Improve Staff Productivity Through Process Automation
Published: 14/02/2022
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In this article, we will be talking about process automationand how it’s driving better performance across the company. This piece should be interesting to everyone with managerial power and eager to lead their team to success. Along the way, we will also address some of the most common automation-related concerns.
There are many factors that contribute to staff productivity. Leadership, team support, resources, company culture, business processes…The list goes on. We want to focus on the optimisation of processes specifically. This factor is tightly knit to every other on the list. And while it may seem lucrative to even try to optimise every area that falls under the umbrella of productivity, we ensure you it’s possible - through process automation.
Since business processes have a touchpoint with other factors on the list, its optimisation will subsequently optimise other areas. But why, out of all possible ways to improve, should you go down the automation path? We will answer this and other questions, as well as highlight the above-mentioned touchpoints, in the article below.
Processes that require repetitive manual labour and are most prone to human error should be the highest on the priority list. For example, invoicing. Some of the processes can only be partially automated as they include the need for human judgement - like the approval process. To put it simply, you should aim to automate every process, either fully or parts that are relevant. The real challenge is prioritisation, and it’s individual to every business and processes they have in place.
Ever since the first means of automation appeared, they have been surrounded by myths. These can become a key factor in causing a delay when it comes to the adoption of the practice, therefore setting the business back from scaling in an accelerated manner. This is why we want to address two of the oldest and most widely spread automation myths - and prove they are false.
Back in the era of industrialisation, factory workers would oppose automation for fear of the machines taking over their jobs. Centuries later, the fear runs strong. However, the truth is that automation isn’t here to replace the human - but to add a layer of efficiency by taking away time-consuming tasks that don’t drive progress.
Machines are still not capable of taking over the entirety of the workload. They, however, are capable of freeing up the time that can then be put towards executing tasks the machines cannot do. Curiously, automation actually increases the demand for labour.
Digital transformation is a huge buzzword many throw around without fully understanding its meaning. Business automation is often viewed as another ‘trendy’ term to throw around, although it is a big chunk of the formerly mentioned practice. The lack of understanding is exactly what breeds the scepticism that once the fad passes - automation will become irrelevant. But this is very far from being the truth.
The reason why digital transformation, inclusive of automation, is so popular is that it’s revolutionising the way businesses operate. From decreasing risks of human error to delivering more in-depth insights, the benefits delivered by digitalisation are shaping the future that’s data and progress-driven. It itself is a process that is fuelled by modern technology and the knowledge collected, then applied towards further development. All in all, digital transformation is a mindset leading towards continuous innovation through automation. It simply cannot get old.
We’ve already mentioned the most commonly brought up benefit of automation - saving time. Since it’s pretty self-explanatory and we’ve mentioned it briefly, we won’t be expanding on it. Instead, we’ll explore other, less obvious, ways in which process automation becomes the key driver of your company’s productivity.
Miscommunication is the top culprit of delays. And when there are multiple parties involved in a process it is very often inevitable. Logically, reducing the number of people involved in a process subsequently lowers the risk of miscommunication. On the other hand, it is not always realistic to exclude anyone at all due to each role filled being vital.
Process automation may not always solve the issue of needing every person involved, but it can certainly make communication smoother, lessening the chance of human error. For example, instead of relying on an employee to notify their colleagues of being done with the task to let them take over, you can minimise the risk of a delay that occurs in case they forget to do that. With the process automation in place, the moment they mark the task complete, an alert is sent to other people involved, letting them know they can start working right away. This may not look like a lot, but a layer of simplified and smoother communication does wonders for team productivity in a long run.
Digital solutions that enable automation often also offer reports, providing insights on the results achieved. Most commonly, they deliver in-depth data that would otherwise not be accessible. When using a few solutions that are integrated with one another, you, in turn, expand their stand-alone automation capacities, therefore leading to even more data, now put into different contexts.
The more data you have, the quicker you will be spotting patterns across various business areas. These patterns serve as the means of revealing new opportunities and potential threats quicker, enabling you to begin utilising them at once. For example, by reviewing a report of an automated process, you may notice a tendency of a particular bottleneck that slows the progress down you have not been aware of. This allows you to investigate the problematic step, learn what the issue is and solve it - therefore removing the bottleneck.
You must have heard the saying that happy employees are more productive. Well, according to the University of Oxford, it is true and the observed workers were 13% more productive on the weeks they reported being happy. And, to draw a connection between employee happiness and work automation, let’s look at even more numbers. 74% of employees in highly-automated companies linked higher job satisfaction to automation.
Despite the name, Timesheet Portal is capable of a lot more than being just a timesheet solution. While digital time tracking is the foundation of our platform, it is designed to drive the automation of a wide range of business processes. From calculating overtime to generating and distributing invoices, our aim is to grant you and your staff as much flexibility as possible. Not only do we lift the burden of mundane tasks off your shoulders, but also help you automate further.
Our wide range of integrations with accounting, CRM and other digital tools unlocks new ways to reduce manual labour. It also enables the collection of more thorough data, as well as putting it into a different context for easier identification of opportunities. Timesheet Portal has been built for teams that seek to progress - and that’s what we help you achieve.
Every business strives to improve its productivity, but with so many ways to go about it, they often choose the wrong one. We insist that the best starting point is the optimisation of business processes, as they are the pillars that support your organisation. Automation is an approach that’s proven to be effective, even if some still take it with a grain of salt. It helps to grow productivity in multiple ways at once, therefore being a great success accelerator.
Not only does it free-up schedules of your employees by taking away mundane manual tasks, but also smoothens the communication across the company. The insights that are collected along the way can also guide you in the right direction or flag potential risks before you run into them. Best of all, there is little limit to what and how can be automated; it’s all chalked up to your goals and creativity.
Ready to automate? Let us help you.