Mechanize Before AI: The Boring Stuff Saves the Most Time
Mechanize first. Add AI where it’s safe. Save hours every week.
If you work in professional services—law, accounting, consulting—you don’t need “AI everywhere.” You need fewer manual steps, fewer file hunts, and fewer “where did we put that?” moments. That starts with mechanizing your workflow: standardizing data, templates, naming, and foldering—and only then sprinkling AI where it truly helps.
Why “mechanize first” beats “AI first”
Predictable inputs → predictable outputs. AI drafts are faster and cleaner when your data, templates, and file structure are consistent.
Lower risk. Automations that move files, create folders, and fill templates are deterministic and auditable—perfect for regulated work.
Compounding ROI. Each mechanized step removes recurring admin time forever (intake, naming, filing, document creation), so AI can focus on the 10–20% that needs judgment.
What to mechanize (before any AI)
Start small. Standardize these four layers:
Lists & fields: Put key matter/client data in one source of truth (e.g., SharePoint List or Excel table).
Templates: Turn your recurring docs/emails into parameterized templates (placeholders mapped to fields).
Foldering & naming: Auto-create a consistent structure per matter with predictable names (Client – Matter – YYYY-MM).
Flows: Triggered steps that create folders, generate docs, send emails, add calendar items, and set permissions—automatically.
Where AI actually helps (after mechanization)
Drafting & summarizing: First drafts of letters, emails, meeting notes, or matter summaries—based on your structured fields and templates.
QA & checklists: Quick “second pair of eyes” to check missing fields, inconsistent dates, or out-of-policy filenames.
Search & retrieval: Natural-language lookups (“find the last engagement letter for Acme signed after June”).
AI becomes reliable when it’s fed by a clean, mechanized system.
A quick win example (typical 60–90 minutes saved per matter)
Intake form populates a SharePoint List row.
A Power Automate flow creates the matter folder structure with standardized names.
The flow generates a pre-filled engagement letter and a welcome email from templates.
Optional AI step: draft a concise summary from the intake fields for your notes/CRM.
Result: fewer clicks, less copy-paste, faster starts—every single time.
How to start in one afternoon
List your data fields. Client name, contacts, addresses, engagement type, deadlines, billing details.
Pick 2–3 templates. Engagement letter, welcome email, standard cover letter.
Define the folder blueprint.
/Client/Matter/01-Intake, 02-Docs, 03-Email, 04-Deliverables.Automate the handoffs. Create: list item → folders → docs → emails → calendar.
Add AI only where safe. Drafts and summaries with human review; no sensitive reasoning offloaded.
What good looks like (signals your system is working)
New matter setup takes minutes, not hours.
Everyone can find the latest doc in two clicks.
Filenames tell the story (client, matter, date, version).
First-draft emails and letters rarely start from scratch.
You can onboard a new team member without a 20-step tribal-knowledge tour.
Common pitfalls to avoid
Skipping the field list. If it’s not structured, it won’t scale.
Too many templates too soon. Start with the top three you touch weekly.
AI as a band-aid. Don’t ask AI to “guess” missing data that should be captured up front.
One-off exceptions. If an exception recurs, make it a rule—or delete it.
Ready to mechanize?
If you’re on Microsoft 365, I implement this with SharePoint Lists, Power Automate, Power Apps, and standard templates (or n8n if you’re outside M365). We mechanize first, then add AI where it’s safe and valuable.
→ Book a quick discovery call (15 minutes) to map your first automation and estimate time saved.
