RATES Framework: Where Should You Start with AI Automation?

Where Should You Start with AI Automation?

You’ve heard that AI will transform your work. But where do you begin? If you dive into tools before you know which task to automate, you’ll waste hours chasing features instead of results. It’s like buying a hammer and wandering around looking for nails.

The smarter approach is to start with what you already do every day – and then pick the AI tool that matches that task.

The RATES™ Framework

Letter	Factor	What it Means
R	Repetitive	Repetitive is when you’d find yourself doing it again and again.
A	Annoying	Annoying is when you’d rather put it off than start it.
T	Time-consuming	Time-consuming is when you’d dread the hours it eats out of your day.
E	Error-prone	Error-prone is when you’d spend more time fixing mistakes than doing the work.
S	Scalable	Scalable is when you’d love to do it more times because one tweak multiplies your benefit.

How It Works in 5 Minutes

1. List Your Regular Tasks

Ask yourself what you did yesterday, what’s on today’s schedule, and what’s planned for tomorrow. Write each task and its frequency in your worksheet. Focus on daily or weekly items first. Here’s an example:

Task / Activity	Frequency
Triage urgent emails in the morning	Daily
Attend morning operations stand-up meeting	Daily
Send feedback on draft report	Daily
Approve urgent production schedule changes	Daily
Sign off minor purchase requests	Daily
Call with a key external partner	Weekly
Write & send sales proposal	Weekly
Update production tracker spreadsheet	Weekly
Approve packaging design sample revisions	Weekly
Plan upcoming week’s material orders	Weekly
Update operations process documentation	Monthly
Lead monthly operations strategy session	Monthly

2. Score with RATES

For each daily/weekly task, give it a score of 0–2 on every RATES factor:

• 0 = Not at all
• 1 = Somewhat
• 2 = Definitely

Add up each task’s scores. Tasks scoring 6+ are your best AI opportunities. Anything 8–10 is a no-brainer. Here’s an example using the tasks above:

Task Description	Repetitive	Annoying	Time Consuming	Error Prone	Scalable	TOTAL	Automate?
Triage urgent emails in the morning	2	2	2	0	2	8	High Priority for Automation
Attend morning operations stand-up meeting	2	0	2	0	0	4	Low Priority for Automation
Send feedback on draft report	2	2	2	2	1	9	High Priority for Automation
Approve urgent production schedule changes	2	1	1	0	0	4	Low Priority for Automation
Sign off minor purchase requests	1	2	1	0	0	4	Low Priority for Automation
Call with a key external partner	1	0	2	1	0	4	Low Priority for Automation
Write & send sales proposal	2	2	2	2	2	10	Highest Priority for Automation
Update production tracker spreadsheet	1	2	1	2	1	7	Medium Priority for Automation
Approve packaging design sample revisions	0	0	0	0	0	0	Low Priority for Automation
Plan upcoming week’s material orders	1	0	2	2	2	7	Medium Priority for Automation
Update operations process documentation	0	2	2	0	0	4	Low Priority for Automation
Lead monthly operations strategy session	0	0	2	0	0	2	Low Priority for Automation

3. Test One AI Tool

Pick your top-scoring task and spend 30 minutes testing an AI tool that fits. Track:

• Time saved (manual vs AI)
• Output quality (accurate enough?)
• User frustration (was it easier?)

If it works, you’ve freed up time for higher-value work.

What Usually Scores High

• Meeting follow-ups (transcribe, summarise, assign actions)
• Proposal writing (first drafts, formatting)
• Report creation (data pulls, charting, narratives)
• Email templates (responses, follow-ups)
• Content formatting (slides, documents)

Your Quick Action Plan

1. Download the RATES worksheet and list your daily/weekly tasks.
2. Score each task on the five RATES factors.
3. Pick one high-scoring task and test an AI tool this week.
4. Measure your win – time saved, errors reduced, frustration eased.

Your highest-scoring RATES task is waiting. What will it be?