> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.hops.ai/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Automations

> Set up recurring actions your agents run automatically, on a schedule or when something happens.

Automations let your agents do repeating work without someone having to ask each time. Set a trigger, define the action, and the agent handles it.

You can set up automations from Spaces, from individual chats, or even from one-on-one conversations with agents. Any chat can become a recurring workflow.

## Types of automations

**Scheduled automations** run at a set time: daily, weekly, or on a custom schedule.

Examples:

* Every Monday at 9am: your sales agent summarizes the week's new leads and posts to the Sales Space
* Every Friday: your finance agent pulls last week's spend summary into the Finance Space
* Daily at 5pm: your marketing agent compiles the day's published content and adds it to the log

**Event-based automations** run when something happens in a connected tool.

Examples:

* When a new ticket is created in your support tool: your support agent summarizes and posts to the Support Space
* When a new deal reaches "Proposal" stage in the CRM: your sales agent drafts a follow-up brief

## Create an automation

<Steps>
  <Step title="Select the agent">
    Choose the agent you want to automate.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Create a new automation">
    Choose whether to start with a **schedule** or an **event trigger**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Define the trigger">
    **For scheduled automations:** Set the frequency (daily, weekly, custom) and the time.

    **For event-based automations:** Select the connected tool and the event to listen for.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Write the action">
    Tell the agent what to do when the trigger fires. Write it the same way you'd write an instruction in a thread: specific and concrete.

    Example: *"Summarize all new leads added in the last 7 days. For each lead, include the company, contact name, deal size, and last activity. Post the summary to the Sales Space."*
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set the output destination">
    Choose where the agent posts its output: a specific Space, a specific thread, or a connected tool.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save and activate">
    Review the automation and click **Activate**. You can pause or edit it at any time.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Managing automations

Each automation shows its trigger, last run time, and status.

To pause: toggle the automation off. To edit: click the automation and update the trigger or action. To delete: click the automation and select **Delete**.

## Approval settings for automations

By default, automated actions follow the same approval settings as manual actions. If an agent's permissions require approval for a particular action, the automation pauses and notifies you before proceeding.

You can override this per automation, but only allow auto-approval for low-risk, well-tested automations.

<Warning>
  Don't auto-approve external sends (emails, messages) without thoroughly testing the automation first.
</Warning>

## Related

* [Agent permissions](/agents/agent-permissions)
* [Agent instructions](/agents/agent-instructions)
* [Connections](/connections/overview)


## Related topics

- [Scheduled](/docs/spaces/scheduled.md)
- [Operations](/docs/teams/operations.md)
- [Finance](/docs/teams/finance.md)
- [Professional services](/docs/teams/professional-services.md)
- [Sales](/docs/teams/sales.md)