Identifying processes in need of automation

There is no dispute about the necessity of automation for every business, large or small. It offers a variety of benefits, including maximizing employees’ productivity, facilitating new channels of business, preventing human errors, and many others.

But if you were not born with an automation mindset, identifying exactly what processes require your special attention and which ones could be “handed over” to automation tools could be challenging.

What tasks should I automate?

Finding an in-need-of-automation low-hanging fruit will save you various resources, including time and money. To identify what operation that is, you need to be able to spot certain qualities:

• Repetitive

Arid processes that require certain motions over and over, such as data extraction, can be automated through specific tools;

• Prone to errors

Monotony always results in mistakes in completed tasks! But you can prevent them;

• Mature

Stable tasks that are not expected to be changed or redesigned in the future;

• Time-consuming

Your workforce would be more productive if they concentrated their efforts on the interpersonal responsibilities rather than the ones that require too much of their attention;

• Great potential for outsourcing

Automating outsourced processes can reduce risks. Additionally, automation tools will allow you to record every action.

Here’s a tip: look into what your employees’ responsibilities are. If they are less burdened with mundane tasks, they will have more time on their hands to come up with new ideas for your project, helping you grow the business faster. However, it’s useful to keep in mind that the harder the process, the more set up might be required. So, make sure that the method you want to automate will provide adequate ROI.

We bet that while reading through this list you already got a couple of processes in mind. Here’s another tip: sit down right now and calculate how many human resources you are wasting on dealing with these processes. Now you can compare your expenses to what an AINSYS automation tool will cost you.  

Recognizing automation opportunities

Leveling up automation doesn’t just become possible once you pinpoint what processes could stop being your problem. Automation needs to be set up properly, unless you want to re-organize your infrastructure every week.

Make sure you stay humble — never try to automate too many processes right away. While AINSYS automation tools will take care of as many operations and workflows as you want, such a fast re-organization will mess with your and your team’s schedules.

To automate or not to automate? This choice may sometimes be influenced by the volume of work and frequency of potential errors or exceptions. In general, automation works best for high-volume tasks. However, automation tools might not be the best option, if a particular task yields 3-4 exceptions for every 10 repetitions. Remember that despite automation, there are still exceptions, processes can be altered, and your employees still need to keep a close watch.

If you share these tips and tricks with your employees and discuss automation more often, dealing with considering what responsibilities of theirs could be automated will be left in the past too.

Making headway

Your quest doesn’t end when you build and prepare for deployment of the automation tool. Employees might need to be trained to engage with it, and the extent of that training can vary depending on a number of circumstances, including how comfortable your team is with using that particular technology.

AINSYS developers are here for you whenever you need thelp. We are happy to provide private consultations in your journey of setting up, deploying, and maintaining a proper automation system.

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