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An app you build can connect to Automations by exposing two things:
  • Triggers — events in the app that an automation can start from. A time entry is logged, a request is approved, a project is marked complete.
  • Actions — operations other automations can call, so workflows elsewhere in your workspace can drive the app.
The app doesn’t run the automation itself. It registers what it offers, and those show up in the automations module for you to build on. Most apps only need triggers.

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Ask for it in the build chat

There’s no setting to switch on. You describe the workflow you want and the app builder wires it into the app. Say you want an automation, so there’s no ambiguity about what you’re asking for:
I want to create an automation that sends a message to the client when a time entry is logged against them.
I want to create an automation that updates the client’s status field and messages them when a project is marked complete.
The builder does this when two things are true at once: the thing should happen in reaction to an event rather than because someone pressed a button, and the effect lands on Assembly — a message, a contact or company field, a contract, a form, a file. If the effect stays inside the app — marking a task done moves it to an archive column — that’s ordinary app behavior, and the app builder just builds it.

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Then build the automation

Adding the trigger doesn’t create the automation. The app registers the trigger; you still have to build the automation on it. Until you do, the event fires and nothing happens.
Once the app is published, go to Settings > Automations, create a workflow, and choose your app’s trigger from the trigger list — it appears alongside the built-in ones like Form submitted and Invoice paid. Then add the action you want and publish. If you asked for two effects — message the client and update their status — that’s one trigger and two actions, so build both.

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Actions your app exposes

An app can also offer actions of its own, so an automation started by anything in your workspace can call into it. A client signs a contract, and an automation creates a record in your app. Ask for this the same way, and be specific about what the action should take: “an automation should be able to log a time entry with the client, minutes, and a note.”

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Renaming

Once workspace automations are built on your app’s triggers and actions, renaming them breaks those automations. The name is how the platform identifies them, so a renamed trigger orphans every automation using it. Ask for the names you want early, and treat them as permanent once people are relying on them.