5 Business Processes You Should Have Automated Already

Are Manual Processes Slowing Your Business Down?

Manual processes rarely stick around by design. They evolve gradually, blending into daily routines simply because they seem to get the job done.

The challenge is that while individual manual tasks may seem manageable, together they create unnecessary friction. They slow decision-making, reduce visibility and take up valuable time that could be spent on more strategic work.

More businesses are examining how work moves through their organisation, rather than just how tasks are completed. This often reveals outdated processes that could benefit from automation.

Here are five areas where automation is transforming the way businesses operate.

1. Approving and Processing Invoices

Invoice processing is one of the most time-consuming activities for many finance teams and often one of the first processes to benefit from automation.

Email and paper-based invoice approvals quickly become fragmented. Documents arrive from multiple sources, manual matching is required, and invoices bounce between stakeholders. Data is re-entered and checked repeatedly, wasting time and increasing risk. This not only slows the process but also makes it harder to maintain a clear view of outstanding liabilities or understand exactly where an invoice sits in the approval cycle. 

Toshiba's Workflow Automation solutions help simplify this process. Invoices can be automatically recognised as they arrive, whether they are scanned, emailed or uploaded before being classified and having key information extracted down to line-item level.

Automated workflows apply predefined rules to route approvals to the right people. The result is greater efficiency and consistency. Typical implementations achieve processing times up to 85% faster, reduce costs by up to 65% and cut errors by as much as 95%.

This approach has already helped organisations streamline invoice processing, reduce manual handling and improve overall process control. 

2. Onboarding New Employees

Onboarding is a true test of how seamlessly your teams collaborate. In a manual process, each stage is handled separately. Forms are shared by email, the same information is entered into multiple systems and requests for IT accounts or building access are submitted independently. While the process may function, it depends on constant coordination between departments.

As recruitment increases, this can lead to delays and inconsistencies. Utilising digital forms provides a more structured approach.

Validation rules and mandatory fields help ensure information is captured accurately from the start, reducing the need for corrections later. Because information is available immediately, every relevant team or system can access it as soon as it is submitted.

With workflow automation, onboarding becomes seamless. Enter information once and trigger every next step automatically, from user accounts to system access. Instead of juggling tasks, you get a process that is consistent, measurable and easy to manage.

3. Manually Entering Information from Documents

Many organisations still rely on employees to manually enter information from invoices, delivery notes, receipts and forms into business systems. Although this is often seen as part of everyday work, manual data entry remains one of the biggest sources of inefficiency. It consumes valuable time and increases the risk of errors every time information is re-keyed.

Across finance, operations and customer-facing teams, these small tasks quickly add up. Toshiba's solutions can automate this process using OCR, machine learning and intelligent classification.

Information can be recognised and extracted from both structured and unstructured documents before being validated against predefined business rules.

As new document formats are introduced, the system continues to adapt without requiring manual templates, helping improve accuracy over time. 

The result is faster, more reliable information that flows directly into business systems, reducing administrative effort while increasing confidence in the data being used.

This approach has helped organisations improve document accessibility while reducing manual handling across document-heavy processes.

4. Chasing Internal Requests and Approvals

Internal approvals may happen behind the scenes, but they have a significant impact on how efficiently a business operates.

Many organisations still rely on emails, shared inboxes or verbal confirmation to manage requests. This can lead to inconsistent processes, limited visibility and uncertainty over who is responsible for the next step. The result: delayed decisions, missed requests, and less accountability.

Digital workflows provide a more consistent approach. Requests are standardised from the moment they are submitted and automatically routed through predefined approval paths. Every action is recorded, creating a clear audit trail and improving visibility throughout the process.

This level of visibility supports not only greater efficiency but stronger governance. It gives organisations better control over their processes and enables more informed decision-making. 

5. Finding the Documents and Information You Need

Even with digitised documents, finding what you need is often a challenge. Files are often stored across shared drives, inboxes and legacy systems, making them harder to locate and manage efficiently.

The impact is significant. Employees can spend more than nine hours each week searching for information, while additional time is often lost recreating documents that cannot be found. This inefficiency is estimated to cost organisations more than £20,000 per employee each year. 

Toshiba's document management solutions address both accessibility and control.

Centralised repositories with intelligent indexing make documents easy to search, while version control helps ensure everyone is working with the latest information. This makes document management a seamless part of daily work, supporting productivity and compliance.

A More Connected Approach to Automation

The real barrier across these five processes is not just manual work, but disconnected systems and teams.

When workflows operate independently, information has to be passed manually from one person to another. This reduces visibility, slows progress and increases the likelihood of mistakes.

Organisations that connect intelligent capture, workflow automation and document management are better positioned to improve operational efficiency while making more informed decisions.

Automation is not about replacement. It is about strengthening and connecting your processes, making work more consistent, visible and controlled.

Where to Start

These familiar processes are rarely questioned, yet they offer some of the biggest opportunities for real improvement.

At Toshiba, we help organisations take a more connected approach by bringing together intelligent capture, digital forms, workflow automation and document management into solutions that reflect how work actually happens. 

If these challenges resonate, now is the time to take a closer look.

Explore our automation solutions or connect with our team to see how a more connected approach can support your business.