Free check · about 2 minutes

Is this workflow worth automating?

Pick one recurring spreadsheet or reconciliation task. Tell us how often it runs, how long it takes and how rule-based it is. You get an estimated payback period and an honest answer: worth a conversation, maybe, or keep it as it is.

No email. No files. Your answers never leave this page.

Runs entirely in your browser Nothing is transmitted Your numbers, your assumptions
0 of 8 answeredNothing is transmitted

The workflow

Which workflow are you checking? (optional)

Only used to label your result. For example: bank reconciliation, month-end accruals, AR aging pack.

1. How often does it run?

Please answer this one.

2. How many hours does one run take?

Add up everyone who touches it, including whoever reviews it. A rough number is fine.

hours per run

Enter the hours for one run.

3. Loaded hourly cost of the people doing it

Salary plus benefits, per hour. 60 is a starting point. Replace it with your own number, in your own currency.

per hour

Enter an hourly cost.

How rule-based it is

4. How much of the work follows rules you could write down?

For example: match on reference and amount, flag anything over a threshold, roll these accounts into that line.

Please answer this one.

5. Do the inputs arrive the same way each time?

Please answer this one.

6. How many items need someone's judgment each run?

Please answer this one.

7. Where do the inputs come from?

Please answer this one.

Risk

8. Which of these apply?

Select all that apply, or none. These do not change the dollar estimate. They change how urgent it is.

Please answer this one.

Your answers stay in this browser unless you choose to copy the result.

 
 
 
 

Recommended next step

Your numbers

In its favour

    Holding it back

      How this is calculated

      Annual cost = runs per year × hours per run × hourly cost. Recoverable estimate = annual cost × the rule-based share × 75%, because review and exceptions stay with your team. Payback = a typical implementation price of 3,000 to 6,000 divided by the monthly recoverable estimate. Automatability is scored out of 10 from questions 4 to 7. Thresholds: worth a conversation at 12 months or less and 7 or more out of 10, or 18 months or less when two or more risk factors apply. Keep it as it is beyond 24 months, or under 5 out of 10.

      Discuss this workflow

      This is an estimate built from your own inputs. It does not inspect your files or confirm accounting accuracy, and it is not a quote, a guaranteed saving or accounting, tax or legal advice. The final scope and price of any engagement are agreed in writing.

      Related guides

      Seven close checksMake a workflow safer even when automation is not worth it. Automate a monthly reconciliationWhat a build looks like with Power Query. Document an Excel workflowReduce key-person risk first. PricingPilot and implementation ranges.

      Got a "worth a conversation"?

      The next step is 20 minutes about how the workflow runs today. Bring the result, nothing else. If the numbers do not work once we look closer, we will say so.

      Discuss your workflow See the Excel demo