Automation KPI
Definition
Automation KPIs are the figures that prove whether an automated process is working: touchless completion rate, cycle time, error and rework rate, cost per case, and volume handled per period. They are defined before the build, not after.
A baseline measured before go-live is what makes any later claim of improvement credible.
Reporting belongs inside the operational system, so the numbers are a by-product of the work rather than a manual monthly exercise.
In practice
- Baseline measured before the first automation goes live
- Reported automatically from the operational system
- Reviewed monthly against the ranked process backlog
Related terms
- Straight-through processing (STP)Straight-through processing is the share of cases that pass from intake to completion without any manual intervention. It is the central operational metric of an automation programme, because it directly translates into cost and cycle time per case.
- Cost per caseCost per case is the total cost of processing one unit of work — an invoice, a quote, an enquiry — including labour, software, model usage and error correction. It is the cleanest metric for comparing manual processing with an automated one.
- Process auditA process audit is a structured review of recurring workflows: which steps exist, which systems and people are involved, how long each step takes, how often it fails, and what a case costs. It produces the evidence base for any automation decision.