Mistakes in business process automation and how to avoid them

Why is it worth knowing common mistakes before starting automation?

As George Santayana said, “Those who do not remember the past are doomed to repeat it.” In the context of automation, this principle also works — a lack of understanding common pitfalls can cause companies to run into the same problems that others have already worked through. Business Process Automation is not only the implementation of new technology - it is also a change in the way of thinking about the organization of work, communication and the flow of information. Without proper preparation, it is easy to fall into the trap of bad decisions that can nullify the potential benefits of automation. Below are ten key automation deployment mistakes that you should know about and avoid to take full advantage of the potential of this technology and build more efficient, scalable processes in your business.

Lack of clearly defined business goals and strategies for implementing automation

Problem: Companies often go into automation without clearly defining what they want to achieve. Lack of clear goals and strategies for implementing automation leads to inefficient solutions that do not meet real business needs.

Solution: Before starting a project, you need to define specific, measurable goals, such as reducing lead processing time by 30% or reducing costs by 20%. Involve all parties to determine what is a priority.

Example: The company wanted to automate the handling of customer requests, but did not specify whether the priority was speed of response or quality. As a result, a system was implemented that automatically sent template responses, which annoyed customers expecting a personalized approach. The solution was to redefine business objectives and strategies to automate the customer service process and adapt the system to different types of requests.

Realization of the vision of only one party and lack of team involvement

Problem: Automation is often based on the perspective of management, which may not know the operational details. Ignoring the knowledge of employees performing daily tasks often leads to the implementation of automation in an impractical way. In addition, if we do not take into account the opinion of the team when creating technological improvements, it may turn out that employees will not be happy to use the new system. This is actually another factor that negatively affects the strategy of implementing automation.

Solution: Remember to involve the team at all levels of the process planning and analysis process. Their operational expertise is key to creating effective automation solutions.

Example: The management of the service company wanted to implement a system of controlling field workers, since they did not provide reports on the progress of work on an ongoing basis. However, it is not taken into account that field workers need a simple way to report on mobile phones. Initially implemented, the system required filling in complex forms, which was impractical. We solved this problem by introducing automatic notification in Slack — a tool that employees used on a daily basis. Thanks to the process automation implemented with employees opinions in mind, team members have a solution that is convenient for them: they can now quickly report statuses from the messenger. This is possible through the functionality we have added, which automatically generates a report based on 30-second audio and information from a simple form, which employees can complete even without access to a computer. The error in the previous automation was therefore “only” due to the wrong choice of tools and lack of involvement of the team, but it translated into a negative perception of the implemented improvements among the team.

Automation of incorrect processes — when and which processes are not worth automating

Problem: One of the common mistakes that companies make is the automation of incorrect processes, that is, those that in practice... should not be automated. Sometimes it happens that an automated process is rarely performed, takes a very short time, or its manual operation is cheaper than implementing and maintaining automation — at least with the technologies and automation tools available today. This is an example of a situation where improper selection of tools and lack of cost-effectiveness analysis can lead to loss of time and money.

Solution: A reasonable approach is to verify profitability through ROI (Return on Investment) analysis. Compare the cost of running a process manually, the cost of implementing and maintaining automation, and the potential cost reduction you will achieve with process automation. Based on this, you will easily calculate whether the automation will pay off, and if so, in how many months. If the ROI indicates that the investment will pay off within a year, then this is usually a solid argument for implementing automation. Otherwise, it is worth either postponing the decision for later, or waiting for new technologies or the scale of the operation that will justify the investment.

Example: In a service company that handles more than a dozen cost invoices per month, the idea arose to implement automation tools for recognizing data from invoices and entering them into the accounting system. Although the solution seems modern, the analysis showed that the entire process takes one person about 30 minutes a week. The cost of implementing automation was estimated by the automation agency at about EUR 3,000, and the potential savings — only EUR 50 per month. The ROI would be more than 60 months, making the investment unprofitable with the current volume. Instead, the company decided to automate the reporting of monthly results — a more time-consuming process that no longer generated high maintenance costs thanks to process automation.

Below you will find a graphic with sample processes and an assessment of the profitability of their automation. But keep in mind that every business operates differently — process automation, which in one organization is unprofitable, in another can bring great benefits. Therefore, as Sagiton Automation, we always focus on an individual approach and the right strategy for implementing automation.

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Employee resistance to imposed automation

Problem: As we mentioned in the previous paragraph, employees who have not participated in the automation design process may feel left out and opposed to change, which leads to sabotage or low adoption of the automated process among the team.

Solution: Involve employees in the design and testing process of the project so that they feel co-responsible for the success of the implementation of process automation.

Example: In the accounting office, a system of automatic billing of invoices without consulting accountants has been implemented. Their comments that the system must support specific tax codes and unusual formats of invoices from foreign counterparties were not taken into account. The lack of training and technical support for employees meant that they continued to manually check the data, which undermined the sense of implementing automation. After the workshops were conducted and their comments were taken into account, the adoption of the system increased and the company achieved the intended success of the process automation project.

