Date & timeline automations

Date & timeline automations

TL;DR: Automate subitem dates so timelines stay accurate without manual work — set defaults on creation, sync shifts when the parent date moves, anchor deadlines to status changes, or enforce parent/subitem date constraints. Pick the recipe that matches your trigger.

When to use these automations

  • Project deadlines shift and you need all task dates to update automatically
  • New tasks should have smart default dates (Project Start + 3 days, +1 week, etc.)
  • Task deadlines should change based on status (e.g. "In Progress" → due in 5 days)
  • The parent's timeline must always bound (or reflect) its subitems
  • Subitem dates falling on weekends should auto-shift to a workday

Set dates on creation

Recipe (exact text from automation center)
Use when
Deep-dive
"When subitem is created, set due date to creation date + X days/weeks."
SLA-style — every new subitem gets a fixed offset from the moment it was added.
 Set due dates relative to creation⁠ 
"When subitem is created and if the name is this name, set due date to creation date + X days/weeks."
Per-name SLA — different task types get different timings.
 Set due dates by task name (from creation)⁠ 
"When subitem is created and if the name is this name, set due date to match parent item due date + X days/weeks."
Per-name offset anchored to a project date.
 Set due dates by task name (from parent date)⁠ 
"When subitem is created, set its due date to match its parent due date + offset by this number column of days/weeks."
Per-task variable offset stored in a Numbers column — one automation handles all tasks.
 Set per-task due dates using a Numbers column⁠ 

Sync parent date changes to subitems

Recipe (exact text from automation center)
Use when
Deep-dive
"When an item's date changes, adjust subitem timeline by the same offset."
The whole project shifts together when the parent date moves.
 Sync all subitem dates with the parent⁠ 
"When item's date changes, change its subitems date to the same date with + offset by this number column of days/weeks/months."
Same as above but each subitem keeps its individual offset (Numbers column).
 Sync subitem dates with the parent (per-task Numbers offset)⁠ 
"When item's date changes, move the dates of all subitems where status column is status by the same offset."
Filtered sync — only "Not Started" subitems shift, "Done" stays put.
 Sync subitem dates with the parent (only matching status)⁠ 
"When subitem's date changes and if the subitem's name is name, then change the date of all subitems with this value in name/text to the same date + X days/weeks/months."
Sync — change one "Milestone" date, all "Milestone" subitems across the board update.
 Sync dates across same-named subitems⁠ 

Status-based deadlines

Recipe (exact text from automation center)
Use when
Deep-dive
"When subitem's status changes to something, set its date to today + offset."
SLA — the deadline starts counting from the moment work activates.
 Auto-set due date when status changes (from today)⁠ 
"When subitems status column changes, set its due date to match its parent item due date + offset by this number column of days/weeks/months."
Anchor to project timeline rather than wall-clock time when status flips.
 Auto-set due date when status changes (from parent date)⁠ 

Parent ↔ subitem date constraints

Recipe (exact text from automation center)
Use when
Deep-dive
"Ensure that date/timeline of an item always ends at the latest date/timeline of its subitems."
Parent end stretches to encompass the latest subitem.
 Keep parent dates aligned with subitems⁠ 
"Ensure that date/timeline of an item always starts at the earliest date/timeline of its subitems."
Parent start contracts to the earliest subitem.
 Keep parent dates aligned with subitems⁠ 
"Ensure that date/timeline of subitem always ends before the date/timeline of its parent item."
Force subitems to finish inside the parent's window.
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"Ensure that date/timeline of subitem always starts after the date/timeline of its parent item."
Force subitems to begin no earlier than the parent.
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"Change the duration of subitems date/timeline so it is always within the range of date/timeline of its parent item."
Auto-trim subitem timelines that exceed the parent.
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"When subitems date/timeline changes, roll it up to its parent item timeline column."
Parent timeline reflects the actual range across all subitems.
 Roll subitem dates up to the parent timeline⁠ 

Special cases

Recipe (exact text from automation center)
Use when
Deep-dive
"If subitem's date/timeline changes to occur on a weekend, move it to the next/prior workday."
Auto-shift weekend dates to a Monday or Friday.
 Auto-shift weekend dates to a workday⁠ 
"Adjust date/timeline to reflect changes made in another date/timeline column."
Mirror one date column to another (same item or via connection).
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Deep-dive articles






Related

  •  Time-based automations⁠  (date-arrival triggers, recurring schedules)
  •  Roll-ups⁠  (timeline rollup + numbers aggregation)
  •  Parent-to-subitem dependencies⁠  (date-driven sequencing across connected items)
  •  Smart rules & by-name automations⁠  (status filters, by-name date rules)
  •  Full recipe library⁠ 

Still stuck?

Email  hello@fantasymedia.io  and we'll help you pick the right date automation for your workflow.