Identifying Automation Opportunities—Where to Start

Pinpoint High‑Impact Processes for Quick Wins 

After understanding why automation matters, the next step is figuring out exactly where to apply it. In this video, we share a proven checklist to help CFOs and COOs identify the processes that will deliver the quickest wins in cost savings, risk reduction, and team productivity. 

Introduction 

Not every task is an automation home run. The real art lies in targeting the processes that are repetitive, error‑prone, or create bottlenecks—those “time drains” that tie up your best talent. By focusing on the right areas first, you’ll build momentum, demonstrate value quickly, and secure executive buy‑in for a broader automation rollout. 

The Automation Opportunity Checklist 

Use this checklist as your starting point. Any process that ticks one or more of these boxes is a strong candidate for automation: 

Repetitive, High‑Volume Tasks 

  • Examples: Invoice data entry, copying data between systems, generating routine reports. 
  • Why it matters: Automating high‑frequency tasks can free up hundreds of hours per month for strategic analysis. 

Error-Prone Processes

  • Examples: Manual journal entries, tax code lookups, multi‑system reconciliations. 
  • Why it matters: Each manual touchpoint introduces risk—automation enforces consistency and auditability. 

Bottlenecks Slowing Down Operations

  • Examples: Approval handoffs, invoice routing delays, multi‑step compliance checks. 
  • Why it matters: Automated workflows eliminate handoff gaps, accelerating cycle times and improving stakeholder satisfaction. 

Sensitive or High-Risk Activities

  • Examples: Financial reconciliations, audit preparation, regulatory filings. 
  • Why it matters: Built‑in audit trails and role‑based controls reduce compliance risk and strengthen governance

Why These Processes?

Targeting the right processes first ensures you’ll see rapid benefits:

Cost Savings

Automating high-volume tasks often delivers the largest hard dollar reductions in effort and error remediation. By eliminating repetitive manual steps, you also reduce overtime and temp-staffing expenses. Over time, those savings compound as automated workflows handle increasing transaction volumes without added headcount.

Improved Accuracy


Reducing manual data handling lowers the likelihood of regulatory findings or restatements. Consistent, rule-based automation enforces validation checks at every step, catching discrepancies before they escalate. This reliability not only mitigates financial risk but also strengthens your organization’s reputation with auditors and regulators.

Faster Turnarounds

When approvals and handoffs happen automatically, key deliverables close more quickly—freeing up working capital and boosting stakeholder confidence. Accelerated cycle times mean invoices get paid sooner, projects launch on schedule, and customer commitments are met without delay. This agility helps you respond swiftly to market opportunities and tight deadlines.

Enhanced Morale

Your teams can shift from drudgery to higher-value work, increasing job satisfaction and retention. By removing mundane tasks, staff are empowered to focus on analysis, innovation, and strategic projects that drive the business forward. As employees experience greater autonomy and impact, they become advocates for further automation and continuous improvement initiatives.

Proactive Logic’s Assessment Framework

At Proactive Logic Consulting, we’ve honed a step-by-step methodology to map and prioritize your automation targets:

Process Mapping Workshop

We bring together finance, operations, and IT stakeholders to document “as-is” workflows and pinpoint friction points. By visually mapping every step and decision gate, we uncover hidden inefficiencies—such as redundant handoffs or manual data transfers—that may not surface in traditional interviews. This collaborative session also aligns teams around a shared understanding of process goals and pain points.

Value & Effort Scoring

Each process is scored on expected ROI, risk reduction, and technical complexity—so you can focus on the quickest, highest-value wins. Our scoring model quantifies hard savings (time, labor, error costs) alongside soft benefits (employee satisfaction, compliance confidence). This balanced approach ensures you invest in automations that not only deliver rapid returns but also support long-term strategic priorities.

Pilot Design & Execution

We help you launch a small-scale proof of concept, measure real-world gains, and refine before broader rollout. By using rapid prototyping and agile iterations, we validate assumptions and capture performance data in days or weeks—not months. The pilot phase also serves as a hands-on training ground, building internal expertise and stakeholder confidence ahead of full deployment.

Roadmap Development

Finally, we produce a clear automation roadmap—with prioritized sprints, resource estimates, and success metrics—to guide your organization’s journey. This living document outlines not only what to automate when, but also how to scale across functions and maintain governance. With transparent timelines and milestones, leadership can track progress and adjust strategies as business needs evolve.

This framework ensures you never waste time on low-impact tasks and keeps your automation program aligned with strategic objectives.

What’s Next: Calculating ROI 

In our upcoming video in this series, we’ll tackle the question every CFO and COO needs answered: How do you calculate the ROI of automation? We’ll walk you through a simple, yet rigorous approach to quantify both financial and strategic benefits—so you can justify your investments and scale with confidence. 

Watch the next video here.

Let’s Make it Happen – Get in Touch 

Identifying the right processes is the crucial second step on your automation journey. By applying our checklist and assessment framework, you’ll secure early wins that build momentum and demonstrate value. 

Ready to uncover your top automation opportunities? 

Schedule a consultation with Proactive Logic Consulting today—and take the guesswork out of where to start.

Schedule a Discovery Call

You may also give us a call at (800) 918-7305 or send an email to success@proactivelogic.com.