Salesforce Flow Orchestrator for Developers

Salesforce Flow Orchestrator extends standard Flow capabilities, allowing administrators to construct complex, multi-step automations that involve multiple users and stages. This feature is designed to leverage existing Flow assets and orchestrate them into a cohesive, end-to-end business process.

Understanding Flow Orchestrator

At its core, Flow Orchestrator is a tool for orchestrating multi-user, multi-stage, and multi-step Flows. This means you can build sequences of automations where different individuals or teams are assigned specific actions, either sequentially or in parallel. Consider employee onboarding: this process typically requires distinct actions from HR, IT, and departmental managers, often in a specific order.

Creating a Flow Orchestration

Flow Orchestrations are created within Salesforce Setup, not directly from the Automation app. Navigate to Setup, search for 'Flows' in the Quick Find box, and click 'New Flow'. On the 'New Automation' page, search for and select either:

• Autolaunched Orchestration (No Trigger)
• Record-Triggered Orchestration

These are the primary orchestration flow types, identifiable by a conductor icon.

Building a Flow Orchestration: Stages and Steps

Creating a Flow Orchestration follows a similar pattern to building standard Flows, but introduces two key concepts:

Stages

A Stage is a logical grouping of one or more Steps. Stages are executed sequentially, forming distinct phases within the overall orchestration.

Steps

A Step defines a specific action within a Stage. It specifies which Flow or Flows to run, assigns the task to a user, manages notifications, and determines where the Flow will appear. Steps within a Stage can execute sequentially or in parallel.

Stages are visualized as card groups with a blue arrow icon in the Flow Orchestrator canvas. Each Stage has Exit Conditions that can be set to trigger upon completion of all associated Steps or when a specific auto-launched Flow returns a TRUE value.

Decision Logic in Flow Orchestrator

You can implement decision logic between Stages using Decision elements. This allows for dynamic routing and skipping of certain Stages based on predefined criteria.

For example, in a new employee onboarding orchestration, a 'Laptop Setup' Stage could be bypassed if a 'Requires Laptop' checkbox on the contact record is unticked. This enables context-aware execution of steps.

Configuring Steps: Background vs. Interactive

Within each Stage, individual Steps are defined. Steps differ from Subflows primarily in how users interact with them and who is assigned to execute them.

Background Steps

These are automations that do not require direct user interaction and run in the background (similar to auto-launched Flows).

Interactive Steps

These are Screen Flows that require user input. A key advancement is the ability to trigger Screen Flows via a Record-Triggered Flow Orchestration and present them in the 'Orchestration Work Guide' component on a record page.

When constructing a Step, you must specify the Flow to execute (screen or auto-launched), the Record ID to call the Flow from, and the assigned user. The ability to assign different Steps to different users is a significant benefit.

The Flow Orchestrator Work Guide

Users assigned an Interactive Step (Screen Flow) can access it via the 'Orchestration Work Guide' component. This component needs to be added to the relevant Lightning Record Page. It serves as a centralized location for users to view and complete their assigned tasks.

Use Cases for Flow Orchestration

Flow Orchestrator is highly beneficial for processes that span multiple teams or require sequential user actions:

• Service Delivery Orchestration: Managing complex client delivery processes across various teams.
• Multi-person Approvals: Extending Approval Flows with more complex multi-stage logic.
• Escalation Processes: Routing records to different team members based on evolving criteria.
• New Employee Onboarding: Automating the entire setup process from HR confirmation to IT provisioning.

Previously, such processes might have been managed through a combination of Flows, email alerts, and manual tracking. Flow Orchestrator consolidates these into a single, auditable master flow, providing end-to-end visibility and clear ownership for each step.

Key Takeaways

• Flow Orchestrator orchestrates multi-user, multi-step, multi-stage automations.
• It utilizes Stages for sequential grouping and Steps for individual actions.
• Steps can be Background (auto-launched) or Interactive (Screen Flows).
• The Orchestration Work Guide component is crucial for presenting Interactive Steps to users.
• Ideal for complex processes requiring collaboration across multiple users or teams, enhancing visibility and control.