Can a Sheet Summary field be included in a workflow automation?

Greg Arnson · 03/23/21

In the SUBJECT LINE of a workflow automation UPDATE REQUEST email, I'd like to include a sheet summary field by using {{sheet summary field}}. Is this possible?

Andrée Starå · 03/23/21

Hi @Greg Arnson

I hope you're well and safe!

Yes, but you'd need to add so-called helper column(s) referencing the sheet summary fields and then reference the helper columns in the workflows.

Make sense?

Would that work/help?

I hope that helps!

Be safe and have a fantastic day!

Best,

Andrée Starå | Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

✅Did my post(s) help or answer your question or solve your problem? Please help the Community by marking it as the accepted answer/helpful. It will make it easier for others to find a solution or help to answer!

Greg Arnson · 03/23/21

I think that would work using a column formula to ensure the helper column is always filled out (and no manual effort required). Thanks.

Andrée Starå · 03/23/21

Hi @Greg Arnson

I hope you're well and safe!

Yes, but you'd need to add so-called helper column(s) referencing the sheet summary fields and then reference the helper columns in the workflows.

Make sense?

Would that work/help?

I hope that helps!

Be safe and have a fantastic day!

Best,

Andrée Starå | Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

✅Did my post(s) help or answer your question or solve your problem? Please help the Community by marking it as the accepted answer/helpful. It will make it easier for others to find a solution or help to answer!

Greg Arnson · 03/23/21

I think that would work using a column formula to ensure the helper column is always filled out (and no manual effort required). Thanks.

Andrée Starå · 03/24/21

@Greg Arnson

Excellent!

You're more than welcome!

Brook Waddell · 03/10/22

@Andrée Starå So the real answer is "no" there isn't a way to include Summary information within the Automation Workflow, right? If you have to have a "helper column" to reference Summary information, what's the point of having Summary information in the first place. Just use "helper columns" and be done with it.

The lack of this ability is incredibly frustrating when using the Jira Connector to populate data within Smartsheet. You don't want "helper columns" on a sheet that's being fed information from Jira (or any other source), as things stop functioning properly.

Andrée Starå · 03/10/22

Hi @Brook Waddell

I hope you're well and safe!

I'm afraid I have to disagree. It's possible, but not in the way that we would prefer. Some things wouldn't work without the Sheet Summary feature. For example, I am adding the information from the Sheet Summary to a column and converting it to a Column Formula.

Make sense?

I hope that helps!

Be safe and have a fantastic week!

Best,

Andrée Starå | Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

✅Did my post(s) help or answer your question or solve your problem? Please support the Community by marking it Insightful/Vote Up or/and as the accepted answer. It will make it easier for others to find a solution or help to answer!

Greg Arnson · 03/10/22

The problem with that solution Andree is that it requires a new column for each summary field and depending on how many rows in your sheet, the column formulas make you hit the sheet's formula capacity/limit a lot faster (and slow down the sheet's performance much quicker). Being able to reference summary fields would also help when building blueprints in control center. This seems like a relatively straight-forward enhancement request that could alleviate many headaches.

Andrée Starå · 03/10/22

@Greg Arnson

I agree, and I would love to have the ability to reference Sheet Summary fields because it would simplify when developing client solutions in general.

But until then, this is a viable workaround, I think.

Ellen Moore · 11/13/23

I thought I'd also vote for being able to use summary sheet information in automations (and also be able to reference the summary in specific cells using a formula. Having to create a column with the summary information really clutters up the sheet and makes the summary sheet much less useful. Hope that update can happen!!!

Topher Barnett · 01/29/24

I need this too.

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Can a Sheet Summary field be included in a workflow automation?

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