assigment

Assignment Overview

The video explains the first assignment in an automation course: what to build, what to write, how to handle errors, and how to submit the work. There will be five assignments in total. Basic assignments have a 48-hour deadline, while more advanced assignments may have a three-day deadline.

Scenario and Goal

Imagine you are helping a small search company that is struggling to manage incoming leads. Design a system that:

• Collects lead information through a form.
• Saves the information in Airtable.
• Uses an AI service to generate a personalized welcome email.
• Sends the email to the lead.
• Notifies the team in Slack.
• Handles invalid data and service errors.

The assignment reinforces course topics while encouraging students to research unfamiliar tools and learn independently. The instructor advises against using AI to generate the entire assignment without understanding the work.

Assignment Components

1. System Design and Written Planning

Create a Google Doc and answer these three questions:

• In approximately 200–300 words, explain why the project might need AI agents as well as automation.
• Create a table describing what you know about Zapier, n8n, LangChain, and Langflow.
• State which tool you would use, such as Zapier, n8n, or Langflow, and explain why.

2. Build the Workflow

Create a hands-on workflow in Zapier or n8n:

1. Trigger: Start the workflow when someone submits a form. Options include Google Forms, a webhook, or a platform’s own form.
2. Collect lead details: Include at least three fields, such as name, email, and interests.
3. Store the lead: Save the submitted information in Airtable.
4. Generate a personalized message: Use the OpenAI API or another AI API to draft a welcome email based on the lead’s details.
5. Send the email: Deliver the generated message to the lead.
6. Notify the team: Send a Slack notification, or otherwise alert yourself or the team that a new lead arrived and the email was sent.

3. Add Error Handling

Create fallback paths for problems:

• If an email address is invalid, log it in Google Sheets and do not send a message to that address.
• If an API or connected service fails—for example, because of a timeout, server outage, or delay—handle the failure through an error path rather than allowing it to go unnoticed.
• If the data and services are valid, let the normal workflow complete.

4. Write a Reflection

In approximately 150 words, answer:

• Which part of the project was most difficult?
• Which course module or topic helped you most?
• How would you scale the system if the company received 10,000 leads per month?

Submission Instructions

• Put the written answers in a Google Doc.
• Make the document accessible to the reviewer by adding their email or changing sharing from Restricted to Anyone with the link.
• Provide evidence of the completed workflow:
  • For a Zapier project, submit a workflow screenshot, such as an exported PNG.
  • For an n8n project, download the workflow as a JSON file and upload it to Google Drive.
  • Also include a screenshot of the sent email or a screen recording showing the workflow and its results.
• A narrated recording explaining the steps and any problems encountered is encouraged and may help the submission receive a better mark.
• Upload the files to Google Drive, set sharing permissions so the reviewer can access them, and submit the relevant link through the assignment page.

The instructor encourages students to attempt the work, learn from mistakes, and use AI as a learning aid rather than submitting AI-generated work they do not understand.

Speakers and Sources

• Speaker: One instructor or presenter introduces and explains the assignment. The closing name is unclear in the autogenerated subtitles.
• Tools and resources mentioned: Google Docs, Google Drive, Google Forms, Airtable, Slack, Zapier, n8n, LangChain, Langflow, OpenAI or another AI API, Google Sheets, YouTube, and OBS Studio.