Foundations of Automation Strategy

This unit introduces the automation mindset, core concepts of integration, and frameworks that unlock business value across front-office and back-office functions. Students study approaches, platforms, and case studies (e.g., Toast, IPO stories, leaders like Vijay Tella and Scott Brinker) and examine risks—including generative AI challenges—to prepare for designing and implementing enterprise automation solutions in subsequent units.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze case studies and examples to identify at least three key drivers and three common failure modes of successful automation initiatives
• Evaluate and compare approaches to automation and integration (including the Five Towers framework) to recommend an appropriate operating model for a given business scenario
• Demonstrate the ability to map front-office and back-office processes to automation tools or enterprise platforms and estimate potential business value or efficiency gains
• Apply critical reasoning to assess risks, governance, and challenges (including those introduced by generative AI and rigid legacy systems) and propose mitigation strategies