# Automation Action > Reference for implementing custom automation process actions in Xperience by Kentico. Use whenever the user wants to add a custom step to an automation process — a class that runs for every contact reaching the step in the Automation Builder, optionally configurable by marketers through properties. - Skill: `kentico/automation-action` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add kentico/automation-action` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/kentico/automation-action/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Coding & Dev Tools - Author: Kentico (https://skillmd.com/u/kentico) - Updated: 2026-09-22 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/kentico/automation-action --- This skill points you to Kentico's automation-customization documentation. Use it to implement a custom automation process action. ## Pieces of a custom action - **Action class** – inherits `AutomationAction` (no configuration) or `AutomationAction` (marketer-configurable); implements the logic in `Execute`. - **Properties class** – implements `IAutomationActionProperties`; public properties annotated with admin UI form components define the configuration dialog. - **Registration** – the `RegisterAutomationAction` assembly attribute (identifier, display name, icon, description) makes the action appear in the Automation Builder. - **Runtime context** – `AutomationProcessContext` gives access to the processed contact, the process, and trigger data. - **Process data** – `IAutomationProcessData` implementations share typed data between steps of the same process. ## How to use - Read `references/docs.md` and fetch the docs pages listed there. ## Gotcha - Form-component and validation attributes come from the `Kentico.Xperience.Admin.*.FormAnnotations` namespaces — never from `Kentico.Forms.Web.Mvc`, an obsolete Form Builder namespace with matching class names. - Use `ILogger` for logging. `EventLogService` is obsolete — don't use it.