One process at a time
Automations
We do business process automation: we connect the tools your team already uses through an automation platform (n8n, Make or Zapier) and remove the manual copying of data between them. One process: a week of measuring the hours, two to four weeks of building, and an acceptance test with real cases that you sign. We hand it over with a runbook, a screen recording and one hour of training for the colleague who will run it.
Book a call about one processor write to contact@ergostrat.com
What does automation with us mean?
Workflow automation, as we do it, is one process that today passes by hand between two or more tools, connected so that it passes on its own. An enquiry from the website that would wait in the mailbox until tomorrow reaches the right person in a minute.
A report that used to take Friday afternoon is ready on Friday morning. We build automations with n8n, Make or Zapier, depending on what you already use, and use AI automation (an AI agent) only where it does work a rule cannot.
We do not start with a platform. We start with the process that takes the most hours a week, and if the automation does not save the team time, we stop there and say so.
Who is this for?
- The same data is typed by hand into two or three places, and the copies drift apart. This is for one process; three or more linked processes call for an Expert Review.
- Enquiries from the website wait for hours because nobody watches the mailbox all day.
- Reports are assembled by hand from several spreadsheets every week.
- Your programs have no connection between them, and a person copies the data from one to the other by hand.
- You want to see the before-and-after figures first, and decide afterwards whether to continue.
What does every automation include?
The scope is one process, written down before we start: where it comes in, what it passes through, where it ends, and how many hours a week it costs today.
- Measurement before: a log of the hours the process takes now, so there is a number to compare against.
- A build in the tool you already use, or in n8n if you have none. With a cloud tool such as Zapier or Make, the data passes through its servers; n8n can also run on your own server, and then the automation itself runs on your side.
- Tests with real cases, documentation in English or Bulgarian, and a screen recording of how it is maintained.
- An alert on failure that reaches a named person, and a runbook saying what to do.
- One month of monitoring after launch, with the figures after it.
- Access to every account in your name. If you change contractor tomorrow, nothing stays locked with us.
How does it run?
- 01Measure where the hours go.One week: we watch the process as it happens and record every step with its time. Every finding traces back to a row you can check yourself. Result: the Hours Log.
- 02Decide what is worth building.We write what to build, what to change in the sequence of steps, and what to drop. Sometimes the answer is to build nothing, and we say so. Result: the Written Recommendation with the acceptance test.
- 03Build it, then prove it.Two to four weeks depending on the process. We run the automation alongside the old way and compare the numbers. You sign the test before the last instalment is paid.
- 04Hand it over, keep it running.A runbook, a screen recording, one hour of training and a month of monitoring. After the training, the colleague who takes over the process runs it alone with the runbook.
What do you get?
The Hours Log, the Written Recommendation, the Signed Acceptance Test and the Runbook.
The log is the baseline. The recommendation states what to build or leave alone, the value of the time saved and the build price. Calculate ROI from your own figures before the build. The test runs real cases in front of you and records the figures after launch. The runbook is for the person running the process, with pictures and a screen recording.
How long does it take?
One process: one week of measurement, two to four weeks of build and proof, one month of monitoring after launch. The automation runs after three to five weeks; the month of monitoring comes after launch, while it is already doing the work.
What happens next?
If the automation saves the time the test shows, we take the next process from the list. If it does not, we stop and you do not pay the last instalment.
Articles
- AI agent or rule-based automation?A rule-based workflow follows a predefined path. An AI agent can choose its next action within the tools and permissions it has. Use that flexibility only where the task warrants the extra checks.
- How much does business process automation cost?Separate the build, platform, hosting and model costs. Vendor examples are dated estimates, not an ErgoStrat quote or a market-wide price.
- What are examples of business process automation?Sales, finance, service and warehouse examples: identify the process, the steps and the claimed result. A vendor example is not a measured result for your business.
- How do we choose an agency or consultant for automation?Five questions to ask before you sign: a written scope, a named alert contact, a runbook, a test before the last payment, and whose name the accounts sit in.
