If you work in an office, chances are there are one or more menial tasks that seem like they take up more time than they should. Wouldn’t you like to free up that time for more important endeavours?
The good news is that your work schedule can be utterly transformed through automation. Automating tasks on your computer or phone can be done in several ways, all customised to your exact needs. If you’d like to learn more, check out the list below for ways you can make automation a reality for your job.
1. Set Up an IVR System
Interactive Voice Response, or IVR system, is a common phone and call centre automation system. For example, this is the computer voice that says “To Speak With … Press 1” when you call a business to make an appointment. While an IVR system is a paid service, the money spent can be worth it in increased productivity. You may even see profits increase when you can focus your mind on what truly needs your attention.
An IVR system allows people to work remotely, as the customer can be automatically routed to the employee’s number wherever they are if they are available, eliminating the need for a fixed-place company phone. Setting up an IVR system can save you a lot of time if you frequently speak with customers.
The system can be very useful as it can filter out questions or choices that don’t require a person to operate the phone. This also frees up the line for more urgent problems, saving a lot of headaches in the long run. To ensure that the system is functioning properly and avoiding issues like misrouted calls or menu errors, the use of IVR Testing solutions is highly recommended.
2. Create Macros in Office
Microsoft Office products such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint are commonly used in offices. One feature of these programs is the ability to record macros, which are custom commands for making small tasks go faster. You can create them directly for each document you work on.
To do this, start by enabling macros in the settings, which are disabled by default. You can then record a series of tasks to any command you want, and you can create as many of these as you wish. This is guaranteed to save you a bit of time every time you execute the command, and even a few seconds add up fast.
Be careful, though. Don’t enable macros for documents you didn’t create since hackers can run their own scripts hidden inside macros that can harm your computer or steal information. Macros you create yourself don’t have this risk.
3. Write Computer Scripts with Powershell
Compared to the other things on this list, script-writing is more advanced, requires some technical knowledge, and will take at least a few hours of studying if you’re new to programming. However, the payoff of being able to run scripts on your machine is immense.
Windows Powershell can be used for:
- Automating administrative and web browser tasks
- Gathering and formatting data
- Compiling reports
- Handling notifications
- Managing updates
- Sorting file operations
These capabilities and more that can be automated would otherwise require hours of menial activity. You can write scripts in different programming languages depending on your skill level and what you want to do.
Scripting can seem intimidating if you aren’t used to writing code. However, there are plenty of resources online to help you learn, including free and paid courses, videos, workshops, articles, and tutors. Programming is part of a lucrative industry, and this knowledge will also look great on your resume.
Automation Is Worth the Time
The more time you put into automating your work, the less time you’ll spend on tasks in the future. This equates to less stress, an easier job, and more time on the same deadlines. Take advantage now!
