When you think about your working day, how much of it do you actually spend repeating the same actions – over, and over, and over? Are there always some “oh no, not again” jobs that make your heart sink?
Sometimes it’s routine maintenance or simple admin. Sometimes it’s crucial work that needs to be done to a regular schedule to keep your operation running. But one thing is for sure: repetitive tasks are boring. If you and your team didn’t have to think about them, office morale would soar. And you’d save a whole lot of time and energy, too.
In view of all these benefits, automating recurring tasks is a no-brainer. Whenever you have a list of things that need to be done again – and again, and again – the question you should always ask is: “Can I automate this and get it out of the way?”
Potential tasks for automation
If you work through your to-do list with this question in mind, it’s amazing just how many of those boring jobs you can automate. Payroll is just one area that’s ripe for automation. Using a dedicated app such as Gusto or Onpay, you can easily set up a payroll process that’s perfectly suited to your business’s scale, structure and focus. Many payroll apps also include some human resources features. However, there is also dedicated HR software. This can cover the full spectrum of functions from onboarding, time & attendance tracking and benefits, to performance management, recruitment and professional development.
Customer support, social media and more
But it’s not only people-management tasks that benefit from automation. Customer support can be facilitated with automatically generated help desk tickets and standard email responses to frequently asked questions. Automated workflows and reporting make life easier for project managers, while office managers can benefit from automated solutions for travel, catering and scheduling. Scheduled social media posts and automated lead generation will lighten the load for your marketing department. These are just a few examples of the kind of repetitive, ongoing processes that can be partially or fully automated.
Getting help with automation tools
If you’re thinking about making automation part of your working life, you’ll be spoiled for choice. There are hundreds of tools out there that can be integrated seamlessly with your current IT infrastructure, including Teams, Outlook and your CRM system. By choosing the apps and software that work best for your business, you can make your team’s working routine faster, smoother and more effective. And you might just find that the mood in the office will be a lot more cheerful!
Automation is an amazing productivity aid, but there’s no point in spending even more time than usual trying to figure it all out. If the range of available options seems bewildering, Perigon One can help. As your IT support partner, we can review your systems and processes and identify the right tools for you. Just get in touch for a chat about your needs, and we’ll soon get you up and running.
