Help with...

How can I streamline and automate some of our business processes?

Digital questions

One of the biggest advantages technology has produced is the ability to take time-consuming or repetitive tasks away from employees, freeing them up to work on more valuable contributions. From back-end accounting and financial automation to communicating with customers, discover both what is available and where it is important to not go wrong when automating tasks to streamline and become more productive.

Ways to help you deal with it:

Action plan

Streamline your sales process

Your sales process is the engine that powers the business. Maintenance and improvements are essential to making sure it runs effectively.

ACTION PLANS are a structured list of steps designed to help you approach tackling a particular business challenge.

We explain why each step is important
Customise by setting your own completion dates and assign tasks
Helpful tools are provided for certain steps
A downloadable PDF version of each action plan is available

Action plan

Choose a business process that could be automated

Effort : Medium

Identify the parts of your business where automation could be beneficial and understand where the human touch is still necessary.

Action plan

Make a decision about which technology is right for your business

Once you’ve identified the business needs new technology could support, it’s time to research and choose something that’s right for your organisation.

Guide

An introduction to streamlining and automating your business processes

Automation is not just for large enterprises. Read our guide on how to apply automation to your business in a strategic, cost-effective way.

GUIDES break a challenge down, providing important context and real-world experiences.

Based on SME experiences, not corporate jargon
Filled with real-world stories
Achievable steps every business can take

Other support that's available

Demystifying business automation

Demystifying business automation

When some people think about automation they immediately conjure up images of artificial intelligence and robots. Capgemini looks at common misconceptions about intelligent automation.

A more engaged workforce

A more engaged workforce

Raconteur makes the argument that a workplace with more automation in place becomes an environment that has both employees who are truly able to exercise their skills and a competitive edge.

How other businesses have tackled something similar

Peter Saunders

Real business story

Check technology meets your standards before automating processes

Animation business leader Peter Saunders shares the research he did before automating a process and the impact new technology has had.

Udhi Silva - Snaffling Pig

Real business story

Staff perform better when they’re engaged with your company’s vision and values

Engaging staff with the company vision and values has driven significant improvements for both Snaffling Pig and Sellick Partnership.

Naeem Alvi, Notepad

Real business story

Investing in your business is the key to a lasting future

Before taking the plunge and investing in the business, Notepad planned thoroughly, know its finances and set clear goals.

The questions lots of businesses are trying to answer

What issue is keeping you awake at night? A bit of targeted support is often all you need to overcome those challenges.

Select a topic

Digital

How can I improve the digital presence my business has? How should I go about collecting data to improve my business? How should I use the data I have to improve decision making? How can I streamline and automate some of our business processes? How do I work out the best digital sales channels to use? How do I assess and choose the right technology to improve business operations? How do I effectively seek external digital support? How can I understand what digital tools or support my business needs? How do I know if my technology is robust enough for growth? How should I best budget and plan for new technology investments?

Leadership & Strategy

How do I learn to become a better leader? How do I improve the communication in my business? How do I get staff interested in our vision and values? How can I reflect on my own strengths and weaknesses as a leader? How do I give my team autonomy and get better at delegating? As a leader, how do I learn to trust others within my organisation? How do I apply learnings from other businesses to my own company? How should my role as a business leader evolve with the company’s growth? How can I balance short-term needs with long-term targets? How do I get better at noticing and reacting to warning signs?

People & Team

How can I improve my hiring and onboarding practices? How can I develop the skillsets of my workforce? How can I develop career paths for my staff? How can I run a better appraisals process? How should I performance manage my staff? How do I deal with a challenging member of staff? How can I increase staff engagement and motivation? How can I keep my best members of staff? How do I manage an effective remote workforce? How can I reduce employee turnover?

Planning

How do I better inform my business plans? How do I know when to scale up my business? How can I define and communicate my vision for success? How do I ensure my business can navigate a dip in trading? How do I know when to invest in my business? How can I get better at looking internally at my business? How can I get staff interested in the financial situation? How can I make my business more resilient to change? How can I balance ambition with setting realistic goals? How can I work out what required skillsets are missing in the business?

Sales & Growth

How can we develop new products and services? How do I develop a clear unique selling point? How can we better serve our most loyal customers? How do I financially plan for new opportunities? How do I build a network to support my business? How can I get a better return on investment from my marketing? How can I identify new customers to target? How do I create targets and KPIs for my staff? How do I make sure my team and processes are ready for growth? How do I benchmark my business against competitors?