Sequences that run on their own
A defined series of steps runs without a person carrying the data between them, and records what it decided so the decision can be reviewed later.
Workflow automation services for repetitive, information-heavy work
Workflow automation services for the kind of work where the judgement takes minutes and the handling takes a day: files to read, records to match, and the same figures typed in twice.
- Built around
- One process at a time
- Unsure cases
- Handed back to a person
- Writes to live systems
- Only if agreed and tested
- Evidence
- Two systems, labelled
What gets built
Four kinds of system, which usually combine. A single engagement tends to touch two of them.
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Integrations between systems
Two systems that each hold part of the truth get one reliable connection, with a stated direction, a schedule and a record of what failed.
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Document processing
Values are read out of PDFs, forms and exports into a structured shape. Each one links back to the page it came from so a person can check it in seconds.
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Internal tools
A small application for one team and one job, usually the screen that replaces a spreadsheet and the routine that grew around it.
When it fits, and when it does not
It fits when
- Information that is moved, re-typed or checked by hand between systems.
- Inputs that arrive in a few recognisable shapes: a supplier file, a PDF pack, an export.
- A team that can say what a correct result looks like.
It does not fit when
- Decisions that must be made with no human review.
- Work that has no defined inputs and changes shape every time.
- Staffing or an open-ended hour bank with no defined scope.
Five steps, named up front
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Understand the workflow
- You provide
- A walkthrough of how the process runs today, and who touches it.
- We return
- A written description of the steps, the inputs and where time goes.
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Define scope and inputs
- You provide
- Sample files, system access where needed, and the volumes involved.
- We return
- A scope with what is included, what is excluded and the inputs required.
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Build or configure
- You provide
- A named contact for questions during the build.
- We return
- The working system or script, plus notes on how it handles edge cases.
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Test and review outputs
- You provide
- Review of the output against what you expected.
- We return
- Corrections, and a clear list of what the system could not decide.
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Agree what happens next
- You provide
- A decision on whether to extend, hand over or stop.
- We return
- Handover notes, or a scope for the next piece of work.
See it before you commit
Two systems are shown with their real status and the data they ran on, and neither is presented as a client engagement.
Common questions
What are workflow automation services?
Building systems that take over the handling in a recurring process: reading files, matching records, checking them against rules and passing information between systems, while leaving the decisions to people.
What happens when the system is not sure?
It does not guess. A case it cannot decide is handed to a person with the reason attached, and the list of such cases is agreed before the build.
Will it change our live systems?
Not unless that is explicitly in scope, agreed and tested. By default the output is a file or a screen for review, and your own approval process stays in place.
Describe the process
Name one process, the systems it touches and roughly how often it runs. The reply says whether it is a fit, what scoping involves and where the limits are.