Automation Stopped by System: Failure and Pause Alerts

This article describes all system-generated alerts available in Bullhorn Automation. Use these features to stay informed when automations encounter errors, fail repeatedly, or are paused automatically due to configuration issues.

Step Failure Alerts

Several automation steps include an On Failed Request setting that sends an email alert when that step's integration request fails. You can configure the notification to go to a specific user or to the record owner, such as the candidate or contact owner in your ATS. The email includes failure details to help you diagnose and resolve the issue.

To configure the setting, open any supported step and locate the On Failed Request dropdown. Select Notify owner to alert the record owner, or Notify specific user to route the alert to a designated user.

On Failed Request dropdown showing three options: Do not send notification, Notify owner, and Notify specific user.

After selecting a notification option, a Send Notification To field appears where you specify the recipient.

On Failed Request setting with the Send notification after failed request checkbox enabled and a Send Notification To field below it.

The following steps support the On Failed Request setting:

  • Talent Platform: Notifies on failed Talent Platform workflow integration calls.
  • Onboarding365: Notifies on failed Onboarding365 workflow integration calls.
  • Add Billable Charge: Notifies on failed billing system requests.
  • Webhook: Notifies on failed custom webhook or API calls.
  • Generate File: Notifies on failed Amplify Present integration calls.
  • Enrich Record: Notifies on failed Amplify Prompt Studio integration calls.
  • Enrich from Note: Notifies on failed Amplify Enrich from Note service calls.

Automatic Pausing for Bulk Failures

When a single automation step fails more than 25 times within a 15-minute window, Bullhorn Automation automatically sets the automation status to Stopped and sends an email alert to all customer admin users explaining that the automation was paused and why.

In the application, the stopped automation appears at the top of the Automations list. When you open the automation, a banner at the top of the edit view reads: Automation Stopped by System. This automation has been stopped due to an error in the system. Please contact Support if the issue continues.

Automation edit view showing an orange warning banner that reads: Automation Stopped by System. This automation has been stopped due to an error in the system. Please contact Support if the issue continues.

When an automation is stopped, no new records enter and no steps advance until the issue is resolved and the automation is manually restarted.

Automatic Pausing for Configuration Issues

When an automation contains steps in an illogical order, such as a wait step placed after an End step, Bullhorn Automation automatically pauses the automation and attempts to reorder those steps into the correct sequence. The automation status is set to Stopped and an email is sent to all customer admin users.

The email subject reads: Action Required: Review Stopped Automation Due To Steps Out Of Order. The body explains that the automation has been stopped due to steps being out of order, that the system has corrected the step order, and asks admins to review the automation before re-enabling it to confirm it still reflects the intended workflow.

Email notification with subject line: Action Required: Review Stopped Automation Due To Steps Out Of Order. The body reads: We are notifying you that this automation has been stopped due to steps being out of order. We have systematically corrected the order of the steps in this automation. Please review before re-enabling.

In the application, the stopped automation appears at the top of the Automations list with a Stopped status badge. When you open the automation, a banner at the top of the edit view restates the issue, and the steps that were adjusted are outlined in red for easy reference.

Automations list view showing two automations with Stopped status badges displayed at the top of the list.

Automation edit view showing an Add Note step outlined in red, indicating it was reordered by the system due to a configuration issue.

The banner identifies which steps were adjusted, and those steps are outlined in red in the edit view for easy reference.

Automation edit view showing the Automation Stopped by System banner with the message about steps being out of order and the system correcting them. A Wait step is visible in the step list as an example of a reordered step.