Step 4: Add Executor

This step adds event-driven automation to your project management application using the Executor service. You'll create an executor that automatically sends Slack notifications whenever a new task is created, demonstrating how to build reactive systems that respond to database events.

What This Step Does

In this step, you enhance your application by:

Adding executor configuration to your tailor.config.ts
Creating a "new-task-slack-notification" executor
Configuring a record created trigger that fires when a Task is created
Implementing a webhook operation that sends task details to Slack
Using the new record data to construct a notification message

Executors enable event-driven architecture by automatically responding to database events, scheduled triggers, or webhook calls. This allows you to build reactive systems that perform actions without manual intervention, such as sending notifications, updating related records, or calling external APIs.

Configuration Files

To follow along, review the configuration files for this step here.

tailor.config.ts

The configuration now includes executor:

<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">import</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { defineAuth</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> defineConfig</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> defineGenerators</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> } </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">from</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;@tailor-platform/tailor-sdk&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">;</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">import</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { user } </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">from</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;./src/db/user&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">;</span></span>
<span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">if</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> (</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">!</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-constant)">process</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">.</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-constant)">env</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">.</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-constant)">WORKSPACE_ID</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">) {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">throw</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">new</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-function)">Error</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">(</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;WORKSPACE_ID environment variable is not set&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">);</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">}</span></span>
<span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">export</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">default</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-function)">defineConfig</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">({</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  workspaceId</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-constant)">process</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">.</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-constant)">env</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">.</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-constant)">WORKSPACE_ID</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  name</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;project-management&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  db</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;main-db&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { files</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> [</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">`./src/db/*.ts`</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">] } }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  auth</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-function)">defineAuth</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">(</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;main-auth&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    userProfile</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">      type</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> user</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">      usernameField</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;email&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">      attributes</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">        role</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-constant)">true</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">      }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    machineUsers</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">      manager</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">        attributes</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { role</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;MANAGER&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">      }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">      staff</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">        attributes</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { role</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;STAFF&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">      }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">      admin</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">        attributes</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { role</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;ADMIN&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">      }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  })</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  pipeline</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;main-pipeline&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { files</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> [</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">`./src/pipeline/*.ts`</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">] } }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  executor</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { files</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> [</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;./src/executor/*.ts&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">] }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">});</span></span>
<span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">export</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">const</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-constant)">generators</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">=</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-function)">defineGenerators</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">(</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  [</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;@tailor/kysely-type&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { distPath</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">`./src/generated/tailordb.ts`</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">]</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">);</span></span>
<span></span>

Key addition:

executor: Configures the Executor service to load executor definitions from ./src/executor/

Other Files

All other files (database types, permissions, pipeline resolver) remain unchanged from Step 3. The executor integrates with the existing schema without requiring modifications.

src/executor/newTaskSlackNotification.ts

This file defines the executor that sends Slack notifications:

<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">import</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  createExecutor</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  recordCreatedTrigger</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">} </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">from</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;@tailor-platform/tailor-sdk&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">;</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">import</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> { task } </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">from</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;../db/task&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">;</span></span>
<span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">export</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">default</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-function)">createExecutor</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">(</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;new-task-slack-notification&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">)</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-function)">.on</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">(</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-function)">recordCreatedTrigger</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">(task)</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  )</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-function)">.executeWebhook</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">({</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-function)">url</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> ({ newRecord }) </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">=&gt;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;https://hooks.slack.com/services/yourSlackWebhookURL&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    headers</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">        </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;Content-Type&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;application/json&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    }</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-function)">body</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> ({ newRecord }) </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">=&gt;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> ({</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">         </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;text&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;New Task created :tada: &quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">+</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-constant)">newRecord</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">.name</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    })</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">,</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  });</span></span>
<span></span>

This executor definition has three main parts:

Executor creation: createExecutor("new-task-slack-notification") creates a new executor with a unique name
Trigger configuration: .on(recordCreatedTrigger(task)) sets up the trigger
- recordCreatedTrigger: Fires when a new record is created
- task: The type to monitor for new records
- The trigger provides newRecord containing the created task data
Action configuration: .executeWebhook({...}) defines what happens when triggered
- url: The Slack webhook URL (you'll need to replace this with your actual webhook)
- headers: HTTP headers for the request
- body: The payload sent to Slack, constructed from the new task data

Context Data

Triggers provide context data that can be used in actions:

newRecord: The newly created record (for recordCreatedTrigger)
oldRecord: The record before update (for recordUpdatedTrigger)
newRecord: The record after update (for recordUpdatedTrigger)
record: The deleted record (for recordDeletedTrigger)

This data is available in the action configuration through destructuring:

<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">body</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-punctuation)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> ({ newRecord }) </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">=&gt;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> ({</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  text</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">:</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">`Task &quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">${</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-constant)">newRecord</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">.name</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">}</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot; is due on </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">${</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-constant)">newRecord</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">.dueDate</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">}</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">`</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">})</span></span>
<span></span>

Expected Outcome

After deploying this configuration with npm run deploy, you should see:

An executor "new-task-slack-notification" registered in your workspace
The executor automatically triggers when new tasks are created
Slack notifications sent to your configured channel

You can verify the setup by:

Creating a test task:

<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-keyword)">mutation</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  createTask(input: {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string)">name</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">: </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;Test notification&quot;</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string)">description</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">: </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;Testing executor&quot;</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string)">projectId</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">: </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;your-project-id&quot;</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string)">status</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">: TODO</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string)">dueDate</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">: </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;2025-12-31&quot;</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  }) {</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    id</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">    name</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  }</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">}</span></span>
<span></span>

Checking Slack:
- Verify that a notification appears in your Slack channel
- The message should say "New Task created :tada: Test notification"
Viewing executor logs:
- Check the Tailor Console for executor execution logs
- Verify that the executor ran successfully
- Review any errors if the notification didn't appear

Troubleshooting

If notifications aren't appearing:

Check the webhook URL: Ensure you've replaced the placeholder with your actual Slack webhook URL
Verify Slack app permissions: Make sure your Slack app has permission to post to the channel
Review executor logs: Check the Tailor Console for error messages

Test the webhook directly: Use curl to test the webhook URL:

<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-function)">curl</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string)">-X</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string)">POST</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string)">https://hooks.slack.com/services/YOUR_WEBHOOK_URL</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> \</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string)">-H</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&quot;Content-Type: application/json&quot;</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> \</span></span>
<span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)">  </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string)">-d</span><span style="color: var(--shiki-color-text)"> </span><span style="color: var(--shiki-token-string-expression)">&#39;{&quot;text&quot;: &quot;Test message&quot;}&#39;</span></span>
<span></span>

What You've Accomplished

By completing this step, you've built a complete event-driven system that:

Automatically responds to database events
Integrates with external services (Slack)
Provides real-time notifications to your team
Requires no manual intervention

Next Steps

Now that you've completed all four steps, you have a fully functional project management application with:

Database schema with types and relationships
Authentication with user profiles and machine users
Role-based permissions at database and API layers
Custom business logic with Pipeline resolvers
Event-driven automation with Executors

Refer back to the overview page for suggestions on how to extend your application further.