Resources · Make integration

Personio Make integrationAutomate Personio with Make.

Can Make take the repetitive HR admin off your plate in Personio? The Personio Make integration gives you 18 modules: 2 scheduled triggers, 9 actions and 7 searches. This guide is for HR and ops teams who want to link their account, understand each module and build a first working scenario.

Try the Personio integration on MakeSee the 18 modules

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What you can automate

What can the Personio Make integration do for your HR team?

The Personio Make integration links your Personio account to Make, a no-code tool where you build a scenario: an automation made of modules, each one a brick that watches, creates, reads or searches something. Personio then talks to your other apps without anyone copying data by hand.

Candidates land in Personio on their own. A form in another app collects an application, Create an Application opens it in Personio and Upload Application Document attaches the resume. Recruiters stop retyping what the candidate already wrote.

New hires trigger the onboarding paperwork. Watch Employees spots every employee created in Personio, and Upload a Document drops the right file into their record, filed under a category you pick with List Document Categories.

Absence data reaches your reporting. List Time-Offs, List Employee Absences Balances and Search Attendances pull the figures into a spreadsheet or a dashboard, so managers see who is away without opening Personio.

Know the limits before you start. Both triggers are scheduled: Make checks Personio on the scenario's schedule, it is never pinged by Personio. The module list has nothing for deleting a record, and anything outside the 18 modules goes through Make an API Call. Personio may also have a node on n8n; the n8n vs Make comparison helps you choose, and the Make pricing page shows what each plan allows.

Connect

How do you connect Personio to Make?

  1. 01

    Generate API credentials in Personio

    In Personio, open Settings, then API credentials, and click Generate new credentials. Copy the Client ID and the Client secret shown on screen. If Personio asks for a callback URI, paste https://www.integromat.com/oauth/cb/personio2.

  2. 02

    Add a Personio module in Make

    In your Make scenario, add any Personio module and click Create a connection. A connection is your Personio account linked to Make once, then reused by every Personio module. The Connection name field is optional but handy when you manage several accounts.

  3. 03

    Paste the credentials and save

    Enter the Client ID and Client secret you copied, or follow the instructions Make shows on screen, then save. Once the connection exists, Make can read your Personio data and fill the module's lists for you.

First scenario

Build your first Personio scenario in Make

GoalWhen a candidate fills in a form in another app, Make creates the application in Personio and attaches the document they sent.

  1. 01

    Create the scenario

    From the Scenarios page, create a new scenario and click the +. Pick the form app where candidates apply as the first module, and connect that account.

  2. 02

    Add Create an Application

    Click the + on the right of the form module, search for Personio and choose Create an Application. Click Create a connection and use the credentials from the step above.

  3. 03

    Map the candidate's answers

    Fill the module's fields by mapping the answers the form module received. Each bundle, meaning one item passed from a module to the next, here holds one submitted form.

  4. 04

    Attach the document

    Add Upload Application Document after it and map the file coming from the form. The document ends up attached to the application instead of sitting in a mailbox.

  5. 05

    Test with Run once

    Submit a test form, then click Run once. Make runs the scenario one time and shows the bundles each module received, so you can check the application in Personio.

  6. 06

    Schedule and switch it on

    Set the schedule on the first module (every 15 minutes by default for a new scenario) and switch the scenario on. Each module run on a bundle counts as one operation on your plan.

Triggers

What starts a Personio scenario?

2 modules start a scenario when something happens in Personio. A scheduled trigger is checked by Make on the scenario's schedule; an instant one is called by Personio as soon as it happens.

Personio1Watch Employees

Watch Employees

Scheduled trigger

In Make“Triggers when a new employee is created.”

Watch Employees hands your scenario every employee newly created in Personio, one bundle per person, so the rest of your onboarding can start without anyone forwarding a name.

How it fires
it is a scheduled trigger. Make checks Personio on the scenario's schedule, every 15 minutes by default, and picks up the employees created since the last check.
When to use it
HR adds a new hire in Personio and you want an account created in another tool or a welcome document uploaded to their file.
Watch out
it reacts to new employees only. A change on an existing profile does not start the scenario.
Personio2Watch Positions

Watch Positions

Scheduled trigger

In Make“Triggers when a new position is created.”

