Chains, Customize Workiva, and Workiva APIs are not competing tools — they're strongest when each is used for what it does best. This article explains where each fits so you can choose the right approach for your workflow.
How to think about each
- Chains is for orchestration — connecting systems, scheduling work, monitoring runs, and giving teams visibility into each step of a process: what happened, when, and where. It offers out-of-the-box connectors for Workiva and third-party systems, and its no-code structure lets you automate everyday processes and reduce manual errors without an on-staff developer.
- Customize Workiva is for governed extensibility — adding custom logic with Scripting, capturing structured workflow context with Custom Fields, and triggering scripts from the files where you work with Integrated Automations. It moves specialized logic out of one-off workarounds into something controlled, repeatable, and executed securely on Workiva-managed infrastructure.
- Workiva APIs are the bridge into your Workiva data — letting both scripts and chains read, write, and update platform data in a controlled way.
Before you build
Start with the simplest tool that solves the problem. Before reaching for Customize Workiva, confirm there isn't a native Workiva feature or a Chains solution that already does what you need. Customize Workiva is the right choice when the workflow genuinely requires custom logic, structured context, or in-file automation — not when a standard capability would do.
Using them together
Chains and Customize Workiva aren't either/or. A script can run as one step inside a broader Chains workflow — Chains orchestrates and schedules the process while a script handles a complex transformation that needs custom logic. If a Chains implementation has become hard to maintain or isn't performing well because the logic is too complex, Customize Workiva can work alongside it to make the workflow more durable and reliable.
How Chains and Scripting work best together
Each is strongest at what it does best — and together they cover far more than either could alone:
| Chains is best for… | Scripting is best for… |
|---|---|
| Orchestration: connecting systems, scheduling, and monitoring | Complex custom logic and business rules |
| No-code automation without a developer | Developer-level control and performance tuning |
| Lower development and maintenance overhead | Workflows that standard configuration or Chains can't accommodate |
When you pair Chains' orchestration with Scripting's custom logic — and Custom Fields for structured context — you get tailored, governed workflows that run consistently and stay native to the Workiva platform.
A quick way to decide: start with Chains. Add Scripting when the use case requires complex custom logic and you have Python expertise to build and maintain it.
As AI becomes part of more workflows, this structure matters even more. AI can help you spot patterns and accelerate how work gets designed, but it's most valuable when it has something reliable to act on. Chains' orchestration, Scripting's governed execution, and the structured context from Custom Fields give AI-assisted work repeatable, auditable workflows — so recommendations turn into outcomes you can trust.
Detailed guidance
For a side-by-side breakdown of where each tool is best — including complexity, budget, performance, and developer-skill considerations — see the Chains and Scripting Usage Guidance PDF.