{"id":6597,"date":"2020-12-22T15:44:51","date_gmt":"2020-12-22T15:44:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.n-able.com\/?p=6597"},"modified":"2021-04-12T15:45:42","modified_gmt":"2021-04-12T14:45:42","slug":"tap-blog-series-creating-your-automation-strategy-three-key-components-you-must-have-place","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.n-able.com\/pt-br\/blog\/tap-blog-series-creating-your-automation-strategy-three-key-components-you-must-have-place","title":{"rendered":"TAP Blog Series: Creating Your Automation Strategy\u2014Three Key Components You Must Have in Place"},"content":{"rendered":"

Automation is a fact of life for MSPs these days. Do you have an automation strategy? If you have one, it may need refreshing. It\u2019s important to keep your automation policy up-to-date to continue increasing efficiency.<\/p>\n

Before starting your automation journey, you should have a framework for how you will automate within your organization\u2014and how that process will help you achieve your goals. Automation is generally a means to scale your labor against your workload. There are three components to an automation strategy that you should apply in concert with one another:<\/p>\n

1. Identify metrics<\/h2>\n

First, identify metrics that align with achieving your organization\u2019s goals. Focusing on these key metrics will give you a path to follow. For example, look at time per user or time per alert ticket each month, and then try to reduce one (or both). Doing this will provide a meaningful measurement for scaling your labor. This is just one metric of many you can choose. Make sure to carefully select the ones that will help you achieve your organization\u2019s goals.<\/p>\n

2. Analyze and reduce<\/h2>\n

You should also focus part of your strategy on, as Bruce Lee put it, \u201chacking away at the unessential.\u201d Constant evaluation and re-evaluation of what you\u2019re monitoring, alerting, and acting upon (automating) and then removing the unessential components is a key part of your strategy. This is the most effective and efficient form of automation\u2014removing what you should not be doing.<\/p>\n

3. Ensure and verify<\/h2>\n

Lastly, make sure you\u2019re fulfilling your client agreements. To do this, ensure you\u2019re applying any software or configurations to a client. Once applied, verify they\u2019ve been applied the way you expect\u2014allowing for any agreed upon exceptions. Clearly lay out the method of exceptions for your service team to use consistently across your automation framework. You can accomplish this part of the strategy through reactive, proactive, and self-healing automation processes.<\/p>\n

Implementing your strategy<\/h2>\n

Once you\u2019ve got the above components, implementing your strategy will require another three things:<\/p>\n