A free automation audit: find out where your team’s week goes
The AlphaOps Automation Audit is a free review of how work moves through your business. After a short intro call, Ross Owen spends up to two hours going through your systems and processes with you, then sends a written report of where AI and automation would pay back: what to automate first, roughly what it would save, what it would cost, and what to leave alone.
Start with the work, not the technology
Most disappointing automation projects go wrong at the start, by automating the wrong job.
A job gets automated because it’s irritating, or because a tool makes it look easy, rather than because it’s where the hours actually go. The audit fixes that. Before anything is built, we count the repetitive work in your business, put a realistic value on it, and rank what’s worth automating by the return it would give you.
It’s run by Ross Owen, who has worked in IT since 2000 and has run Alphabyte IT in Cardiff since 2009, mostly for law firms, accountants and other professional firms. So the conversation is about your systems as they really are: Microsoft 365, your practice or job management software, your shared inboxes, your phones and your spreadsheets.
You come away with a report you can act on, whether or not you work with us.
- 1A short intro callWhat you do, your systems, where the time seems to go
- 2Up to two hours with RossOn site or on Teams, with the people who do the work
- 3Your written reportHours found, savings, costs, what to do first
- 4You decideAct on it yourself, with us, or not at all
What happens, and who should be there
No slides and no jargon. You talk us through how the work really gets done, and we ask the questions that turn that into hours and pounds.
1. The intro call
A short call to make sure the audit is worth your time and ours: what your business does, roughly how many people, which systems you use and where you think the time goes.
2. The audit session
Up to two hours with Ross, at your office or on Teams. We follow the work from the moment it arrives (an email, a phone call, a document, a deadline) to the moment it’s done, and note every place it gets retyped, chased, copied or waits for someone.
3. Who should be there
Usually the owner, partner or practice manager for the whole session, plus the people who do the work every day for part of it. They know where the time really goes, and they’ll be the ones using whatever we build.
4. What to have ready
Nothing formal. It helps to think about which jobs people complain about, which deadlines cause a scramble, and anything you already pay for but don’t use, such as Copilot licences.
5. Your report
A written, plain-English report of where the savings are, with every number shown and explained. See exactly what it looks like in our sample report.
6. You decide
No obligation. Keep the report and act on it yourself, ask us for a fixed quote for one automation, or start on Monthly AI Support.
The places small businesses lose the most time
Every business is different, but the hours usually hide in the same few places. We go through each one that applies to you.
Shared inboxes
Who reads info@ or enquiries@, how emails get sorted and passed on, and how many replies are the same answer typed again. Inbox automation
Documents and re-keying
Invoices, statements, forms and orders that someone types into another system. Document processing
Chasing
Missing records, signatures, ID documents, timesheets and replies, and how many reminders each one takes before it arrives.
Meetings and calls
Minutes, attendance notes and call notes written up by hand, and the follow-ups that slip. Meeting minutes and call analysis
Reports and spreadsheets
Figures copied out of one system and pasted into a spreadsheet or report every week or month. Workflow automation
New clients and new staff
Onboarding steps that are the same every time but still done by hand, and the questions new starters ask. AI assistant
What you already pay for
Features in Microsoft 365 you’re licensed for but not using, including Copilot. Sometimes the cheapest answer is a setting, not a build.
Data protection
Which processes involve personal, confidential or regulated data, so the right safeguards are planned in from the start rather than added later.
Your plans
Whether you want to grow without recruiting, free up senior people, or cut turnaround times. The report ranks things against what you’re trying to achieve.
What’s in the report
- A one-page summary: the hours of repetitive work we found, what that time costs you a year, and the few things we’d do first.
- Where the time goes: a table of every repetitive job, who does it, the hours a week, how much of it could realistically be automated, and what that’s worth.
- Recommendations ranked by return: what each automation would do, which systems it touches, what stays with a person, the estimated saving, the likely cost and how it would be delivered.
