Manually start the next workflow stage

Some workflow stages need to be started manually rather than activating automatically. This article covers manually advancing a workflow to its next stage.

When a stage needs to be started manually

Each stage in a workflow template is set up with one of three activation triggers, chosen when the workflow was built:

• When workflow is applied — starts immediately when the template is attached to the asset. No action needed.
• After another stage — starts automatically once the stage(s) it's chained to reach the outcome the template defines (for example, once the previous stage "is approved"). No action needed.
• Manual — stays pending until someone starts it.

Only stages using the Manual trigger can be started by hand. If you try to start a stage that's set to auto-activate on share or after another stage, the action is rejected — those stages only ever start on their own.

Start a stage

1. Open the asset and go to its Workflow section.
2. Find the pending stage — it will show a Start stage button when it's a manual-trigger stage that already has reviewers or assignees assigned to it.
3. Click Start stage. The button shows "Starting…" while the request is in progress, and the stage becomes active once it completes.

If starting fails, you'll see a message explaining why — most commonly because the stage isn't actually in a pending state anymore (someone else already started it, or it's already been completed or skipped).

Who can start a stage

Starting a stage requires the Manage workflow permission.