Omniche targets hidden drain on workplace productivity

Omniche Advisory says Australian businesses could recover employee capacity by reducing the time skilled workers spend on administration, reporting, email and data gathering.

The technology consultancy describes these activities as "work about work". It recommends that organisations examine where employees are losing time before investing in artificial intelligence or automation.

Omniche advises executive teams and boards on technology strategy, AI, data and modernisation. It argues that productivity programmes should focus on measurable business problems rather than the adoption of specific tools.

Lost time

Managers can spend several hours each week compiling reports instead of supporting their teams. Sales employees may also lose time entering and reconciling data that could otherwise be spent with customers.

Marketing teams face similar demands when they manually collect and format information. Omniche says some processes that take days can be reduced to hours through automation, better data management and AI.

"The conversation around AI has become too focused on what technology might replace, when the more useful question is what it can give back to people," said Christie Cash, AI and Data Executive Advisor, Omniche Advisory.

The potential value depends on how the recovered time is used. Employees could spend it assisting customers, developing staff or handling work that requires human judgement.

"The goal isn't to make people work faster so we can give them even more work. It's about asking what we could do with the time we give back to them," said Cash.

Process review

Omniche recommends examining workflows across finance, human resources, marketing, IT and operations. This involves identifying bottlenecks, duplicated work and processes that require employees to move information manually between systems.

"Not everybody needs AI. Everybody needs automation. The question is: where are we spending time that could be spent helping customers, being creative, solving problems or developing people," said Peter Gunn, Chief Information Officer and CEO, Omniche Advisory.

The firm says technology may form only part of the response. Existing processes may need to be redesigned before an organisation considers automation or AI.

"Sometimes the answer is AI. Sometimes it's automation. Sometimes the problem is the process itself. We don't want to put AI on a problem that doesn't need it," said Gunn.

Potential projects can be assessed according to their expected business impact, implementation effort, risk and likely return. Organisations can then develop a prioritised roadmap covering immediate changes and longer-term projects.

The intended outcomes may include higher productivity, lower costs, additional revenue, improved quality, faster decisions or reduced operational risk. Each proposed investment should be linked to at least one defined outcome.

Workforce impact

Omniche says removing a repetitive task does not automatically deliver business value. Managers also need to decide how employees will use the additional capacity.

"The point isn't just to take something off someone's plate. It's about giving them the chance to do something more valuable with that time," said Cash.

Managers have a central role because they are close to daily processes and can identify where work becomes delayed. They also influence whether employees consistently use new systems after deployment.

The firm recommends creating an environment where employees can discuss their use of AI and automation, including unsuccessful trials. This can help organisations identify unsuitable tools, improve processes and manage emerging risks.

"People need to feel safe saying, 'I tried this and it didn't work.' If we're going to get the benefits of these technologies, we need curiosity. We don't want people hiding how they're using them because they're worried about getting it wrong," said Gunn.

Measured adoption

Omniche advises businesses to define the underlying problem before adopting AI. A competitor's technology programme or interest in a newly released tool does not establish whether the same investment will deliver value elsewhere.

"AI is a tool. Automation is a tool. Data is a tool. The important thing is understanding what you're trying to achieve," said Cash.

The approach can also identify smaller automation projects that require less effort and deliver an earlier return. These may include automating recurring reports, improving access to existing data or reducing manual data entry.

Human review remains part of the process. Employees need to understand how to assess AI-generated material, recognise errors and determine when specialist judgement is required.

"It can produce something incredibly useful, but you wouldn't take what an intern gives you and send it straight to a client without checking it," said Cash.

Practical training

Omniche works with organisations on technology and AI roadmaps, workforce training and governance. Its training covers AI fundamentals, executive and board education, business applications, AI governance and agentic AI.

The firm also provides practical instruction on tools including Microsoft Copilot, Claude, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook. Its training services developed after clients sought help building their own internal capabilities.

"We started as doers. We were going into organisations and helping them build these things. Then clients started asking us to teach their people how to do it themselves. That's how our training developed," said Cash.

Omniche says adoption should be measured by changes in how work is completed rather than the number of tools purchased or employees trained.

"If we can take three days of manual work and turn it into three hours, that's not just an AI story. That's three days of someone's time that can be used differently. That's where the real business value is," said Cash.