Process ranking
The question of what to automate comes up in almost every digitalisation conversation. The list is always similar in European companies – 10 recurring processes where automation pays back faster than elsewhere. This article describes them. Each process with a concrete example, typical saving, tool (usually Power Automate or monday.com) and deployment time. A listicle for people who want a decision now, not after a week of research.
The list below is not a top-1 to top-10 ranking. It is a group of 10 processes, each of which in the right context can be your first automation candidate. Pick the one that hurts most in your company. All 10 typically pay back in 3–9 months.
For each process I give: a short description (what we automate), typical business impact (hours saved, errors cut), tool (usually one you already have), deployment time (typically 1–6 weeks). No theory, no methodology – just specifics.
A fuller picture of how to actually start automation in a company is in our article on business automation – where to start.
What we automate: a vendor invoice arrives by email or post. Classically: someone opens the attachment, reads, retypes into the accounting system, categorises, possibly sends for approval. Time: 5–10 minutes per invoice. For a company with 500 invoices per month that is 40–80 hours of work.
After automation: the invoice opens in Microsoft 365 (or another system), OCR + AI extracts data (vendor, number, amount, VAT), matches it to the purchase order in the ERP, possibly routes for approval in Teams. A human approves and handles exceptions (15%). Time: 1 minute per invoice.
Impact: 1 less accounting FTE for a company with 500+ invoices/mo. Payback: 6–9 months. Tools: Microsoft 365 + Power Automate + Azure AI Document Intelligence or dedicated platforms. Deployment time: 4–8 weeks. More in our article on invoice automation 2026 – end-to-end.
What we automate: an employee wants to take leave. Classically: they email the manager, the manager replies, someone in HR updates a spreadsheet, payroll calculates compensation. Cycle: 2–5 days with 4 people involved.
After automation: the employee fills a Power Apps form (or monday.com Form). The request automatically goes to the manager in Teams. After approval it lands in the company calendar, the HR system updates leave balance, payroll gets the info. Cycle: 24 hours, zero paper.
Impact: for a 100-person company – about 2h/week of HR time saved, plus zero forgotten leaves. Payback: 4–8 months. Tools: Power Apps + Power Automate (most often), monday.com Forms, dedicated HRIS. Deployment time: 2–4 weeks. More in our article on employee request automation.
What we automate: the sales rep gets an enquiry, opens the CRM, copies data into a Word template, adds terms, sends to the client. Time: 60–90 minutes per quote. For 25 quotes per month that is 25–37 hours.
After automation: the rep selects the client in the CRM, clicks generate quote, the system combines client data + price list + template and creates a first version. The rep polishes and sends. Time: 15 minutes.
Impact: rep produces 3x more quotes per day. Real revenue lift of 12–18% in the first half-year. Payback: 4–6 months. Tools: Microsoft Copilot for Sales, Power Automate + Word + CRM, monday.com Sales CRM, HubSpot Sales Hub. Deployment time: 4–8 weeks.
The worst choice for a first automation process is one that is not on this list. Not because others would not pay back. Because the risk of failure is lowest on this list.
What we automate: after the first client call the rep should send a follow-up at 3, 7 and 14 days. In practice they send the first, the second rarely, the third never. 30–40% of leads drop in this gap.
After automation: in the CRM the rep marks the call outcome (interested / undecided / not now). The system automatically sets a follow-up sequence with personalisation from client history. The rep gets a reminder only on a specific action.
Impact: lead conversion +30–50%, no lost opportunities. Payback: 4–6 months. Tools: HubSpot Sales Sequences, monday.com automations, Outreach, Salesloft. Deployment time: 3–6 weeks.
What we automate: each manager spends 2–4 hours per week gluing together a leadership report from CRM, ERP, HR data. For a company with 10 managers that is 20–40 hours per week, 1000–2000 hours per year.
After automation: reports generated automatically from Power BI, distributed by email or in Teams every Monday morning. Leadership sees the same number as the manager. The manager gets 2–4 hours of their week back for real work.
Impact: 1000–2000h per year recovered. Payback: 3–6 months. Tools: Power BI with Subscriptions, Power Automate scheduled flows. Deployment time: 4–8 weeks. More in our article on report and notification automation.
What we automate: a new hire is typically 30+ tasks: AD account, email, access to 5–10 tools, equipment order, health and safety, contract signing, welcome calendar, Teams channels, HR documents. Classically takes 5 working days.
After automation: HR fills one form with the new hire's data. Power Automate triggers 30 tasks in parallel. The employee has everything ready on day one. The manager gets a checklist of their part.
Impact: 5 days → 5 hours. Employee productive from day one. Payback: 3–6 months. Tools: Power Apps + Power Automate, monday.com WorkForms. Deployment time: 4–6 weeks. More in our article on new employee onboarding automation.
What we automate: a document needs approval from 1–4 people. Classically: it circulates by email, someone forgets, someone is on leave, the cycle: 3–7 days for a quote, 2–4 weeks for a contract.
After automation: the document lands in SharePoint, Power Automate triggers an approval workflow in Teams (Adaptive Cards with accept / reject / escalate options). After approval the document moves on automatically. Cycle: 4–24 hours.
Impact: sales cycle shortened by 25–35%, more deals closed. Payback: 5–8 months. Tools: SharePoint + Power Automate + Teams. Deployment time: 6–10 weeks. More in our article on quote and contract approval workflow.
