Automate hiding or showing tasks

Visibility actions explained

Visibility actions let you Show or Hide specific steps based on conditions. They’re smart switches - users see exactly what they need, when they need it.

Examples

Example 1 - CFO approval for big purchases:

IF (Purchase Amount field) is ">$10,000"
THEN SHOW step "Approval by CFO"

The CFO approval step appears automatically for purchases over $10k.

Example 2 - Skip irrelevant reviews:

IF (Customer Type field) is "Small Business"
THEN HIDE step "Enterprise Security Review"

Small business customers skip the enterprise security review entirely.

Example 3 - Adapt to user input:

IF (Application Type field) is "Mortgage"
THEN SHOW steps "Credit Check", "Property Valuation", and "Underwriting"

Selecting “Mortgage” reveals all mortgage-specific steps at once.

Here’s what it looks like in action:

Completing one step makes the next one appear. That’s visibility automation at work.

How visibility works

• Steps are visible by default unless you hide them.
• You can hide a step when building the template - toggle Hide by default in the step settings.
• A Hide action makes steps disappear based on conditions.
• A Show action reveals hidden steps when conditions are met.

Hidden steps can’t be completed

Hidden steps have an internal status of auto-skipped and can’t be completed. Any automation checking “if step is complete” on a hidden step won’t trigger - unless another rule makes that step visible first.

Only create completion-based automations for steps users can actually see. You can also manually show or hide steps using the three-dot menu on any task.

Default behavior: parallel execution

Procedure templates in Tallyfy show all steps at once by default. People can work on them in any order¹. To enforce sequential order, hide steps initially and use Show automation rules to reveal them when previous steps complete.

Hiding tasks by default in a template

All tasks show up when someone launches a procedure template. To keep certain tasks hidden until the right moment:

1. Open your procedure template in the editor.
2. Click on the step you want to hide initially.
3. In the step’s settings panel, toggle Hide by default to Yes.
4. Save the step.

Hidden steps stay out of sight until a Show automation brings them back.

Enforcing sequential task order

Sometimes Task B shouldn’t start until Task A is done. You can force tasks to appear in sequence using hidden tasks and Show visibility actions in your automations².

1. Task A: Leave it visible by default.
2. Task B: Set it to hidden by default.
3. Task C: Set it to hidden by default.
4. Create Automation Rule 1 (Show Task B):
   • IF (Step Status) for Task A is Completed
   • THEN (Visibility) SHOW Task B
5. Create Automation Rule 2 (Show Task C):
   • IF (Step Status) for Task B is Completed
   • THEN (Visibility) SHOW Task C

The result:

• Process starts - only Task A shows up
• Complete Task A - Task B appears
• Complete Task B - Task C appears

You can chain as many tasks as you need this way.

Related articles

Automations > Conditional visibility

Show or hide entire tasks in Tallyfy based on form field selections using IF-THEN automation rules with AND/OR logic.

Tasks > Manually show or hide tasks

Learn how to manually show or hide tasks in running processes to handle conditional workflows when selections change or to temporarily remove tasks that are no longer needed while maintaining workflow flexibility.

Tutorials > Create an automation

Tallyfy automation rules use IF-THEN conditional logic to intelligently adapt workflows based on user inputs task completions and other triggers eliminating manual adjustments while automatically showing relevant steps assigning tasks and responding to changing circumstances throughout your processes.

Automations > Actions

Automation actions in Tallyfy are the “THEN” part of IF-THEN rules - they automatically assign tasks, adjust deadlines, change status, control step visibility, or trigger webhooks when conditions are met.

Footnotes

1. All visible tasks can be completed simultaneously by different assignees without waiting ↩

2. Sequential dependency ensures tasks complete in order, preventing race conditions ↩

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