Where Should You Start with Automation?

Most automation projects start with enthusiasm and end up shelved as the scope keeps growing. The antidote is to begin with one simple question:

"Which task do we do the same way every week — and nobody enjoys doing?"

A good first candidate looks like this

1. The rules are clear — "open this file, copy this column, paste it there"
2. It repeats often — daily or weekly
3. Mistakes get noticed — which means its value is measurable

Start small, earn trust

Even if your first automation only takes over a 15-minute report, the team's reaction will be "so this actually works." That trust opens the door to the bigger steps that follow.

Big transformations are the sum of small, determined steps.