Triggers and Actions

Reference for all available triggers, actions, and utilities in the workflow builder

The workflow builder provides three categories of components you can use to build your blocks: Triggers, Actions, and Utilities. This page is a reference for all available options.

Some triggers and actions are ATS-specific — they are only available when you have a particular ATS connected, and will display the ATS logo on them. Others are global and available to everyone.

Triggers

Triggers are events that start a block. Every block must begin with exactly one trigger.

Application Workflow Triggers

Trigger	Description
New Application	A new candidate applies or is submitted to a job
Candidate Matched	Alex matches a candidate to a job via Search and Match
Interview Completed	A candidate finishes an interview
Interview Missed	A candidate misses a scheduled interview
Interview Scheduled	A candidate schedules an interview
Manually Invited	A candidate is manually invited from the Alex dashboard
Webhook Received	An external webhook is received
Decision Updated	A candidate’s decision status changes (shortlisted, rejected, etc.)
Interview Incomplete	A candidate starts but does not complete an interview

Job Workflow Triggers

Trigger	Description
New Job from ATS	A new job is detected in your ATS

Depending on your ATS, you may also have ATS-specific triggers (e.g., candidate moved to a specific stage in Greenhouse, new submission in Bullhorn). These will appear automatically when your ATS is connected.

Actions

Actions are the steps Alex takes after a trigger fires. They run sequentially from top to bottom.

Communication Actions

Action	Description
Send Email	Send an email to the candidate, recruiter, or other recipients
Send SMS	Send a text message to the candidate
Phone Call	Have Alex call the candidate

ATS Sync Actions

These actions write data back to your ATS. The specific fields and options available depend on your ATS integration.

Action	Description
Create Note	Add a note to the candidate’s profile in the ATS
Update Application Stage	Move the candidate to a different stage/status in the ATS
Update Candidate Field	Update a field on the candidate entity in the ATS
Update Custom Field	Update a custom field in the ATS
Update Job Field	Update a field on the job entity in the ATS
Update Submission Field	Update a field on the submission entity in the ATS
Upload Candidate File	Attach a file (e.g., PDF report) to the candidate’s ATS profile

Job Workflow Actions

Action	Description
Configure Job	Set up a job in Alex with rounds, interview guides, and settings. Only available in job workflows.
API Request	Send a request to an external API. Available in job workflows.

Utilities

Utilities are special actions that control the flow of your workflow — adding conditional logic, delays, and round progression.

Flow Control

Utility	Description
Initiate Outreach	A group container that holds the outreach steps (emails, SMS, calls, waits) for a round. On an AI interview round it invites the candidate to the interview; on a human round it sends a scheduling link to hand the candidate off to a recruiter or hiring manager (requires the Coordinator add-on). Any invite/scheduling email must live inside this group.
Move to Round	Move the candidate to another round in the interview process.
Wait	Pause for a specified amount of time before continuing to the next action.

Conditional Logic

Utility	Description
Is	Branch based on conditions using Alex’s native fields (score, name, location, etc.). Creates Yes/No paths.
Filter By Candidate	Query your ATS to check conditions against the candidate entity. Creates Yes/No paths.
Filter By Job	Query your ATS to check conditions against the job entity. Creates Yes/No paths.
Filter By Application	Query your ATS to check conditions against the application/submission entity. Creates Yes/No paths.
Filter By Application (Alex)	Check the application’s own Alex record — its decision, applied date, withdrawn state, and every Alex session on that application (status, recency, decision). Unlike Filter By Candidate, its Sessions array is scoped to the one application, making it the way to gate Decision Updated branches on whether the application was ever interviewed (e.g. Sessions is empty). Creates Yes/No paths.

Initiate Outreach Groups

The Initiate Outreach group is a container that wraps a round’s outreach sequence — the emails, SMS, calls, and waits Alex runs to reach the candidate. Place any ATS updates, notifications, conditions, or Move to Round steps before the Initiate Outreach group; the outreach steps live inside it.

The group’s behavior follows the round type:

• AI interview round — the outreach invites the candidate to the AI interview.
• Human round — the outreach sends a scheduling link and hands the candidate off to the assigned recruiter or hiring manager. Requires the Coordinator add-on — see Coordinator.

ATS-Specific Components

Some triggers and actions are only available with certain ATS integrations. You’ll recognize them by the ATS logo displayed on the component. These provide deeper integration with your specific ATS, such as:

• ATS-specific triggers (e.g., candidate moved to a specific stage)
• ATS-specific field updates
• ATS-specific file upload options

The available ATS-specific components will appear automatically in the sidebar when your ATS is connected.

Custom Actions

If you need a trigger or action that isn’t currently available, reach out to our customer success team. We can look into adding custom actions tailored to your use case, which you can then use in your workflows like any other action.