Where automation earns its place.
WHAT MAKES A PROCESS SUITABLE
High volume Consistent structure Checkable output Tolerable error rate Clear definition of correct
WHAT MAKES IT UNSUITABLE
Low volume, where building costs more than doing Consequential decisions Situations requiring judgement about context Anything where an error is invisible
THE PRINCIPLE THAT KEEPS YOU SAFE
Automate the preparation, not the decision.
AI drafts, extracts, categorises and summarises. A person approves.
WHAT TO AUTOMATE FIRST
Data extraction from documents Categorising incoming messages Drafting routine responses Summarising
WHAT NOT TO AUTOMATE
Sending customer communication without review Financial transactions Anything affecting a person's standing
BUILDING IN REVIEW
At minimum, sampling. Check a proportion regularly.
Automation nobody checks accumulates errors silently.
THE QUESTION BEFORE BUILDING
How would I know if this went wrong?
If the answer is that you would not, do not build it.
