Scheduled Action
A Scheduled Action in Salesforce is a time-based automated action that executes at a specified interval before or after a trigger event, such as a record creation date or a field value change.
Definition
A Scheduled Action in Salesforce is a time-based automated action that executes at a specified interval before or after a trigger event, such as a record creation date or a field value change. Used within Flow Builder and previously in Process Builder and Workflow Rules, scheduled actions enable administrators to automate follow-ups, reminders, escalations, and other time-sensitive business processes without writing code.
In plain English
“Imagine you set a reminder on your phone to water your plants every three days. A Scheduled Action works the same way in Salesforce - you tell it "after a new customer signs up, wait 7 days, then send them a welcome email." Salesforce remembers to do it for you automatically, so nothing falls through the cracks.”
Worked example
A real estate company configures a Scheduled Action in Flow Builder for their lead follow-up process. When a new lead submits an inquiry through the website, the flow creates the Lead record immediately and schedules three actions: an automated welcome email sent 1 hour later, a task assigned to the sales rep 24 hours later to make a phone call, and an escalation email to the sales manager if the lead status has not changed after 72 hours.
Why Scheduled Action matters
Scheduled Actions are a core building block of time-based automation in Salesforce. They allow administrators to define actions that fire at a specific time relative to a record event - for example, 3 days after an Opportunity close date, 1 hour before a meeting, or 7 days after a Case is created. This time-based execution model is essential for business processes that require follow-up, nurturing, or escalation workflows.
In modern Salesforce development, Scheduled Actions are implemented through Scheduled-Triggered Flows and Scheduled Paths within Record-Triggered Flows. These replace the legacy Workflow Rule time triggers and Process Builder scheduled actions. Flow-based scheduled actions offer greater flexibility, support complex branching logic, and can be monitored and debugged through Flow Interviews, making them more maintainable and powerful than their predecessors.
How to set up Scheduled Action
Scheduled Actions are time-based automation actions that execute X minutes / hours / days after a trigger event — "send a follow-up email 3 days after Case creation," "create an escalation task 1 hour before SLA breach." Modern Salesforce uses Flow's Wait elements; legacy systems used Process Builder Scheduled Paths or Workflow Time-Dependent Actions.
- For modern setups: build in Flow Builder
Setup → Flows → New Flow → Record-Triggered Flow → after-save mode. Add a Scheduled Path.
- Set the Scheduled Path's offset and time-source field
Offset: X minutes / hours / days. Time Source: a field on the record (CreatedDate, custom date) that anchors the schedule.
- Add the actions that should fire on schedule
After the Scheduled Path element, add Update Records / Send Email / Create Records elements. They execute when the schedule fires.
- Save and Activate the Flow
Active flows queue scheduled actions when matching records are created/updated. Inactive flows don't queue.
- For legacy: see workflow-time-trigger and process-builder Scheduled Paths
Legacy paths exist but are deprecated for new development.
- Monitor the queue
Setup → Paused and Failed Flow Interviews shows pending scheduled flow runs. Setup → Monitor Workflow Services shows legacy Time-Based Workflow Queue.
Recommended for new automation.
Deprecated.
Deprecated.
- Scheduled actions queue based on the trigger time, not the action time. Editing the underlying record may move or remove queue entries depending on flow / rule re-evaluation logic.
- Failed scheduled actions accumulate. Periodic cleanup of Paused and Failed Flow Interviews / Time-Based Workflow Queue is necessary org hygiene.
- Schedule offset is calculated in Salesforce server time (UTC by default unless you specify timezone-aware date formula). Misalignments produce off-by-hours surprises across timezones.
How organizations use Scheduled Action
Uses scheduled actions in their renewal process. Sixty days before a contract end date, a task is created for the account manager to begin renewal discussions. At thirty days, an automated email goes to the customer with renewal options. At seven days, if the contract status has not changed, the case is escalated to the renewals manager.
Configured scheduled actions for their onboarding workflow. After a new customer's first login, the system waits 48 hours and checks whether the customer has completed their profile setup. If not, it sends a helpful reminder email with step-by-step instructions and creates a follow-up task for the customer success team.
Implemented a lead nurturing sequence using scheduled actions. When a lead downloads a whitepaper, the flow schedules a follow-up email three days later with related content, another email seven days later with a case study, and a task for the sales rep at fourteen days to make direct outreach.
Trust & references
Straight from the source - Salesforce's reference material on Scheduled Action.
- FlowSalesforce Help
Test your knowledge
Q1. What is a Scheduled Action in Salesforce?
Q2. What is the recommended modern approach for creating scheduled actions in Salesforce?
Q3. Why is it important to add a condition check on a scheduled action?
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