When status changes, connect
TL;DR: When an item's status changes to a value you pick, this recipe searches another board for matching items and connects them through a connect column. Connection only — no ongoing sync. Use when items shouldn't link until they reach a specific stage (Won, Approved, Ready for handoff).
What this does
Recipe: "When status changes to something, connect with connect column all/first items on another board where this column matches another column using this logic and this logic."
Watches a status column on this board. When an item's status hits the value you specified, the recipe scans the other board for matching items (using the comparison logic you pick) and writes the link to your connect column. You also choose whether to link all matching items or just the first.
Connection only — no ongoing column sync. For the two-way sync variant, see Related.
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When to use it
- Sales pipeline: deals only link to the delivery board once their status hits Won
- Approval gates: items only connect to the production board once they reach Approved
- Triage: support tickets only link to engineering when status changes to Escalated
This recipe is connect-only. For the same trigger AND ongoing two-way sync, use When status changes, connect + sync . For the same connect pattern triggered on item creation instead of status change, see When an item is created, connect to a match . For all connect variants, see Connect items across boards .
Before you start
- A Connect Boards column on this board, configured to point at the target board (see Setting up Connect Boards columns )
- A status column on this board with the trigger value already defined
- A matching key column on each board (e.g. Email, SKU, Client ID) with values that overlap
- Decide all/first behavior and comparison logic
Create a Connect Boards Column
1. Click the Add column button on the right side of your board.
2. Click Connect boards from the dropdown menu.
3. Click Select boards in the pop-up modal.
4. Select the specific board you want to connect to and make sure to tick the "Set as a two-way connection" checkbox at the bottom.
5. Click the Connect boards button in the bottom right corner.
6. Click I'll do it later to skip creating mirror columns.
You don't need a mirror column — it cannot save an actual value inside it which means you cannot sync it. Mirror columns can only display values which means you can't use them in most automations. Our Connected Boards Automations app takes care of the direct syncing of column values across different boards so you won't have to "display" values using mirror columns.
Set it up (3 minutes)
Select the Automation Template
7. Click Automate in the top right header of the board.
8. Search for Connected Boards Automations in the search field and click on the app card.
9. Find the recipe "When status changes to something, connect with connect column all/first items on another board where this column matches another column using this logic and this logic." Click Use template.
Configure the Automation Recipe
Follow these steps to plug these parameters into the sentence-builder:
10. Click the status link to specify the column to watch.
12. Click the something link to open the status dropdown.Select the status label you want to finalize your trigger state.
13. Click connect column and select the Connect Boards column which links this board to the target board.
14. Decide whether this automation will connect ALL items that match the condition, or just the FIRST item that matches.
15. Click another board and choose the target board where the matching items live.
16. Fill this column (matching key on this board) and another column (matching key on the connected board).
In most cases, users select Name as the match criteria/condition. The automation will then work on items/subitems that have the exact same name. You can also use another column as the match criteria such as a Task number, or SKU, or Project ID or any unique identifier.
Make sure to select the exact same element when selecting the "another column" value. You can also choose to match the item's name Name with the other item's Text column — and if their values match, the connection will be established.
17. Pick Override existing connections to replace, or Add to existing connections to keep and append.
18. Pick Match empty values or Don't match empty values (usually the latter).
19. Click Create automation to finish.
Test that it works
On an item on this board, change the Status column to the value that is used as the automation recipe's trigger. (e.g. Done)
Check the Connect Boards column in this board to confirm if the connection was established.
Common gotchas
- One status value per recipe. If multiple statuses should trigger the connect (Won and Closed-Won), set up one recipe per value.
- Re-triggering on the same item doesn't create a new connection — if the item already has a match in its connect column, nothing new happens.
- Logic mismatch. If you pick "equals" but values differ by whitespace or capitalisation, no match. Use "contains" for fuzzy joins.
- The connect column must already exist on this board. The recipe won't create one for you.
Stage-gated workflows are the sweet spot. If items live "messy" on this board for a while before they're ready for the other board, this trigger keeps the other board clean.
Next up
Related
- Connect items across boards (parent landing)
- When status changes, connect + sync — same trigger but adds ongoing two-way sync
- When an item is created, connect to a match — same connect pattern triggered on item creation
- Setting up Connect Boards columns — prerequisite
Still stuck?