A Glossary of Key Terms in Make.com Platform Terminology

In the rapidly evolving landscape of HR and recruiting technology, understanding the fundamental building blocks of automation platforms like Make.com is no longer optional—it’s essential. For HR leaders and recruiting professionals aiming to streamline operations, eliminate manual tasks, and leverage AI, a firm grasp of these core terms empowers you to design, implement, and optimize sophisticated workflows. This glossary demystifies the key terminology within the Make.com ecosystem, translating technical concepts into practical insights for your talent acquisition and HR management strategies.

Scenario

In Make.com, a Scenario is the fundamental unit of automation, representing a complete workflow or process that executes a series of tasks. Think of it as a blueprint for a specific HR or recruiting operation, such as automatically sending interview invitations, syncing candidate data from an ATS to a CRM, or processing new hire onboarding forms. Each scenario typically starts with a trigger and follows a defined path of modules, filters, and routers to achieve a desired outcome. Understanding scenarios allows HR professionals to visualize and implement end-to-end automated processes, moving beyond manual, fragmented tasks to integrated, efficient operations that save valuable time and reduce errors.

Module

A Module is a specific block within a Make.com scenario that performs a single task or operation with an application or service. For HR, this could be a “Google Sheets – Add a Row” module to log new applicants, an “Email – Send an Email” module to notify hiring managers, or an “Applicant Tracking System (ATS) – Search for Candidate” module. Modules are the actionable components that connect different systems and data points, allowing you to orchestrate complex recruiting workflows. By leveraging various modules, HR professionals can automate data transfer, communication, and system updates without needing to write any code, creating dynamic and responsive recruitment processes.

Connection

A Connection in Make.com refers to the authenticated link between your Make.com account and a third-party application or service. When you set up a module that interacts with an external platform—like your ATS (e.g., Greenhouse, Workday), CRM (e.g., Salesforce, Keap), or communication tool (e.g., Slack, Gmail)—you first need to establish a connection. This involves securely providing credentials (like API keys or OAuth tokens) to allow Make.com to interact with that application on your behalf. For HR, secure connections are paramount for data integrity and privacy, ensuring that automated workflows can access and manipulate sensitive candidate and employee information only with proper authorization.

Webhook

A Webhook is a mechanism for one application to send real-time information to another application when a specific event occurs. In Make.com, a Webhook module acts as a “listener” for these incoming messages. For HR and recruiting, webhooks are incredibly powerful; for instance, an ATS could send a webhook notification to Make.com every time a candidate’s status changes to “Hired.” Make.com then “catches” this webhook and can trigger subsequent actions, such as initiating an onboarding workflow, updating a hiring dashboard, or sending a welcome email. Webhooks enable instantaneous, event-driven automation, significantly reducing delays and manual oversight in critical HR processes.

Iterator

An Iterator module in Make.com is used to process a collection of items (an array) one by one. Imagine you receive a webhook containing data for multiple job applications, or you pull a list of candidates from a database. An iterator allows Make.com to “loop through” each individual application or candidate record, performing a specific action for each one. For HR, this is invaluable for tasks like processing batch resume uploads, sending personalized follow-up emails to a list of interviewees, or creating individual records in an HRIS from a single report. Iterators ensure that every item in a dataset receives the necessary attention and processing within an automated workflow.

Aggregator

An Aggregator module in Make.com does the opposite of an iterator: it collects multiple bundles of data into a single, combined bundle. After an iterator processes individual items, an aggregator can then take the results from each of those individual processes and merge them into one comprehensive output. For example, if you iterate through a list of candidates and enrich each candidate’s data separately, an aggregator could combine all the enriched candidate profiles back into a single report or summary. This is useful for generating consolidated reports, compiling all related documents for a new hire packet, or sending a single summary email about multiple events that occurred within a scenario, simplifying communication and data management.

Router

A Router module in Make.com allows you to split a single workflow path into multiple distinct paths, enabling conditional processing based on specific criteria. Think of it as a decision point in your HR automation. For example, after a new candidate applies, a router could direct candidates with specific skills to one hiring manager while sending others to a different department, or initiate a background check workflow only if the position requires it. Routers introduce powerful logic and branching into your scenarios, ensuring that different conditions or data points lead to appropriate, tailored actions, making your automation intelligent and responsive to varying HR needs.

