Onboarding Workflow
From the signed contract to the welcome email: how an n8n workflow turns onboarding from seven emails into a traceable process, without personal data ever leaving your own server.
Onboarding Workflown8n for HR: self-host your workflows, keep data in-house
n8n is an open-source automation platform that can run on your own infrastructure. For HR processes with sensitive personal data, that's often the key difference to Zapier, Make or Power Automate.
Kurz beantwortet
n8n can be self-hosted as open-source software instead of being rented as cloud SaaS. For HR data, that reduces the number of third parties involved and reduces questions around international data transfers — but it doesn't replace alignment with data protection and the works council.
Application Intake
Applications often arrive through a single inbox — and get lost the moment two roles are open at once. An n8n workflow structures the intake without introducing a new applicant tracking system.
Application IntakeReference Letter Drafts
Reference letter requests often start with three sentences in the hallway. A structured form plus an n8n workflow turns that into a draft HR can build on without follow-up questions — the legal review always stays with a human.
Reference Letter DraftsAt a glance
How an n8n project runs
From the first sketch to handing the workflow to your team – three to four weeks, with the works council and data protection in the room from the start.
Frequently asked questions about n8n in HR
Is n8n GDPR-compliant?
n8n itself is a tool, not a ready-made data protection solution. Self-hosted in the EU, with a data processing agreement with the hosting provider and a data protection impact assessment for the specific workflow, it can be operated in a GDPR-compliant way.
Does my company need its own IT department?
Not necessarily a large one, but someone who can run and maintain a server or a private cloud instance — internally or through an external provider.
What does a typical n8n project cost?
The software itself is free as the community edition. The effort lies in hosting and in the consulting time for design, build and alignment with the works council and data protection.
n8n project for your HR team?
A short, no-obligation conversation: which process is worth automating first, what effort it takes, and how the works council and data protection are involved from the start.