Workflow mapping
Document the current report process, source files, manual steps, owners, and deadlines.
Automation
Reporting automation for recurring spreadsheets and manual reports.
Reporting Automation helps teams replace recurring copy-paste reporting work with cleaner data workflows, repeatable refreshes, and reports that do not depend on last-minute manual effort.
What’s included
Make recurring reporting easier to run.
If the same report has to be manually rebuilt every week, month, quarter, or grant cycle, it is a good candidate for automation. Borrowed BI helps simplify the process and reduce manual risk.
Data preparation
Clean up the incoming data structure so the report can be refreshed more reliably.
Automation build
Create repeatable refresh steps, data transformations, or lightweight scripts and workflows where appropriate.
Output design
Produce a cleaner recurring report, dashboard, export, or summary view for the audience that needs it.
Runbook
Document how to refresh, troubleshoot, and maintain the process.
Is this the right fit?
Good automation candidate, or not yet?
Some recurring reports are ready to automate today. Others need cleanup first.
Common examples
- Reports need manual downloads and spreadsheet copy-paste.
- Distribution depends on one person.
- Refresh failures surface only after a deadline slips.
Good automation candidate
- The same steps repeat on a predictable schedule.
- Business rules can be documented.
- Source access and ownership are reasonably stable.
Poor automation candidate
- The process changes every cycle.
- Human interpretation is the primary work.
- Definitions are unresolved.
- The request is a one-time report.
Pricing
Automation pricing depends on how many manual steps need to disappear.
These packages separate a contained automation cleanup from a more involved recurring workflow build.
Pricing notes
- Visualization, database, warehouse, ETL, hosting, and other software licenses are not included.
- Project fees are billed in advance unless otherwise agreed.
- Additional work beyond included scope is billed at $175/hour with approval before overage work begins.
- Automations that require new platform purchases, paid APIs, or enterprise tooling are scoped separately.
Common questions
Reporting Automation FAQs
Clear answers for teams deciding whether this is the right kind of BI help.
What is reporting automation?
Reporting automation replaces repetitive manual reporting steps with repeatable data workflows, scheduled refreshes, cleaner outputs, and documented processes.
What kinds of reports can be automated?
Recurring spreadsheet reports, leadership updates, operational reports, finance or program reporting, exported dashboards, and manual copy-paste workflows are common automation candidates.
Do we need a data warehouse before automating reports?
Not always. A data warehouse can help, but many teams can start by improving existing exports, source files, queries, and refresh steps before investing in a larger data platform.
How do you decide what to automate first?
Borrowed BI looks for reports that are repeated often, take too much manual effort, create risk when rushed, or are important enough that errors would cause real problems.
Will automation replace our dashboards?
Usually no. Reporting automation often supports dashboards by making the data refresh process cleaner, more reliable, and easier to maintain.
Related BI support
Related ways to reduce manual work.
Automation is often one piece of a larger reporting cleanup. These related services cover the rest.