monday.com Block Automation If Pre-Condition Not Met

Automation Pain Point #23 & #24

You need an automation that only runs when required data exists. Don’t send the travel email if the Hotel Address column is empty. Don’t trigger the invoice if the Client Email column is blank. Don’t create the project board if the Start Date column is missing.

Monday.com’s automation builder has conditions, but they’re limited to Person and Status columns. You cannot check if a text column, date column, email column, or number column is empty before firing an automation. The result? Automations fire with incomplete data, sending broken emails to invalid addresses, creating projects with missing details, and leaving your team to clean up the mess manually.

This article explains why monday.com’s condition system is too limited for real-world data validation, and how BoardBridge handles pre-condition checks that block automations when required data is missing.

Table of Contents

• The Problem: Conditions Only Check Person and Status
• What Users Need vs. What Monday.com Offers
• Real-World Example: Travel Email Safety Net
• The Monday.com Workaround (Manual Checks)
• How BoardBridge Handles Pre-Condition Checks
• Admin Notifications When Automations Are Blocked
• Common Pre-Condition Scenarios
• FAQ

The Problem: Conditions Only Check Person and Status

Monday.com automations support conditions — filters that control when an automation fires. But the condition options are extremely limited:

What You CAN Check

• Person column: “Only if Person is [Name]” or “Only if Person is not [Name]”
• Status column: “Only if Status is [Value]” (recently expanded to “Is any of” for multiple values)

What You CANNOT Check

• Text columns: Cannot check if empty or filled
• Email columns: Cannot validate before sending
• Date columns: Cannot check if missing
• Number columns: Cannot verify value exists
• Dropdown columns: Not available in native condition checks
• Any other column type: Not supported

From the official automations documentation:

Structure: Trigger + Condition + Action(s) Can add conditions via “+” button No mention of which column types are supported in conditions

The documentation doesn’t even list the limitations — users discover them by trial and error when building automations.

Community Evidence

From a June 2023 forum thread titled “Restrict status change if certain columns are empty”:

“Is there a way to restrict board users from changing a status label until certain other board columns are populated?” — Zachk11, June 19, 2023

Community response:

“That is currently not possible.” — basdebruin, June 19, 2023

Another user criticized the $49/month Mandatory Fields app, stating such functionality “should be INCLUDED as a basic feature.”

— jeffreywhunter, January 17, 2024

No Monday.com staff responded to this thread. The feature request remains unresolved.

From the official Required Columns documentation:

Required column validation exists for manual moves but NOT as a pre-condition for automation-triggered actions.

Monday.com’s “required columns” feature only blocks manual actions (like moving an item to a group), not automation actions.

What Users Need vs. What Monday.com Offers

What Users Need

Scenario	Required Check
Travel email	Block if Hotel Address, Flight Time, or Client Email is empty
Invoice automation	Block if Client Email, Amount, or Invoice Number is empty
Project board creation	Block if Start Date, Client Name, or Project Type is empty
Approval email	Block if Requester Email, Amount, or Department is empty

What Monday.com Offers

Feature	Support
Pre-condition check on Person column	✅ Supported
Pre-condition check on Status column	✅ Supported
Pre-condition check on Text, Email, Date, Number, Dropdown columns	❌ Not supported
Block automation if required data is missing	❌ Not natively supported
Admin notification when automation is blocked	❌ Not supported

The only workaround is to hope users fill in required data before triggering the automation — which is not a reliable safeguard.

Real-World Example: Travel Email Safety Net

Here’s a workflow from a client managing event travel logistics.

The Scenario

When an event reaches the “Advanced” stage, the coordinator clicks a button to send a travel email to team members and vendors. The email includes:

• Hotel Address (from a Text column)
• Flight Time (from a Date column)
• Ground Transportation Details (from a Long Text column)
• Recipient Email (from an Email column)

Problem: Sometimes the coordinator clicks the button before all the details are filled in. The email sends with:

• “Hotel Address: (empty)”
• “Flight Time: (empty)”
• “Ground Transportation: (empty)”

The recipient gets a broken email, the coordinator doesn’t realize anything went wrong, and the team doesn’t find out until the recipient replies asking for the missing info.