- Which Claude Code mods should a beginner try first?Check what an extension can read and change, which permissions it needs and whether it fits your setup. Start with observation before allowing changes.
- n8n vs Zapier vs Make: which one should you choose?Compare the required integrations, hosting, maintenance and billing limits. n8n supports self-hosting; choose from the needs of the process rather than a blanket easiest-or-best ranking.
- Can business process automation be done without code?Visual tools can assemble supported steps without writing code. Custom connections, exceptions and testing can still need technical work.
- What is the difference between RPA and business process automation?RPA can automate work through application interfaces. Business process automation concerns the wider workflow and can combine APIs, files, interfaces and people. Choose from the actual steps and constraints.
- What is speed to lead?Measure the time from an enquiry arriving to the response event you define. An automatic receipt, a contact attempt, a useful conversation and a sale are different events.
- What is business process automation?Software can execute repeating steps between people and tools. Define the process, exceptions, owner and measurable result before deciding what to automate.
Questions
How long does it take?
One process: about a week of measurement, two to four weeks of build and proof, a month of monitoring. The automation runs after three to five weeks; the month of monitoring comes after launch. The timeline is written into the recommendation before the build starts.
What if the process is not worth automating?
We say so in the recommendation and stop there. You pay for the measurement only and keep the Hours Log and the recommendation, which are yours.
What happens when the automation breaks?
An automation alert reaches a named person on your side and on ours, and the runbook says what to do. During the month of monitoring we fix it. After that, if you want, monitoring continues as a separate service.
Will it replace people?
Automation removes the manual work between tools, not the person who makes the decisions. Every automation has a named person who watches the result.
Which processes can be automated?
You can automate a process that repeats regularly and passes by hand between two or more tools. Common workflow automation examples are enquiries and the CRM, invoices and documents, orders, reports and approvals. The week of measurement shows whether yours is worth it.
Which automation do you recommend first?
Replying to an enquiry from the website is our first recommendation. Record when the enquiry arrives, who receives it, the first contact attempt and the outcome. A receipt alone is not a useful conversation or a sale; the measurement and acceptance test establish what the automation does.
Will it connect to the software you already use?
We check the software’s usable API or file export, required operations and permissions. This can connect a CRM, an online shop, Excel and Google Sheets. The recommendation establishes whether and how accounting software or an ERP can connect. If it cannot, we say so before the build.
How is the cost of an hour worked out?
You supply the hourly rate: gross salary plus employer contributions, divided by working hours. Without it, we report hours only. We compare the worker’s account with tool traces, such as email and record timestamps. Where they differ, we use the lower figure.
What does it cost and how do we pay?
Measurement has its own price, agreed before it starts. The measured process informs the build price in the written recommendation. Three payments: the measurement up front, then 50% of the build price at contract signing and 50% after the signed acceptance test. Tool and AI-model subscriptions are separate monthly costs in your name, paid directly to the vendor. Self-hosted n8n has a free Community edition and paid editions. Hosting, upkeep and connected services are separate cost considerations.
Whose accounts does the automation live in?
Yours. Every account is in your name and the access stays with you. If you change contractor tomorrow, the runbook and the screen recording are enough for someone else to take the automation over.
Where does your data go?
Through the tools named in the scope before we start. Zapier or Make processes workflow data on the vendor’s infrastructure. With self-hosted n8n, the automation runs on your infrastructure, but connected services can still receive data. An external AI model sends data to its provider. We record that path before the build; self-hosting alone does not establish GDPR compliance.
What language is the documentation in?
In English or Bulgarian, whichever your team works in, with pictures and a screen recording, written for the person who will run the process.
Next step
Start with one process, not a platform.
Write to us with one line about the process that takes the most hours. We reply by the end of the next working day (Sofia time, UTC+2, UTC+3 in summer), with what we need to measure it.
Book a call about one processor write to contact@ergostrat.com