Top 5 Mistakes Businesses Make With Business Automation

Of all the things you can do to make sure your business becomes successful, that you become successful, systemization, and business automation are pretty big ones. Unfortunately, of those who take that extra step, many make mistakes that end up hurting them more than otherwise.

While there are many approaches to implementing systems and automation, not all of them are successful. Many businesses make costly mistakes, which end up turning the leaders of the organization against the idea of process automation altogether.

Here are the five top mistakes that businesses make when trying to systemize their operations. Read on so you know what kind of things to avoid when working or implementing your business automation/ systemization strategy.

1. No automation strategy

Business automation systems allow you to create a structure and order around your business model that provides consistent results—enabling you to get the highest return on your most expensive investment – time. However, if you want to systemize and automate your business operations successfully, you better know what it is you’re building. You need to clearly define your vision for your organization and what you want to accomplish in the next five years. Having this picture in mind will allow you to prioritize the development, documentation, and implementation of the system based on the impact it’ll have on the business.

2. Looking for a magic bullet

The second mistake many businesses make is looking for one system that can do everything. Unfortunately, there is no magic bullet.  Whatever platform you choose for automation, you’ll have to customize for your particular business. It needs to match perfectly with your vision, your needs, and should produce the results you’re looking for.

3. Little to no documentation 

You can’t repeat a process consistently unless it’s well documented. Many growing companies make the mistake of letting one person be the only expert in a process or sole person knowledgeable in a certain subject.  If you don’t have that knowledge documented, they become the bottlenecks in your operations, and a huge liability. Imagine what would happen if they left? Documenting processes allows you to make sure that everyone performs that particular task the same way, every time. This is critical to the success of your business.

4. Lack of business automation implementation

Having a business automation system is great, but only if it’s fully implemented. It isn’t enough to have processes in place, or have documentation; you have to execute these processes to confirm they do what they’re supposed to do for your business. As the management consultant Peter Drucker once said, “Plans are only good intentions until they immediately degenerate into hard work.”

5. No Quantifiable Metrics

You should have clearly defined and quantifiable results if you want to track the growth of your business.  How will you know how if this new system is working for your business or not otherwise? It’s the only way to determine if the automation system you’ve put in place is a good fit for your goals.

The Bottom Line

If you want a ‘life’, a successful, efficient business- you’ll need a process in place so that it’s not necessary to be constantly involved in any matter. Implementing process automation systems within your organization may be the answer you’ve been looking for. Avoiding these common mistakes can make your journey towards having a systemized business easier and more successful.