Automation Overview

How n8n integration works, what can be automated, and the types of triggers available.

Last updated: April 22, 2026

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What Can Be Automated?

Automation in Sarudo is powered by n8n, an open-source workflow automation platform that runs on your dedicated server. Automations handle recurring tasks that would otherwise require manual intervention. Examples include monitoring a website for changes and alerting you, processing incoming webhooks from external services, generating daily or weekly reports, syncing data between systems, and running scheduled maintenance tasks. If it is repetitive and follows a pattern, it can probably be automated.

n8n Integration

n8n provides a visual workflow builder where tasks are represented as nodes connected in a flow. Each node performs a specific action — fetching data, processing information, sending notifications, or interacting with APIs. Nodes are chained together to create complex workflows that run automatically. Your AI employee can create, modify, activate, and monitor n8n workflows on your behalf through conversation, so you do not need to learn the n8n interface directly.

n8n runs on your dedicated server alongside your AI employee. Workflows have direct access to your data and tools without going through external services.

Trigger Types

Automations can be triggered in three ways. Cron triggers run on a schedule — hourly, daily, weekly, or at specific times. Webhook triggers fire when an external service sends data to a webhook URL (like a new payment in Stripe or a form submission). Manual triggers run when you explicitly ask the AI to execute a workflow. Each trigger type suits different use cases, and a single workflow can have multiple triggers.

Asking about automations

See what is automated.

You say:

What automations are running for me?

Sarudo responds:

You have 7 active automations: 1) Health check — every 5 minutes, monitors all services. 2) Learning pipeline — every 30 minutes, processes conversation knowledge. 3) Daily backup — 3 AM, backs up database and files. 4) Evening summary — 8 PM, sends your daily activity recap. 5) Hourly lead enricher — every hour, enriches new leads from the CRM (sheet-driven-fanout). 6) Stripe webhook processor — on trigger, logs payment events to your CRM. 7) Weekly LinkedIn post — Monday 8 AM, drafts a thought-leadership post via Publer (llm-with-retry). All are running normally.

Benefits of Automation

Automation saves time, reduces errors, and ensures consistency. Tasks that are automated run exactly the same way every time, without the variability of manual execution. They run even when you are busy, asleep, or on vacation. Most Sarudo clients find that automation becomes one of the most valuable features as they identify more processes that can run without their involvement.

Creating Workflows

How to build workflows with nodes and triggers including cron schedules, webhooks, and manual execution.

Pre-Built Templates

The four composable workflow patterns Sarudo ships with — scheduled-with-heartbeat, llm-with-retry, sheet-driven-fanout, and approval-loop-drafter.

Built-in Automations

System automations that run automatically: health checks, learning pipeline, daily backups, and activity summaries.