Opening a role in Personio can now publish itself elsewhere: Watch Positions passes each newly created position to the next module of your scenario as a bundle.

How it fires
scheduled. Make checks Personio on the scenario's schedule and collects the positions created since its previous check; on the Free plan that interval is 15 minutes at the shortest.
When to use it
a recruiter creates a position and you want the hiring team alerted in chat or the role added to a tracking spreadsheet.
Watch out
only new positions come through. To work on every open role at once, use List Open Positions instead.
Modules

What can Make do in Personio?

Personio gives you 16 modules. For each one: what it does for you, when to reach for it, and what to watch out for.

Personio1

Create an Application

Action

In Make“Creates a new application.”

You get a new application in Personio without typing it, built from data another module collected, such as a form or an email parser.

When to use it
candidates apply outside Personio and recruiters still want every application in one place.
Watch out
the document does not travel with it. Add Upload Application Document right after to attach files.
Personio2

Create an Employee

Action

In Make“Creates a new employee.”

This action adds a person to Personio for you, so a hire confirmed in another system no longer needs to be entered twice.

When to use it
a signed offer or a completed intake form in another app should open the employee record.
Watch out
run a List Employees search first if the same person could arrive twice, or you will end up with duplicate profiles.
Personio3

Create a Project

Action

In Make“Creates a new project.”

Need a new project in Personio each time work starts elsewhere? This module creates it from the data your scenario already carries, which keeps both tools in step.

When to use it
a deal is won in your CRM and the team needs a matching project in Personio.
Watch out
each run creates one more project, so filter upstream to avoid clones.
Personio4

Get an Employee

Action

In Make“Returns information about the employee by ID.”

Pass an employee ID and Get an Employee returns that person's Personio profile, ready to map into the next modules of your scenario.

When to use it
a previous module gave you only an ID, for example a time-off record, and you need the person's details to write a message.
Watch out
without a valid ID it has nothing to fetch. Use List Employees to find one first.
Personio5

Get a Time Off

Action

In Make“Returns information about the time-off by ID.”

With one time-off ID, this module fetches the details of that single absence, so your scenario can react to it precisely instead of rereading the whole calendar.

When to use it
another step handed you a time-off ID and you want to copy that leave into a shared calendar or notify a manager.
Watch out
it reads one absence. For a range of absences, List Time-Offs is the better pick.
Personio6

Make an API Call

Action

In Make“Performs an arbitrary authorized API call.”

When none of the 18 ready-made modules covers what you need, this one lets you call any endpoint of the Personio API while reusing the same connection.

When to use it
you need a Personio object or action missing from the list above, for example a type of record the list does not reach.
Watch out
you write the request yourself, so keep the Personio API documentation open while you set it up.
Personio7

Update an Employee

Action

In Make“Updates the selected employee.”

Keep profiles current without logging in: Update an Employee changes the chosen employee's record with values coming from another app.

When to use it
a promotion or a new team is recorded in another tool and Personio should reflect it too.
Watch out
the new values replace the old ones. Test with Run once on a test profile before letting it touch real employees.
Personio8

Upload a Document

Action

In Make“Uploads a document for the company employee.”

Files meant for an employee's record go straight into Personio with this action, instead of waiting in an inbox until someone uploads them.

When to use it
a contract comes back signed from an e-signature tool and belongs in that person's Personio file.
Watch out
on the Make Free plan, files are capped at 5 MB. Large scans may not go through.
Personio9

Upload Application Document

Action

In Make“Uploads a new document to be attached to applications.”

Candidates' resumes and cover letters end up attached to applications in Personio, so recruiters review everything from the same screen.

When to use it
right after Create an Application, with the file the candidate sent through a form or by email.
Watch out
this module is for recruiting only. Documents about current staff go through Upload a Document.
Personio10

List Document Categories

Search

In Make“Lists all document categories.”

Here you get every document category defined in your Personio account, so each upload lands in the category it belongs to.

