Which Business Task Should You Automate First?

Look for a task your team can describe from beginning to end. It might involve copying an enquiry into a shared record, assigning a follow-up or preparing a recurring report. Before choosing an automation tool, observe how the work happens, including the awkward cases. That gives you a basis for deciding which steps can run automatically and which still need a person’s judgement.

Measure the work you want to change

Record how often the task occurs, what information it receives, how long the ordinary case takes and which mistakes create extra work. Ask the people doing it to show you examples. Include time spent checking and correcting the result; those activities can be easy to miss when estimating the opportunity.

Consider simplifying the process before connecting tools. A clearer form, a shared naming convention or the removal of a redundant approval may solve part of the problem. The remaining steps become easier to automate when their purpose and required information are understood.

Choose a task with a result you can verify

A useful first candidate has recognisable inputs, repeatable rules, a defined output and an owner who can review failures. Check that the tools involved support the required connection and that you have permission to use it. An operation that changes customer records needs clearer controls than a draft internal summary.

Some workflows can use ordinary rules throughout. Others may benefit from AI when interpreting unstructured text or preparing a proposed classification. Evaluate that additional step against the actual need. NIST’s Generative AI Profile describes risks including confidently presented incorrect output, which is one reason to test AI-assisted decisions and retain appropriate review.

Map an ordinary request and its exceptions

Consider a fictional company receiving quotation requests from its website. A limited workflow could check required fields, look for an existing request, create a record and assign an internal follow-up. A missing service choice could send the request to a review queue. The sales team would still decide whether the work is suitable and prepare the offer.

Now test the exceptions: the form arrives twice, a connected tool is unavailable, a field changes name, or the assigned person is away. Decide how the team is alerted, how a retry avoids duplicates and how a person can resume the work. This example describes a possible process rather than a completed client implementation.

Limit access and keep the work observable

Identify the minimum information and permissions each step requires. Assign ownership of the connected accounts and keep a record of important actions and failures. Decide which messages or changes need approval, particularly while the workflow is being introduced.

Test with suitable sample records before using live requests. Avoid including unnecessary personal information in logs or test material. Agree how to stop the workflow and return to the manual process if the result becomes unreliable. A usable fallback is part of the operating design.

Compare the whole operating cost

After a limited trial, compare the time used before and after the change. Include exception handling, reviews, subscriptions and maintenance. Check whether requests are complete and assigned correctly, rather than counting only the number of automated runs.

Expand when the team can explain the normal result and handle the failures. Revisit the workflow when tools, forms or responsibilities change. The decision to automate another step should follow the same review, even when the first workflow has become dependable.

• A documented task and a realistic starting measurement.
• Clear inputs, rules and an observable result.
• A plan for duplicates, missing data and failed connections.
• Appropriate permissions, approval points and a manual fallback.
• A review including maintenance and exception handling.

Help with the next step

For support with the work discussed here, Explore AI solutions and workflow automation. You can also Organise the processes behind the automation.

Read this article in Arabic.

Further reading

NIST: Generative Artificial Intelligence Profile