Use the Find Object step to apply actions, like sending a message, updating a task or creating an invoice draft, to multiple items (tasks, budgets, deals, forms, or invoices) that meet specific conditions, on a schedule you define.

Unlike automations triggered by user actions (like creating or updating a task), Find Object works with time-based triggers and runs actions on each matching item individually. It’s ideal for recurring workflows, status check-ins, or task follow-ups.

You’ll see the Find Object step only when using the “At a Specific Time” trigger. In this setup:

1) Go to Settings > Automations and click + New Automation.
​

2) In the When step, select At a Specific Time, then click Continue.
​

3) Choose how often the automation should run—daily, weekly, or monthly—and click Save.
​

4) In the next step, select Find Objects then click Next.
​

5) Choose the type of object: tasks, deals, budgets, invoices, or forms, then click Continue.
​

6) Add filters to narrow your search.

📌 Note: If no filters are set, the automation will include all objects of the selected type. Filtering is recommended to avoid running actions on irrelevant items.

In the example below, we selected our trigger to happen every Friday at 4:00 PM. The rule will then look for tasks within the Website Redesign Project in a Critical status.

7) Click Save, then define the actions you want to run for each item (Then step).
​

8) Choose what should happen for each matching item:

9) Set up your action and click Save.
​

In the example below, we selected the Create Comment action. For each task that meets the conditions (e.g., in the Website Redesign project and marked as Critical), Productive will leave a comment highlighting the status and tagging the assignee to prompt a review or update.

📌 Good to Know: The Find Object step creates its own block. If needed, you can add multiple actions (Then steps) within this block, and they’ll run for each object that matches your filters.
​

10) Click the plus sign (+) outside the Find Object block to add another block or an action that runs once per automation (not per object).
​

11) To save your automation rule, select Save in the upper-right corner (or Save Changes if you edited an existing rule), name your rule, and optionally, add a description, and you'll be ready to set it live!
​

You can add multiple Find Object blocks in a single automation. This lets you:

In the example below:

📌 You can also place actions outside the Find Object blocks to run once per automation, regardless of how many objects were found.

1) What happens if no items match my filters?
No actions inside the Find Object block will run.

2) Will every action in the block run for each item?
Yes—all actions inside a Find Object block are applied to each item that matches your filters.

3) Can I use more than one Find Object block in a single automation?
Yes, you can use multiple blocks—for example, one for tasks, another for deals, and a third for forms.

4) What happens if one action in the block fails?
If an action fails for a specific item (e.g., trying to assign a task to someone who’s not on the project), the remaining actions in that block will still run for other items that match the filter.

5) But what if I have multiple actions for each item and the first one fails?
If the first action fails for a specific item, the subsequent actions for that same item will not run. However, the actions will still run for other items that match the filter.
​

6) Is there a limit to how many Find Object blocks I can use?
There’s no fixed limit, but keep in mind that each action in each block contributes to your monthly automation run quota.

7) What if I go over the run quota during an automation?
If executing a block would exceed your available runs, that block will be skipped—and the rest of the automation (including other blocks or actions outside them) won’t run.

Here are a few ways teams are using this feature (click to expand 👇).