Automation programmes fail when they start too big. The teams that succeed pick one painful, repetitive process, fix it properly, and expand from a proven result.
You don't need a committee or a six-month discovery phase. You need a short list and honest numbers.
Score each candidate process
Frequency: how often does it run per week? Daily beats monthly for first projects.
Repetition: are the steps largely the same each time? Variation adds cost.
Error impact: what happens when it goes wrong — rework, credits, compliance risk?
Integration count: how many systems are touched? Fewer is better for project one.
Common strong first candidates
Invoice intake and approval routing.
Client or employee onboarding document collection.
Report generation that currently requires copy-paste between systems.
Status notifications that someone sends manually today.
Key takeaways
- High volume plus low complexity beats ambitious end-to-end transformation
- Quantify hours and error cost before comparing build quotes
- One proven win builds internal support for the next phase