Custom software or off-the-shelf

Automatizar no es "poner inteligencia" encima del desorden. Es quitar un paso que ya sabes hacer, que se repite, y que cuando falla se ve.

If the step changes every week, automation freezes the error. If no one checks the result, it silently freezes the error.

Automate when

The step can be written on one line. "Cuando el cliente acepta, envía el pedido al almacén." No: "cuando toque, según el cliente, si hay stock, si María está."

The information already exists on a website. No en la cabeza de alguien. No en un chat. Si el disparador es "me acuerdo", no hay nada que conectar.

The ruling is seen on the same day. An order that doesn't ship. An email that doesn't go out. If the problem appears at the end of the month, first make it visible. Then unclick it.

One person does it more than ten times a week. Anything less than that, the click is cheaper than the bridge. You don't need an industry number. Tell us yours.

Don't automate when

The process hasn't been decided. You're using automation to avoid discussing the rule. That doesn't save anything. It hides it.

There are exceptions that represent real work. If half the cases fall off the line, it's not a workflow. It's a matter of judgment. Judgment isn't something you can chain together.

Nobody's going to look at the queue. Automation without an owner is a mistake that reproduces itself.

Quieres "que piense". Eso no es este artículo. Aquí el trabajo es un paso repetido, no un juicio.

What a first step looks like

A trigger. An action. A place to see if it happened. Nothing more.

Examples include: an accepted quote creates a queue. A closed invoice notifies the billing department. A new entry in one system appears in the other.

Ejemplos que no caben: "prioriza los clientes". "Redacta el presupuesto como lo haría Juan." Eso pide una persona, o una herramienta hecha para vuestra regla — y entonces no es automatizar un paso, es build.

Relationship with integrating

If A and B already do the work and only the travel is missing, integrate it. If the step doesn't exist anywhere, there's nothing to automate: you either write it or build it.

Don't link to a trendy product. A new URL isn't necessary. The same principle applies whether you already have a cable or need to have one made.

After

If there is one step, the line is written, and there is an owner, it can be commissioned. The commissioning process is custom software. This page only tells you if you need to remove a click or if you need to think.