How to automate your business. Andrew's great talk delivers a historical look at automation and you can place into your business he hope that you:
You love automation and want to marry it…
You can see the application of automation and will implement it straight away…
You are intrigued and want to know more
2. • Background to automation
• Definitions
• Expectations of automation and possible pitfalls
• RULES! And Input
• The fun stuff. Actually doing it
• Testing
AGENDA
3. MY EXPECTATIONS
• Is that you love automation and want to marry it…
• Is that you can see the application of automation and will implement it straight
away…
• You are intrigued and want to know more
• You like it but its too much work and you are not sure
• You are a human with ears in the room…
15. Drainage engines ~ 1058 Water mills 11th to 14th C.
Printing press in 1439
Loom 1404
Automated knitting machine 1589 Richard Arkwright first
automated spinning mill 1771
21. So what does this mean?
• It means that we have come to an exponential increase in technological
advances
• Clearer boundaries need to be made
• Social impact we need to be aware of
• Creation of wealth vs opportunity
• The belief in systems for good or to contribute in a meaningful way
22. To help give some clarity we need to create
definitions
• What is automation?
• Automation is the technology by which a process or procedure is
performed without human assistance.
• What is AI?
• AI stands for artificial intelligence Also known as, machine intelligence,
and is intelligence demonstrated by machines.
23. To help give some clarity we need to create
definitions
• How is automation achieved?
• If a process or system can be improved by replacing a human task with
a machine.
• Are machines taking over our jobs?
Quick answer…
24.
25.
26.
27.
28. So the clear objective and definitions for you
are:
Automate processes and
tasks not people
If done right jobs that
unfortunately become
obsolete through
automation, those people
should be re-trained
To provide higher skilled
services that rely on
subjectivity, creativity and
human interaction.
29. Expectation and pitfalls
• Have a clear objective that is
of benefit to you or your
customer
• Don’t expect things to
magically appear (The tool
ratio)
• There is no omnitool. You will
need more than one thing.
30. Expectation and pitfalls
• It takes time and preparation
• Automation is part of a system don’t create in isolation
• Interconnectivity is the key
• SET UP SOME FRICKING RULES!
32. Rules and input
• Create a copy platform. (A system of files or word docs to make creating content easier)
• What are the rules of engagement?
• What do you want users to do when they read/interact with your content?
• If they sign up to your webinar what do you want to do with them after?
• A content drip campaign?
• An email sequence, follow them on social media?
33. Rules and input
• If you are capturing leads what constitutes a lead?
• Are you scoring on interaction?
• What follow up process do you take?
• At what point do you pick up the phone or hand it over to sales?
I want you to take on board an almost contradiction that can hang over the talk, like a bad smell and I want you to cognitively reason the fact that these principles can co-exist.
By 1568, a large printing press factory could print around 3600 pages per day, The automated knitting machine’s patent was denied by queen Elizabeth because she said, “It would deprive women of ability to make a living.” A point I will come back to later on.
Between 1892 and 1910 you had over 1,000 inventions that were either realised or conceived to automate an aspect of industry or home economy. And in 1939 at the worlds fair where the brilliant minds met to show their idea. Norman Bel Geddes showcased his radio-controlled electric cars that were propelled via electromagnetic fields generated from circuits embedded in the roadway.
It has been long understood that once those pesky wars were out the of the way the military, particularly in the states, set up innovation centres and relationships with universities and research centres, where any advance would first go the military to prepare for war for fight one. Then we as civilians would get the by product for convenience. So in the span between 1945 and 1990, the military can claim advances in communications, networks, radar, sonar, jetpacks, electronics, robotics, space travel, rocket powered everything, even ai…
Yes and GPS.
AI machines can perform or manage automated machines or tasks to re-define that machine’s value, purpose or directive. Think of a guidance system controlling the flaps of a plane. More to the point an effective AI will improve or replace the repetitive or disjointed task of a human and be the what’s called an ‘actor’ in the process or system.
If you take away one thing from this talk its this sentiment. Please take note though that the words are ‘human task’ not humans. Which leads on to the next question
Automated machines and robots have taken jobs and in agriculture, manufacturing, engineering, finance and replaced menial tasks in every industry now every one has a laptop, phone or desktop
But if you consider the ATM as a good example for why I don’t think our jobs are going to be replaced. When they first came about, the media and public feared it would replace the teller or cashier. However between 1969 when the first one was installed and 1980 there was in fact a worldwide increase in the number of cashiers and tellers placed in banks.
Cashiers tasks and time were no longer taken up by transactions and their focus was to prioritise the softer skills needed to fulfil banking duties. Financial advice, sales and customer services for products, which meant they could get in more customers, More customers meant more banks and more banks meant more cashiers.
Tool ratio: Too many people especially in business, idolise the use of a tool or machine to carry out a task. The assumption, especially those who are not providing input into the tool, because they don’t see the planning and objectives that it can be done with a flick of a switch. So the further away they are from operation the less time they will expect something to be done.
2. What you automate shouldn’t sit in isolation. It needs to make sense and adhere to what you are trying to achieve as a business. How you are trying to solve problems for yourself or your customer. Don’t fall into the tool ratio trap. There are always ways to connect a team member, a tool and provide real value to what you are trying to do.
Imagine you are carrying out a content marketing plan. And let’s say you create a webinar, a white paper, 3 articles and a video series. And your ambient content on social is around the same theme.
Its up to you now to create rules that follow a logical pattern to first benefit the customer or the business, then automate the processes which can improve human tasks.
What you want to end up with something like this. You will need to clearly define what you want from the activity and then create a plan for your automation to follow.
What you want to end up with something like this. You will need to clearly define what you want from the activity and then create a plan for your automation to follow.
Then once you have your map, codify some rules around the decisions made that will take your users down one path or another.
The main business areas I cover are: Sales, Marketing, HR, Finance and production, Having created your rules you should be in a zone to see where you can apply automation to speed up process and improve human tasks. And from a business perspective its more about joining forces with all departments. And if you think there is one thing that can unite deparments its automating tasks that can provide interconnectivity and a commune with which which to discuss ideas and solve problems.
Marketing should be talking to HR
HR should be talking to finance
They should all be talking to production staff
And everyone should be talking to finance
There are so many tools out there. And there are subjective preferences that will lead you to pick one tool over another. My personal preference and stack looks like this:. And going back to our pitfalls is not one tool that will do it all.
https://blog.bufferapp.com/big-list-zapier-hacks-marketers - great article that goes into 46 use cases. But I would like to throw this out to the floor and ask anyone if they throw out any use cases. Any questions on how the tool can be used.
So the reason why I like zapier is that it has the most of connective applications. It allows you to freely imagine rules and codify the actions you would like to take place. It allows you to not only connect one tool to another but provide real value to customers in a timely manner. There is a start up in California that have automated their entire product launch procedure, by recording all their meetings via an audio app. They then create an automation in zapier to transcribe all text. They then pick out keywords to create as tasks they bring those into a task scheduler and product launch tool. Mental. But what it does show is the capability of what you can do.
Get into the mindset of planning to fail but striving to succeed. If it does not work straight away don’t give up. Keep testing and trying it out to find what suits you and what you can imagine. There are no real bounds on what you can automate.
A friend of mine Miles brandridge who is part of the AI committee at AXON, said. Take the fact if you showed homer our technology today. Would he be too surprised that we are using his same ideas today?