What Should Happen

The automation should check for required data before sending and block the email if anything is missing.

The Monday.com Approach (No Safety Net)

Here’s what native monday.com automations allow:

Automation:

• Trigger: “Send Travel Email” button clicked
• Condition: (none available for Text, Date, or Email columns)
• Action: Send email using “Travel Email” template

What happens when the button is clicked:

• Email sends immediately, regardless of whether Hotel Address, Flight Time, or Recipient Email are filled in
• No validation check
• No error message
• No admin notification
• Broken email goes out to the client

The only safeguard: The coordinator must manually check every required column before clicking the button. This relies on human memory and discipline — which fails under time pressure or when new team members join.

The Monday.com Workaround (Manual Checks)

If you’re not using BoardBridge, here’s the most reliable monday.com-native approach:

Option 1: Required Columns (Partial Solution)

Monday.com’s “Required Columns” feature marks columns as mandatory for certain actions (like moving items between groups).

How it works:

• Mark “Hotel Address”, “Flight Time”, and “Recipient Email” as required columns
• When a user tries to move the item to another group, monday.com blocks the move if required columns are empty

Limitations:

• Does NOT block automations — button clicks, status changes, and automation-triggered actions ignore the required column setting
• Only works for manual moves — not relevant to email automations
• Not a solution for this problem

Option 2: Status Column Gate

Create a “Ready to Send” status column that users must manually check before clicking the button.

How it works:

1. Add a status column: “Travel Email Ready?” with options “Not Ready”, “Ready”
2. Train users to verify all required data before changing the status to “Ready”
3. Set up the button automation with a condition: “Only if Travel Email Ready = Ready”

Problems:

• Relies on manual discipline — users still have to remember to check the data and update the status
• No automatic validation — the status column doesn’t know if data is actually filled in
• Extra step — users now have to change a status AND click a button

Option 3: Third-Party Apps

Pay $49+/month for a Mandatory Fields app that validates data before allowing actions.

Problems:

• Extra cost
• Limited integration — may not work with button-triggered automations
• Functionality that should be native

How BoardBridge Handles Pre-Condition Checks

BoardBridge automations support pre-conditions — checks that must pass BEFORE any actions execute. Source: BoardBridge Product Documentation

How It Works

Step 1: Define the automation trigger

• Trigger type: Button click
• Button label: “Send Travel Email”

Step 2: Add pre-conditions

• Pre-condition 1: Hotel Address column is_not_empty
• Pre-condition 2: Flight Time column is_not_empty
• Pre-condition 3: Recipient Email column is_not_empty
• Pre-condition logic: AND (all must pass)

Step 3: Define actions (only run if all pre-conditions pass)

1. Send email using “Travel Email” template
2. Update “Travel Email Status” to “Sent”
3. Update “Last Contact Date” to today

Step 4: Configure admin notification (for when pre-conditions fail)

• Admin email: logistics@yourcompany.com
• Notification subject: “Travel Email Blocked – Missing Data”
• Notification body: Include item name, item ID, and which specific columns are empty

What Happens When the Button Is Clicked

Scenario 1: All required data is present

• Pre-condition 1: Hotel Address = “123 Main St, Denver, CO” ✓
• Pre-condition 2: Flight Time = “June 15, 2026 3:00 PM” ✓
• Pre-condition 3: Recipient Email = “vendor@example.com” ✓

All pass → Email sends, statuses update, workflow continues.

Scenario 2: Hotel Address is missing

• Pre-condition 1: Hotel Address = (empty) ✗
• Pre-condition 2: Flight Time = “June 15, 2026 3:00 PM” ✓
• Pre-condition 3: Recipient Email = “vendor@example.com” ✓

Pre-condition 1 fails → Automation stops immediately.

What happens:

1. Email does NOT send
2. Status columns do NOT update
3. Admin receives notification:

Subject: Travel Email Blocked – Missing Data Body: Travel email automation was blocked for Event #147 – Smith Wedding.