Point approach to the implementation of automation

Problem: Automation implemented in pieces, without looking at the overall process, leads to inconsistent systems that may duplicate or conflict.

Solution: Create a map of all business processes and plan automation as a coherent ecosystem where each element interacts with the others. The larger the area of process automation, the more thoughtful and accurate your automation strategy will be.

Example: The company's sales department wanted to automate customer service by recording conversations, generating AI summaries, and integrating them with CRM. In turn, the project execution department wanted a similar system to record conversations with customers about the details of the implementation. Without process mapping, the company would implement two separate systems that perform almost identical tasks — so there would be a duplication of automation. The integration of processes allowed to create a single universal solution for both departments, saving time and costs.

Improper selection of tools

Problem: Choosing tools for single automation, without taking into account the long-term needs and future of process automation in a given company, can lead to the need to replace them due to technical or licensing constraints. It is also often the case that customers are on the trend wave of Automation with AI come to us and necessarily want to implement an improvement using artificial intelligence. However, companies do not know that the implementation of such process automation requires good quality input and is not always profitable. If you are interested in the use of artificial intelligence in the implementation of automation and the errors to watch out for, read our article: https://www.sagiton.pl/en/blog/the-most-common-mistakes-while-implementing-ai-automation

Solution: Conduct a thorough analysis of technical and licensing requirements to select tools that are scalable and tailored to your business's future needs.

Example: A small company implemented a low-cost email automation tool that had limitations on the number of messages sent. Once the limit was exceeded, the company had to switch to a more expensive solution, which increased costs. Another company, instead of using a ready-made CRM tool for $100 a month, decided to expand its own, internal solution created by the internal IT department. The long development process consumed much more resources than the cost of the finished tool would have been. Careful examination of the needs and scalability of process automation tools at the planning stage would avoid these problems.

Lack of knowledge of processes in people implementing automation

Problem: External agencies or IT departments that do not know the details of business processes can create solutions that do not match the operational reality of the company. Such errors in the implementation of improvements cause that the finished automation is either not used at all, or its use causes more problems than benefits.

Solution: Involve those responsible for day-to-day processes as key consultants in the automation project to provide detailed operational knowledge.

Example: An external agency designed a CRM system for a service company, due to the lack of involvement of its client's team, it skipped key stages of the sales process, such as the need to manually approve discounts above 10% and integration with the invoicing system used in the company. The system required costly tweaks. Involving the sales team in the design phase would allow these requirements to be taken into account in the initial phase of implementation and thus ensure the success of the automation project for the company.

A “fire & forget” approach to automation

Problem: After the implementation of automation, companies often forget to monitor the results of its activities. Changes in tools, licenses or new automations can cause the system to stop working completely or become inefficient. This is one of the most common mistakes encountered among companies that implement even advanced process automation.

Solution: Deploy automated tests to monitor the performance of systems and regularly assess whether automations are being used and meeting expectations. Conduct training for the team, during which you will clearly define the objectives and KPIs of the new processes.

Example: The company automated sales reporting, but after updating the accounting software, the reports stopped generating correctly. The lack of a monitoring and optimization plan meant that the problem was noticed only after a month. The implementation of automated testing and periodic reviews would allow this problem to be detected earlier.

Automation of flawed processes

Problem: Automating processes that are flawed or unstable and constantly changing leads to the creation of solutions that quickly become outdated and require constant correction.

Solution: Make sure the process is stable and well defined before you start automating it.

Example: The company tried to automate the onboarding process for new employees, which was still in the testing phase. Constant changes in the procedure made the system require repeated updates, which increased costs. Stabilizing the process before automation would avoid these implementation errors and thus save the company's time and money.

Support for corner cases

Problem: This is another example of automating the wrong processes. Too much focus on handling rare or complex cases can make your automation implementation too complex, costly to create, and difficult to maintain.

Solution: Focus on automation that includes the processes that occur most often, leaving users the ability to manually modify in unusual cases.

Example: When implementing the project to automate the generation of the design of the roof drainage system, the team did not try to take into account all possible cases, as this would require the introduction of many input variables, which would be inconvenient for the user and expensive to maintain. Instead, the system allowed slight modifications, such as shifting pipes or roof drains, which simplified the process and increased its usability.

Plan the right strategy for implementing automation!

Business process automation is a powerful tool that can significantly reduce the lead time of processes and increase the efficiency of the organization. However, without proper preparation, it can do more harm than good. One of the most serious risks is the automation of erroneous processes — that is, those that are already poorly designed at the manual stage. An equally common problem is the wrong choice of tools, not taking into account the specifics of the company and its systems.

Added to this are implementation errors, resulting from a lack of coherent communication, unclear objectives or omission of employees' knowledge. Lack of integration of systems and excessive complexity of solutions can lead to frustration and costly fixes. Therefore, the strategy for the implementation of automation should be based on the cooperation of all stakeholders - both on the business and technical side.

To achieve the success of an automation project, it is worth reaching for new technologies, but doing it consciously, with clearly defined goals and with the support of experienced partners. Mistakes made can prove to be more expensive than the implementation itself, so a strategic, thoughtful approach is crucial.