Leading your Business on the Path to Automation One Step at a Time – Automation is present in most modern businesses, regardless of their industry, in one way or another and its benefits cannot be denied. To be more specific, automation allows you to reduce employee workload and the risk of human error, cut costs, gain valuable insights, improve the decision-making process, ensure compliance, increase safety, lessen your environmental footprint, and boost employee morale among other things. In other words, leveraging technology applications to minimize human input and reimagine business processes can help you improve efficiency, and productivity in your company, which is something that every business owner is after.

As automation specialists at Festo point out, our world is changing and evolving at a faster pace than ever, and businesses have to keep up with these transformations. The good news is that automation can provide a great solution in this regard. The not-so-good news is that given the wide range of advantages provided, one can easily fall into the trap of thinking that automation is some sort of golden ticket to business success, and then dive right into it without actually understanding what it implies. Unfortunately, things are a lot more complicated than they seem, as you can only reap the rewards of automation if you approach it the right way.

If you’re thinking about implementing automation in different areas of your business, you have to get ready for the process that lies ahead and familiarize yourself with the best practices. So, we’ve rounded up some top tips and recommendations from experts in the field that can make your business automation journey run smoother and help you achieve your goals faster.

Choose the processes you want to automate

There are many business areas and processes that you can automate, and you might be tempted to approach automation from all sides so you can get everything done in one go. But while that sounds great in theory, it doesn’t really translate well into practice. Keep in mind that automation requires quite a lot of effort and if you’re not an expert in the area, there are countless things that can go wrong and spell disaster for your company.

Although automating your business from the ground up is your end goal, it’s best to take it step by step, go slow and address one process at a time. Start with the simplest process first, and observe the way your company reacts to automation during this stage. Make sure you thoroughly assess these processes beforehand so you can minimise risks and decide on the best course of action.

Find the right tools and test them out

A lot of automation providers such as Festo offer an extensive array of tools and solutions for a large number of tasks and operations across different industries. It’s always good to have various options at your disposal, as it gives you the possibility to find the solution that best suits your specific needs and requirements.

However, if you have limited knowledge in the field, having too many choices can confuse and overwhelm you, and make the decision-making process much more complicated. That’s why you have to conduct thorough research when choosing automation tools and solutions for your company. Once you’ve selected the products, you should have your team test them out and see how they perform in real-life scenarios. If you’re satisfied with the results, you can proceed to include them in your automation strategy.

Set clear goals

A lot of times, business owners jump on the automation train and implement certain solutions that are supposed to help them on their automation journey, and only after they’re well into the process do they start thinking about goals and the results they want to achieve. Needless to say, that’s not the right order to do things.

Before you even start contemplating automation for your business, you have to figure out what you want to accomplish. Automation requires significant time and money investment, and you have to make sure your resources are used exactly where they are needed if you want your efforts to pay off. That means you have to set very specific goals and determine the exact steps you have to follow to get there.

Get everyone involved in the process

Although automating business processes is a change for the better, you have to remember that humans are creatures of habit, and every transformation, as beneficial as it may be, is often met with reluctance and resistance.

It’s up to you to ease the transition to automation for your employees and get them to adapt to the new normal. And the best way to do it is by educating your staff on the benefits of automation, providing adequate training in this respect, and getting them actively involved in the process. Once you have all your team members on your side, things will go a lot smoother and you’ll be able to advance your automation efforts.

Understand the risks of automation

Automation technology provides plenty of perks for all types of businesses, as we’ve already mentioned, but even the best solutions have their drawbacks and risks, and in the case of automation they come in the form of cyberattacks.

While automation makes it easier and more convenient for you to perform certain operations, it can do the same thing for cybercriminals. If you’ve mostly relied on manual tasks up till now, you may be oblivious to the risks that you expose yourself to as your business moves further towards automation. That stresses the importance of having an adequate security system and a suitable safety policy in place to protect your business against attackers.

Automation is without a doubt the future of modern businesses. But before you go down this road, make sure you gain a deep understanding of the automation process and devise a solid plan that will guide your every step.