ChatGPT Connector

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The BambooHR connector for ChatGPT lets you ask questions about your HR data, pull reports, and take action using plain language. It runs on the BambooHR MCP server.

While we're in beta, you add BambooHR yourself using ChatGPT's developer mode and credentials we send you. ChatGPT support is newer than our Claude support, so setup has an extra step and behavior varies more. If you're evaluating both, we suggest starting with the Claude Connector.

A note on naming. OpenAI uses "apps" and "connectors" for these integrations somewhat interchangeably, and the directory where they're listed has been renamed over time. What you create in the steps below is a connector, regardless of what the surrounding menus call it.

What you can do

Once the connector is active, you can ask ChatGPT things like:

"Who's out this week, and are there any company holidays coming up?"
"What are my time off balances?"
"How many employees are in each department?"
"List the saved reports I have access to, then run one and summarize it."
"What job openings are open right now, and how many candidates are in each?"
"Show me candidates who applied in the last two weeks."
"What goals do I have in progress, and which are past due?"
"How long has Dwight been with the company?"
"Create a vacation request for me for the last week of next month."
"Update John's work phone number to 801-555-0100."

What you get back depends on your permissions. See Access model.

Before you start

You'll need:

A ChatGPT account on a plan that supports developer mode. That currently includes Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, and Education, on the web. If you use the ChatGPT desktop app, complete this setup on the web first.
The AI Connectors app turned on in BambooHR, with you included in the audience your admin selected. See Turn on AI Connectors below.
Your BambooHR subdomain, the part before .bamboohr.com in your BambooHR URL.
The client ID and client secret from your beta welcome email. We send these separately to each beta participant. If you don't have them, reply to that email and we'll get you a fresh copy.

On ChatGPT Business, Enterprise, and Education, an administrator can roll a connector out to everyone in the workspace. If your workspace restricts developer mode, ask your ChatGPT admin to enable it or to add the connector for you.

Turn on AI Connectors in BambooHR

A BambooHR admin does this once:

In BambooHR, go to Settings, then Apps.
Find AI Connectors and enable it.
Under Give access to, choose who can connect: admins only (the default), specific access levels, or all employees.

If this hasn't been done, anyone who tries to connect gets stopped at sign-in with a message explaining what to ask their admin for.

Add the connector

Turn on developer mode. Click your account icon, go to Apps & connectors, open Advanced settings, and turn on Developer mode.
Go back to Apps & connectors and click Create connector.
Fill in:
- Connector name: BambooHR
- MCP Server URL: https://{your-subdomain}.bamboohr.com/api/mcp
- Authentication: OAuth
- Client ID and Client secret: the values from your welcome email
Save the connector. ChatGPT sends you to BambooHR's sign-in page.
Sign in to BambooHR as you normally would.
BambooHR shows you what the connector is requesting. Review it and click Allow Access.
Start a new chat, click the + button, choose More, and select BambooHR.

Access model

The connector never grants access you don't already have. Every request runs as you, against the same permissions BambooHR applies when you're signed in.

HR admins typically have the widest access, and this is the experience we've optimized for first.
Managers can see and act on data for themselves and, depending on their access level, their direct reports.
Everyone can see and act on their own information, and can look up basic directory details about coworkers when your company publishes an employee directory.

Access follows your access level, not your job title. Some areas are gated separately from the rest of an employee's record. Time off balances require the Time Off view permission for that employee, and hiring data requires access to ATS settings. Being someone's manager does not by itself grant either one. That means ChatGPT can legitimately answer one question about a coworker and decline the next.

If a result looks smaller than you expected, that's usually permissions rather than missing data. Two people can ask the same question and get different numbers, because each answer is limited to the records and fields that person can read. When in doubt, check the same question in BambooHR directly, or ask an admin.

How authentication works

The connector uses OAuth. When you connect, ChatGPT sends you to BambooHR's own sign-in page. ChatGPT never sees your password. BambooHR then shows you what the connector is requesting, and nothing is shared until you click Allow Access.

After that, tokens refresh behind the scenes and you don't need to manage anything. To revoke access, remove the connector in ChatGPT, or ask an admin to turn off the AI Connectors app in BambooHR, which revokes every connection at your company at once.

Working safely with HR data in ChatGPT

A few practices we recommend any time you connect BambooHR to an AI assistant:

Review write actions before approving them. ChatGPT asks for confirmation before running a tool that changes data. Read what it's about to do, especially for anything that creates a time off request, updates an employee record, or changes a goal. New conversations will ask again.
Keep sensitive sessions focused. If you mix BambooHR with several other connected apps in one conversation, data can move between them in ways that are hard to predict. For sensitive HR work, keep the conversation scoped to BambooHR.
Verify before you act. Treat responses as a starting point. Double-check numbers, names, and policy interpretations before making a decision, and remember that an answer can be incomplete because of permissions without saying so.
Check your data controls. In your ChatGPT settings under Data controls, confirm whether your conversations can be used to improve models, and turn it off if that isn't appropriate for your HR data.
Developer mode is a developer feature. OpenAI ships it for people who understand the risks of connecting arbitrary MCP servers. Only add connectors you trust, and don't reuse these steps for servers you can't vouch for.

Troubleshooting

"AI Connectors isn't enabled for your company yet."
A BambooHR admin needs to install the AI Connectors app in Settings, then Apps. See Turn on AI Connectors.

"Only administrators can connect AI Connectors for your company right now."
The app is installed but restricted to admins. Ask an admin to widen the audience under Give access to.

"Your access level does not have permission to connect AI Connectors."
The app is set to specific access levels and yours isn't one of them. Ask an admin to include it.

You can't find developer mode.
It's web only, and it isn't available on every plan. On Business, Enterprise, and Education workspaces an admin may have turned it off. Check with whoever administers your workspace.

ChatGPT can't reach BambooHR.
Check the server URL. It should be https://{your-subdomain}.bamboohr.com/api/mcp with your own subdomain, not api.bamboohr.com.

The connection worked and then stopped.
Either an admin turned off the AI Connectors app, or the audience was narrowed and no longer includes you. Both revoke access. Reconnect after an admin restores your access.

BambooHR doesn't appear in the chat.
Click the + button, choose More, and select BambooHR. Connectors added in developer mode aren't always enabled by default in a new conversation.

ChatGPT sees fewer employees, reports, or time off types than you expect.
This is permissions. Report visibility, time off balances, and employee fields are each gated separately, and results are filtered to what you can read. An empty or short answer means "nothing you can see," not "nothing exists."

ChatGPT says a time off type doesn't exist.
Time off type names are set by your company. "PTO" may be called Vacation, or something else entirely. Ask "what time off types do we have?" and use the name that comes back.

A write action failed.
Check that you have permission to make that change in BambooHR directly. Some changes also run through approval workflows that the connector doesn't bypass. Some ChatGPT plans may also restrict custom connectors to read-only.

Disclaimer

The BambooHR connector for ChatGPT connects you to a third-party AI tool, which can produce inaccurate or incomplete responses. BambooHR isn't responsible for errors in AI-generated output or for actions taken in your account based on those responses. Always verify information and review actions before confirming them.