Provisioning
June 16, 2024

Streamlining IT Operations with Workflow Automation: challenges of an IT manager

Héloïse Rozès
CEO and co-founder

Powerful of Workflow Automation around SaaS: Transforming IT Operations in the Digital Age

Meet Miguel, the Head of IT at a mid-sized company. He's the guy responsible for making sure the company's IT operations run like a well-oiled machine. Today, we'll dive into Miguel's world and explore the challenges he faces, especially with the rising prominence of Workflow Automation in the IT industry.

The Rise of Workflow Automation

In recent years, Workflow Automation has emerged as a buzzword in the corporate landscape, and Miguel knows that it can be a bit perplexing for many. But he's here to break it down for us, to help us understand how it's transforming the way businesses operate.

Workflow Automation, in Miguel's view, is all about simplifying our lives by automating those everyday tasks and processes that keep an organization running smoothly. It's like having a digital assistant who can tackle repetitive, manual chores, allowing Miguel and his IT team to focus on more strategic initiatives. In essence, it's an IT superhero's sidekick.

So, why is Miguel so passionate about Workflow Automation? Well, let's journey into the complex realm of IT, particularly with the challenges brought about by the proliferation of Software as a Service (SaaS).

Navigating the SaaS Landscape

In the old days, when on-premises software ruled the roost, IT departments faced their share of technical hurdles. Dealing with outdated hardware and legacy systems was par for the course. But thanks to cloud-based solutions from industry giants like Adobe, Salesforce, and Google, those days are long gone. Companies can now swiftly adopt new platforms without fretting over hardware upgrades. Accessing applications remotely? Piece of cake. No more worries about staying up-to-date with the latest gadgets.

But, and here's the twist, managing user permissions has become a puzzling ordeal. Whether you're part of a sprawling enterprise or a smaller outfit, onboarding and offboarding employees can be a logistical headache. Furthermore, keeping tabs on software subscriptions across the organization has become increasingly challenging due to the ease of credit card-based purchases. This decentralization has the potential to create workflow bottlenecks and security nightmares, and Miguel is acutely aware of this.

That's where the provisioning process steps in. Miguel and his IT team spend a considerable chunk of their time managing individual user access to applications and systems. The process's complexity varies based on the organization's size and structure. In smaller companies, it might be the departmental heads who purchase licenses and configure permissions. In larger enterprises, a more centralized approach may be adopted. Regardless, Miguel emphasizes the importance of ensuring secure authentication and adhering to the principle of least privilege access in any provisioning process.

The Role of Provisioning Processes

Now, let's turn our attention to ticket systems in IT. With the multitude of user access management tasks at hand, organizations often find themselves buried under an avalanche of IT tickets. While these ticket systems help keep track of requests, they can be quite a challenge to set up and maintain, especially if they weren't designed with IT in mind.

And when we talk about frameworks, ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) takes centre stage, offering meticulous practices for various IT activities. It categorizes different ticket types, such as incident response, change requests, configuration management, problem management, asset management, and capacity planning. Each type comes with its unique set of processes and procedures, often requiring customized workflows to handle them effectively.

Now, let's return to the star of the show – Workflow Automation. Imagine seamlessly connecting all these actions, creating a symphony of digital efficiency. Tasks like sending emails or creating new accounts can be automated and scheduled to run at specific times. For instance, you can schedule an email to be sent every morning at 9 AM, and if anything goes awry during the process, the automation steps in, no human intervention required.

The Power of Workflow Automation

In Miguel's IT department, Workflow Automation is their secret weapon. It keeps their processes running smoothly and ensures they don't waste time on manual tasks. When an employee needs access to a new software solution, they simply click a button or fill out a form, and the system handles the rest. It streamlines communication between internal teams, gathers responses, and resolves the request – an IT manager's dream come true.

Now, let's walk through a real-world example: software provisioning. When HR notifies Miguel's team of a new employee joining the sales department through project management software, a Workflow Automation kicks into gear. This process involves routing the request to an IT manager, who utilizes predefined permission groups and an identity access management tool to automate the provisioning process. The result? Access granted, notifications sent, and everyone's happy.

Sure, there might still be some manual steps involved, but the beauty of Workflow Automation is that it streamlines the process, making it more efficient and error-free.

In a nutshell, Workflow Automation is a game-changer for IT departments like Miguel's. It's their secret sauce for improving operations and ensuring everything runs like clockwork. So, if you want to transform your IT operations and make your IT team's life easier, it's high time you embraced the power of Workflow Automation. Corma can help you with this. Trust Miguel; your IT team will thank you!

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