When to use it
before Upload a Document, when the category depends on what the file is, for example a signed contract.
Watch out
it returns one bundle per category, so pick the one you need with a filter before the upload.
Personio11

List Employee Absences Balances

Search

In Make“Lists employee absences balances.”

Remaining leave per employee comes out of Personio with this search, ready to feed a report or a reminder without anyone running an export.

When to use it
you want managers to see how much leave each person has left, in a sheet they already open.
Watch out
as a search, it can return several bundles. Every module placed after it runs once per bundle and uses operations.
Personio12

List Employees

Search

In Make“Lists all employees.”

This search returns your whole Personio team, one bundle per employee, which gives you a starting list for any bulk task or sync.

When to use it
you mirror the staff list in another app, or look up someone before creating them again.
Watch out
a large company means many bundles, and every module after it counts an operation for each one.
Personio13

List Open Positions

Search

In Make“Lists open positions for your company.”

All positions currently open at your company come back from this search, which is handy for publishing or reviewing the roles you are hiring for.

When to use it
you refresh a careers page or a hiring tracker with every open role, not only the new ones.
Watch out
for new positions only, Watch Positions starts the scenario by itself and avoids reprocessing old roles.
Personio14

List Time-Offs

Search

In Make“Searches for specific time-offs or lists them all.”

Look up specific absences or pull every time-off at once: this search gives your scenario the leave data you need for planning.

When to use it
you build a team absence calendar in another tool or send a summary of who is out.
Watch out
without a filter it can return all time-offs, so narrow the search before mapping it into a message.
Personio15

List Time-Off Types

Search

In Make“Lists all time-off types.”

Every absence type set up in your Personio account comes back with this search, so your scenario can use the right one by name.

When to use it
you sort absences by type in a report, or need a type before another module that asks for it.
Watch out
these types come from your Personio settings. Create any missing one there, not in Make.
Personio16

Search Attendances

Search

In Make“Searches for attendances.”

Attendance records kept in Personio are what this search brings back, which lets you check presence or prepare time reports automatically.

When to use it
you send attendance data to payroll or to a spreadsheet that tracks project hours.
Watch out
it returns zero, one or several bundles. Plan for the empty case so the next module does not fail.
Need help

Need help automating Personio with Make?

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FAQ

Questions about the Personio Make integration

01Is the Personio Make integration free?
Yes on the Make side. Personio is a standard app, available from the Free plan. That plan allows 2 active scenarios, a scheduled run every 15 minutes at the shortest, 5 minutes of execution per run, files up to 5 MB and 512 MB of data transfer. Paid plans (Core, Pro, Teams, Enterprise) lower the interval to 1 minute and count usage in credits. You still need an active Personio account, which Personio bills on its own terms.
02What do you need to connect Personio to Make?
An active Personio account and API credentials. In Personio, go to Settings, then API credentials, and click Generate new credentials. Copy the Client ID and the Client secret. If a callback URI is requested, use the one given in the Make documentation for Personio. In Make, add a Personio module, click Create a connection, give it a name if you like and paste both values. The connection is then reused by every Personio module in your scenarios.
03Does the Personio trigger in Make fire instantly?
No. Watch Employees and Watch Positions are both scheduled triggers: Make checks Personio on the scenario's schedule rather than being alerted by Personio. A new scenario runs every 15 minutes by default. On the Free plan 15 minutes is also the shortest interval; paid plans go down to 1 minute. So a new hire or a new position shows up in your scenario at the next check, not the second it is saved.
04What if a Personio module is missing in Make?
Use Make an API Call. It sends a request to any endpoint of the Personio API with the connection you already set up, so you can reach an object or an action that the 18 modules do not cover. You write the request yourself from the Personio API documentation. The Make documentation for Personio lists no specific limit, and it notes that its content should be checked against Personio's own docs.
05Should you use Make or n8n for Personio?
It depends on what you need to build. On Make, Personio comes with 18 modules: 2 scheduled triggers, 9 actions including Make an API Call, and 7 searches, which cover hires, positions, applications, documents and absences without code. The same app often has a node on n8n too, so compare the list of operations each tool offers against your own scenario. The n8n vs Make comparison linked on this page sets out the general differences.
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