Reducing the Work About Work 

When I look at how UC is used inside real organizations, the headline problem is not a lack of communication. It is the volume of coordination work that sits around communication.  

Asana’s Anatomy of Work research has put a blunt number on it. Knowledge workers can spend 60% of their time on “work about work”, tasks like chasing updates, switching tools, and searching for information 

UC platforms sit at the center of that swirl. Which is why I see workflow automation as the next serious battleground. The value is not another feature inside meetings, it is fewer handoffs and less admin for the average employee. 

Here is my take on the buyer priorities and vendor strategies defining workplace automation currently. 

The Buyer Priorities for the Initial Pilot 

My advice for buyers running a workflow automation pilot is to start with a simple lens. Ask two important questions: Does workflow automation connect to the systems that matter? And does it turn UC activity into action that survives beyond the meeting? 

In the pilot stage, the green flags are not flashy AI features.  

“The green flags are how extensive the integration options are.” 

I would ask what systems of record the platform integrates with, specifically, CRM and IT service management systems. If workflow automation cannot connect to where your organization actually runs its work, you are not piloting automation – you are piloting unnecessary labor. 

The second test is UC-native continuity. Buyers should ask themselves “How well does this integrate with my current UC stack?”. The failure mode is common: you end up with a meeting transcript and recording sitting in isolation, with no ability to identify task allocation or drive follow-through.  

I’m sure many will agree that it’s pointless when action points sit in isolation in a transcript without being connected to other systems. 

Telling Better Stories – What Vendors Get Wrong 

On the vendor side, I think the biggest mistake is over-focusing on messaging that does not match buyer maturity. 

 “In particular, vendors should slow down their grand claims about AI reinventing work.” 

The truth is that the market is no longer dazzled by big promises. Buyers are looking for practical help reducing operational friction. 

This means that new technologies should fit around your workflow. When vendors push a narrative that implies customers must reinvent how they work to match the tool, they are selling disruption, not productivity. 

“The stronger story is to position workflow automation as something closer to infrastructure than a feature.” 

Buyers want vendors that treat AI workflow automation as operational infrastructure where it’s owned and governed and maintained like any other critical system. 

Without that, the outcome is predictable and ugly: a mess of half-working automations that no one really trusts and everybody blames. 

Where Workflow Automation Will Make a Difference 

A lot of AI features get launched because they are possible, not because they are useful. I am skeptical of that approach – just because you can do something doesn’t make it a productivity tool. The buyer’s world is full of examples of features that exist but do not get used. 

Where workflow automation earns its keep is in the cracks between channels, priorities, and deadlines. If I update a report and notify a colleague, but they miss it and the deadline is looming, I want automation that makes the priority unmistakable.  

That is the shift UC buyers and vendors should focus on: workflow automation that orchestrates attention and action across the UC client and the systems of record, rather than producing more summaries, transcripts, and unused features. 

Executive Summary and Next Steps 

The opportunity in the UC market is clear. Workflow automation can turn communications into business action, reduce friction, and cut human latency where it actually hurts.  

The winners, on both sides, will focus on fewer manual steps and fewer broken handoffs, not louder AI hype. 

To find my full discussion on the role of workflow automation in the modern enterprise, read my full interview with UC Today here. 

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