>

Missing data: – Hotel Address (empty)

>

Item details: – Item ID: 147 – Board: Event Travel – Recipient Email: vendor@example.com (valid) – Flight Time: June 15, 2026 3:00 PM (valid)

>

Please fill in the missing data and click “Send Travel Email” again.

The coordinator sees the notification, fills in the Hotel Address, and clicks the button again — this time it works.

Admin Notifications When Automations Are Blocked

BoardBridge sends detailed admin notifications whenever an automation is blocked by a pre-condition failure.

What’s Included

Detail	Example
Item name	“Smith Wedding”
Item ID	147
Board name	“Event Travel”
Automation name	“Send Travel Email (Button)”
Trigger type	Button click
Which pre-condition failed	“Hotel Address is_not_empty”
Current value	(empty)
Other pre-conditions checked	Flight Time (valid), Recipient Email (valid)
Timestamp	June 15, 2026 10:23 AM

Why This Matters

Without admin notifications, blocked automations are invisible. The coordinator clicks the button, nothing happens, and they assume it worked. Days later, the client complains they never received the email.

With admin notifications:

• The coordinator knows immediately something went wrong
• They see exactly which data is missing
• They fix it and re-trigger the automation
• No broken emails, no client complaints

Common Pre-Condition Scenarios

Here are five workflows where pre-condition checks prevent broken automations:

1. Invoice Email Safety Net

Trigger: “Send Invoice” button clicked

Pre-conditions:

• Client Email is_not_empty
• Invoice Amount is_not_empty
• Invoice Number is_not_empty
• Payment Terms is_not_empty

Why it matters: Sending an invoice with missing amount, number, or payment terms creates confusion and delays payment. Pre-conditions ensure all required data is present before the email goes out.

2. Project Board Creation Gate

Trigger: Status changes to “Won”

Pre-conditions:

• Client Name is_not_empty
• Start Date is_not_empty
• Project Type is_not_empty
• Account Manager is_not_empty

Why it matters: Creating a project board with missing client name or start date creates an incomplete workspace that confuses the delivery team. Pre-conditions block the creation until all details are filled in.

3. Approval Email Validation

Trigger: Status changes to “Approved”

Pre-conditions:

• Requester Email is_not_empty
• Approval Amount is_not_empty
• Approver Name is_not_empty
• Department is_not_empty

Why it matters: Approval emails need accurate data for audit trails. Missing approver name or amount makes the email legally incomplete. Pre-conditions enforce data completeness.

4. Shipping Confirmation Check

Trigger: Status changes to “Shipped”

Pre-conditions:

• Tracking Number is_not_empty
• Shipping Address is_not_empty
• Customer Email is_not_empty

Why it matters: Sending a shipping confirmation with no tracking number or address creates customer support tickets. Pre-conditions ensure only complete shipments trigger notifications.

5. Event Confirmation Guard

Trigger: “Send Confirmation” button clicked

Pre-conditions:

• Event Date is_not_empty
• Venue Address is_not_empty
• Client Email is_not_empty
• Event Type is_not_empty

Why it matters: Event confirmations with missing date or venue details confuse clients and vendors. Pre-conditions block the email until all logistics are finalized.

What This Means for Your Workflows

Pre-condition checks turn fragile automations into reliable ones. Instead of hoping team members remember to fill in all required data before clicking a button, the system enforces it automatically. Broken emails don’t go out, incomplete projects don’t get created, and your team gets detailed notifications when something needs attention.

For teams managing client communication, project workflows, approval processes, or any scenario where missing data breaks the workflow, this is the difference between automation that feels fragile and automation that just works.

BoardBridge — Form & Workflow Automation for monday.com handles pre-condition checks out of the box. If you’re tired of broken automations caused by missing data, it might be worth a look.

Meta Description

Block monday.com automations when required data is missing. Pre-condition checks prevent broken emails and incomplete workflows with admin notifications.

Related Articles

For more automation safeguards:

• Compound Conditions: AND/OR Logic for Multiple Triggers
• One Trigger, Multiple Actions (Action Chaining)
• Conditional Email Template Automation

Book a free consultation to set up automation safety nets: https://calendly.com/rp-spaceo/call-with-rakesh-est-timezone