Well everyone, we’re here at the last stretch. We’re now in December and only one month away from capping off a hopefully better year than the one prior.
December is typically a time of finalizing deals, purchases, and planning for the year to come – but it’s also a time of reflection. And with that, I’d like to share the question that I ask myself at the end of each year. Am I doing everything in my power to create value for my clients and my company?
If you weren’t able to properly capture your full market share, if your team is currently being stretched to the point of exhaustion, or if your clients were left wanting more, sadly the answer is no.
Creating value is not a passive endeavor. It requires intent, due diligence, and action. Ensuring that your answer to this question is a resounding YES! means leaving no stone unturned as to how you can optimize your company’s performance.
So, have you explored every option that could potentially add value to your company as you head into 2022? Allow me the opportunity to make the case for why automation should be a part of that plan.
Automation Removes Inefficiencies
Optimization is a word that gets tossed around a lot in business. Of course, there is no company that exists that is fully optimized. It’s an impossible goal, but nevertheless a solid ideal to strive after. On average, companies lose 20% – 30% of revenue each year due to inefficiencies. This means that there is plenty of room for improvement.
The other side to this is how automation allows for a company to more effectively scale. As your company grows, those inefficiencies become magnified. The time you were wasting on one process for 10 clients is doubled when it now applies to 20. What’s more, your employee who was struggling to service those 10 accounts can now service 20 without any reduction in quality. It saves time, it protects quality, it opens the door for growth.
Automation Makes for Happier Employees
Automation allows for less repetitive tasks, which not only frees up time to be more creative, but it also increases employee satisfaction. In a 2021 survey, 67% of employees reported feeling like they were constantly doing the same tasks repeatedly. Investing in automation is not only a proven way to increase productivity across the board for your organization, but it communicates to your employees that you value their time enough to not make them sit through hours and hours of mindless data entry.
Think of it as an investment in the well-being of your people as much as it is the output of your business. In the midst of this Great Resignation – when the competition for good talent is so high and retention so low – this reduction in repetitive work could be the competitive advantage that makes all the difference.
Automation Increases Revenue
Not to bury the lede here, but if you’re still not convinced as to the transformative power of automation, then look no further. From IT to marketing to accounting, one thing everyone can agree on is that more revenue is good. One study found that investments in automation were directly tied to a 5-7% increase in revenue – not to mention a 15% hike in productivity!
Not only does this justify the investment, but the great advantage of more revenue (and really the crux of my case) is that it allows you for greater flexibility. What would an additional 5% of revenue allow you to do? My guess would be a lot.
When you have extra money to work with, when you’re not drowning in senseless activities, you have more time to think clearly and strategically. All this time saved allows you to work on the business, not in it.
Final Thoughts
Automation represents a unique opportunity to positively impact your bottom line while simultaneously leading to happier employees and fewer inefficiencies. It is on the lower end of investments financially, while also being on the upper end in terms of ROI. In a market littered with failed investments and projects, automation is a low stakes point of entry for those trying to harness the transformative power of technology. As an easily integrated solution that folds into workflows without interruption, it can build your team’s confidence and act as a stepping stone to future investments on top of all the other benefits.
Investments don’t always have to be intimidating. When the business case and the evidence is there, they can sometimes be pretty painless.
