Process automation is already a reality that is part of companies. In 2017 Statista published a study that revealed that 52% of managers thought that this type of process improved the operation of companies.

It has been 4 years since then with a pandemic in that period that has accelerated business development. Do you still think you don’t need to automate any process in your company?

A study by McKinsey & Company reveals that companies could already automate 45% of their purchasing processes. So, if you have already put this proposal on the table more than once, this is the article for you.

In addition to the automation of purchasing processes, 51% already use marketing automation in their companies and more than half plan to implement this type of technology.

As you can see, automation has reached all sectors and is expanding more and more. According to a survey conducted by Research and Markets the size of automation in the market will reach $8.42 billion by 2027.

With the advent of the pandemic, the need for automation has grown. Businesses increasingly need to automate processes to organize their business, especially in these times when digitization is essential.

Advantages

It goes without saying that the objective of automation is to obtain greater performance and organization in companies. That is a given. But how can you benefit in other areas?

Standardize processes = greater efficiency.
Reduction of time and expenses.
Better accuracy and performance of your professionals’ tasks.
Less probability of error.
Control over results.
Increased customer satisfaction.
Increased collaboration among the team.

Disadvantages

There are also disadvantages related to automation, below you can find some of them that you should take into account:

When there are many subscriptions and automated charges, it is common to forget to cancel something you are no longer using.
Revision of subscriptions from time to time.
Staff resistance to automate tasks.
Saturation due to the use of too many programs.

What is it used for?

We live in a globalized world where there are infinite options for a need. Therefore, we can’t really know our competitor, which leads to more indecision on the part of the consumer.

Through automation, we can continue to grow and make the customer choose us. With the reduction of routine tasks professionals can focus on more important tasks that make the company better.

In addition, if you take into account the internationalization of companies, competition is growing and thanks to automation you will be able to be closer to your customer. This will help your company to expand in many more countries.

Best tools to use

Here is a list of the best tools if your goal is to automate your business:

Hootsuite – thanks to this tool you will be able to automate social networks and schedule the moment when you want to share images or videos.
Workproject – focuses primarily on project measurement, resulting in task management and workload control.
Bizneo HR – aimed at the human resources department as it helps to manage the company’s profiles (schedules, tasks, vacations, organization chart or shifts, among others).
Hubspot – for lead management, marketing, sales and customer service. It is a CRM that will help you achieve sales growth, team efficiency and speed of project execution.
Mailchimp – thanks to this program you will make your customers interact with the sending of emails and get growth in your business with this platform.
Zapier – this product allows users to integrate web applications that are used on a daily basis. Automating actions will help you save time and unify daily tasks in the same application.
Autopilot – on this platform you will find all your customer data, audiences, marketing channels and analytics.
Marketo Engage – this program is based on the development of marketing automation, SEO and content.
Zerys – is based on content production and planning to find the best writing talent, blog creation, documents or books.

Automate your company

If you are interested in implementing automation in your company, you are in luck. Here are the steps to follow to implement it in your business:

Examine automation opportunities

The first and essential thing is to examine all departments in your company. With this analysis you will be able to see where automation can be implemented and how to benefit from it. Here you should assess appropriate tasks, professionals who will be affected or the impact it will have on the company.

Measuring times

To implement this system you need to know how long each task takes. If you are going to buy something, you research about it, don’t you? When you are going to perform an automation process in a company, you should do the same. Once you know the times established for each task, you will be able to establish which ones need this automation and which ones do not.

Project analysis

You must make an exhaustive analysis both internally and externally to know what your scope is at a business level. In addition, it is advisable to hire an expert in this area to carry out the process correctly.

Caso de negocio

For the process to work, it must be adapted to the company’s development. Therefore, it is important to know and locate which are the weaknesses that can be solved by automation. To carry out this process you can use the information from the metrics to determine if they will be successful.

Define the operating model

It is essential to ensure that your company can withstand the entire process, both in terms of resources and responsibilities. Until full automation is achieved, it is necessary to carry out follow-ups and to designate a person in charge of it.

Identify suppliers

If you have never done this process before, it is best to surround yourself with the best. Once you have determined the above steps you should contact other companies that carry out this automation process. This step will depend on the level of difficulty your business has to automate.

Planning the roadmap

This step is essential to implement the automation system. If you are going to perform a test before implementing automation in your company it is important to determine how long it will last.

In addition, you must keep all the active parties up to date so that they adapt to the technological process. If you are going to implement the process, it is essential that you establish different points:

Why is this process being undertaken?
What is it expected to achieve?

Digitalization plan

Such is the importance of automation today that the government has included it in the Agenda Digital España 2025, which is based on the digitalization of SMEs as one of its priorities.

Among the areas to be developed are e-commerce, cloud or big data analytics. These companies may need help in developing the digitalization and automation of their functions.

The objectives proposed in this Agenda are as follows:

Implementation of basic programs for the development of digitalization through public-private partnerships.
Boosting business training, transformation, productivity in SMEs.
Encourage creativity and entrepreneurship in the digital market so that you can take advantage of green opportunities.
Digitalization programs in the tourism and trade sector for the implementation of environmental programs.
Reduce the gender gap in the digital sector.

These measures have an investment of 3 billion euros, which is already underway. Some of the tools that are in the development plan are the following:

Digitalization of public administrations.
Digital development of internal processes.
Electronic invoicing.
Implementation of eCommerce in SMEs.

As you can see, the automation and digitization of companies is within the reach of both small and large companies. Evaluate the pros and cons of the development of this process in your company to know if it would be fully adapted.

If you want to carry out an automation process in your company and you do not know how to do it, just follow these small steps and put yourself in the hands of an expert. Automation will make your company much more productive and efficient.