FIELD NOTES
Practical starting points for making better automation decisions.
Choosing your first automation
Look for work that happens often, follows clear rules, and consumes meaningful manual time. Document inputs, outputs, owners, and exceptions before selecting a tool.
Compare three candidates by frequency, effort, error rate, and complexity. The best first project is usually narrow enough to validate and useful enough to matter.
Workflow automation, RPA, or AI?
Workflow automation coordinates steps and handoffs. Integrations connect systems directly. RPA can interact with application screens when direct integrations are unavailable. AI can help interpret or generate unstructured information.
A single process may need more than one approach. Start with the workflow and choose the simplest combination that meets the requirements.
Measuring automation value
Time savings are useful, but turnaround time, error rates, throughput, and adoption also matter. Track implementation costs and recurring operating costs alongside benefits.
A starting estimate: monthly manual hours × the share realistically reduced × the loaded hourly cost. Treat this as potential capacity value; it becomes cash savings only when spending actually falls.