Workflow automation: where do you start?

Workflow automation does not start with a tool, but with the question of which work is currently done manually and does not need to be. In most organisations, hours go into copying, forwarding and checking every week: retyping a request from the mail into the CRM, letting a colleague know that something is ready, compiling a report from three exports. Nobody tracks those minutes, so nobody sees how much they add up to. In this article we explain what workflow automation is, how to choose the first process and where things usually go wrong at the start.

What is workflow automation?

Workflow automation means having software carry out recurring steps in a process, so that nobody has to do them manually any more. An event in one system, such as a completed form or a paid invoice, automatically triggers an action in another system.

So it is not about replacing people. It is about the connections between the tools you already use. Think of:

• a completed contact form that immediately appears as a deal in your CRM, assigned to the right colleague;
• an order that automatically sends a notification to the warehouse;
• a paid invoice that updates the status of a project;
• a new employee who immediately gets access to the systems that belong to their role.

Increasingly, there is also a smart step in between: an incoming email that is automatically read, categorised and routed to the right person, or a summary of a request that is ready before anyone opens it. The principle stays the same: work that follows a fixed pattern is left to the system.

Which process do you automate first?

Automate first the process that occurs often, has few exceptions and currently causes the most frustration or errors. That is almost never the most complex process, and that is exactly the point.

Start by observing, not with technology. For one week, keep track of which actions your team repeats. No extensive analysis, just a list:

• every morning, putting new requests from the mail into a spreadsheet;
• every week, sending reminders for outstanding invoices;
• after every phone call, retyping details into the CRM;
• every month, compiling a report from multiple sources.

Then give each item three scores: how often does it occur, how much time does it take each time and how bad is it if it goes wrong. Whatever ends up at the top is your first candidate. For inspiration, we have listed ten examples of process automation that work in almost every business.

Which automations are the easiest to start with?

The easiest automations move data or send a notification, without complicated decision rules. They are quick to build, the result is visible immediately and they teach you how automation lands in your organisation.

Form to CRM or spreadsheet. Someone fills in a form on your website and the data is immediately in the right place, with the right labels. No retyping, no requests left sitting in an inbox.

Notifications on events. A new order, a new sign-up or a support question: the right person gets a message in Slack, Teams or by email.

Confirmations and welcome emails. A customer signs up or buys something and immediately receives a personal email with the next steps. For transactional emails we often use Resend.

Synchronising data. The same customer data is in two systems. If something changes in one, the other is updated. This is where things get complex more quickly, so start with one direction.

Which tools do you need for workflow automation?

For most first automations, an automation platform that connects your existing apps is enough. Make and Zapier are the best known. You set them up visually: if something happens in system A, do this in system B. The difference between the two lies mainly in ease of use, flexibility and how the costs rise with heavy use. We work that out in Make vs Zapier: which automation tool suits you?

As soon as a process requires more logic, the picture changes. Think of calculations, checks on multiple conditions or data that has to live in one central place. Then we build the logic in our own backend such as Supabase or Xano, and use the automation platform only for the connections. For systems without a standard connector, we build custom system integrations via their API.

The technology is rarely the hardest part. The skill lies in knowing which processes to automate and how to tie them together so that the whole remains manageable.

How do you approach a first automation?

You approach a first automation in five steps: write out the process, define the trigger and actions, build, test with real data and then keep an eye on it for a few weeks. Take as an example a quote request via your website that needs to end up in the CRM.

1. Write out the process as it works now. Not how it should work, but how it really happens, including the exceptions.
2. Define the trigger and the actions. The trigger is the completed form. The actions are: create or update the contact, create a deal, assign it to the right colleague, send a confirmation to the requester.
3. Build the connection. Connect the systems and map the fields: which form field belongs to which CRM field.
4. Test with realistic data. Also with a half-completed submission, an existing contact and a field with unusual characters. That is where the errors are in practice.
5. Keep an eye on it for the first few weeks. Spot-check whether everything comes in correctly before you start relying on it.

Where does it go wrong when you start automating?

It usually goes wrong because people start too big, do not test or nobody notices that an automation has stopped. Those are not technical problems, but choices in the approach.

Wanting everything at once. Ten automations in one go means ten places where something can falter, and nobody who still knows which one does what. Getting one process working properly teaches you more.

No error handling. Connections sometimes fail, for example when a system is temporarily unreachable or a field changes. Make sure someone gets a notification when a run fails.

No owner. Every automation needs someone who knows what it does and who adjusts it when the process changes. Briefly record what happens and why.

Automating a cumbersome process. Automation only makes a cumbersome process cumbersome faster. First check whether steps can be removed before you automate them.

When is an automation platform no longer enough?

An automation platform is no longer enough when your automations become dependent on each other, the volume grows large or your team needs its own screen to follow the work. At that point, the question shifts from connecting to building.

Then we look at a central database with its own logic, an internal dashboard or a custom workflow tool that follows your process exactly. That falls under our approach to workflow automation and is a logical next step, not a mandatory one.

How do we help with workflow automation?

We start with a short inventory of your processes: where does the time go, what goes wrong and what does automation deliver. That leads to a plan that we carry out process by process, with the technology that fits the situation. You can read more about what we build on our page about automation. Want to know where the gains are for you? Get in touch and we will take a look with you.