Does automation really live up to the hype?
Does automation really live up to the hype?
My honest opinion and 4 steps to help you measure it's success
Automation is all the rage right now.
Everywhere you turn, people are talking about some form of automation. But just because it’s “trendy” is it worth it?
I’ve been in the industry a long time and have tried (and broken) a variety of different automation tools. Here’s my honest opinion about the pros and cons of automation.
Automation is freaking awesome! BUT there are still some cons to consider.
Let’s break it down.
Pros of automation:
Saves time
Saves Money - beneficial for overhead costs for small businesses
Do more volume of tasks than manual
Data accuracy
Cons of automation:
Data accuracy - only as good as the data that goes into the systems (As I like to say, “put shit in, get shit out”.)
Over complication, or over automating - not everything can or should be automated
Security issues
Now, let’s answer 4 simple questions about your current systems to see if they’re working as they should be:
Check the success rate of automation.
Do the tasks that are automated reach the desired success rate? Is the rate higher than the manual process?
Measure the cost savings.
Is automation helping to save costs? How much money is saved by automating some tasks?
Identify the tasks that should be automated.
Which tasks are best suited for automation? What automation tasks can be improved?
Analyze the time saved.
Does automation reduce the time needed to complete a task compared to manual tasks? How much time is saved by automating some tasks?
Once you’ve answered these questions, you can decide which pieces of automation are worth it for your business. Remember: automation should be saving you time and money. If it’s not, then it might be time to ditch the system.