Tackle your duty to responsibly implement automation in your systems and processes where you’re able. You deserve to operate at your peak performance without getting bogged down by distractions. At some point “what we’ve always done” simply can’t support where you’re going anymore. Does this sting or make you wince a little? It certainly should. Especially if you or one of your team members are stuck in a repetitious pattern of collecting, organizing, and submitting information, data, or materials. This can be on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annual basis, the familiar feeling of frustration remains. One- you’re reliant on this one person (at minimum) to remember to do this and to do this without making a mistake. Two- It is a time consuming process which means it’s an expensive process. And three, it’s a non-value-add activity which means important things aren’t getting done. Time and time again we see organizations, who aren’t blocked off by information silos, through no direct fault of their own, be forced down a path of reactively managing reports or processes that are repetitious and detract from their most valuable tasks they must complete that can have a true impact on the whole. It’s just the nature of the beast as businesses grow.
Manual Maintenance is Lazy
Oof, now that’s a spicy thought. The purpose of it is not to label someone. Its purpose is to provoke a bit of introspection. It’s so easy to slowly build up manual tasks to address a need. Before you know it, you’re at your max, there’s simply no time left in the day. There’s something we check ourself with when it comes to this sort of thing — “since I have to keep doing this repeatedly, it can probably be automated.” All it takes is a moment to pause and explore your options. We’ve worked with folks who have spent four hours every day manually reentering time sheet data into a spreadsheet that fed an efficiency and productivity report — at the cost of their own efficiency and productivity. We’ve had accounting staff manually calculating commissions every month by being forced to reference a multitude of datasets and files — individual orders, their status, the reps’ arbitrary commission plan, and whether or not a customer was new or existing. The examples go on and on — manually tracking people’s birthdays and work anniversaries to send out managed emails every week. Referencing PTO in a pay system only to manually let people know when their staff is off every week/month. Manually onboarding employees and hoarding paperwork in a disorganized and inconsistent fashion. These examples are painful to list, and we know there’s so many more that probably plague you, so blech, we’re going to stop with that here. The fact of the matter is, manually executing items that can be automated is a lazy way to operate. Lazy in the sense that you have to work so hard to manage these things or perhaps the mantra of the day becomes “it’s what we’ve always done” or “eh, it’s what the boss wants”. We know it sucks. We know it’s frustrating and a nasty weight on your shoulders when you think about it. Wouldn’t it be better to not have to and it’s just taken care of for you without fail? Consistently, accurately, and reliably? System-dependent, not person-dependent.
The True Purpose of Automation
To elevate you and your team. That’s the whole point. There’s a balance that must be maintained, to be sure. We’re not advocating for a WALL-E type world here. What we are, however, advocating for is an organization that can focus on what really matters. Now if what really matters to an organization is just about the money, there’s possibly bigger problems afoot than working towards automating workflows. What really matters is an organization’s purpose. Its people. Its mission and strategic vision. The reason you get up and go there every day. If all those elements are squared away, then the sky’s the limit when it comes to cash flow. Automation simply removes noise from the equation and introduces the ability to focus. It allows you and your team to operate at higher levels because you’re not distracted by excessive levels of admin work or second guessing. You will quickly begin to stop, think, and ask the question, “can this be automated?” That question alone can spawn valuable discussions and efforts for a sustainable solution. The whole idea behind this is to free your people up to do the things they’re best at and what provides your organization with the most value! Automation allows you do do exponentially more with the same or less effort and resources. Its purpose is not to take away jobs, by any means, it’s to make your people better, your reporting and systems more accurate, and your operation more efficient — primed for next-level thinking.
Automation isn’t going anywhere. If anything, it’s growing at an exponential rate and in order to stay relevant and competitive, businesses must confront this fact. The cost of failing to do so will find you either way. Boy, that’s a nasty sentiment, but we stand by it. We’d much rather a workplace be free of manual-maintenance-clouds over employees’ heads, replacing it with rays of shining collaboration, creativity, and passion to take its place. That’s life-giving energy. Of course, there’s so much more at play in an organization to get to that sort of place but automating your processes can make a huge dent in that initiative and provide some relief to everyone’s sanity. When you’re armed with the likes of Microsoft’s Power Automate, the sky really is the limit.
In a World of Data, Accuracy is King
What we love most about an automated system is how unbiased and reliable they are. It’s also a direct reflection of thoughtful planning, clever programming, and the quality of the data source. Once a new automated system comes into play one of two things will happen. One, data’s great, you’re on top of your game, and the system runs as intended. Two, and quite likely if you’ve never had transparency like this before, data’s a mess, and it’s an embarressment. Or, secret #3, things start out as #1 or #2 but is quickly broken because someone changed one of your core system functions without telling anyone. Regardless of the outcome, the data is there, good or bad. The short-term pain may involve data cleanup, but the long-term gain is a leaner system, a more trustworthy data pool, and a more confident leadership team. We’ve seen each of the following happen (navigating some potential for faces going a bit pale), but the end result is the same. We work the problem until a proper solution arises.
Low-Hanging Automated Fruit
Below is a list of some items that are typically a quickly identifiable manual business function that is a prime candidate for automating with Microsoft 365 or Dynamics 365. There are so many examples, it’s a challenge to only list a few. You’ll also notice the last three items raised your eyebrow. If you know, you know. Reports are sneaky ones — ones that can quickly take over your time.
- Daily/Weekly/Monthly Reminders & Notifications
- Responding to a Contact Form or Specific Inbox
- Assigning and Following Up with Leads
- Employee Onboarding
- Customer Onboarding & Maintenance
- Appointments
- Customer Feedback
- Reporting
- Reporting
- Reporting
Automation is Awesome
My guy/Guuurrrl, automation is awesome. Automation works to take the mundane out of your life so you can take that sigh of relief and live & breathe more meaningfully. Let those reports and notifications take care of themselves. Free yourself and your team’s time to connect with each other, your clients, and everything else worth doing. Time is the only thing you can’t make more of. So let’s spend it on life-giving things! Let the systems manage things FOR you and not the other way around.
So, What Now?
Here’s where I shamelessly plug Alpyne’s services. Just kidding. What I do here is advise you. I simply recommend taking an honest inventory of your team’s time and what they’re doing that may not be the best use of their time or doesn’t directly provide true value to your organization. Review each item and determine whether or not it’s a prime candidate for automating. Ask yourself these questions: Is it a repetitive task? Is the information provided consistent? Does it have a data source? Am I frustrated that they’re spending time on this? Does this almost make me nauseous? If you answered “yes” to one or all of those to each item, then it’s a prime candidate for automation. It’s not your job to know how exactly to do that; the fact that you asked those questions is already a huge step in the right direction. One that can elevate you and your team to a new level of sustainable success. One that puts you on the path — to Move Mountains.🦾🤖