With business speed increasing, continuous and primary reliance on manual work is a problem for many organizations. Inefficient processes and data entry errors drive up costs and reduce effectiveness. Modern technology and evolving tools offer the solution, but you must have a strategy for embracing them. A digital transformation plan is central to taking advantage of the value of solutions such as robotic process automation (RPA).

What should a process entail when you want to bring new technology and abilities into your business? Let’s review the seven holistic steps that can help position your organization for an effective transformation.

1. Set Your Sights on Clear Goals

What do you want to achieve by digitally transforming how you work? Identifying and defining the objectives of your project is the foundation necessary for future success. Many automation projects that stumble do so because of the lack of a coherent, focused idea about achievable goals. Examine your operations and consider where automation could have the most significant impact.

What processes have associated high costs and long turnarounds? Accounts payable and invoice processing workflows are common areas with such issues. How can you improve customer satisfaction or enhance how your vendors interact with your business? Ask the tough questions and come up with concrete goals that you plan to achieve or problems you plan to solve. These will guide the rest of your plan.

2. Take Stock of Your Current Approach

Examine your current operations and how you approach the tasks associated with your defined goals. Analyze the technology and workflow you currently use. Where are there high error levels? What slows things down?

In other words, drill down to begin understanding what works, what doesn’t, and where modern solutions offer room for improvement. Look for processes where manual work continues to dominate the workday—zero in on processes that produce the most errors and require the most time for reconciliation. Engage with stakeholders and those involved on the ground with processes to identify areas for automation.

3. Explore the Upgrades You Need

With a clear understanding of where you want to go and where you need help, the next step is to begin exploring solutions. As part of your plan, you should investigate the many options available regarding technology and automation partners. The right team with a good track record and deep experience can be vital to reinventing how you work.

Identify where your technological infrastructure requires changes or must-have improvements. Identify technology acquisition strategies and options for meeting those needs. For example, Tungsten AP Essentials and associated Marketplace solutions can help companies hit the ground running with efforts to transform critical workflows.

4. Build a Focused, Roadmapped Strategy

Understand where and how to apply the tools and automation platforms you acquire. Don’t continue adding new solutions onto the pile; that can lead to a disconnected, expensive, ineffective automation environment. Instead, you must focus on achieving a coherent transformation that sensibly interconnects systems and automation tools.

Continuously adding additional layers of complexity without considering how it all fits together leads to data silos and disconnection. Such outcomes work against your ultimate goal. Tapping into third-party expertise can be especially useful at this stage. Teams that have helped others transform processes through innovative automation can provide valuable insights to keep you on the right path.

5. Assemble Skilled Teams Within the Business

Today’s low-code and no-code automation platforms empower citizen developers within companies to effect transformations at the individual level. However, as you seek broader process changes, you should ensure you have the right experience and understanding. Assemble a leadership team with buy-in to the automation project and bring their guidance to the project. Strong leadership helps keep teams on task and execute changes at a high level.

6. Set KPIs and Benchmarks to Measure

How can you tell the difference between the outcome of your work before and after embracing workflow automation? You’ll need to establish benchmarks and key performance indicators ahead of time. When you have an idea of what to look for, you can tell when your investment makes an impact.

Using accounts payable as an example again, consider indicators such as invoice processing time and cost per invoice. Tracking these KPIs before and after automation can give you a clear sense of your project’s impact and ROI. Gather data and measure results, using that information to make changes or pursue additional gains.

7. Forge Strong Relationships With Experienced Platform Providers

It’s impossible to overstate the value of working with automation experts. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel continuously. While some business processes require more bespoke development to achieve robust automation, many tasks and programs are standard across industries and businesses. Hone in on providers with a proven track record in providing software solutions, development support and more.

Start Shaping Your Transformation Today

A well-considered plan provides your teams with a clear guideline to follow and increases the likelihood of success for your project. Sticking to the roadmap and pursuing attainable goals through workflow automation can bring tangible bottom-line benefits. Early achievements pave the way for additional automation and a more complete and robust transformation across the business.

Using Tungsten Automation solutions, organizations can access a diverse set of tools that deliver exceptional value and functionality. You may also wish to explore what’s available in the Tungsten Marketplace. Professional third-party partners publish advanced solutions to accelerate process transformations and shorten the time required for a positive ROI. Consulting and support from these partners can also help you chart the right course forward. See what’s possible today as you build your digital transformation plan.