How do you automate processes effectively?

The most crucial question I always pose to my customers is : what are your KPIs ? Please provide us your "business" KPIs , i.e. how you measure your success. If customer's KPI and automation KPI are disconnected you will never be successful and you'll never meet customer expectations ! You can supply a system with 99% of reliability but the end user will be satisfied because he makes money if he delivers products according to "Turn Around Time" and these 2 KPIs can be independent.

Key is to have well-defined, measurable goals that clearly outline what you want to achieve through process automation. Ensure that the goals of process automation align with your overall business strategy. Identify the particular tasks within your business processes that are time-consuming, repetitive or prone to errors and also create an open and collaborative environment where feedback is valued and used to improve the automation process. Involve team members to gather insights and perspectives, which can lead to more effective automation solutions. This ensures that your automation efforts are purposeful and aligned with your organization's vision

I think this is the one step stakeholders and project management should be aligned to avoid blame games at the end. SMART goals are good to go for every demand, change request and fresh requirements.

Optimizing processes starts with understanding the customer's business workflow. At Msquare Automation Solutions, we decode customer's process maps and collaborate with their team to identify repetitive tasks. Our Savings Calculator quantifies potential gains based on usage, which helps to prioritise the tasks to be automated. Through this method, we're not just automating tasks; we're strategically transforming the workflow. It's about making their processes smarter, faster, and more efficient.

This is on point, if SMART goals are not set for automation it is either not possible to implement or realize the value of automation.

In my view . Process mapping is the most crucial step to identify if the identified process qualifies to be a good fit for process automation . Not all Process can fall under the umbrella of automation . Process mapping includes detailed overview of process highlighting the variances and deviations and scope to scale the process with automation . Another element is measuring the complexity and framing the scope to automate to drive effective results . You can’t expect all process to be 100% automated . Hence set realistic and SMART goals

Mapping is one of the crucial points in the successful integration of Robotic Process Automation. By documenting and validating organizational activities, identify ideal opportunities for RPA automation. This practice also reveals process inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and issues, allowing for an in-depth analysis of process efficiency prior to automation.

This is an important process according to me because we waste 80% of our time doing unproductive work and spend only 20% of time of productive task. Later, we blame why we aren't productive. So, understand what the unproductive work are and how to bypass the process to achieve your work on a faster way.

Hard to map steps in the process are also interesting. For example: Steps where professionals are making decisions. Reasoning behind those decisions is often hard to describe or formulate into logic. However, if there is a large number of those decisions, we could teach machine learning models to do those decisions. Or we could use statistical analysis to tease out the reasoning behind the decisions. It's also important to understand that some corner cases or special situations are not cost effective to automate. Thus, it is fine to have manual parts in mostly automated process.

From my perspective, there are a couple of foundational platforms that can be used to help support the identification of processes that can benefit from automation. For entities that have adopted the COSO internal control framework, when organizations perform their annual review of the design of processes and related controls; besides asking “what can go wrong”, Managers can also ask “what can be done more efficiently”. Further, when organizations are implementing new technology and evaluating the processes that integrate with the new technology, the use of a SWOT analysis can also identify opportunities for automation.

Choosing the right tool is critical for the success of your automation initiatives. Define your automation goals and objectives. What processes do you intend to automate, and what results do you expect? Understand various automation tech and vendor, including their pricing, Security, ROI, Ease of use, Future Roadmap etc. RPA: Ideal for automating repetitive, rule based tasks that involve interacting with existing applications. RPA vendors also provide inbuilt or easy integration with OCR for converting scanned documents into readable text BPA: Suitable for automating end to end business processes Conduct a POC before full scale impl/investment. Sometimes combination of different automation technologies may be the most effective solution.

A core strength of RPA lies in its versatility. The sheer breadth of where it can be applied makes it a valid option in a large variety of business cases and projects. Of course, it's important to be wary that this versatility does not become a pitfall. Sometimes there are specific technologies dedicated to the challenge that you are trying to tackle. It's not always necessary to work with UI automation if you have back-end development tools or integration technologies available to you that can achieve the same result. In a lot of cases, RPA is a powerful tool to fall back on when optimizing a business process, but ultimately you want to pick the tools (or a combination of different technologies) that best serve the goals of the project.

The use of a SWOT analysis and technology industry / trend reporting can also help support which tool is the correct tool to support the business need. It is also important to try and estimate the impact that each tool will have on KPIs outlined in performance scorecards and any benchmark analysis performed. The cost and timing associated with implementing the various tools should also be considered. It wouldn’t be uncommon to use different tools for different processes and phase in the rollout. It is critical that finance leaders work with their technology partners to identify the appropriate solution, not only to meet the current need, but to support the business strategy over the next several years.

It is very important to have a good understanding of the different tools that are available for process automation and to build awareness and knowledge amongst the stakeholders as well. The tools can vary from scripts to workflow solutions to robotic process automation (RPA) or even robotic cognitive automation (RCA). It is very important to understand the capabilities of each tool and design the best solution keeping in mind the cost of developing and implementing the solution, flexibility and cost to scale the solution across other clients and markets, security and compatibility to integrate with the existing systems and tools in the business.

Depending on your goals and processes, you may need different types of automation tools to suit your needs. For example, you may use robotic process automation (RPA) to automate simple, repetitive, and high-volume tasks that involve data entry, copying, or moving. Or you may use business process automation (BPA) to automate complex, cross-functional, and dynamic workflows that involve decision making, collaboration, or integration. You may also use other tools like chatbots, AI, or OCR to enhance your automation capabilities. You should evaluate and compare different tools based on their features, costs, scalability, security, and compatibility.

