How to Use Set Assignee Action with Lookup Fields for Assigned Agent and Group Placeholder
Overview
The Set Assignee action enables automatic assignment of agents or groups based on values from lookup fields. Instead of selecting a fixed assignee, it dynamically references fields like custom agent or group IDs, allowing flexible assignment logic across workflows and tickets.
Lookup fields enable dynamic assignment by referencing agent or group IDs stored in custom or system fields, allowing flexible and context-aware assignee logic across tickets.
To know more about lookup field configuration, refer to this article.
Action Name | Supported Lookup Fields | Available In | Lookup Field Usage Location |
---|---|---|---|
Users Lookup field | Assigned Agent | Update Ticket Trigger, Create Ticket Trigger, Ticket Macros, Time Trigger | Users dropdown |
Agent Group Lookup field | Assigned Group | Update Ticket Trigger, Create Ticket Trigger, Ticket Macros, Time Trigger | Agent Group dropdown |
Set Assignee | Agent, User | Update Ticket Trigger, Create Ticket Trigger, Ticket Macros | Assignee dropdown |
Key benefits of the lookup field placeholders
The following are the main benefits of lookup field placeholders:
- Automatically assigns the correct agent or group based on configured rules, reducing manual steps.
- Ensures tasks aren’t assigned to the wrong person or left unassigned, improving accuracy.
- Saves time and effort by streamlining the assignment process through automation.
- Placeholder logic allows the same rule to adapt to different scenarios based on the context.
- Enables clear rules, making it easier to identify and fix assignment issues when they occur.
Effective use cases for lookup field placeholders in automation actions
For a comprehensive guide on setting up each type of automation rule, refer to the articles listed below: -
Set assignee action: Agent reference
- If the lookup field value is of Agent Type, the Set Assignee action will be executed.
- If the lookup field value is of Contact Type or the field is empty, the action will be skipped.
Automatically assign high-priority reopened tickets
When a customer reopens a high priority ticket with no current assignee, the system automatically reassigns it to the previously assigned agent, using the value stored in the secondary agent (user-type) lookup field.
This ensures the ticket goes to the right agent.
How to set it up
1. Lookup field: Create an agent lookup field called Secondary Agent and add it to the required ticket form.
2. Automation type: Set automation type as Update Ticket Trigger.
3. Trigger conditions
- Update Status, Is changed from Any to Open
- Update Priority as High
- Update Assigned Agent as Is empty
4. Action
- Navigate to Set Assignee > Group (leave blank to set empty value) >Secondary Agent (lookup field placeholder).
- Then, set Secondary Agent >Copy value from > Contacts > select Support Engineer.
Result
Set Assignee: Agent group reference
- If both the lookup field and event performer have values, and the event performer belongs to the group, then the event performer will be assigned as the agent.
- If the lookup field has a value and the event performer is not part of the group, only the group will be assigned in the Set Assignee action.
- If the lookup field is empty, the Set Assignee action will not occur.
Dynamic ticket routing by requester contact group
Automatically route incoming tickets to the right support team based on the requester’s contact group.
When a ticket is created, the Create Ticket Trigger rule assigns it to the relevant agent group, ensuring faster and more accurate support from the start.
How to set it up
1. Lookup field: Create an agent group lookup field called Management Group and add it to the required ticket form.
2. Automation type: Set the automation type as Update Ticket Trigger.
3. Trigger conditions
- Update Category Finance
- Update Department Group Is not empty
4. Action
- Go to Set Assignee > Management Group (lookup field placeholder) for Event performer.
- Once done, set Management Group > Copy value from > Contact Groups > select Department Group.
Result
Assigned agent placeholder for user lookup fields
- If a User-type lookup field references the Assigned Agent placeholder, the action will occur.
- If an Agent-type lookup field references the Assigned Agent placeholder, the action will occur.
- If a Contact-type user lookup field references the Assigned Agent placeholder, the action will not occur.
- If a mandatory user lookup field references the Assigned Agent placeholder, the agent field will be empty, and the action will not occur.
- If a non-mandatory user lookup field references the Assigned Agent placeholder, the action will still occur, accepting the empty value.
Auto-populate support lead using automation rules
You can automatically fill user lookup fields like support lead with the assigned agent when certain conditions such as priority, type, or status are met. This eliminates the need for manual updates.
How to set it up
1. Lookup field: Create a user lookup field called Support Lead and add it to the required ticket form.
2. Automation type: Set the automation type to Update Ticket Trigger.
3. Trigger conditions
- Update Assigned Agent, John
- Update Priority is High
- Update Type is Incident
- Update Secondary Agent as Is not empty
4. Action
- Navigate to Set Assignee > Secondary Agent (lookup field placeholder).
- Then, Set Support Lead > Fixed Value > Assigned Agent placeholder.
Result
Assigned group placeholder for agent group lookup fields
- If the Agent Group fields reference the Assigned Group placeholder, the action will occur.
- If the Agent Group fields are mandatory but the Assigned Group placeholder is empty, the action will not occur.
Automatically set agent group based on ticket details
If a ticket is marked as High priority and belongs to the Billing category, the automation rule assigns it to the Billing or Support group and updates the Agent Group field accordingly.
How to set it up
1. Lookup field: Create an agent lookup field called Assistance Group and add it to the required ticket form
2. Automation type: Set the automation type as Update ticket trigger
3. Trigger conditions
- Update Priority is High or Urgent
- Update Category as Billing or Support
- Update Status is Open
4. Action
- Navigate to Set Assignee > Billing Team.
- Then, Set Assistance Group > Fixed Value > Assigned Group placeholder.
Result