To determine if a task is automatable, ask three questions: 1) Does it move data between apps? 2) Does it involve complex decisions? 3) Are inputs/outputs consistent? If the answers are yes, no, and yes, it's a prime candidate.

Assembled initially replaced a manual spreadsheet process. Their success came from understanding the spreadsheet was a symptom of deeper pains like headcount planning, real-time dashboards, and agent utilization. The real value was in solving these complex operational problems, not just digitizing a spreadsheet.

The one-size-fits-all SaaS model is becoming obsolete in the enterprise. The future lies in creating "hyper-personalized systems of agility" that are custom-configured for each client. This involves unifying a company's fragmented data and building bespoke intelligence and workflows on top of their legacy systems.

Automating a sales lead follow-up process scales directly with business growth—more leads mean more value from the automation. In contrast, a personal assistant agent offers static productivity gains. To maximize long-term ROI, focus automation efforts on systems that grow in usage and impact as the business expands.

Instead of large, multi-year software rollouts, organizations should break down business objectives (e.g., shifting revenue to digital) into functional needs. This enables a modular, agile approach where technology solves specific problems for individual teams, delivering benefits in weeks, not years.

To drive adoption of automation tools, you must remove the user's trade-off calculation. The core insight is to make the process of automating a task forever fundamentally faster and easier than performing that same task manually just once. This eliminates friction and makes automation the default choice.

Nimble small and medium-sized businesses will increasingly use AI to build custom internal tools, especially for CRM. They will opt to create the 20% of features they actually need, rather than pay for complex, expensive enterprise software where they ignore 80% of the functionality.

To identify prime automation opportunities, analyze your company's existing SOPs. These documents explicitly list the sequential steps, data sources, and transformations in a predictable process. If a process is documented for frequent human use, it's a strong candidate for a high-value automation workflow.

Users exporting data to build their own spreadsheets isn't a product failure, but a signal they crave control. Products should provide building blocks for users to create bespoke solutions, flipping the traditional model of dictating every feature.