AI Agents & Automation, Step by Step for 2027

Take routine work off your team with automation and AI agents and keep it safe and under control, from choosing the right level of automation to running a portfolio.

Who it's for

For managers, team leaders, operations staff and consultants who want to take routine work off their teams and keep that work under control. You do not need to write code, but you do need to know the work well. The book describes types of tool rather than specific products, because those change quickly.

What you'll learn

• Tell apart five levels of automation – rules, workflow automation, RPA, AI-assisted steps and AI agents – and choose the simplest level that reliably does the job.
• Build a task inventory, score each task for automation potential and spot failure demand, a term coined by John Seddon, which should be removed rather than automated.
• Design an automated workflow on paper before anyone builds it: trigger, steps, decisions, outputs, exception routes and handovers to people.
• Write structured working prompts in six layers, test them against real cases and keep the best versions in a shared prompt library.
• Specify an AI agent on one canvas: goal, tools and permissions, knowledge sources, decision limits, escalation and stopping conditions.
• Set the right level of autonomy for each action, place approval points where the risk sits and run sample reviews.
• Test agents against realistic and awkward cases, put guardrails outside the model, watch for risks such as prompt injection, and run every automation from one register with a named owner.

What's inside

• 59 pages, 8 chapters
• Every chapter follows the same pattern: key concepts, a step-by-step method, an illustrative example from a fictional UK organisation, a ready-to-use tool, common mistakes, key steps and a “Try it” exercise
• Tools include an automation type selector, automation opportunity scorecard, workflow design sheet, prompt template and prompt library log, agent design canvas, oversight matrix, agent test log and automation register
• A 30-60-90 day action plan with checklists, plus a glossary
• PDF in A4 format — read on screen or print
• Instant download after purchase

Contents

1. Understanding the Automation Spectrum
2. Finding Work Worth Automating
3. Designing an Automated Workflow
4. Writing Prompts That Get Reliable Results
5. Designing an AI Agent
6. Keeping Humans in the Loop
7. Testing, Monitoring and Controlling Agents
8. Running Automations as a Portfolio

Part of The Business Library

This title is one of the 55 ebooks in The Business Library, available together for £109 (worth £1,437 if bought separately: the total of the individual prices of the included titles in our store). It is also included in The Ultimate Business Bundle, which adds 8 checklists and toolkits and 10 workbooks — all 73 products for £147.