Using Microsoft Teams actions in action flows

By connecting the action builder to external systems, such as Microsoft Teams,
admins can integrate Zendesk with external systems in automated workflows, improving
collaboration and maintaining a seamless experience across multiple platforms.
Note: The
steps associated with external systems in action flows are referred to collectively
as external actions.

This article contains the following topics:
Connecting Microsoft Teams to action builder
Using Microsoft Teams actions in action flows
Recipe: Notifying agents of newly assigned tickets in Microsoft Teams




Connecting Microsoft Teams to action builder

Before you can include external actions in your action flows, you must connect the
action builder to the external system.
When connecting to external systems for use in action flows, the following best practices are recommended:
All external actions performed by an action flow are attributed to the user who connected the external system. Therefore, it is a best practice to use a dedicated service account rather than personal credentials when connecting to each external system.
All integrations request access to necessary scopes. However, it's important that you review and validate the scopes before authorizing the connection to the external system.
When managing credentials for API key-based tools, such as OpenAI, it's best to store keys in a secure vault or credential manager.



To connect Microsoft Teams to action builder
In Admin Center, click
Apps and integrations in the sidebar, then select Actions > Action
flows.

Create or edit an action flow.
Open the step sidebar.
Under External actions, click Microsoft Teams.
Click Connect.
Use Microsoft to authenticate the account. You must use a service account
when connecting to Microsoft Teams because it uses User Scopes.
Authenticating with a personal account won't work properly.
The
following scopes are required: ChannelMessage.Send,
Chat.ReadWrite,
ChannelMessage.Read.All,
User.ReadBasic.All, User.Read.All,
offline_access.

Note: All external actions
performed by an action flow are attributed to the user who connected the
external system.



After you've connected to the system, you'll see an indicator that it's connected and
details about the instance you're connected to, as well as the actions available for
Microsoft Teams.



Using Microsoft Teams actions in action flows

Microsoft Teams action steps can be used to send updates and notifications from
Zendesk to Microsoft Teams. This allows for automated actions, such as posting
messages to channels or individuals and adding reactions to messages. Automating
interactions in Microsoft Teams can streamline collaboration and keep teams aligned
without needing to leave their primary workspace.
The following Teams actions are available:
Add reaction to channel
message
Add reaction to direct
message
Look up thread
Look up user
Post message to
channel
Post direct
message





Adding a reaction to a channel message

Use the Add reaction to channel message action to add an emoji reaction to a
message in a channel.
This action has the following inputs and outputs:










Variables




Inputs

external_id, team_id,
channel_id, message_id,
reaction



Output
none








Adding a reaction to a direct message

Use the Add reaction to direct message action to add an emoji reaction to a
direct message.
This action has the following inputs and outputs:










Variables




Inputs

external_id, message_id,
reaction



Output
none








Looking up a thread

Use the Look up thread action to retrieve a thread of messages from a channel
or direct message.
This action has the following inputs and outputs:










Variables




Inputs

external_id, team_id,
channel_id,
message_id



Output
messages








Looking up a user

Use the Look up user to retrieve data about a user in Microsoft Teams for
further use in the action flow.
This action has the following inputs and outputs:










Variables




Inputs

external_id,
user_id



Output

display_name, email,
real_name, user_id









Posting a message to a channel

Use the Post message to channel action to send a message to a specific channel
in Microsoft Teams.
This action has the following inputs and outputs:










Variables




Inputs

external_id, team_id,
channel_id,
message



Output
id








Sending a direct message

Use the Post direct message action to send a message to a specified user in
Microsoft Teams.
This action has the following inputs and outputs:










Variables




Inputs

external_id,
message



Output
id








Recipe: Notifying agents of newly assigned tickets in Microsoft Teams

The following example action flow automatically sends notifications to agents in
Microsoft Teams when a Zendesk ticket is assigned to them. This sort of notification
can reduce response time and prevent tickets from slipping through the cracks.
Such an action flow might consist of the following steps:
Add an action flow trigger with the following details:
Click Add trigger.
In the step sidebar, under Zendesk, click
Tickets.
Click Routing and select Ticket assignment
changed.


Add a step to look up ticket details:
In the action builder, beneath the action flow trigger, click the
Add step icon ( ).
In the step sidebar, under Zendesk actions, click Look up
ticket.
Under Ticket ID, click into the field and then click
Select a variable instead.
Within the variable menu, select 1 Ticket agent assignment
changed as the step that output the variable you want to
use, and then select Ticket ID.


Add a step to look up user details about the ticket assignee:
In the action builder, click the Add step icon ( ).
In the step sidebar, under Zendesk actions, click Look up
user.
Under User ID type, select Zendesk user ID.
For User ID, click Add variable.
Within the variable menu, select 2 Look up ticket as the
step that outputs the variable you want to use, and then select
Assignee ID.


Add a step to look up user details about the ticket requester:
In the action builder, click the Add step icon ( ).
In the step sidebar, under Zendesk actions, click Look up
user.
Under User ID type, select Zendesk user ID.
For User ID, click Add variable.
Within the variable menu, select 2 Look up ticket as the
step that outputs the variable you want to use, and then select
Requester ID.


Add a step to lookup details about the ticket requester's organization:
In the action builder, click the Add step icon ( ).
In the step sidebar, under Zendesk actions, click Look up
organization.
Under Organization ID type, select Zendesk organization
ID.
For Organization ID, click Add variable.
Within the variable menu, select 4 Look up user as the step
that outputs the variable you want to use, and then select
Organization ID.


Add a step that sends a direct message in Teams to the ticket assignee that
contains the information you collected for the ticket, assignee, and
organization:
In the action builder, click the Add step icon ( ).
In the step sidebar, under External actions, click
Microsoft Teams and then select Post direct
message.
Under Email, click Add variable.
Within the variable menu, select 3 Look up user as the step
that outputs the variable, and then select Email.
Under Message, enter the message you want to send to the
newly assigned agent. Include relevant ticket, requester, and
organization information as variables from the Look up ticket and
Look up user steps, respectively, to streamline their ability to
solve the ticket. In the following example, all variables are
italicized: Hi Assignee > Name,

Ticket Ticket ID has been assigned to you. Please respond as soon as possible.

User contact information:
- Email: Requester > Email
- Locale and timezone: Requester > Locale - Requester > IANA timezone
- Notes: Requester > Notes

Here's more context on the ticket:
- Ticket subject: Ticket Subject
- Ticket description: Ticket Description
- Last ticket update: Ticket's Latest agent update



Click Save.
Click Test to test the action flow.
Click the options menu ( ) and select Activate to begin using the
action flow to automatically notify agents in Microsoft Teams that a Zendesk
ticket has been assigned to them.