We're still open and ready to help, even in this pandemic. Get in touch to see how we can support your business.

Services | Office automation

Automating your office.

Get rid of mundane, repetitive work with software automation.

What is office automation?

Office automation means automating repetitive office-based tasks

Office automation (or software automation) usually involves automating mundane tasks that you perform repeatedly on a computer.

This is in contrast to business process management, which looks to automate many steps in a process.

Examples of simple tasks you perform repeatedly include:

  • Running reports

  • Copying information into systems

  • Tidying up information in Microsoft® Excel

  • Comparing (or reconciling) information

  • Sending update emails

  • Typing and sending letters

We can help you with all of these.

We'll help you to find the right solution to automate your business.

Office automation covers many different technologies

We use the term office automation to cover a few difference ways of automating your office.

  • Microsoft® Office macros

  • Microsoft® Windows scripts

  • Database scripts

  • Browser extensions

  • Cloud automation

  • Robotic process automation (RPA)

We can help you with all of these.

Don't worry if you find these terms confusing. We'll help you to find the right solution to automate your business.

When do you need office automation?

You need automation when you're repeating the same steps without thinking

If you find you're always doing the same steps, time after time, day after day without much thought, then you need to automate those tasks.

Do any of your team's tasks look like this?

  • "Copy from here, paste to there and repeat"

  • "Press Ctrl + A, Ctrl + V, Ctrl + P, and repeat"

  • "Open file, select column D, drag it there, and repeat"

Automating those mundane tasks leaves you and your team free to do more important, more meaningful, more valuable, and more fulfilling work.

You need automation when jobs need to be done quicker than a person can do them

Automation can do in seconds some jobs that it takes hours for your team to do.

You need office automation when humans make mistakes

Computers are great at doing the same job over and over again. They're not curious, they don't get bored or distracted.

You need automation when you value your team's time

Let office automation handle the mundane, repetitive tasks.

Use your team for the things they are good at: using intelligence, intuition, empathy, creativity… all things that automation may never be able to do.

Ready to get started?

Talk to us to find out how we could help your business.

Contact us  ➝

Types of office automation?

Macros in Microsoft® Office applications

Microsoft® Office applications—Word, Excel, Outlook and Access—come with a hidden superpower. They all include an in-built programming language called Visual Basic for Applications (VBA).

Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) can be used to automate many day-to-day tasks.

  • Extracting data

  • Formatting files

  • Sending emails

  • …and much more

We can help you with all of these.

We'll help you to find the right solution to automate your business.

Scripts to run in Microsoft® Windows

Scripts run like macros, but instead of being restricted to working inside Microsoft® Office applications, they can run in Microsoft® Windows.

  • Moving or deleting files

  • Renaming large numbers of files

  • Opening, reading and writing files

  • …and much more

Database scripts

Database scripts are used to manipulate data in a database. Database scripts are written in a language called Structured Query Language (SQL).

SQL scripts can be imbedded in Microsoft Excel files to quickly pull data from a data source and present it in a familiar way.

  • Exporting information into a spreadsheet

  • Sorting or summing large amounts of data

  • Pivoting and analysing data

  • …and much more

Browser extensions

A browser extension is a small add-in that customises how your web browser reads web pages.

They can be be used to add new features to existing web pages, or to extract data from the page you're viewing.

Don't worry if you find these terms confusing. We'll help you to find the right solution to automate your business.

Cloud automation

Cloud automation platforms link your cloud-based apps together. They can update one system when information changes in another system.

Cloud-based automation platforms are also easy to understand and set up. They don't require any coding knowledge, and are designed to be used by everyday business people.

Zapier
Zapier
Integromat
Integromat
PieSync
PieSync

Robotic process automation (RPA)

Robotic process automation (RPA) is a newer form of business process automation technology.

RPA is designed to be used by everyday business people, not developers.

You can configure software "robots" (or digital workers) by letting the system watch you perform an action on screen. It will remember every step, and can then repeat this as many times as you like, faster and more accurately than any human user.

RPA systems can interact with different software, visit webpages, copy information and even make some simple logic-based decisions.

How can we help you with your office automation?

Your business and situation is unique. But here are a few ways that our clients tell us they have benefited from our office automation services.

Your business benefits

Guidance

Your business will benefit from having a guide on hand to help you make the right decision, to point out any potential problems, and support you to really get the most out of your new system.

Fresh perspective

Your business will benefit from the fresh perspective that an independent business analyst will bring.

Being on the outside looking in, we can sometimes get a clearer view of what you need.

Independent advice

Your business will benefit from impartial, unbiased advice.

We're not trying to sell you any one system. We're on your side. If we think something is in your best interests, we'll tell you about it.

You benefit

You don't need to worry

You can relax, it's not all on you.

You can be confident that you're getting it right

You can be confident, knowing that your software is being selected the right way, supported by specialists, using a proven methodology.

You can ask us anything

You get to ask questions, run things past us and use us as a sounding board.

No question is a stupid question, and we're happy to share what we know.

You save time, by letting us do the hard work

Let us set up your automation for you.

Would you like to know more?

Talk to us to find out how we could help you.

Contact us  ➝

Were you looking for something else?

If you're looking for whole new systems for your business, then see our Software Selection service.