# Using skill-based routing in workflows

> Use skills in workflows    Skills in workflows let admins add skills to conversations remove skills from conversations and use conversation skills in workflow

Source: https://help.kustomer.com/en_us/using-skill-based-routing-in-workflows-HkXA6nzmGx

Last updated: 2026-07-01T19:18:57.346Z

Skills in workflows let admins add skills to conversations, remove skills from conversations, and use conversation skills in workflow conditions. Use these actions and conditions to support routing and escalation flows that depend on the skills currently associated with a conversation.

## Who can use this

Role

Access needed

Admins configuring workflows

Access to **Settings** and permission to manage workflows

Teams using skill-based routing

Skill-Based Routing enabled for the org

##   
In this article

*   [Before you start](#before-you-start)
*   [Add skills to a conversation in a workflow](#add-skills)
*   [Remove skills from a conversation in a workflow](#remove-skills)
*   [Use skills in workflow conditions](#use-skills)
*   [Use advanced values for skills](#use-advanced-values)
*   [Troubleshooting](#troubleshooting)

### Before you start

Before configuring skills in a workflow, confirm that you have configured at least one skill to use with skill-based routing. Visit **Settings>Platform>Routing** and then click the **Skills** tab to review created skills, or to create a new one. See [Understand skill based routing](https://help.kustomer.com/en_us/understand-skill-routing-ByTKNVPFR) for more information. 

### Add skills to a conversation in a workflow

Use the **Conversation** **Append Skills** action event when a conversation should gain one or more skills as part of a workflow. For example, you might add a skill when a conversation is escalated, when a customer selects a topic, or when a workflow identifies that the conversation should be routed to agents with a specific skill.

To add skills in a workflow:

1.  Go to **Settings** > **Workflows**.
2.  Open an existing workflow or create a new workflow.
3.  Add an action to the workflow.
4.  Select the action that appends skills to a conversation.
5.  In the **Skills** field, select the skills to add.
6.  Save the workflow.
7.  Test the workflow with a conversation that matches the workflow trigger and conditions.

### Remove skills from a conversation in a workflow

Use the Conversation **Remove skills** action when a conversation should lose one or more skills as part of a workflow. For example, you might remove a specialized routing skill after an escalation path changes, or remove a skill when the conversation should move to a broader routing path.

To remove skills in a workflow:

1.  Go to **Settings** > **Workflows**.
2.  Open the workflow you want to edit.
3.  Add an action to the workflow.
4.  Select the action that removes skills from a conversation.
5.  In the **Skills** field, select the skills to remove.
6.  Save the workflow.
7.  Test the workflow with a conversation that matches the workflow trigger and conditions.

### Use skills in workflow conditions

Use skills in workflow conditions when the workflow should branch based on the skills on the conversation. This lets you create different workflow paths depending on whether a conversation has a specific skill.

To use skills in a workflow condition:

1.  Go to **Settings** > **Workflows**.
2.  Open the workflow you want to edit.
3.  Add or edit a condition.
4.  Select the conversation skills field.
5.  Select the operator for the condition.
6.  Select the skill or skills the condition should evaluate.
7.  Complete the rest of the workflow logic.
8.  Save and test the workflow.

### Use advanced values for skills

The skills field supports selecting skills from the picker. Depending on the workflow configuration, you may also be able to use advanced values, such as values from a previous workflow step, variables, or template values.

Use the picker when you want to add, remove, or check specific skills. Use advanced values when the skills should come from workflow data instead of being selected manually.

### Troubleshooting

#### I do not see the skill I want to use

Confirm that the skill already exists in routing settings. Skills must exist before you can select them in a workflow.

#### The workflow did not add or remove the expected skill

Check the workflow trigger, conditions, and selected skills. Confirm that the test conversation matched the workflow logic at the time the workflow ran.

If the workflow uses an advanced value for the skills field, confirm that the value resolves to the expected skill IDs.

#### The workflow condition did not match the expected conversation

Confirm that the conversation had the expected skill state when the condition was evaluated. If another workflow action adds or removes skills before the condition runs, review the order of the workflow steps.

### Related articles

*   [Understand skill based routing](https://help.kustomer.com/understand-skill-routing-ByTKNVPFR)
*   [Assign a conversation to an agent based on skill](https://help.kustomer.com/assign-conversation-based-on-skill-S1QJ_UykA)
*   [Create queue rules](https://help.kustomer.com/queue-rules-HyLuJ1KHX)