In the face of an ongoing economic slowdown, where businesses are cutting expenses and scrutinizing every project, scaling automation efforts to see big-picture value is becoming increasingly necessary. A challenging economy also forces organizations to look at their overall business practices and identify areas of opportunities to increase their operational efficiency. Organizations are increasingly turning to automation to weather the current economic uncertainty as they streamline new projects and right-size operations.
Beyond painful cost-cutting measures that can have an immediate – although sometimes short-term – impact, organizations recognize they also have to make the best use of the operations and assets they have now. They need to look closely at all of their assets, including their infrastructure and technology capabilities, and identify the right operating model to help them navigate the current economic environment. Automation can play an important role in defining that model.
With automation, businesses shift employee focus from time-consuming mundane tasks to more crucial functions such as strategy planning, ideation, streamlining process workflows, and risk analysis, etc., deriving greater value from the time those employees spend on the job.
And thanks to the growth and maturation of automation solutions in recent years, the degree of automation in the networks and systems occurring today is much higher than what could have been achieved in the past.
Adoption of these solutions will continue to increase as network teams gain more expertise with them and organizations see the benefits they deliver. Forward-thinking service providers and other businesses that deploy those automation solutions will be better equipped to ride out the current economic environment.
Prioritizing automation
When economic slowdowns happen and companies believe a recession is on the horizon, most react by cutting costs, shifting workloads and pulling back on investments. These tactics can deliver immediate cost savings, but they’re often short-lived. How many times can you cut without having a lasting, detrimental impact on the organization?
We’ve all seen the increase in headcount reductions in technology companies over the last several months. Would those companies fare better over the long term if they had focused on improving their operational efficiencies instead? I think they would have.
Organizations that take the long view and look for ways to transform their operations while continuing to invest in long-term growth during economic uncertainty tend to come out on top once the recession is over. Why? It's the old adage of short-term pain for long-term gain. Companies should use this time as an opportunity to do a deep dive into their business practices and operational structures and transform critical aspects of their business.
Implementing an automation solution is one way to do that. Automation can enable organizations to improve three key metrics and help mitigate the effects of a challenging economic environment.
- Efficiency - There are many ways to measure increased efficiency including being able to take less time to perform tasks, or even being able to accomplish more within a given amount of time. However, you measure it, an automation solution can increase process or output efficiency, which can have a direct impact on your bottom line.
- Productivity - How many units or tasks can one employee complete in a 40-hour week? That’s a very simple measure of productivity in a manufacturing environment. Productivity would be measured differently in another environment. In any setting, automating repetitive and mundane tasks and allowing time for employees to focus on more valuable work can increase overall employee productivity.
- Speed - In its simplest form, speed can be measured as the active time it takes to complete a certain task. Automating tasks can increase the speed at which they’re completed, which can also lead to greater efficiency and productivity.
Whichever metrics an organization chooses to measure, one thing is clear: With network automation, teams are able to do more with less and spend less time on tedious tasks, reducing operational, capital and other costs.
Organizations are putting automation into action. According to a Salesforce survey of 600 IT leaders, 91% of respondents report that demand for automation from business teams has increased over the last two years.
Automation is also creating more efficient growth in a faster and less disruptive way. According to the same report, nearly 44% of respondents are now using integration and API management capabilities to fully support their business process automation efforts. A further 53% stated they were using integration and API management capabilities to “some extent,” indicating there is a massive opportunity to more efficiently automate workflows at scale and deliver connected customer experiences faster.
At the same time, those organizations are finding they need to work through some challenges as they implement their automation solutions. The survey revealed that existing technology stacks are impacting the speed at which IT teams are able to meet automation demands from the business with nearly all (96%) respondents saying, “modifying and rebuilding automations is a challenge as systems and business requirements change.”
Despite those challenges, many organizations are forging ahead with automation because they realize the benefits far outweigh any short-term concessions they may need to make as they implement their solutions.
Invest in the long game
Companies that invest in digital transformation projects to get businesses back on track faster than ever are the ones that will take market share and thrive in an environment of certainty. They know that, in order to truly see transformational changes, they have to start at the top and re-engineer the way they do business. Addressing only small pockets or areas within your business is just kicking the can down the street. Transforming the way an organization operates can have long-term benefits that continue to pay off well beyond the duration of an economic slowdown. Many organizations are committing to infrastructure automation because they know it lowers costs, reduces IT complexity, and makes organizations more efficient.
Recessions will continue to come and go. But those forward-thinking companies that take a proactive stance and invest in the long game will be at the leading edge to better their revenues and overall better operational efficiency.
