Start with visible friction
Automation should begin where people already understand the cost of repetition. A process is a strong candidate when the trigger, inputs, decisions, exceptions and ownership can be described clearly.
This makes the before-and-after state measurable: time saved, fewer errors, fewer handoffs and faster exception handling.
Keep control visible
Automation should not hide ownership or business controls. Good workflows expose what happened, what failed and who needs to act next.
- Choose stable repeated tasks first.
- Define exception handling before building.
- Keep audit trails visible.
- Measure the outcome after release.