Discover how DHL Group increased connectivity across the enterprise and automated multiple processes end-to-end
Unfortunately, getting automation right isn’t as simple as buying a bit of tech, plugging it in, and getting on with it. Putting together an effective business process automation strategy is essential for working out what you want to achieve from your automation initiative, getting buy-in from the right people, identifying the tools you need - and measuring the results.
Here are eight steps you need to put together a strong business automation strategy.
Start by reviewing your current processes. Are time and talent being used effectively? Analyze process data to identify repetitive tasks that could be automated or spot bottlenecks that disrupt process flow. But don’t stop at the data—talk to your team about their experiences and challenges to gather additional insights on what is impacting process performance.
Identify a strong use case that allows you to demonstrate tangible results early on in your automation project.
We recommend scoring your processes on three areas:
Business impact: Assess how much value the process brings to the organization and its potential for cost savings or revenue generation.
Process maturity: Determine how well-understood and documented the process is; a mature process is typically easier to automate as it has established rules and data flows.
Complexity: Evaluate the complexity of the process in terms of integration, workflow, and business rules. Ideally, you should aim for a process that can be automated quickly without requiring extensive coordination across multiple teams and departments.
Your automation goals could include cost savings, productivity gains, or to deliver better customer service. Whichever is your focus make it SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-Based) as the more concrete your goals, the easier it will be to measure success and make a strong case for future automation investments.
And you need to consider the wider business impact too. Will automation provide you a competitive advantage in market? Or does not automating mean you risk losing your advantage? The more specific and tangible you can be in your goals, the easier it will be to select the right technology for the job - and prove success to the business for further automation projects.
Your organization will need dedicated resources to deliver the project, so where are they coming from? Can you prioritize this project and get all the resources you need to do it all in one go? Or will you need to work in a more agile way, splitting the project into sprints so you can balance the needs of the automation project against wider business needs?
By having these conversations and defining your delivery approach early, you’ll avoid roadblocks down the line and set clear expectations from the start.
Business process automation implementation requires a multidisciplinary team made up of people from different departments with different skills and perspectives including:
- Process owners and subject matter experts: These are the people who know the business process in its current form: where it works, where it doesn’t, what rules govern it, where all the data comes from and so on.
- An automation team: This team will include the developers, machine-learning engineers and data analysts who will translate the current business process into an automated solution.
- An IT & security team: This team will make sure integrations between new and existing technologies are managed smoothly, as well as ensuring all data is handled in a compliant and secure way.
- An architect: At the beginning of the project, it is useful to have an architect to analyze the scope of the deployment. They can estimate the number of systems required, whether complex security integrations will be necessary and which infrastructure is required. This is especially important for cloud-based projects.
Only at this stage, do you start to think about the actual tools and technologies you’ll need to make your business process automation project succeed.
A few things to consider when you’re evaluating the available technology are the following options:
- What’s the cost to create and maintain the automation?
- How long do you have in your timeline before the automation needs to be deployed?
- What resources do you have available to meet your automation objectives?
- How many automation systems need to be managed and what is their complexity?
- What other technologies do you need to integrate with to successfully automate the process?
Finding out what various automation technologies can and can’t do, and then assessing them against your goals, timelines, and resources, should make your decision-making process easier.
Business process automation is never just a question of technology. It’s about bringing the whole organization along with you. That’s why your strategy will need to include details of how you plan to manage the change within your organization.
This will involve working out how you communicate the automation plan and vision across your business, especially to those people whose jobs will be directly affected by changes. It’s also important to provide transparency around the project, to decrease the fear that automation is going to lead to job losses, and to promote a positive vision where automation fixes broken processes and leads to more meaningful work.
Success doesn’t stop at deployment. Regularly collect process data and user feedback to measure success against KPIs decided during the goal-setting step. Use the insights gathered to make further improvements and ensure that the automation initiative remains aligned with user needs and business goals.
Our expert team and proven methodology has helped worldwide businesses deliver their automation initiatives successfully. Whether you’re just starting out or scaling existing automation efforts, talk to us to find out how we can help you do the same.
