How to choose the first task to automate

Most teams have more candidates for automation than budget. The first project matters most, because it decides whether the second one ever happens. Here is a simple way to choose it.

List the repetitive work

Ask each team one question: what do you do every day or every week that follows the same steps each time? Write down the task, who does it, how often, and roughly how long it takes.

Do not filter yet. Copying orders into a spreadsheet, chasing approvals and building the Monday report all belong on the list.

Score each task on four things

1. Time. Hours per week across everyone involved. Multiply by an hourly cost and by 52 to get the annual cost.
2. Rules. Could you write the steps down so that a new joiner could follow them? The clearer the rules, the easier the automation.
3. Data. Is the input already digital and reasonably consistent? A web form is easy. Handwritten notes are not.
4. Risk. What happens if a step goes wrong? Sending a reminder twice is harmless. Paying a supplier twice is not.

Pick high time, clear rules, low risk

The best first project is rarely the most impressive one. It is the one that takes a lot of hours, follows clear rules, uses data you already have, and does little harm if something fails.

Leave the high-risk tasks until you have seen how automation behaves in your business, and always keep a person in the loop for those.

Check the numbers

Compare the annual cost of the task with the cost of building and running the automation. If it does not pay back within a year, choose a different task. Our ROI calculator does this sum for you.

Decide how you will measure it

Before any work starts, write down today's number: hours per week, response time or error count. Without a baseline, you will not be able to tell whether the project worked.

If you would like help building and ranking this list, that is what our AI audit is for.