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Spendesk's native HR tools integrations

Learn more about the native Spendesk integrations with HR tools such as Personio, HiBob, Workday and more!

Spendesk's native HR tools integrations

Connect Spendesk to your HR tool to automatically create, update, and archive employee accounts as they change in your HR system. This removes the need for manual member management.

For: Account Owners and Administrators on Scale and Premium plans.

Table of Contents

  • Before you start

  • Step 1: Connect your HR tool

  • Step 2: Configure the integration

  • Step 3: Disconnect the integration

  • Expected results

  • Troubleshooting

  • FAQs

  • Related articles

Before you start

  • Plan: Available on Scale and Premium plans only.

  • Role: You need the Account Owner or Administrator role in Spendesk to set up and manage the integration.

  • HR tool access: You need Admin access to your HR tool to generate API keys or credentials.

  • Email format: Employees in your HR tool must use a professional or work email address. Spendesk matches HR records to Spendesk accounts using this email.

  • Multiple entities: If you have multiple Spendesk entities (legal entities), repeat every step below for each entity.

🔒 Access: This feature is only available on Scale and Premium plans.

Step 1: Connect your HR tool

  1. Navigate to Settings > Integrations.

  2. Select your HR tool from the list of options.

  3. Click "Connect".

  4. Review the data Spendesk will request access to.

  5. Enter the authentication details for your HR tool (API key or equivalent credentials).

  6. Confirm the connection.

Some HR tools require extra preparation before you connect. Complete the relevant steps below first.

HR tool

Steps required before connecting

Personio

Get your subdomain from your Personio URL (format: https://subdomain.personio.de). As a Personio Administrator, open the Marketplace page and click "Connect" in the top-right corner. Select "Generate new API credential" and confirm. Copy the generated Client ID and Client Secret into the Spendesk connection dialog.

BambooHR

Get your subdomain from your BambooHR URL (format: https://subdomain.bamboohr.com). As a BambooHR Administrator, create and retrieve an API key from BambooHR.

HiBob

Create a service user in HiBob (Settings > Integrations > Service Users). Select "New Service User" and name it (for example, "Spendesk Integration"). Note the ID and token you receive. Create a new Permission Group (Settings > Account > Permission Groups), name it, and set the required permissions in the "People's Data" tab as shown in the Spendesk connection dialog. Add your service user to this Permission Group. Return to Spendesk to complete the connection.

Workday

As an Admin, log in to Workday and search for "View API Clients". Note the Workday REST API Endpoint. Search for "Create Integration System User" and set a username and password. Set up the required permissions.

Deel

Confirm your account has the Organization Admin role in the Organization Settings screen.

PayFit

As a PayFit Administrator, follow the in-product connection flow and authorize the connection using your PayFit account.

Lucca HR

Identify your Lucca domain from your URL (for example, "example" in https://example.ilucca.net). As an Administrator, log in to Lucca and click the cog icon in the top-right corner. Go to "Authentication, SSO and API" > "API Keys". Click "Generate API Key" and name it (for example, "Spendesk Integration"). Copy the generated key. Return to Spendesk and enter the domain and API key to complete the connection.

💡 Tip: If your HR tool is not listed above, check the connection guides for other supported tools, or contact Spendesk support.

Once the connection succeeds, Spendesk returns you to the Integrations screen and runs an initial sync. This sync only retrieves data — it does not change anything in Spendesk yet. When the sync finishes, the integration status shows "Pending actions".

Step 2: Configure the integration

  1. Navigate to Settings > Integrations.

  2. Click your HR tool's integration card, which shows the status "Awaiting actions".

  3. Select "All employees" or "Custom filter" to define which employees Spendesk should manage.

  4. If you select "Custom filter", choose the filter values (for example, work location or department) from the dropdowns to match the employees you want synced to this entity.

  5. If you use "Custom filter" and want reporting managers synced automatically, enable "Automatically include managers". This setting is not needed if you selected "All employees", since manager data syncs automatically in that case.

  6. Toggle "Automatically remove inactive employees" if you want Spendesk to archive employees when they become inactive in your HR tool. This setting is off by default.

  7. Click "Save & apply".

  8. Review the preview showing which users will be newly managed, invited, or archived.

  9. Confirm the changes.

⚠️ Warning: Some employee fields become read-only for HR-managed members. Spendesk treats HR tool data as the source of truth, so these fields can only be edited from your HR tool.

After confirmation, the integration status changes to "Connected". Initial processing time depends on your number of employees.

Step 3: Disconnect the integration

  1. Navigate to Settings > Integrations.

  2. Click your HR tool's integration card.

  3. Click "Disconnect".

Disconnecting stops the integration from creating or updating users going forward. It does not affect users already created in Spendesk. To resume, repeat Step 1 and Step 2 in full.

Expected results

Once connected, you'll see the following changes:

  • Integration card (Settings > Integrations): shows "Connected" when the sync is active, or an error status if there's a connection issue.

  • Members page (Settings > Members): displays a notice that members are being actively managed, and a new "HR Status" column:

    • Green tick: the member is actively managed by the integration.

    • Orange warning: the member was previously managed but no longer matches your filter settings.

    • Blank: the member is managed manually; the integration does not update them.

  • Invited tab: members invited by the integration appear here until they complete onboarding, then move to the "Active" tab.

  • Archived tab: members removed for being inactive in your HR tool appear here.

👥 Roles: Only Account Owners and Administrators can view and manage the HR integration status.

Troubleshooting

Symptom: An employee does not appear in Spendesk after the integration syncs.

Cause: Their email address in your HR tool doesn't exactly match their Spendesk account, often after a recent email change.

Resolution:

  1. Compare the employee's email address in your HR tool and in Spendesk.

  2. If they differ, update the email address in Spendesk to match your HR tool.

  3. If you can't update it yourself, contact Spendesk support with the employee's current and previous email addresses.

Symptom: The integration card shows a connection error.

Cause: The API key or credentials from your HR tool are invalid or expired, or a network/firewall rule is blocking the connection.

Resolution:

  1. Check that the API key or credentials in your HR tool are still valid.

  2. Verify your network or firewall settings aren't blocking the integration.

  3. Check the exact error message on the integration card.

  4. Contact Spendesk support if the issue persists.

Symptom: A user needs to exist in multiple Spendesk entities, but the sync filters don't allow this.

Cause: Custom filters can't always capture every exception (for example, users working across entities).

Resolution:

  1. Identify the affected employees and their email addresses in both Spendesk and your HR tool.

  2. Contact Spendesk support or an Account Owner to manually align their profile details.

  3. Confirm details such as reporting manager and department match in Spendesk.

FAQs

How often does the integration sync data?

Spendesk runs a full sync every 6 hours. Most integrations also run a delta sync (latest changes only) every 2 hours. This means updates or removals in your HR tool appear in Spendesk within 6 hours at most, often sooner.

What if my HR tool isn't available in Spendesk?

If your HR tool doesn't appear on Settings > Integrations, contact your Spendesk customer service contact or submit a request using the in-product form on the Integrations page. Spendesk is actively adding more supported tools.

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