📝 Smart Vendor Contract Renewal & Reminder Workflow With GPT 4.1 mini

Watch the demo video below:

Never miss a vendor renewal again! This smart workflow automatically tracks expiring contracts, reminds your finance team via Slack, and helps initiate renewal with vendors through email — all with built-in approval and logging. Perfect for managing both auto-renew and manual contracts.

📌 Who’s it for

This workflow is designed for Finance and Procurement teams responsible for managing vendor/service contracts. It ensures timely notifications for expiring contracts and automates the initiation of renewal conversations with vendors.

⚙️ How it works / What it does

1. ⏰ Daily Trigger

   • Runs every day at 6:00 AM using a scheduler.

2. 📄 Retrieve Contract List

   • Reads vendor contract data from a Google Sheet (or any data source).
   • Filters for contracts nearing their end date, using a Notice Period (days) field.

3. 🔀 Branch Based on Renewal Type

   • Auto-Renew Contracts:

     • Compose a Slack message summarizing the auto-renewal.
     • Notify the finance contact via Slack.

   • Manual Renewal Contracts:

     • Use an OpenAI-powered agent to generate a meaningful Slack message.
     • Send message and wait for approval from the finance contact (e.g., within 8 hours).
     • Upon approval, generate a formal HTML email to the vendor.
     • Send the email to initiate the contract extension process.

4. 📊 (Optional) Logging

   • Can be extended to log all actions (Slack messages, emails, approvals) to Google Sheets or other databases.

🛠️ How to set up

1. Prepare your Google Sheet

   • Include the following fields:
     • Vendor Name, Vendor Email, Service Type, Contract Start Date, Contract End Date, Notice Period (days), Renewal Type, Finance Contact, Contact Email, Slack ID, Contract Value, Notes.
     • Sample: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1zdDgKyL0sY54By57Yz4dNokQC_oIbVxcCKeWJ6PADBM/edit?usp=sharing

2. Configure Integrations

   • 🟢 Google Sheets API: To read contract data.
   • 🔵 Slack API: To notify and wait for approval.
   • 🧠 OpenAI API (GPT-4): To generate personalized reminders.
   • ✉️ Email (SMTP/Gmail): To send emails to vendors.

3. Set the Daily Scheduler

   • Use a Cron node to trigger the workflow at 6:00 AM daily.

✅ Requirements

| Component | Required | |----------------------------------|----------| | Google Sheets API | ✅ | | Slack API | ✅ | | OpenAI API (GPT-4) | ✅ | | Email (SMTP/Gmail) | ✅ | | n8n (Self-hosted or Cloud) | ✅ | | Contract Sheet with proper schema| ✅ |

🧩 How to customize the workflow

• Adjust Reminder Period: Modify the logic in the Find Expiring Vendors node (based on Contract End Date and Notice Period).
• Change Message Tone or Format: Customize the OpenAI agent's prompt or switch from plain text to branded HTML email.
• Add Logging or Tracking: Add a node to append logs to a Google Sheet, Notion, or database.
• Replace Data Source: Swap out Google Sheets for Airtable, PostgreSQL, or other CRM/database systems.
• Adjust Wait/Approval Duration: Modify the sendAndWait Slack node timeout (e.g., from 8 hours to 2 hours).

📦 Optional Extensions

• 🧾 Add PDF contract preview via Drive link
• 🧠 Use GPT to summarize renewal terms
• 🛠 Auto-create Jira task for contract review