved.

#approvals

Approval Rejection Notification

Use the step after a rejection path to notify the appropriate Slack channel.

Example:

Approval Task → Rejected → Send Msg → Complete

Message:

Purchase request PR-1045 was rejected.

Workflow Completion Notification

Send a message when an important workflow reaches completion.

Example:

Process Activities → Send Msg → Complete

Message:

Customer onboarding for Acme Corporation has completed successfully.

Exception or Failure Alert

Use Send Msg to alert a support or operations team when an important workflow activity fails.

Example:

Process Activity → False → Send Msg → Error Handling

Message:

Order processing failed for Order 10452.
Please investigate.

Workflow Status Updates

Use the step at significant milestones to provide workflow progress updates.

Example:

Start → Send Msg → Process Order → Send Msg → Complete

Possible messages:

Order 10452 processing has started.

Order 10452 has completed processing.

Notify Different Teams

Use different Slack channels for different types of workflow events.

For example:

Approvals  → #approvals
Operations → #operations
Support    → #support

External Integration Result

Send the result of an external integration to Slack.

Example:

Call External Service → Process Response → Send Msg

Message:

Customer synchronization completed.
External reference: 98341

SLA or Deadline Alert

Use Send Msg when a workflow reaches an important deadline or escalation condition.

Example:

Check SLA → SLA Exceeded → Send Msg → Escalation

Message:

Approval SLA exceeded for request PR-1045.

High-Priority Request Notification

Send a Slack notification when a workflow identifies a high-priority request.

Example:

Evaluate Priority → High Priority → Send Msg

Message:

High-priority customer request received.
Request ID: CR-1045

Include Workflow Information

Construct the message from workflow data so that the Slack notification contains useful context.

For example:

Request: @{RequestID}
Customer: @{CustomerName}
Status: @{RequestStatus}
Assigned To: @{AssignedUser}

Use a Dynamic Channel

Where supported by the workflow configuration, the channel can be supplied dynamically rather than hard-coded.

For example:

Department = Finance
        ↓
Channel = #finance
        ↓
Send Msg

Notify Before Continuing

Use Send Msg as a notification activity within a larger workflow.

Example:

Process Request → Send Msg → Update Database → Complete

The notification informs the team while the workflow continues with its normal processing.

Success and Failure Handling

Use the two return paths to explicitly handle the result of the Slack messaging operation.

Example:

                 ┌── True  → Continue
Send Msg ────────┤
                 └── False → Log / Retry / Alert

To use this step, we need to configure Slack settings in the FlowWright Configuration:

For more info: https://slack.com/

Example:

Let’s build and execute the “sendMessageToSlackDef” example.          

• Create a new process definition named “sendMessageToSlackDef” and open it in designer mode.
• Drag a “sendMessageToSlack” step to the canvas. 
• Connect the dots between the “Start” and “sendMessageToSlack” steps, as shown above. 
• Select the line between the steps to configure the “Connection Properties”. The default property values are “None, True, False, Error, and Evaluate”. Depending on the step’s purpose, additional values are available for configuration.
• Click the “sendMessageToSlack” step to configure its “Required” properties. Provide a name for the step, then click the Save button. Note: Click the "AI Predict" button to have the Copilot add new process steps that match your process description. 

• Click the “sendMessageToSlack” step to configure its “Advanced” properties. Enter the message text to send. Select the channel to send to. Click the Save button. 

• The “Logging” configuration is necessary for documentation and also measures workflow progress and percent complete. This is achieved by configuring the step state and percent fields individually, as shown in the images below. Configure the “Logging” using the following properties.

• Save the process definition, create a new instance, and execute it. Render the process instance. When the workflow reaches the Send Msg step, the configured message is sent to the specified Slack channel. The workflow then follows the True or False return path according to the execution result.

Tips:

• Use concise, meaningful Slack messages.
• Include sufficient workflow context so recipients understand why the message was sent.
• Include identifiers such as request numbers, order numbers, or process references when useful.
• Use separate Slack channels for different operational concerns where appropriate.
• Avoid sending excessive messages for every minor workflow activity.
• Reserve notifications for events where team awareness provides value.
• Use consistent message formats across related workflows.
• Consider including the workflow status in important notifications.
• Include the responsible team or user when relevant.
• Verify that the configured Slack channel is the intended destination.
• Test the message and channel configuration before deploying the workflow.
• Test the workflow's True path.
• Test the workflow's False path and provide suitable failure handling.
• Consider logging failures so unsuccessful notifications can be investigated.
• If the message is constructed from Variables, verify that all referenced values are populated before the step executes.
• Test messages containing empty, unexpected, or unusually long Variable values.
• If the channel is supplied dynamically, test every channel-selection path.
• Avoid hard-coding environment-specific channel names when the workflow needs to operate across multiple environments.
• Keep sensitive information out of Slack messages unless the destination and organizational policies permit it.
• Verify Slack access and integration configuration in the target environment.
• Test the workflow after migrating it to another FlowWright environment.
• Do not assume that a Slack channel available in one environment is available in another.
• Use the False path rather than assuming that message delivery will always succeed.
• When Slack communication is business-critical, consider an alternative notification or error-handling mechanism if the Slack operation fails.

Notes:

• The Send Msg step is defined in the Slack category with the internal name sendmessagetoslack, label “Send messages to Slack which brings all the communication in one place.”, and display name “Send Msg.”
• The step is implemented by FlowWright.Workflow.SendMessageToSlack in FlowWright.Workflow.dll and is defined as a Process step with 2 incoming connections and 2 outgoing connections.
• The XML defines two configurable properties:
  • message – Message to send
  • channel – Channel to send to
• Both properties use the string data type and are marked as not required.
• The string data type is implemented by FlowWright.DataTypes.ClsTextBox in FlowWright.DataTypes.dll.
• The step provides two predefined return values:
  • False
  • True

Comparison with SendMessagesToProcess:

The SendMessageToSlack and SendMessagesToProcess steps both provide message-sending capabilities, but they are intended for fundamentally different communication targets.

Definition Sample:

You may download the sample definition(s) from the link provided and later import them into your FlowWright Process Definition (XML file) or Form Definition (HTML file) page.

Note: Verify and complete any missing configuration after importing the sample, including:

• Slack integration configuration.
• Message content.
• Slack channel.
• Workflow Variable references.
• Environment-specific Slack configuration.
• Downstream True and False workflow paths.

Verify that the required Slack integration and destination channel are available in the target environment.

After verifying the configuration, save the Process Definition before execution.

Click here to download the sample file.