Thoughts.
Working notes on measuring manual processes, testing automation before it is trusted, and how this kind of work should be priced. Written for the people who have to decide, not for other engineers.
12 articles.
Build or buy: when off-the-shelf software is the right answer
Written by someone who builds software, about the cases where you should not commission one.
Read it → ArticleCan warranty claim assessment be automated?
Which parts automate safely, which must not, and the architectural line that separates them.
Read it → ArticleHow do you handle rising claims volume without hiring another handler?
The ceiling is real and it is arithmetic. What you can do about it depends on where the thirty minutes goes.
Read it → ArticleHow do you connect two systems that were never designed to talk to each other?
Four routes, in order of preference, and the one most suppliers reach for first that they should reach for last.
Read it → ArticleWhat does it cost to handle a warranty claim by hand?
Measured from a real UK warranty operation, including the finding that surprised everyone involved.
Read it → ArticleWhat does it cost to process one invoice by hand?
The arithmetic for your own business, and why the industry benchmarks are not much help.
Read it → ArticleEncoding policy terms as rules: what happens when the wording is ambiguous
Turning a 69-clause policy into rules surfaces the clauses your handlers have quietly been reading two different ways.
Read it → ArticlePer-item pricing versus day rates for automation
Three ways to buy an automation build, what each one rewards, and the conditions per-item pricing needs to work at all.
Read it → ArticleShadow mode: testing automation without touching live work
How an automated system is proved against the people currently doing the work, before it is allowed to do any of it.
Read it → ArticleWhat one manual process actually costs to run
The method for putting a number on a repetitive job, and the four things that make most estimates too low.
Read it → ArticleHow much should business process automation cost?
How to tell whether a quote has anything real behind it, and the question that exposes one that does not.
Read it → ArticleWhat your claims inbox tells you that your team cannot
The most useful thing we found on a warranty engagement had nothing to do with automation.
Read it → ArticleWho owns the system after it is built?
The questions to settle before a build starts, not after a relationship ends.
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