Workflow Automation Brief Template
A structured one-page executive brief for presenting workflow automation opportunities to leadership. Use this to quantify efficiency gains, cost savings, and implementation timelines before committing budget. Perfect for CMOs who need to justify marketing operations investments with clear ROI projections.
How to Use This Template
- 1.**Step 1: Audit Your Current Workflow.** Before filling out the template, spend 2-3 hours documenting exactly how the process works today. Interview the people doing the work—ask them how much time they spend, what frustrates them, where errors happen, and what systems they touch. Quantify everything: if someone spends 5 hours a week on manual data entry, that's 260 hours annually. This data becomes your baseline and justifies the business case. Don't estimate; observe and measure.
- 2.**Step 2: Identify the Automation Opportunity.** Not every step in a workflow should be automated—focus on repetitive, rule-based tasks that don't require judgment. Fill in the "What Will Be Automated" section with 3-5 specific, concrete tasks (e.g., "Extract form submission data and create CRM contact record" not "improve lead management"). Then research 2-3 tools that can handle this automation and determine if you need a native integration, API connection, or no-code platform like Zapier. This becomes your "Technology/Tool Required" section.
- 3.**Step 3: Calculate Financial Impact with Conservative Numbers.** Use the Cost-Benefit Analysis table to project savings. For labor savings, multiply hours freed up by fully-loaded hourly cost (salary + benefits ÷ 2,080 hours). For efficiency gains, quantify secondary benefits like faster campaign launches or improved accuracy. Always use conservative estimates—if you think you'll save 10 hours/week, use 7 in your projections. This builds credibility with leadership. Include tool costs, implementation fees, and any training expenses to show net benefit, not just gross savings.
- 4.**Step 4: Define Success Metrics Before Implementation.** In the KPIs section, establish baseline numbers for what you're measuring today (e.g., "Currently 12% of leads have data entry errors") and realistic targets post-automation (e.g., "Target: <1% error rate"). These metrics become your accountability mechanism—you'll report against them monthly. Include both efficiency metrics (hours saved) and quality metrics (accuracy, speed, consistency) so leadership sees both cost and value improvements.
- 5.**Step 5: Build a Realistic Timeline with Owner Accountability.** Break implementation into 5-6 phases (Discovery, Build, Test, Pilot, Rollout, Optimize) and assign each phase to a specific person with a duration estimate. Most marketing automation projects take 6-12 weeks from approval to full rollout. Be honest about dependencies—if you're waiting for IT to set up API access, that's a risk. Include a 2-week pilot phase with a subset of users before full rollout; this catches issues and builds team confidence.
- 6.**Step 6: Present with Confidence and Prepare for Questions.** When presenting to leadership, lead with the Executive Summary and financial impact, then walk through the timeline and success metrics. Expect questions about risks, resource needs, and what happens if adoption is slow. Have your Risk Assessment table ready and be prepared to discuss how you'll handle the top 2-3 risks. After approval, use this brief as your project charter—reference it weekly to stay aligned with the promised outcomes.
Template
# Workflow Automation Brief
**Prepared by:** [YOUR NAME]
**Date:** [DATE]
**Priority Level:** [HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW]
**Target Implementation:** [QUARTER/MONTH]
---
## Executive Summary
[WORKFLOW NAME] automation will [PRIMARY BENEFIT: reduce manual effort/accelerate campaign delivery/improve data accuracy]. This brief outlines the business case for automating [SPECIFIC PROCESS] across [DEPARTMENT/TEAM], with projected savings of [DOLLAR AMOUNT] and [TIME METRIC] in year one.
---
## Current State Analysis
### Process Overview
[Describe the current workflow in 2-3 sentences. Include: who performs it, how often, what systems are involved.]
### Pain Points
- **[Pain Point 1]:** [Specific impact and frequency]
- **[Pain Point 2]:** [Specific impact and frequency]
- **[Pain Point 3]:** [Specific impact and frequency]
### Current Resource Allocation
| Resource | Current Hours/Week | Annual Cost | % of Role |
|----------|-------------------|-------------|----------|
| [Role 1] | [#] hours | $[AMOUNT] | [%] |
| [Role 2] | [#] hours | $[AMOUNT] | [%] |
| [Role 3] | [#] hours | $[AMOUNT] | [%] |
| **Total** | **[#] hours** | **$[TOTAL]** | **[%]** |
---
## Proposed Automation Solution
### What Will Be Automated
[List 3-5 specific tasks or sub-processes that will be automated. Be concrete: "Manual data entry from form submissions to CRM" not "data management."]
