Business automation is the delegation of routine tasks to automatic tools. You can automate many different processes: sales and profits calculation, project management, working with personnel, communicating with customers, placing orders, website administration, and so on. Automated processes run independently according to a given scenario. If you set them up once, you won’t need to spend more time on certain tasks and can devote yourself to more important things. All this allows you to save two main types of resources — time and money — and direct them to building a sustainable enterprise.
What is an automation center of excellence?
Obviously, automation can bring huge dividends to your firm, while its absence can lead to decreased productivity. Therefore, many companies create internal business units, which are called automation centers of excellence (CoE). The teams working in these departments study relevant platforms, train employees, and monitor whether the real results correspond to the expected ones.
In fact, this is an interdepartmental entity that can work closely with various divisions. The CoE team facilitates automation and consistently transforms most of the enterprise’s business processes. There is no single standard for what efficient CoE should look like. Their staff, tools, and structure are individual for each organization. When creating such a center, it is important to adhere to the overall strategy of the firm and focus on specific goals.
Key success components
For the successful functioning of this cross-departmental unit, a number of conditions must be met. The following are general tips that will surely help you succeed. However, it is important to remember that the details of each step are individual and depend on the goals and available assets. Here are the strategies for success when building a CoE:
- Set clear goals and develop a strategy. Business owners know that any goal must meet the SMART criteria, and on the way to achieving them, constant monitoring must be carried out. You can’t just make “good” improvements if you can’t pinpoint the desired outcome as accurately as possible. This step may take some time, but the more detailed your strategy is, the easier the next stages will be.
- Determine the resources you are willing to invest in building the center. You may allocate part of the budget or use borrowed funds. The available resources should be sufficient to achieve the goals set. Expenses include staff training, marketing, and buying licensed software.
- Selection of qualified personnel. Team members must have sufficient qualifications and experience. They must be innovative and understand the importance of business automation. You can create a group of your employees, hire new ones, or resort to finding outsourced specialists. People are the company’s key resource, so this step should be taken with the utmost attention.
- Establishing efficient processes within the CoE. This is a creative job where you can rely on a deep comprehension of your company. The better you define the processes, the more effective will be the activities to create and operate the center. It is necessary to focus on achieving high performance and solving problems in a shorter period.
- Availability of top-notch tools. Any project requires an initial investment. The amount of this investment depends on your capabilities, but we strongly do not recommend spending money on cheap tools of dubious quality. Unreliable software can slow your progress, and saving on staff can kill motivation. Determine the necessary tools at the stage of drawing up a strategy and signing a budget.
- Sharpen the saw. As Stephen Covey points out, any skill requires constant improvement. The same is true in business: every process needs analysis, feedback, and actions to optimize it. If this principle becomes the philosophy of your CoE, then this critical department can revolutionize the way your business operates.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it should be noted that even for experienced entrepreneurs, the entire list of success components mentioned above can seem complicated. Of course, we all love to overcome difficulties, but sometimes, it makes more sense to turn to professional contractors. You can turn to a team of professionals who specialize in creating such CoEs and have many successful cases.
The automation center of excellence ensures that your efforts benefit your enterprise. Therefore, by using the recommendations and experience of contractors, you will accelerate not only the technological transformation but also the overall prosperity of your business.