What we automate: someone has to check every morning whether client X wrote, whether invoice Y was paid, whether the warehouse is below the threshold for product Z. Small repeatable checks that together take 30–60 minutes a day per person.
After automation: Power Automate or monday.com automations watch for us and send a Teams notification only when something really needs attention. Client X wrote – notification in 30 seconds. Invoice overdue 7 days – alert to accounting. Warehouse below threshold – email to procurement.
Impact: 30–60 min/day saved per person. Fewer forgotten items. Payback: 3–4 months. Tools: Power Automate, monday.com automations, Slack workflows. Deployment time: 2–4 weeks.
What we automate: client data from a website form → CRM. Store sales → accounting. Time tracking → payroll. Classically: someone retypes, sometimes with a day's delay, with errors.
After automation: integration through Power Automate, Zapier or dedicated connectors. Data flows on its own in real time or every few hours.
Impact: 5–15h/week saved, drastic error reduction (from 5–10% to <1%). Payback: 4–8 months. Tools: Power Automate (M365), Zapier, Make, n8n. Deployment time: 3–8 weeks depending on integrations.
What we automate: we forget about everything. Client did not pay an invoice – someone has to remember and remind. Contract expires in 60 days – someone has to remember and start renegotiation. Employee should have a review in 2 weeks – someone has to remember and schedule.
After automation: date + rule = automatic reminder. Invoice 7 days overdue – email to client and alert to accounting. Contract expires in 60 days – signal to sales. Review in 2 weeks – manager calendar.
Impact: zero forgotten items. Often a less visible saving, but every forgotten item used to cost 1–5% of a business opportunity. Over a year that is tens of thousands EUR. Payback: 2–4 months. Tools: Power Automate, monday.com automations, any tool with a date trigger. Deployment time: 1–2 weeks.
| Process | Impact | Payback | Deployment time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Cost invoices | 1 less accounting FTE | 6–9 mo. | 4–8 wks |
| 2. Leave requests | 2h/week of HR less | 4–8 mo. | 2–4 wks |
| 3. Quote generation | 3x more quotes, +12–18% revenue | 4–6 mo. | 4–8 wks |
| 4. Sales follow-ups | Conversion +30–50% | 4–6 mo. | 3–6 wks |
| 5. Weekly reports | 1000–2000h/year recovered | 3–6 mo. | 4–8 wks |
| 6. Employee onboarding | 5 days → 5h | 3–6 mo. | 4–6 wks |
| 7. Approval workflow | -25–35% sales cycle | 5–8 mo. | 6–10 wks |
| 8. Notifications/alerts | 30–60 min/day/person | 3–4 mo. | 2–4 wks |
| 9. Data integrations | 5–15h/week, errors <1% | 4–8 mo. | 3–8 wks |
| 10. Reminders | Zero forgotten items | 2–4 mo. | 1–2 wks |
Which of the 10 processes do you recommend to start with? For a business company (sales, marketing, operations) – #3 (quote generation) or #8 (notifications). For a company with high cost invoice volume – #1. For a company with 50+ people – #2 (requests) and #6 (onboarding). Choice depends on the pain, not the ranking.
How much does automating one of these processes cost? Typically EUR 3.5–14k of consultant work + tool licences (Power Automate in M365 is free, Zapier from a few EUR/mo, monday.com from tens of EUR/mo). Simplest (reminders) – EUR 2.3–4.5k. Most complex (invoices with OCR) – EUR 9–18k.
Can all of this be done in-house without a consultant? Yes, at smaller scale. If someone in the company has 40–60 hours to spend over a quarter, 2–3 of these automations can be built in-house. A consultant helps with complex workflows and conscious scaling across the organisation.
What if we have more than 10 processes to automate? Excellent situation. These 10 are typically the first 12–18 months. After that, others (licence audit, marketing automation, customer success, larger integrations) come in naturally. A fuller picture in our article on business automation – where to start.
Does AI change this list? Yes, in two areas. First: invoice OCR is far better today than 5 years ago thanks to AI. Second: quote and follow-up generation became easier with Microsoft Copilot. But the list of 10 processes has not changed – only each of them gets faster and cheaper.
The 10 processes on this list cover 80% of first automation projects in European companies. That does not mean your company has to start with exactly one of them. But if you do – the risk of failure is minimal. Hundreds of companies have proven these processes automate successfully.
Pick one. Best the one that hurts most. Build a 2-week pilot. After two weeks you have an answer whether it works. If yes – scale. If not – go back to the list and pick another.
A fuller picture of tool choice in our article on business automation – where to start. A fuller picture for a small business in our article on automation in a small business.
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About the author
Kacper Włodarczyk
Założyciel ALGORCOMP
Założyciel ALGORCOMP. Specjalizuje się we wdrożeniach Microsoft 365 Copilot, Copilot Studio, Power Platform (Power Automate, Power Apps, SharePoint) oraz agentów AI dla średnich firm B2B w Polsce. Prowadzi dziesiątki projektów z zakresu strategii AI, governance Power Platform, automatyzacji obiegu dokumentów i procesów sprzedażowych. W publikacjach koncentruje się na praktycznych aspektach wdrożeń AI w organizacjach — od pierwszego POC do skalowania na całą firmę, ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem bezpieczeństwa danych, zgodności (RODO, NIS2, AI Act) i zwrotu z inwestycji.
Meet the team30 minutes of free conversation. We help identify which of the 10 processes fits your company best as the first step and propose a concrete 2-week pilot. No slides, no generalities.
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