Rational investment in process automation. Let’s look at the example of a canteen and two more stories from large companies.
So, you have a good goal: you want to build a canteen at your factory so that employees can have lunch at work and not have to go to the nearest pizzeria. This way you will reduce downtime, and no one will have to heat fish in a shared microwave. This is good.
True, while you are making repairs in accordance with all SanPin rules, purchasing equipment, hiring cooks and passing inspections, the money is spent in greater quantities, but the need to dine elsewhere remains. And that's bad.
But what if you change the plan?
First, we will place a coffee machine and a snack machine in the recreation area. Then colleagues will reduce the number of approaches “to the store.”
Then we will renovate the premises, buy furniture and sell inexpensive ready-made set meals. Part of the team will no longer go on break.
Then we will build our own kitchen: we will continue to purchase some of the dishes, and we will begin to produce some ourselves. Most employees will appreciate this, and people will go to the canteen more often.
Finally, we will open another workshop and move to a full cycle of work.
Thus, by moving step by step, we will reduce the time when the resources expended do not bring any benefit.
The same can be done with business process automation. You write technical specifications, choose software, prepare documents – but until people start working in the system, this is just money written off. In this article we will look at how to speed up the return on investment when implementing new software.
My name is Denis Seleznev, I am the general director of the First Form company. Since 2002, we have been automating business processes in large companies so that clients immediately see the benefits. I will share my experience and tell you how to implement such systems without the risk of downtime.
I will rely on SPV – a set of rules for the implementation, development and support of software. The essence of this methodology is to break the implementation process into stages, after which you will already receive some value. The SPV methodology is relevant for any solution. If you follow it, you will save money and reduce the risks of doing something that will later have to be written off as a loss.
At the same time, the division into stages can also be different. In particular, I will show examples of “from specific to general” and vice versa, and you can choose which path is suitable for your task.
Story one. From CRM to business process analytics
Our client is a large manufacturer of medical equipment of varying complexity, from X-ray examination lamps to MRI machines. He turned to us for a single dashboard that would reflect current business indicators and the success of the enterprise. The problem was that most of the processes were not digitalized, there was no data to display on the dashboard. Then we proposed a gradual automation plan for two years.
In such cases, the Pareto principle works well – automation of 20% of processes will give 80% of the result. Accordingly, the client’s main task is to formulate his main pain. In our case, it was working with clients.
Work in this direction has not been systematized. Each manager maintained a separate Excel database of warm clients and entered into it the results of negotiations, purchase volumes, dates of next meetings and other data. When it came time to share the results, managers sent their tables to the head of the area, and he had to put together a single report. Now let's talk about how we fixed it.
Set up CRM with notifications
In CRM, we have provided a unified contact database, an automated funnel and the ability to collect reports in a familiar table format.
All information is stored in the system, where it can be quickly found without unnecessary correspondence. And if a manager goes on vacation, access is transferred to his deputy, and does not end up on a password-protected work computer. |
At each stage of the funnel, managers receive notifications about the next touches, and thanks to this, they do not miss deadlines and can reach a deal in two weeks instead of a month.
Automated control of test samples in clinics
Initially, there was no single database of sent devices with recipient contacts; instead, they kept tables where rental periods were entered. As a result, managers got confused and, during particularly hot periods, could completely miss that it was time to take back the demo equipment.
We have created a separate section for such requests with cards in which it is necessary to indicate the contacts of those responsible, the model of the device and the rental period. Now the manager receives notifications a week in advance, three days in advance, and on the deadline itself. You can close the task only after the device returns to the office.
We launched client managers into the system
We set up these processes gradually so that employees had time to get used to it. At first they were against it, and that's normal – people find it difficult to accept updates and relearn.
This is why it is important to launch real users into the system at the MVP stage. They will be able to test processes, suggest improvements to the organization of the interface, and point out what they are missing. If you wait until it is completely ready, there is a risk of spending even more time on reconfiguration. |
After some time, managers realized that they began to get more done – there was no need to make reports or look for phone numbers in tables. Sales and customer satisfaction levels grew, and the manager received the first data to display on the dashboard.
Connected related departments
Over time, other departments wanted to connect to the system. For lawyers, we have set up electronic document management with contract templates and generation of printed forms. The time required to prepare and verify documents has been reduced. Then HR processes were automated in the system: EDC, filing sick leave, requesting certificates.
So we “ate the elephant piece by piece.” With the implementation of the system in departments, the company acquired diverse data for that very same dashboard. Now the client can focus on strategic development.
Conclusions from history:
— If you need to solve a major business problem by implementing a system, you need to break it down into parts and be the first to automate such a process, from the digitalization of which you will immediately get a return. It should be easy to set up and have an impact on business results. Then the company will begin to work according to a new flow, will receive results from this, and will slowly digitalize further.
