One of the most common mistakes MSO leaders make with automation is trying to do too much at once. The back office is full of inefficiencies, but not all workflows are equally urgent—or equally valuable—to automate first. Choosing the wrong starting point can create disruption without delivering meaningful relief.
The goal isn’t to automate everything. It’s to automate the functions that create leverage, reduce fragility, and stabilize growth.
Start With Workflows That Break Under Volume
The best candidates for early automation share one trait: they degrade rapidly as volume increases.
These workflows often include:
- Referral intake and fax processing
- Eligibility and benefits verification
- Prior authorization initiation
- Scheduling readiness checks
- Claim status tracking
When these processes are manual, even modest growth creates backlogs, delays, and missed work. Automating them immediately absorbs volume without requiring new staff.
Prioritize Functions That Depend on Timing, Not Judgment
Early automation should focus on workflows where success depends on when something happens, not who does it.
Examples include:
- Kicking off authorizations as soon as a referral arrives
- Following up on stalled claims at defined intervals
- Escalating incomplete documentation before submission deadlines
- Advancing intake steps automatically when prerequisites are met
AI excels at these timing-sensitive tasks because it never forgets, never waits, and never gets overwhelmed.
Automate Where Errors Create Downstream Damage
Some back-office errors are inconvenient. Others are expensive.
High-impact automation targets include:
- Documentation validation before billing
- Authorization requirement checks
- Referral completeness verification
- Claim data quality checks
Automating these steps prevents denials, cancellations, and rework that cost far more than the automation itself.
Focus on Workflows That Span Multiple Teams
The most fragile workflows are those that cross departments.
Referral intake touches intake, benefits, authorization, and scheduling. Revenue cycle work crosses clinical documentation, coding, billing, and collections. When humans manage handoffs, work stalls.
Automation creates continuity by owning the workflow end to end—ensuring work progresses even when teams are busy.
Avoid Starting With Low-Volume or Highly Custom Work
Not every problem needs automation on day one.
Low-volume exceptions, edge cases, or highly specialized workflows often benefit more from human oversight initially. Automating these first can create complexity without meaningful ROI.
The rule of thumb: automate what happens hundreds or thousands of times per month, not what happens occasionally.
Choose Automation That Fits the MSO Model
Automation should support centralization, not undermine it.
The right early workflows:
- Can be standardized across sites
- Reduce local variation
- Improve visibility for central teams
- Scale as new practices are added
If a workflow only works for one site or one specialty, it’s not the right starting point.
The Bottom Line
MSOs don’t need more tools — they need operational leverage.
The best first automations are those that:
- Absorb volume
- Prevent errors
- Reduce staff burnout
- Improve speed and predictability
- Scale cleanly across locations
Get these right, and automation becomes a foundation—not a distraction.
