A 10-minute decision tool
The AI Automation Checklist
Choose one workflow. Check each area only when you can support it with a real example from the current process.
How often does this workflow occur, and how consistently does it follow the same steps?
- It happens frequently enough to justify changing how the work gets done.
- The inputs and decisions follow a recognizable pattern most of the time.
- Someone on the team can explain the current steps from start to finish.
Example: Every inbound invoice is opened, checked for the same fields, entered into the accounting system, and routed for approval. What measurable business result would improve through automation?
- The current workflow consumes meaningful time, creates delays, or produces costly errors.
- Success can be measured in revenue, cost, speed, quality, or customer experience.
- The expected gain is large enough to justify building and maintaining the solution.
Example: Five people spend three hours per week on the task, totaling about 780 hours per year. The goal is a two-hour turnaround time. Which inputs, connections, and success criteria are available for this workflow?
- The required documents, messages, or records are accessible and reasonably consistent.
- The systems involved support an API, export, webhook, or another dependable connection.
- A good output can be defined and tested against representative examples.
Example: Invoices arrive as PDFs, the accounting platform has an API, and accuracy can be tested against 100 previously processed invoices. What review, recovery, and access controls does this workflow require?
- High-risk or low-confidence decisions have a clear human approval point.
- Failures are logged and can fall back to the existing manual process.
- Permissions, sensitive data, retention, and audit requirements are understood.
Example: Routine invoices post automatically. Mismatched totals or low-confidence fields are sent to the finance team for review. - 4 Define the pilot scope
- 2 or 3 Document missing requirements
- 0 or 1 Continue workflow discovery
Next step: Pick the smallest end-to-end version that can prove one measurable outcome with real users and representative data.