### Technology/Tool Required
**Primary Tool:** [TOOL NAME]
**Integration Points:** [List systems that will connect: e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot, Slack, Google Sheets]
**Build Approach:** [Native integration / API / Zapier / Custom development]
### Workflow Diagram
```
[BEFORE]
[Manual Step 1] → [Manual Step 2] → [Manual Step 3] → [Output]
[AFTER]
[Trigger] → [Automated Steps 1-3] → [Output] + [Notification]
```
---
## Financial Impact
### Cost-Benefit Analysis
| Metric | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
|--------|--------|--------|--------|
| **Implementation Cost** | $[AMOUNT] | $0 | $0 |
| **Annual Tool Cost** | $[AMOUNT] | $[AMOUNT] | $[AMOUNT] |
| **Labor Savings** | $[AMOUNT] | $[AMOUNT] | $[AMOUNT] |
| **Efficiency Gains (Value)** | $[AMOUNT] | $[AMOUNT] | $[AMOUNT] |
| **Net Benefit** | **$[AMOUNT]** | **$[AMOUNT]** | **$[AMOUNT]** |
| **ROI** | **[%]** | **[%]** | **[%]** |
### Payback Period
[X months] — Implementation costs recovered by [MONTH/QUARTER]
---
## Key Performance Indicators
### Baseline Metrics (Current State)
- [Metric 1]: [Current value]
- [Metric 2]: [Current value]
- [Metric 3]: [Current value]
### Target Metrics (Post-Automation)
- [Metric 1]: [Target value] ([% improvement])
- [Metric 2]: [Target value] ([% improvement])
- [Metric 3]: [Target value] ([% improvement])
### Success Criteria
✓ [Specific, measurable outcome 1]
✓ [Specific, measurable outcome 2]
✓ [Specific, measurable outcome 3]
✓ [Specific, measurable outcome 4]
---
## Implementation Timeline
| Phase | Duration | Owner | Deliverables |
|-------|----------|-------|---------------|
| **Discovery & Planning** | [WEEKS] | [OWNER] | Requirements doc, vendor selection |
| **Configuration & Build** | [WEEKS] | [OWNER] | Workflow setup, testing environment |
| **Testing & QA** | [WEEKS] | [OWNER] | Test results, bug fixes, sign-off |
| **Pilot Launch** | [WEEKS] | [OWNER] | [# users], feedback collection |
| **Full Rollout** | [WEEKS] | [OWNER] | Team training, documentation |
| **Optimization** | Ongoing | [OWNER] | Performance monitoring, refinements |
**Total Timeline:** [X weeks] to full deployment
---
## Risk Assessment & Mitigation
| Risk | Likelihood | Impact | Mitigation Strategy |
|------|-----------|--------|---------------------|
| [Risk 1] | [High/Med/Low] | [High/Med/Low] | [Specific mitigation action] |
| [Risk 2] | [High/Med/Low] | [High/Med/Low] | [Specific mitigation action] |
| [Risk 3] | [High/Med/Low] | [High/Med/Low] | [Specific mitigation action] |
---
## Resource Requirements
### Team & Skills Needed
- **Project Manager:** [# hours/week] for [duration]
- **Technical Lead:** [# hours/week] for [duration]
- **Business Analyst:** [# hours/week] for [duration]
- **End-User Champions:** [# people] for training & feedback
### Budget Breakdown
- Tool/Software License: $[AMOUNT]
- Implementation/Professional Services: $[AMOUNT]
- Internal Labor (estimated): $[AMOUNT]
- Training & Documentation: $[AMOUNT]
- **Total Investment:** $[AMOUNT]
---
## Recommendation
**Proceed with automation** of [WORKFLOW NAME]. This initiative will:
1. Free up [#] hours per week of [ROLE] time for higher-value work
2. Reduce [SPECIFIC ERROR/DELAY] by [%]
3. Deliver [#] months payback with [#]% year-one ROI
4. Scale to support [FUTURE GROWTH SCENARIO]
**Next Steps:**
- [ ] Leadership approval (target: [DATE])
- [ ] Vendor contract finalization (target: [DATE])
- [ ] Project kickoff meeting (target: [DATE])
- [ ] Begin discovery phase (target: [DATE])
---
## Appendix
### A. Current Process Documentation
[Link to detailed process map or flowchart]
### B. Tool Comparison Matrix
[If multiple tools were evaluated, include comparison]
### C. Stakeholder Sign-Off
| Stakeholder | Title | Approval | Date |
|-------------|-------|----------|------|
| [NAME] | [TITLE] | ☐ | [DATE] |
| [NAME] | [TITLE] | ☐ | [DATE] |
| [NAME] | [TITLE] | ☐ | [DATE] |
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Get the Full AI Marketing Learning Path
Courses, workshops, frameworks, daily intelligence, and 6 proprietary tools — built for marketing leaders adopting AI.
Trusted by 10,000+ Directors and CMOs.