- What we’d leave alone, and why: jobs that don’t happen often enough, need real judgement, or carry too much risk to automate yet.
- What you already own: Microsoft 365 features and licences that could do part of the job without anything new.
- Data protection points: where each automation would process data, under what agreement, and what to update, such as your privacy notice.
- Costs, payback and a roadmap: the options, a realistic first-year cost, and the order to do things in.
See a real one before you book
Our sample report is written for Tregarth Price, a fictional 22-person accountancy practice in Cardiff. Because the firm is made up, nothing is redacted: you can see every hour, every pound and the reasoning behind each number.
How we put a value on the time
We keep the arithmetic simple and show it, so you can check every figure and change any assumption you disagree with.
- Hours a week: estimated with the people who do each job, across the whole team.
- The share that can be automated: realistic, not optimistic. Some jobs automate almost completely; others only partly, because a person still checks the result.
- Working weeks: 46 a year, allowing for holidays and bank holidays.
- Hourly cost: what the time costs you, including employer National Insurance and pension, for the people who actually do the work.
So 10 hours a week of chasing, 60% of which could be automated, at £26 an hour, is worth 10 × 0.6 × 46 × £26 = £7,176 a year. Try your own figures in the AI savings calculator.
What the audit isn’t
- It isn’t a sales pitch. If something won’t save more than it costs, the report says so. If a tool you already own does the job, we’ll point you to it.
- It isn’t a security audit. We note data-protection points, but if you want your IT and security checked, that’s what Alphabyte IT and AlphaSec do.
- It doesn’t need your passwords. You show us how things work. We don’t need logins, admin access or copies of your data to do the audit.
- It isn’t a commitment. The report is yours to keep, and there’s no obligation to go ahead with anything.
Three ways to act on it
Do it yourself
Some recommendations are settings or features you already pay for. The report explains them clearly enough for you or your IT provider to switch them on.
A single project
One automation, built for a fixed quote based on our standard rate of £145 + VAT an hour, tested on your own data before it goes live. No minimum term.
Monthly AI Support
From £459 + VAT a month: our standard automations set up for you, new AI tools as they arrive, and hours every month for the automations in your report. See the plans
Automation audit questions
Is the automation audit really free?
Yes. It’s normally worth £290: up to two hours of Ross’s time plus a written report. We start with a short call to check it’s worth your time, and there’s no obligation to go ahead with anything afterwards.
How long does the audit take?
A short intro call, then a session of up to two hours. For a small team it’s often less. We write the report after the session, so there’s nothing more for you to do in the meantime.
Who should be in the audit session?
The owner, partner or practice manager, plus the people who do the day-to-day work for part of the session. They usually know best where the time goes.
Do you need access to our systems?
No. You show us how things work on screen or in person. We don’t need logins, admin rights or copies of your data for the audit itself.
Can you do it on site?
Yes. We’re based in Cardiff and can come to you, or run the session on Teams. Most of our work is remote, across Wales, Bristol, Bath and the rest of the UK.
What if there’s nothing worth automating?
Then the report says so, and explains why. That’s a useful answer too: it saves you spending money on AI that wouldn’t pay back.
How is this different from the savings calculator?
The calculator gives you a quick estimate from your own guesses. The audit goes through your actual systems and processes with you, finds the work you hadn’t thought of, checks what’s realistic, and turns it into a costed plan.
What happens to the information we share?
It’s used only to write your report, and the report is yours. If a process involves personal or confidential data, we note it so any automation is designed around it.
Guides on this topic
How much does AI consultancy cost in the UK?
Audits, one-off builds, retainers and day rates: what UK small businesses actually pay for AI help in 2026, and the questions to ask before you sign anything.
Read more →AI for businessIs AI worth it for a small business? A simple payback test
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Read more →Thinking of changing IT provider?
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Find out where your team’s week goes
Book your free automation audit: a short intro call, up to two hours with Ross going through your systems, then a written report of where the savings are. No obligation.
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