Create an employee feed to import employee records into Applaud and publish lifecycle events that trigger automated experiences.
For an overview of Employee Feeds, see Employee feeds in Applaud.
Before you start
- Confirm that you have permission to create and manage employee feeds. See Employee feeds permissions.
- Create a connection for Employee Feeds if you don't already have one.
- Decide how you want to import employee data:
| Method | Best for | Authentication |
| Polling | HR systems with APIs | Applaud connection |
| Spreadsheet | CSV or Excel exports, or pilot implementations | Dedicated upload endpoint |
| Webhook | Systems that publish change events | Dedicated webhook endpoint |
- Identify a stable employee identifier from your HR system, such as an employee number. Use a permanent identifier rather than a value that can change, such as an email address.
- If you use polling, make sure the required Applaud connection is available. A single connection can support one or more feeds.
- If your source has a predefined template, such as Workday Workers, you can start with that template instead of creating a feed from scratch. See Use the Workday Workers template.
Create the feed
- From Applaud admin, select Employee Feeds.
- Create a new feed.
- Enter a name that identifies the data source and purpose of the feed.
For example:
- Workday Workers – production
- Pilot spreadsheet – UK workforce
- Choose the import method: Polling, Spreadsheet, or Webhook.
- If you chose Polling, select the Applaud connection that authenticates with your HR system or data source.
- If you chose Spreadsheet or Webhook, copy the endpoint provided for the feed so you can provide it to the system that sends data to Applaud.
- Save the feed.
Creating a feed doesn't complete synchronization. Configure the feed before using it to import employee data or publish lifecycle events.
Next steps
After you create the feed:
- Configure field mappings so Applaud imports the employee attributes you need. See Configure field mappings.
- Configure lifecycle events if the feed needs to trigger workflows. See Configure lifecycle events.
- Test the feed by previewing mappings and running a sample synchronization before using it in production.
- Monitor synchronization activity through run history, record outcomes, and event delivery logs. See Monitor Employee Feed activity.