11th-Nov-2025 โข Faith Chebet โข Business Automation
Welcome to the digital age where automation is no longer a buzzword but a crucial tool for businesses. As a small business owner in Kenya or Africa, you might be wondering if this trend applies to your SME. The answer is a resounding yes! Business automation offers numerous benefits that can significantly boost your organization's productivity and competitiveness.
Simply put, business automation involves using technology to automate repetitive tasks or workflows, thus reducing human intervention and increasing efficiency. This could range from automated invoicing systems, inventory management software, to customer relationship management (CRM) platforms.
Automating your business processes can lead to reduced errors, faster processing times, and cost savings. Let's take an example: a Kenyan retail store that manually prepares invoices. By automating this process, the store can save time previously spent on manual invoice creation, reducing the chances of errors, and improving cash flow management.
According to a report by McKinsey, automation could help African businesses boost productivity growth by up to 2.7 percentage points annually. Moreover, automating knowledge work can lead to a 45% increase in productivity for African employees.
As we move towards a more digitally connected world, automation will become even more crucial for Kenyan SMEs. By embracing this trend, you can position your business for success, freeing up resources for strategic decision-making and growth.