Your repetitive processes consume 20 hours per week.

SkaLean can automate any process that follows a logic (if event X then action Y) or requires a decision based on document or message content. Most frequently automated categories:

1. Client communication processes: automatic sending of confirmations, reminders, follow-ups, and answers to frequent questions. Example: a patient fills out an appointment form, SMS + email confirmation + calendar creation + 24h reminder.
2. Document processes: receiving an invoice by email, automatic extraction of amount/supplier/date, verification in ERP, creating accounting entry, notification if amount exceeds threshold.
3. Qualification processes: incoming email analyzed by AI, classified as quote/complaint/question, differentiated automatic processing by category.
4. Reporting processes: automatic weekly compilation of data from multiple sources, report generation, email to management.

What is not (yet) automatable: decisions requiring human judgment on unique, complex situations, or physical actions (signing a paper document). But everything else — sorting, extracting, classifying, notifying, creating records — can be automated.

No. SkaLean's workflow builder is entirely visual (drag-and-drop, no code). You drag blocks from a panel (Trigger, Condition, AI Action, Notification, Delay, Branch) and connect them with arrows. Each block has a visual configuration form: you fill in fields, you don't type code. AI nodes (the decision layer) are configured in natural language — you write "extract the total amount, supplier name, and due date from this invoice" — not Python code.

Simulation mode: before activating a workflow, you can test it with real data in simulation mode. You see exactly what would happen (which emails would be sent, which records created) without any actual action executing. Our team configures the first workflows during onboarding, and pre-built sector-specific templates are available from day one.

For a standard process with a simple trigger (incoming email, form, cron scheduling) and 3 to 7 steps: 1 to 3 hours of configuration in the visual builder, plus 1 to 2 hours of testing in simulation mode.

Concrete example: the "appointment confirmation" workflow (form, calendar check, SMS + email confirmation, client file creation, D-1 reminder) takes an average of 2.5 hours to build for someone doing it for the first time.

For a complex process with multiple conditional branches, data extraction from unstructured documents, or integration with a custom ERP: 1 to 3 days. Our team configures the first 3 to 5 workflows during onboarding, letting you see concrete results in the first week. You then add workflows at your own pace of one to two per month.

SkaLean handles errors at three levels:

1. Immediate notification: if a step fails (unavailable API, unrecognized document, unmet condition), you're instantly notified by email or Slack with exact context: which step failed, with what input data, and the complete error message.
2. Configurable failure strategy: for each step, you define the behavior on failure: automatic retry (1 to 5 times with configurable delay), suspension until manual correction, or fallback to an alternative workflow branch.
3. Execution data retention: data from each execution is retained 7 to 365 days depending on your plan, with each step's status. You can replay an execution from the failure point once the issue is fixed — successfully completed steps before the error are not repeated.

The fundamental difference is the AI decision layer. Zapier and Make connect events without intelligence: "when X happens, do Y." SkaLean AI Automation integrates an AI brain into workflows.

1. Unstructured content processing: Zapier can move a PDF attachment to a folder. SkaLean can open that PDF, read its content, extract key data (amount, dates, stakeholders), make a decision based on that data, and trigger different actions based on the result.
2. Intelligent classification: an incoming email with Zapier always triggers the same action. With SkaLean, AI reads the email content, classifies it (quote, complaint, general question, urgency) and triggers different workflows based on classification.
3. Contextual drafting: SkaLean can generate a personalized response adapted to the tone and content of the client's request. Zapier can only send a fixed template.

Use Zapier/Make for simple tool connections without content intelligence. Use SkaLean Automation when the decision depends on content, not just the event.

Yes — it's actually one of the most frequent use cases. SkaLean can automate interactions with third parties via:

1. Email: sending, receiving, and analyzing responses from your clients and suppliers. The workflow can wait for a specific response and trigger actions based on the content.
2. SMS and WhatsApp: appointment confirmations, payment reminders, delivery notifications.
3. Web forms: the workflow can generate and send a pre-filled form link to your third party, analyze the responses, and automatically update your CRM.
4. Electronic signatures (via DocuSign, HelloSign connector): automatic contract sending for signature, notification upon receipt.
5. Client portal: automatic creation of a client space with relevant information.

Any third-party automation must respect consent (opt-in for marketing communications), CASL compliance deadlines (Canada), and your sector's rules. SkaLean integrates compliance checks for outgoing communications.