Filter

A Filter is a condition placed on a path between two modules in a Make.com scenario, allowing bundles of data to pass through only if they meet specified criteria. Unlike a router which directs data down different paths, a filter either allows data to proceed or stops it entirely. For HR, a filter could be used to ensure that only candidates with a minimum of 5 years of experience proceed to the interview stage, or that only invoices above a certain amount are sent for managerial approval. Filters are crucial for refining data, ensuring that only relevant information triggers subsequent actions, thereby preventing unnecessary operations and maintaining the integrity and focus of your automated HR workflows.

Data Store

A Data Store in Make.com provides a way to temporarily or permanently store data directly within the Make.com platform itself, rather than relying solely on external applications. This is incredibly useful for maintaining persistent data between scenario runs or across different scenarios. For instance, an HR team could use a data store to keep track of the last processed candidate ID to avoid duplicates, or to store custom configuration settings for different hiring workflows. Data stores act as a flexible, internal database, enhancing the power and statefulness of your automations, especially when integrating disparate systems where a centralized data repository is needed.

Array

An Array, in the context of Make.com and data processing, is an ordered collection of items. Each item within an array can be a simple value (like a number or text string) or a more complex structure (like an object containing multiple properties). For HR professionals, understanding arrays is key when dealing with lists of data—such as a list of applicants from an ATS, a series of skills associated with a job role, or a collection of feedback responses. When a module outputs an array, an Iterator is typically used to process each item individually. Arrays are fundamental to handling and manipulating lists of data efficiently within automated workflows.

Collection

A Collection (often referred to as an Object or Dictionary in other programming contexts) is an unordered set of key-value pairs. Unlike an array, which is an ordered list, a collection stores data in properties where each property has a name (key) and an associated value. For example, a candidate’s profile might be represented as a collection: {“firstName”: “Jane”, “lastName”: “Doe”, “email”: “jane.doe@example.com”}. Collections are frequently used to represent structured data, like a single record from a database or a specific request body from a webhook. They are vital for accessing and manipulating specific pieces of information about an entity within your HR automations.

Mapping

Mapping in Make.com is the process of linking data from one module’s output to another module’s input. When you set up a module, you often need to tell it where to find the data it should process. For example, if a “Webhook” module receives a candidate’s name and email, you would “map” these fields to the corresponding “Name” and “Email” fields in an “Email – Send an Email” module. This visual drag-and-drop process ensures that the correct pieces of information flow accurately from one step of your HR automation to the next, tailoring communications and data entries precisely to your workflow’s requirements.

Operation

An Operation in Make.com refers to a single execution of a module within a scenario. Each time a module successfully processes a bundle of data, it counts as an operation. Make.com pricing plans are often based on the number of operations consumed. For HR teams building automations, understanding operations is important for managing costs and optimizing scenario efficiency. Minimizing unnecessary operations through smart use of filters, routers, and efficient data processing ensures that your automation runs effectively without exceeding your plan limits, making resource planning for HR tech investments more predictable.

Trigger

A Trigger is the starting point of any Make.com scenario. It is the specific event that initiates the execution of your automated workflow. Common triggers for HR and recruiting include a “Webhook” receiving new data, a “Google Sheets – Watch Rows” module detecting a new row added, or a “Scheduler” module set to run at specific intervals (e.g., daily, weekly). Selecting the appropriate trigger is crucial as it dictates when and how your HR automation begins, ensuring that critical processes like new applicant intake, onboarding initiation, or compliance checks are activated precisely when needed.

Action

An Action module in Make.com performs a specific task or manipulation of data within an external application after a scenario has been triggered. While a trigger initiates a scenario, action modules carry out the subsequent steps. Examples in HR include “Create a record” in an HRIS, “Send an email” via Gmail, “Update a status” in an ATS, or “Generate a document” in PandaDoc. Action modules are the workhorses of your automation, performing the hands-on tasks that would otherwise require manual intervention, directly contributing to increased efficiency and reduced errors in HR operations.

If you would like to read more, we recommend this article: Webhook vs. Mailhook: Architecting Intelligent HR & Recruiting Automation on Make.com