8 steps to implement IT Process Automation

IT process automation increases output while reducing waste. Learn how to deploy ITPA in eight easy steps, including the tools and techniques.

Are you interested in using automated workflows to streamline your company's IT support, administration, and services? Automation of processes increases efficiency, strengthens data integrity, and minimizes errors. Automation of intricate, high-volume operations gives organizations more resources for creativity. Understanding the aim and techniques of IT Process Automation is the first step in automating an IT department (ITPA).

We define ITPA and look at some usage examples below. We also go over the advantages and restrictions of automation. Finally, we discuss the practical measures. Quarkly may help you implement to automate IT procedures. You may construct a unique solution or web app for teams of any size with Quarkly's no-code builder.

Automation of IT Processes defining

Customized workflows are used in IT process automation to automate high-volume, repetitive software and IT processes. According to a recent report by McKinsey & Company, manual work takes up up to 90% of the time in IT departments. Businesses that automate some of these labor-intensive procedures become more productive.

Process Automation Types

Compare ITPA to other types of process automation:

• Business Process Automation (BPA): BPA entails intricate organizational-level procedures.
• Robotic Process Automation (RPA): RPA automates repetitive operations by using software, frequently hardware. Less commonly used are API or database connections.
• Digital Process Automation (DPA): DPA includes software solutions that simplify complicated procedures. DPA streamlines processes involving numerous departments, instruments, and methods.
• IT Process Automation (ITPA): software processes centered on information technology. While DPA and BPA deal with corporate-wide operations, ITPA is department-specific.

Examples and use cases for ITPA

Process automation in the real world includes:

• Compliance: Boost compliance testing's precision and effectiveness. Create compliance reporting forms quickly using Quarkly and have them emailed immediately following a triggering event.
• Bug reporting and testing: Enable teams to concentrate on coming up with answers. ITPA removes inconsistent reporting and bugs, enhancing interaction with engineers.
• Network automation: Automate system updates, fixes, and configuration changes. Automated procedures are a powerful deterrent against frequent network performance problems.
• Service requests and ticketing: Track, assign, and manage service requests and tickets. By removing missed opportunities and misplaced duties, communication and support can be improved.
• Messaging and notifications: IT departments sometimes struggle with communication. The accuracy and effectiveness of communications are demonstrated via automated messages and notifications.
• Server automation: There are numerous potential for automating server maintenance procedures. Among these are restarts, shutdowns, clearing out of the disc space, backups, restores, provisioning, and de-provisioning.
• Asset tracking and management: Careful monitoring of the equipment lowers losses and raises return rates. Manage assets from onboarding through offboarding and all in between using our solutions.

Automation's advantages and limitations

Transparency and communication errors are decreased through IT process automation. Everyone remains informed thanks to tracking and automated reports. Because human and technological errors are decreased by ITPA procedures, time is saved on pointless corrections. Boost compliance, cut down on mistakes, and enhance communication. Building bespoke solutions is easy thanks to Quarkly's no-code editor.

There are various constraints to take into account when deploying an ITPA system, despite the fact that there can be many advantages to a company's bottom line. It's crucial to understand that ITPA solutions require upkeep in order to function properly, and wholesome ITPA processes involve frequent audits and updates.

Automated solutions also don't have human intuition. Any process that depends on human interpretation is not a possibility for automation since effective workflows eliminate ambiguity and divide activities into clearly defined actionable phases.

8 Steps to complete ITPA

To adopt ITPA within your organization, follow these 8 steps. Planning, implementation, and monitoring are the three stages we'll look at below.

Stage I: Planning

Step 1: find chances for automation in the first step. If a process meets all five of the following requirements, it is simple to automate:

• High-volume procedures provide the most substantial rise in efficiency for organizations.
• Processes that are prone to human and technology mistakes.
• The process is composed of a number of actions and reactions, or subtasks.
• There is no need for manual intervention in the process.
• An environment that is reasonably stable supports the process. Automated processes become ineffective due to exceptions, technical issues, and unforeseen circumstances.

Step 2: locate your aches and pains:

• With few exceptions, automation uses absolutes. It might be difficult to manage nuance in a setting where precise definitions are required.
• Manual Intervention is a must, but it does not have to consume 90% of one's time. In order to be as efficient as possible, automate manual process steps.

Step 3: establish priorities and the scope.

Decide on your ITPA initiative's main objectives and the pertinent performance indicators. Do you need to raise the monthly total of service requests that are completed? Do you want to reduce the amount of assets lost annually?

Stage II: Implementation

Step 4: build your ITPA Tool Kit.

You can think about creating your own unique tool if you have a good understanding of your requirements. Without writing any code, you may build specialized IT process automation apps using no-code solutions like Quarkly. Development might involve multiple departments, and users' and collaborators' roles and permissions can be altered.

The following are some fundamental attributes that every ITPA tool should have:

• Logical connectors: Divide jobs into smaller ones and design workflows that correspond to the branches.
• Process life cycle management: You can create users with different rights using Quarkly's privacy rules. Your team's internal app collaborators have the ability to create workflows, make modifications, and stop operations.
• Process updates: View bottlenecks, workflow routes, and statuses in one location. Since Quarkly pushes data in real time, you can always stay informed.
• Reporting: Compile performance and automation data.
• Pre-built components and pages: Create reusable templates out of regular subtasks.
• Workflow builder using drag & drop: An efficient ITPA solution will have an easy-to-use workflow builder. With Quarkly's user-friendly UI, create entirely customizable workflows.
• Integrations: Common integrations include XML, email, Command Line Interface, and web services. Quarkly provides both customized solutions and a sizable marketplace for plugins.
• Types of triggers With backend workflows, scheduled, manual, and event-based triggers can all be automated.

Step 5: Decompose tasks.

Each procedure should be broken down into logically defined steps. A series of actions and reactions make up these workflows, so keep that in mind. Logic statements can be used to represent steps in human workflows.

Step 6: Build workflows.

Create processes with activities that have a goal. It can be difficult to convert a manual workflow into an automated one. Identify the chores that are always completed in the same manner. Partially automating manual processes with highly structured components is an option.

Stage III: Maintenance

Step 7: Pay attention to monitoring.

Gather and examine information that is pertinent to key performance metrics. Create automatic reports to make performance analysis simple. The ways in which automation data can be shown are virtually endless. Create visually appealing, easily understandable representations of reporting that are related to each goal.

Step 8: Perform an audit.

Examine productivity bottlenecks and potential for improvement in automated operations. Plan on doing routine audits and upgrades because processes develop and laws change.

Use automation to your advantage

Now that you have a defined implementation strategy for ITPA, it's time to use automation to your advantage. Clear objectives and doable steps are necessary for an efficient IT process automation strategy:

• Set measurable objectives and define your organization's automation needs.
• A wide range of procedures and activities should be created.
• Implement improvements and monitor outcomes.
• Give your IT crew the tools they need to work more efficiently.
• Get back to development and high-impact projects.

IT teams perform better when processes are automated. Simple automation and user-friendly custom applications can significantly increase your IT talent's capability and be a component of your company's ITPA strategy.