Documentation is key. It's critical to define internal templates for the technical definition, test cases and release instructions. Don't move to deployment if something is not reviewed, don't release the bot if some test is pending.

It is important to have a well thought out and documented test plan and test environment to perform quality control procedures before migrating to a production environment. This test plan should include testing individual functionality along with testing the end-to-end process. Organizations should have policies and thresholds for QC results and criteria to go live with the automation. Once deployed, it is also important to perform QC in the live environment. It is also important to verify that the appropriate controls have been implemented for the automated process, to prevent and detect process errors.

Before going into implementation , Typical needs to be defined and tested. This includes details on how a particular function will work, how it will show on GUI, how the system will be alarmed etc. All important stakeholders like lead engineers, process engineers, maintenance engineers should be involved and a functional design specification document should be created. This should be used as a reference/ standard for detail design along with other best practices.

Post the solution design and tools are determined, the development team will kick off developing the solution. It is very important that as the solution is being built in sprints, the relevant subject matter experts are contacted for testing and feedback. A formal user acceptance testing session should be scheduled with the identified subject matter experts, superusers and a couple of team leads so as to ensure that the solution is being tested by an appropriate sample representing the user base. Any glitches, issues, or risks impacting go-live timelines or costs should be immediately flagged to the project sponsor and stakeholders for immediate intervention and mitigation.

Adopt a phased, iterative approach to implementing automation solutions. Start with limited scope pilots focused on high-priority processes. Thoroughly test across scenarios and environments to validate functionality before go-live. Monitor performance closely as load increases to catch bottlenecks. Conduct user acceptance testing under real-world conditions. Develop training and support resources to smooth adoption. Post go-live, gather continuous feedback and metrics aligned to goals. Measure productivity, quality, costs. Rapid iteration guided by user input enables ongoing enhancements. Following structured best practices for implementation, testing, and refinement helps manage risks and realize automation's full potential.

When we talk automation, remember: it's not a one-shot deal, but an exhilarating journey of ongoing improvement. The true magic lies in understanding that success is an ongoing process. 🌠 Monitoring automation's performance is key. It's like orchestrating a symphony – each element contributes to the masterpiece. 🎵 I recall a boss who signed emails with, "You can't improve what you can't measure." Following that wisdom, data collection and dashboards became my success story. This principle holds true for automation too. 💎 In automation, staying agile, aligned, and attentive to user feedback are essential for ongoing success. As tech evolves, adapting our solutions is vital. A data-centric mindset elevates every automation effort. 🌟🤖

Post the automated solution is deployed, it is very important to track the performance of the solution and measure it against the aligned KPIs at the beginning of the project. It needs to be ensured that appropriate change management actions are being taken to drive the adoption of the solution. Also, it is crucial to identify other clients or markets/countries/regions where the solution could be scaled with minimal tweaks in order to maximize benefit. It would be a good idea to promote the solution and then interested hand raisers could be contacted to demo the solution and obtain feedback on tweaks to refine the solution before implementing it to other clients or markets/countries/regions.

As new tools are being implemented, Management should evaluate its performance to ensure it is the right tool and has the potential to be optimized. It is important to timely identify whether there is the ability to enhance the performance of the automation, or whether the selection of a different technology would lead to a better outcome for the next process. While it is critical that robust due diligence is performed before making the investment in the automation, it is also critical that an organization is nimble in being able to move to different technologies that could provide a better result to achieve the KPIs.

Continuously monitor automation solutions to identify opportunities for improvement. Establish metrics and KPIs tied to original goals like cost, quality, satisfaction. Configure real-time dashboards and alerts to track performance. Log system events for troubleshooting. Actively gather user feedback through surveys, interviews, forums. Monitor help desk tickets and social media for complaints. Analyze data to reveal issues and sentiment. Review processes against initial designs to spot drift. Brainstorm and test enhancements to address pain points. Conduct regular ROI reviews to tie funding to value realization. Ongoing governance, measurement, and iteration maximize automation benefits.

The rules change, currencies vary and technology does not stop accelerating. Constant analysis, search for new technologies, business understanding and user feedback will make updates and improvements easier for your automation solutions.

Would adopt an automation loop I had devised for my team (The OET - OET process improvement ring): 1. Observe and challenge the as-is process. 2. Engage in the process and map the flow.Identify the areas and the tools to automate. 3. Test out the quick wins which can be automated easily. 4. Optimize the automation that was implemented to incorporate additional requirements. 5. Evaluate the effectiveness and further optimize the change. 6. Train the end users. Keep monitoring and drive further improvements.

All areas need to be included from the beginning: stakeholders, functional users, IT (development, operations, security). Communicate effectively along the project and let everyone know in advance how you expect them to help. This is very important especially in the first automation projects.

Great considerations. Wish that all who decide about automation read this and follow it as dezcribed. Pity only few do take it to completion.

In summary, implementing effective process automation requires a holistic, continuous improvement approach spanning people, processes, data, and technologies. By taking this holistic, iterative approach - automating the right processes in the right ways for the right reasons - companies can realize tremendous efficiency gains, productivity increases, cost savings, and improved customer experiences. But it requires cross-team collaboration, vigilant measurement, and dedicated governance to execute automation initiatives successfully and responsively at enterprise scale.