Chief Executive Officer at Safeguard Global.
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It's time for leaders to change how we think about the health of our organizations. With today's marketplace dynamics, we can no longer point to revenue valuation as the core health indicator. For example, a strong earnings-before-interest, depreciation and amortization is now critical for demonstrating your ability to create and maintain the kind of efficiencies that show you're a robust, dependable organization.
While cultural growth has been prioritized over the last few years, we must start looking at the future of the workforce and considering where technology, particularly automation, can be used to change how everyone does work. This kind of strategizing will require starting at the top. Embracing tools and technologies like artificial intelligence as someone in a leadership position is a powerful way to help streamline business operations from end to end.
What is automation at the leadership level?
Many companies have been driven to re-evaluate their customer journey because of the growing demand for digital platforms and an accelerated integration of technology into everyday life. A seamless customer journey is essential for retaining consumers and navigating the competitive market. To address these issues, leaders worldwide are examining the underbelly of their businesses to determine whether they're operating as effectively as possible.
So automation at a leadership level isn't about replacing people; it's about optimizing their roles. There's an element of leadership that's essentially human because it requires being instinctive and having gut feelings, on top of being data driven. Rather than removing these qualities, automation seeks to build, nurture and ensure they work more efficiently.
For leaders, housekeeping activities like sifting through emails, approving routine requests or updating records can be a distraction. Too much time on these tasks can mean missing important high-value task items or developing decision fatigue, which negatively impacts the health of their team or the organization as a whole. Automation can come to the rescue by accelerating these activities and even updating processes, helping leaders stay agile. It positively influences team dynamics, especially across distributed workforces and global groups, by enhancing efficiency.
By embracing automation, leaders can concentrate more on achieving strategic business goals rather than navigating operational challenges. For example, if a company improves a core process by 5%, it becomes 5% more efficient and makes its customers 5% happier. When applied across 20 different operations, the effect multiplies and delivers even more noticeable benefits.
A 3-Step Guide To Leadership Automation
Your journey to automation becomes attainable when you break it down into actionable steps. It involves employee engagement, alignment with your values and pilot testing.
Step 1: Identify Process Kinks
It's vital to have your team members involved from the beginning of your automation initiative. They can help identify where processes could be improved because they typically know firsthand where difficulties exist. Common process kinks include manually entering data, having too many approval steps or using outdated communication methods. Once issues are spotted, they can be the starting point for introducing automation. Be sure to check in with your team regularly through feedback sessions, surveys or casual chats.
Step 2: Align Company Values With Automation Needs
Aligning company values with your automation needs is crucial for brand integrity and employee morale. For example, "Work in Any Way" is a philosophy at my company that emphasizes agility, efficiency and trust among our employees. This may include flexible hours, remote work or the freedom to choose the best work tools and techniques for individual employees. The approach gives workers a North Star, offering both the direction and the autonomy needed to make the best decision and support customers.
As companies' needs change, so do their infrastructure requirements. Choosing tools that empower your employees to work in ways they prefer maximizes productivity and personal strengths. By listening to employee feedback and experiences, you can customize automation to align with company values while updating processes for the team and overall business demands. Remember that your goal is to implement software and workflows that enable your team members to function at their peak, which benefits the entire organization.
Step 3: Implement A/B Testing For Automation
Testing different automation options against each other can help you discern which tool yields better results and makes the most sense for your team. For example, if you're considering two different email automation tools, you can use A/B testing to compare metrics like open rates, click-through rates and user feedback. This will help identify the most effective method.
By following this approach, you can ensure your automation efforts are strategic, practical and aligned with your company's ethos and goals. Then, after reviewing the results of your actions, you can cascade the successful tools to your workers to improve how they accomplish their work.
Embrace The Change, But Be Proactive
The workforce is changing. While we have always seen technology evolve to meet the needs of the market, with AI, there’s a chance it will begin to advance at an unprecedented pace in the next few years. For business leaders looking to embark on this journey, my advice is to embrace the change. But make sure you do so with a clear understanding of your organization's core values and objectives. Evaluate your operations constantly, and be proactive in adapting to technological advancements. By striking the right balance between technology and the human touch, you can pave the way for a more efficient, inclusive and forward-thinking business landscape. I hope this three-step process can help you get started.
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