Understanding Kinetic Workflows

In Kinetic, a workflow is everything that happens after a form is submitted. But it’s more than a simple sequence, it's a powerful engine for enforcing business rules, automating actions, and integrating with the systems your teams rely on.

Need Jane to approve a laptop order? Roger to deploy a dev server in Dallas? The workflow engine makes it happen, automatically, visibly, and without manual handoffs.

Why Kinetic Workflows Matter

Transparency: Know exactly what’s happening and where something’s stuck.
Reusability: Build once, reuse often — routines and integrations can be shared across workflows.
Modularity: Forms, workflows, and UI are decoupled, so each can evolve independently.
Self-documenting: The structure of your process is the documentation.

Workflow Architecture

Kinetic workflows are built using four core elements:

Component	Purpose
Trees	Define where the workflow starts and how it proceeds
Routines	Reusable chunks of logic shared across workflows
Connections & Operations	External system integrations, built and triggered within workflows
Connectors	Decision logic that controls dynamic flow

Trees

A tree is the top-level map of a workflow. Triggered when a form is submitted, trees guide execution through a series of nodes (routines, operations, and connectors).

Each tree:

Starts with a webhook from a form
Includes a visual path of logic and integrations
Is purpose-built for one type of process (e.g., onboarding, access request)

Routines

Routines are reusable pieces of logic that can be embedded in multiple workflows. Think of them as “workflow snippets," like a pre-built block for sending a templated email or assigning tasks to a team.

Use cases include:

Sending consistent approval notifications
Calculating due dates based on SLA attributes
Performing a common data lookup

Connections & Operations

This is the core of Kinetic’s integration framework.

Connections define how Kinetic talks to an external system (e.g., Salesforce, Slack, Active Directory).
Operations define what Kinetic should do with that system (e.g., Create Record, Lookup User, Send Message).

Together, they allow you to:

Integrate without custom code
Test and configure directly in the platform
Reuse across trees and routines

Example: A “New Hire” tree might use a connection to Active Directory and an operation to provision a new account.

Connectors

Connectors are the logic gates of your workflow. They determine which path to take based on data, approvals, or form input.

Examples:

If the requester is remote → assign laptop + phone
If the amount is over $1,000 → route to finance for approval

They make workflows dynamic, conditional, and responsive to input.

Where Workflows Live

Workflows can exist at different levels, depending on the scope:

Scope	Use Case
Space	Cross-Kapp logic like global notifications or logging
Kapp	Shared processes for a business domain or department
Form	Specific logic tied to a single submission

What’s Next

This overview sets the foundation. In the following sections, we’ll cover:

How to build trees, routines, and operations
Designing smart, reusable workflows
Debugging and monitoring workflows
Using attributes to drive logic dynamically