App Components: A new way to build more focus and flow

Complex workflows rarely involve just one tool. In today’s distributed work environment, teams switch between 10 apps 25 times per day to stay connected. However, tool overload leads to too much context switching, which fragments communication and reduces efficiency.

Integrations play a key role in making workflows more productive. According to the IDC 2021 Annual Collaboration Survey, companies that save 20-40 hours per week per person use an average of 4.2 integrations.

Today, we are launching App Components in beta to make it easier for developers to keep tools and workflows connected. App Components empower you to build apps that can be installed and used right in the Asana UI on tasks and rules, enabling users to stay in their flow without needing to switch between tools.

This complements our REST API and webhooks, providing more ways for you to build valuable, meaningful integrations—whether it’s to establish your app’s adoption on Asana’s platform, create customized experiences, or extend your company’s tooling.

Improve integrations with App Components

App Components is a modular framework that offers the following developer capabilities: Widgets, Modal Forms, Lookups, and Rule Actions.

Widgets allow you to build dynamic custom display cards for tasks, enabling users to see information from other tools they use—such as meeting information, files, or issues—right in Asana.

With Modal Forms, you can add functionality to apps that allow users to create new resources from Asana. Lookups provide the ability to find and attach resources from other tools within Asana. When a user creates a new resource or attaches it, it’ll appear as a Widget within tasks.

With Rule Actions, you can create a custom action for Asana Rules to help users automate their work across tools. For example, you can automatically trigger a custom action in another app when a task is completed, such as sending an email or creating a new issue.

Also, our updated developer console will make it easier for you to build apps with App Components and publish them in Asana’s in-product app gallery.

New apps for the Asana UI

As part of the App Components launch, several Asana Partners built and deployed new apps, which are now available in the app directory and in-product app gallery. Our partners played a vital role in early testing, providing feedback we used to deliver a simpler, more intuitive developer experience for the open beta.

Miro sees developing apps with App Components as offering new ways to ideate, innovate, and move projects forward:

Taking control of workflows is critical to ensure that shifts to hybrid workplaces and asynchronous ways of working are successful in the enterprise. Deepening Miro’s integration with Asana will keep process, structure, and creativity linked for organizations as they strive to innovate. Together, we’re committed to unlocking new ways to ideate, create, and move projects forward—wherever the work is happening.”

For Clockwise, building an integration for Asana with App Components provided a method to expand their audience, bringing greater focus and flow to Asana users:

This was a great opportunity for new organizations to discover the power of Clockwise and our new org acquisition has notably advanced since the integration launched. We are also seeing that Asana’s users are a great fit for Clockwise. Over half of users who have tried the integration have come back to use it again.”

Take a deeper dive into App Components

To learn more about our developer offerings and get a deep dive on best practices for App Components, join us for a live webinar:

• Register for the March 24 webinar at 10am PDT / 1pm EDT / 5pm GMT

• Register for the March 24 webinar at 4pm PDT / 8am JST (+1) / 10am AEDT (+1)

We look forward to seeing what you build!