AUTOMATION AND YOUR BUSINESS :
More than just robots
It ’ s no secret that over the past couple of years business owners have been faced with unprecedented and always evolving challenges . Included in those is one that always seems to float to the top of the conversation when discussing with our clients the big issues that they face : Labor . Before the COVID-19 pandemic , the economy was healthy and unemployment was low . Now , as we all begin to try and imagine a new “ normal ” after the pandemic , many workers are unemployed , planning on quitting their current position , or seeking out a career change .
As a result , one of the major questions that has come up repeatedly in discussions with our clients is whether they can really expect to grow their business at the rate they are accustomed to , or would normally be able to , given the current labor shortage ? In many cases the sobering answer is no , due to capacity issues with existing processes and labor needs . Quite frankly , the numbers just don ’ t work . If you ’ re concerned about how labor shortages could affect your business , it may be time to consider automation strategies .
What Is Automation ?
As technology has improved and become more cost effective , automation has become a viable option and useful investment for many business owners . For businesses in the manufacturing industry , automation might mean investing in machinery that can assemble items . On a smaller scale , even using computer software that schedules and sends emails for you can save you time and money . Regardless of your business ’ s personal automation needs , automations come in a variety of forms that all have the same end goal : making your life easier so you can get back to what you do best – running your business .
More than just convenience , automation can help mitigate labor shortage issues , creating ways to complete tasks that previously were completed by employees that require wages , a dedicated effort to hiring and more .
How Automation Can Serve Your Business
Here at Rea , we ’ re devoting time and resources to learning about automation , to better serve us internally , and to help us use our reallife applications of automation to help guide our clients and their businesses . Through this learning , discussions , and research we want to share a few things below that we ’ ve picked up along the way and might be helpful to think about .
• Consider your end-goals . From a business standpoint think about questions such as :
» What is the future sales volume that I want ?
» What capacity do I need to support future sales ?
» How do these compare to where I am currently at ?
Make sure decisions that are made ultimately support the end goal – and be sure to consider how this investment in automation can help you obtain return on investment .
Capital expenditures will likely be a part of this . Think ahead when making these to consider the future state of your processes and whether the purchase , and placement , of a machine or piece of equipment today will still be relevant in the future as your processes evolve . How easily will that piece of equipment integrate with and talk to other equipment or how easily could it be moved in order to fit correctly into the future state of a process ?
• Consider your data . Automated machines and processes require data to operate . Whether that data is related to sales , order entry , production , financial , or some other part of your business it needs to be accessible , have integrity , and be supported by adequate infrastructure to accomplish what you want . If not , you will likely need to address this up front in order to support whatever goals you are trying to accomplish in this area .