> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://forest-chore-open-api.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Executing workflows

> Trigger and monitor multi-step workflows from Forest.

Workflows in Forest let operators run multi-step operational processes, KYC reviews, refunds, customer onboarding, supplier onboarding, incident response, directly from the operations UI, without scripts or developer involvement. Each workflow combines data, actions, AI-powered steps, and decisions into a single guided sequence with full audit trail.

For developers building or configuring workflows, see [Workflows (process)](/product/process/workflows/overview). This page is for operators executing them.

## What a workflow does

A workflow chains multiple operations into a single automated sequence. Examples:

* **KYC review**: load customer record → fetch KYB documents → AI summarizes red flags → operator decision → trigger compliance action → log result
* **Customer refund**: validate eligibility → check balance → trigger Stripe refund → notify customer → close ticket
* **Supplier onboarding**: create account → request documents → AI validates submission → escalate exceptions → finalize contract

Each step is recorded, every decision, every input, every action triggered, producing a full decision trace operators (and auditors) can replay.

## Where workflows are triggered

Workflows can be executed from:

* The **List View** (on a single record)
* The **Summary** or **Details view** of a record
* A **Workspace**

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The workflow opens in a guided panel. The user works through each step; the workflow context accumulates as they go.

## AI-powered steps

The **Get Data**, **Update Data**, **Trigger Action**, and **MCP Task** steps surface the relevant data or actions automatically based on the workflow's context. Each completed step adds to that context, helping the AI suggest better defaults and pre-fills for subsequent steps, for example, pre-filling fields when updating a record, or composing an email with the right context when notifying a customer through a tool like Zendesk.

Every AI-powered step provides a **Handle Manually** option, letting users bypass the AI suggestion if it isn't relevant or if the AI hits an error. Subsequent steps then lack that context, which may affect downstream steps.

## Automated steps

Some steps run without user input, typically AI-powered steps and certain Decisions. If the AI lacks context to make a confident decision, or if a third-party system is unresponsive, the user is prompted to take over (same as **Handle Manually**).

## Saving and resuming

A workflow can be paused at any time. The user is prompted to **Save** or **Abort** it. Saved workflows can be resumed by another user, after any length of time:

* They resume automatically when triggered from a record's Summary View or a Workspace
* They appear under **To Continue** when the workflow is accessed from the List View or Record View

This is how queue handoffs work, one operator starts a case, leaves it for review, another picks it up.

## Revising steps

Workflows reduce mistakes in complex processes, but errors still happen. To correct something, go back to a completed step and click **Revise** to redo it.

Since workflows can branch based on user choices, revising a step **cancels any steps completed after it**, ensuring the workflow follows the correct path based on the updated input.

## Audit trail

Every workflow execution is recorded. The full sequence of steps, decisions, inputs, and outputs is replayable in read-only mode from the workflow list on the record. Every interaction is also logged in your **Activity Logs**, accessible from the Reports tab or via the [public API](/reference/api/endpoints/activity-logs) for audit and compliance reporting.

## Permissions

Workflow execution is governed by the standard role and team permission system. A user can only:

* See workflows their team has access to
* Trigger steps for which their role has the required permissions
* Access data and actions inside steps based on their scopes

See [Roles & permissions](/get-started/control/roles-permissions) for configuration.