Rolodex is where relationship context becomes usable: who someone is, who they work with, what the last touchpoint was, and the notes and follow-ups that keep momentum alive.
But the work around relationships rarely happens in one place. Meetings live in Google Calendar. Requests come in through Slack, forms, email, or a support tool. Planning lives in Notion or Airtable. Execution lives in tasks and reminders.
That’s exactly where API keys come in.
An API key is a secure credential that lets another tool (like Zapier, Make, or n8n) talk to Rolodex on your behalf. In Rolodex, you authenticate by sending your key in a request header called x-rolodex-api-key.
Once that connection exists, you can build automations that pull context from Rolodex or push updates into Rolodex whenever something happens elsewhere.
The tools you’ll use to build workflows (without writing a full app)
You don’t need a big engineering project to get value from the API. Most teams start with one of these:
Zapier
Great for fast “if this, then that” workflows. Webhooks by Zapier lets you catch events and send custom requests, which is perfect when you want Rolodex to be the system you read/write from.
n8n
A power-user automation builder where the HTTP Request node can call virtually any REST API. It’s ideal if you want more control, branching logic, or self-hosting.
Make, Retool, internal tools
Make shines for multi-step data flows and syncing. Retool is great when you want an internal “relationship ops” interface that reads and writes to Rolodex.
No matter which tool you pick, the pattern is the same:
Trigger (something happens) → Call Rolodex → Use the response → Do the next step
A few workflow examples you can build with Rolodex API Keys
Below are practical, relationship-first workflows you can publish as recipes. Each one includes the Rolodex API keys (endpoints) needed to build it.
1) Pre-meeting brief in Slack or Teams
You know the moment: meeting starts, you open the calendar invite, and you’re doing frantic mental archaeology. This automation gives you a clean, consistent briefing before the call.
Workflow concept
When a calendar event is about to start, fetch the attendee’s Rolodex contact context (and optionally related items like company + notes) and post a short brief in Slack/Teams.
Keys you’ll need
Contacts: GET (supports
includeso you can pull emails, companies, notes, tags, lists, etc. in one fetch)Notes: GET (optional, if you want to pull a specific note or note details separately)
2) “Add to Rolodex” from forms and inbound requests
This is the simplest automation that feels instantly valuable: any time your team collects a person’s info, it becomes a real contact record, not a screenshot in a Slack thread.
Workflow concept
When a Typeform/Webflow/Google Form is submitted (or a Slack workflow form is filled), create a new contact in Rolodex, then notify the team.
Keys you’ll need
Contacts: POST (create a contact;
first_nameis required)Contacts: GET (optional, to check if the person already exists before creating a duplicate)
3) After-meeting note capture that lands where it matters
Notes are only useful if they show up where the relationship lives. This workflow turns your “meeting recap” habit into something lightweight and consistent.
Workflow concept
When a meeting ends, prompt the meeting owner (Slack message, form, or modal) to write 3–5 bullets. Create a note in Rolodex and link it to the relevant contact(s). Later, when anyone opens that contact, the note is already part of the shared story.
Keys you’ll need
Notes: POST (create the note)
Contacts: GET (to map meeting attendees to Rolodex contact IDs)
Notes: PUT (optional, if you want a follow-up step that “cleans up” or edits the note after review)
4) Follow-up tasks that don’t depend on memory
A relationship system should nudge you toward consistency, not guilt you with a backlog. This workflow turns signals into simple next actions.
Workflow concept
On a weekly schedule, fetch a set of contacts (for example, recently updated, or those with older activity), then create follow-up tasks in Rolodex for the top handful. Optionally, when the follow-up happens elsewhere (like a meeting booked), mark the Rolodex task as complete.
Keys you’ll need
Contacts: GET (choose who needs follow-up; supports pagination and sorting)
Tasks: POST (create tasks)
Tasks: PUT (optional, update/complete tasks)
Tasks: GET (optional, for a “daily agenda” digest)
5) A shared “accounts and stakeholders” view synced into Notion/Airtable
Many teams want a lightweight directory in the tools they already use for planning, without losing Rolodex as the source of truth.
Workflow concept
On a nightly schedule, fetch companies and contacts from Rolodex and sync them into a Notion database or Airtable base, keyed by Rolodex IDs. This gives the team a browseable directory for planning docs and project pages, while Rolodex remains the canonical relationship system.
Keys you’ll need
Companies: GET (pull company records)
Contacts: GET (pull stakeholder contacts; optionally include companies to map relationships in one pass)
Companies: PUT
Contacts: PUT (optional, if you want two-way sync for specific fields)
6) Keep your tagging system clean and useful (taxonomy automation)
Tags get messy when they’re created ad hoc. The API lets you keep a clean taxonomy that matches how your team actually works.
Workflow concept
When a new initiative is created in Notion/Jira/Asana (or a new segment is defined in a spreadsheet), automatically create or rename a Rolodex tag. When an initiative ends, retire the tag.
Keys you’ll need
Tags: GET (audit and prevent duplicates; optionally pull related objects)
Tags: POST (create new tags)
Tags: PUT (rename/standardize tags)
Tags: DELETE (remove deprecated tags)
7) Lists as living “relationship rosters”
Lists are perfect when you want an explicit roster: “investors,” “advisors,” “partners,” “VIPs,” “hiring bench,” or “people to keep close this quarter.”
Workflow concept
Create a list when a project launches, keep its membership synced from another source (Airtable/Sheet/Notion), and generate weekly updates from the roster.
Keys you’ll need
Lists: POST (create list)
Lists: PUT (update list and membership)
Lists: GET (use the list as an automation input)
Lists: DELETE (retire lists when done)
8) Custom fields for structured workflows (schema you can standardize)
Custom fields are how teams add structure without turning Rolodex into a heavy CRM. You can manage the field definitions via API so your workspace stays consistent.
Workflow concept
When a team sets up a new workflow, create the required custom fields (like “Priority,” “Owner,” “Category,” “Stage”), keep select options updated, and remove fields that are no longer used.
Keys you’ll need
Custom Fields: GET (read the current field setup)
Custom Fields: POST (create a new field)
Custom Fields: PUT (update options or field configuration)
Custom Fields: DELETE (remove retired fields)
How to think about “what to automate” (a simple heuristic)
If the action is:
Repeated (happens every week),
Triggered (happens after a meeting/form/support ticket),
Context-heavy (needs the last note, company, or relationship history),
…it’s a good candidate for an API-key workflow.
Start with one recipe (pre-meeting briefs or form-to-contact is usually the fastest win), then expand into a small “relationship automation suite” your team can rely on.