The Industrial Revolution began in 1760 with the transition from hand tools to machines, the introduction of steam power, and the rise of factories.
The next big leap was in 1913 when Henry Ford introduced the assembly line to manufacture cars, reducing the time to make one from over twelve hours to two and a half.
Since then, companies have sought to automate repetitive tasks to free up resources and manpower to utilize in other areas of business operations.
Information technology (IT) departments have been slow, however, to embrace automation. Despite this, IT process automation (ITPA) offers many benefits not just for IT departments but for businesses overall.
How ITPA Aids Businesses
IT process automation is the ability to orchestrate complex IT processes through automated workflows possibly across multiple systems. It usually targets routine procedures that sysadmins, engineers, and other operators need to perform manually to support the IT infrastructure.
IT process automation software enable IT support teams to build workflows programmatically without having to learn to code in any specific language.
This is done using a trigger-response system: When a predefined event takes place, an automated workflow is triggered in response which performs a specific task.
For instance, a workflow can scan a group of computers for a change of state or configuration and trigger a series of actions sequenced in a specific order to remediate a specific issue such as a user experiencing low disk space or a server misconfiguration.
In the big picture, ITPA seeks to integrate multiple – or even all – IT processes across an organization into a single, cohesive infrastructure.
1. Fewer Errors
The first benefit of using ITPA is fewer errors. That is, more specifically: fewer human errors. You no longer must worry about problems caused by an incorrect value being entered or a critical step in a process being skipped.
If you’ve been using an outside vendor for IT services, ITPA also eliminates the possibility of errors generated by third parties. In addition, thanks to the ability to trigger automations on a recurring schedule, updates and maintenance will always be performed on-time.
2. Faster Response Times
ITPA also allows for faster response times due to, once again, its trigger-response system.
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For example, if your network infrastructure suffers a critical failure or an outside intrusion such as a Dedicated Denial of Service (DDoS) attack, the response will be immediate as opposed to waiting on human intervention.
In fact, IT departments who automate their IT support notice that ITPA reduces resolution time by 50-90%. It usually translates directly into cost savings and increased end-user satisfaction.
3. Greater Ability Manage IT Complexity and Risks
Today’s endpoint landscape has grown in complexity. Some businesses have different operating systems, software versions and configuration on every computer, server or point-of-sale system across their IT infrastructure. Thus, performing systems management tasks manually can create exposure when errors such as a missing patch or a server misconfiguration stay undetected for too long.
As a matter of fact, they are responsible for 66% of data records breached. IT process automation solves that problem by detecting an issue and remediating it immediately upon discovery.
Workflows that aim at maintaining endpoint compliance increases a business ability to mitigate security risks.
4. Business Growth
ITPA advantages extend beyond IT solutions and into overall business growth. After all, increased efficiency in an organization frees up resources to be employed in other areas to achieve key performance indicators (KPIs).
This includes strategic reassignment of personnel who may now work on initiatives to increase business growth.
In manufacturing sectors, these streamlined processes can reduce unit production costs, leading to larger profit margins.
In the service sector, higher quality customer service may be achieved, also creating increased revenue.
Choosing an ITPA Provider
IT orchestration is often thought of as a tool exclusively for large corporations. However, there are vendors who have developed scalable IT process automation software to streamline the remote IT support of any business regardless of its size.
At a granular level, the key to a successful implementation depends on having a platform that can manage users, systems, devices, and Active Directory in real-time and is easy to deploy.
When properly implemented IT process automation provides substantial ROI, often delivered in the form of reduced IT spend, increased security and end-user satisfaction.
