Automated workflows are not necessarily a good thing. If the work inside the flow doesn’t make any sense then what is the point of automating it. It is better to eliminate unnecessary work first. The only accomplishment is the acceleration of work of dubious value.
Of course, every organization has its share of work of dubious value. The hardcore definition of value from the old lean manufacturing accolytes was that value was in the eyes of the customer. If the customer isn’t willing to pay for it, it isn’t creating value.
However, there are plenty of things that customers put up with that they don’t value. In a roundabout way some activities create a benefit for the customer, but that just is not the purpose.
A lot of energy goes into tracking and accounting for transactions, but the funny thing about tracking this kind of information is that it begets more tracking.
This often leads to the tracking/automation trap. More tracking requires more people and more automation. This creates even more defect opportunities.
Data is wrong…basic end user error. A setting is misunderstood and a whole bunch of downstream activities are cycled that you didn’t intend.
Automated workflows move things along faster, but it doesn’t ensure quality work.