— It is necessary to launch users into the new system as early as possible. You can start with a small group of employees who can test the solution and highlight opportunities for improvement. If they begin to deny the innovation, working on the first automated process will help them get used to it, see the benefits and benefits for themselves. Over time, they will even become automation ambassadors for other departments, which will influence the overall development of processes.
The second story. From general Service Desk to segmentation by task categories
A phased implementation of the system can also begin with automation of a simple general process with subsequent clarification of details. This happened with another of our clients – a landlord of premises for offices and coworking spaces. He was looking for a solution that would help systematize work with applications from tenants.
The business center offers cleaning services and assistance to tenants in preparing offices for events. To call a cleaner, you had to write to one Telegram channel, and to decorate the premises – to another. As a result, in order to prepare everything comprehensively, tenants submitted many separate applications. Requests were processed haphazardly, and it was impossible to track their status.
To solve the problem, we proposed to first formulate specific automation goals and evaluate OKR (Objective and Key Results) from the implementation of the entire system. The algorithm is like this:
Determine the main goal. In our case, this is an increase in the level of tenant satisfaction from interaction with internal services.
Determine three to five key results that we will rely on. We identified a reduction in time to solve a problem by 30%, a reduction in operating costs by 15% and an increase in the number of applications closed after the first request by 25%. These indicators need to be assessed at the time of start.
Set time frames and milestones. We planned to sum up the results of automation after six months, and evaluate the intermediate ones every two months.
Evaluate the final result. During this time, the system would have already accumulated data on the execution of new processes, which could be compared with the starting indicators.
After assessing the OKRs, the team divided the work into several stages. I'll tell you more about each one.
Set up a single Service Desk
To call a cleaner or technician, tenants had to fill out a simple form. Applications fell into a single register, where they were manually forwarded to those responsible. The workload of each artist became clearer, and managers were able to redistribute it. We implemented the general Service Desk in less than two weeks, and there was less confusion in applications.
Two months later, we analyzed the data on the time it took to complete tasks and set standards for each: for example, wiping up spilled coffee = 15 minutes, moving furniture in the room = 2 hours. So the system learned to automatically distribute applications depending on the complexity and workload of the performers.
Selected individual business processes
Then we set up a comprehensive business process for preparing the halls. The tenant fills out an application, and the system automatically creates tasks for various services: cleaning, maintenance, technical team. After the performer has done his part of the work, for example, the business executives brought and installed the necessary furniture, or the technical specialist set up the projector, they mark this in the system and the complex task moves on.
Recently, Service Desk was integrated with a room reservation system. When managers add a new reservation, a request for preparation is registered in the Service Desk. You no longer need to call other services and assign separate tasks. The next step is to transfer it to the CRM system so that the full cycle of work with offices is automated.
Conclusions from history:
— To increase the efficiency of processes immediately, you can combine them into a cluster and first approach them in a general way. Then you can connect other departments to the system to provide additional segmentation and categorization of requests.
— For a global goal, it is worth defining OKRs. These indicators will help evaluate the effectiveness of the implementation process, adjust plans and in the future understand whether we have achieved our plans.
What else is important to pay attention to?
— Don’t try to immediately create a perfect process and take everything into account. As is the case with the general Service Desk for a business center, there may be manual operations at first, and this is normal. In order for you to make improvements, you need a solution that you can manage flexibly. “First Form” is a low-code constructor that allows you to quickly configure, launch and rebuild business processes. Many changes can be made without programmers, in a couple of minutes.
— Choose software that adds value by adding new processes to it. Over time, this solution will turn into an ecosystem of services for employees with automated workstations, and everyone will be able to perform their tasks more efficiently. The platform itself in this case will speak a single coordinator and space for coordinated work of employees, integrated solutions and clients, who can also be connected to it and so on increase income by 60% or more.
— Give preference to software that you can support yourself. We have an Academy where we teach non-technical people how to set up processes in the system. The analysts from the first story (about a medical equipment manufacturing company) went through it and themselves set up a corporate portal in the system with news for employees.
To summarize: how to speed up the return on investment
Break the big into small ones and don’t try to swallow the whole elephant.
Choose correctly where to start automation, which process will bring more profit.
Measure OKRs in advance and check them regularly so as not to get lost in the jungle of settings.
Involve people in the solution, even if not everything is implemented in it yet, and listen to their feedback.
Choose a solution that will allow you to refine processes and add new ones without wasting unnecessary resources.
If you want to work on complex problems for large companies, join our team business analysts. You will be able to dive deeply into industry business processes and improve their automation in a low-code solution.
