Atona/How it works/Workflows
Workflows

Workflows that run for weeks.

Most assistants do one thing when you ask. Atona carries out plans — onboarding clients, chasing stalled deals, coordinating group dinners — over days, across channels, without losing the thread.

In this guide: what a workflow is, how to author one, what the journal shows you, and what Atona will and won't do on its own.

What it does

A workflow is a multi-step plan that lives over time. You describe the plan in plain language. Atona runs it — sending the right message at the right time, waiting for replies, adjusting when things change, and journaling every decision so you can read along.

Workflows are how Atona handles the things that take a smart human assistant longer than a single sitting: onboarding a new client, chasing an unanswered intro, running a weekly check-in, or coordinating a dinner with five people who can't agree on a date.

Onboarding · Sarah ChenActive workflow
In progress

Try saying

Anything that needs more than one step, over more than one moment.

"

Onboard Sarah from the design team.

"

Follow up with anyone who hasn't replied to last week's intro.

"

Coordinate dinner with Alex, Jordan, and Sam — Friday night, downtown.

"

Run my weekly check-in with the team every Monday at 9.

How it works

1

Write the plan in plain language

No syntax, no flowchart. "Email the contractor on Monday. If they don't reply by Wednesday, follow up. Confirm the schedule by Friday." That's a workflow.

2

Atona takes over

It picks the right channel, the right tone, and the right time. It waits when it should wait. It acts when it should act. It escalates to you when it isn't sure.

3

Read along in the journal

Every workflow keeps a record — every event, every decision, every message sent and received. Open it any time to see exactly what Atona did, when, and why.

4

Edit mid-flight

Change the plan whenever you like. Add a step. Change the deadline. Atona picks up the change on its next pass — without restarting the workflow.

What you control

Pause and resume

Stop a workflow at any point. Resume it later — Atona picks up where it left off.

Edit while it's running

Change the plan and Atona adapts. No need to restart, no lost progress.

Set follow-up budgets

Cap how many times Atona will retry — say, three follow-ups, then stop.

Require approval

Have Atona queue every external message for your review before it goes out.

What Atona will not do

Common questions

How is a workflow different from a task?

A task is one action — "send this email", "book this restaurant". A workflow is a plan that runs over time, across channels, with branching decisions. Tasks finish in seconds. Workflows finish in days.

What happens if someone doesn't reply?

Atona follows up on the schedule you set, and after a configurable number of attempts, escalates to you and pauses the workflow.

Can I see what Atona is about to do next?

Yes. Every workflow shows a "next" indicator with the upcoming action and the time it's scheduled for. Nothing is hidden.

Can I run multiple workflows at once?

Yes. Workflows are independent and run in parallel.

What's actually in the journal?

Every event, every decision, every message sent and received, and the reasoning behind each choice. It's an honest, complete record — not a summary.

Related guides

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