Should You Automate It? Use This 4-Question Test

1. How often does it happen?

A task you do twice a year is rarely worth automating — you will forget how the automation works before it runs again. Daily and weekly tasks are where the hours are.

2. Are the steps the same every time?

If you can describe the task as a checklist, it can be automated. If every instance needs a fresh decision, the best you can do is assist: draft, summarise, prepare — and leave the deciding to you.

3. What does a mistake cost?

Filing a receipt in the wrong folder costs a minute. Sending the wrong price to a client costs trust. The higher the cost of an error, the more the automation should prepare rather than act.

4. How long does it take by hand?

Multiply minutes per run by runs per month. If the answer is under an hour a month, a template or checklist is probably a better investment than an automation you will have to maintain.

Reading your answers

• Frequent, predictable, low-risk, slow: automate it end to end.
• Frequent and slow but risky: automate the preparation, keep a human approval.
• Rare or unpredictable: write a checklist or a prompt template instead.