Reporting Automation
If someone on your team spends hours every week copying data from one spreadsheet to another, building the same report over and over, or sending emails with information that could be generated automatically... that can be fixed.
The hidden cost of manual work
Every company has repetitive processes: the Monday sales report, the monthly close, the account statement distribution, the data upload to the ERP. Someone does them manually because "that's how it's always been done."
The problem is that nobody sits down to calculate how much that costs. And when you do the math, the numbers are usually surprising.
Real example:
An analyst earning $60,000/year spends 6 hours per week building manual reports.
- • 6 hours/week x 52 weeks = 312 hours per year
- • Hourly cost = ~$30
- • Annual cost = $9,360 (just for one process)
And that's not counting the errors from copying the wrong number, the vacation days when no one does the report, or the time that could be spent on something that actually adds value.
What can be automated?
Periodic reports
Reports that are always generated the same way: daily sales, monthly closing, weekly KPIs. They build and send themselves at the times you define.
Typical savings: 2-6 hours/week
Data consolidation
Combining data from multiple sources into one place: several branches, several systems, several Excel files that need to be merged every month.
Typical savings: 4-16 hours/month
ETL (Extract, Transform, Load)
Moving data from one system to another: from ERP to a data warehouse, from a file to a database, from a form to a CRM.
Typical savings: eliminates daily manual processes
Cleaning and validation
Fixing malformed IDs, standardizing names, detecting duplicates, validating data before loading it into a system.
Typical savings: reduces errors by 80-90%
Alerts and notifications
Sending alerts when something happens: low stock, big sale, negative margin, delinquent customer. They can go by email, WhatsApp, or wherever you need.
Typical savings: detect problems hours or days earlier
Document generation
Creating PDFs, quotes, account statements, or any repetitive document from data. They generate and send themselves.
Typical savings: 1-4 hours/day in billing processes
How I approach automation
Current process mapping
I sit down with whoever does the process today and we document it step by step. Where does the data come from? What transformations are done? Where do the results go? What exceptions exist?
Feasibility and ROI assessment
Not everything should be automated. We calculate how much time and money it saves versus how much it costs to develop. If the ROI isn't clear, I'll tell you.
Development and implementation
I build the automation using whatever tool makes the most sense: Python for complex things, Power Automate if you already have Microsoft 365, or specialized tools depending on the case.
Testing and adjustments
We run the automation in parallel with the manual process to validate that the results match. We adjust whatever needs fixing.
Documentation and training
I leave you with documentation of what the automation does, how it works, and what to do if something fails. I don't want you to depend on me forever.
Tools I use
Python
For complex automations, heavy data processing, API integrations, and anything requiring elaborate logic.
Power Automate
For companies with Microsoft 365. Good for automating simple flows, emails, approvals, and connecting Microsoft apps.
Custom scripts
Sometimes the best solution is a simple script that does exactly what you need, without complicated dependencies.
I don't sell tools. I use whatever makes the most sense for your situation, infrastructure, and budget. The goal is to solve the problem, not to implement technology for its own sake.
When automation doesn't make sense
Not everything should be automated. Sometimes the manual process makes sense, or automating costs more than it saves.
The process changes constantly
If it's different every time you do it, automation is difficult and expensive to maintain.
It's done very infrequently
If you only do it once a year, the annual savings are low and the investment may not be worth it.
The source data is a mess
If you first need to fix how data is captured, that comes before automation.
No one knows exactly what the process does
If it's in one person's head and has a thousand exceptions, you first need to document and standardize it.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to automate a process?
It depends on complexity. A simple automation (consolidate 3 Excel files and send an email) can cost $1,500-$3,000. A more complex one (connecting multiple systems, handling exceptions, with elaborate business logic) can reach $15-25K.
How long does it take?
Typically between 1 and 4 weeks. What usually takes the longest is mapping the process and getting access to the data. The actual development is fast.
What happens if the automation fails?
I design automations with error handling: they notify you if something goes wrong instead of failing silently. And there's always documentation on how to do the manual process if there's an emergency.
Will automation replace employees?
In my experience, rarely. What happens is that the person who used to do the manual process can now dedicate that time to more valuable things: analysis, customer service, new projects. Automation frees up time, it doesn't replace people.
Do you have processes that could be automated?
Tell me what manual processes you have and we'll see if it makes sense to automate them. No commitment.