Roy Dreyfus, Senior Director of IT at Market America, discusses his 14-year automation journey with Dan Twing and Tom O'Rourke on the Enterprise Automation Excellence Podcast. Roy shares how Market America has evolved from basic, disconnected automation tools to a sophisticated orchestration platform using HCL Workload Automation (HWA). Market America is now transitioning to HCL's new AI-powered Uno platform, which combines automation with artificial intelligence capabilities.
Key Points
- Evolution from Basic to Advanced Automation: Market America transformed from using simple automation tools starting in 2016 to implementing enterprise-wide orchestration platforms
- Strategic Vendor Partnership: - After their licensing costs tripled, Market America selected HCL HWA based on exceptional pre-sales support and ongoing customer engagement
- Cross-Process Orchestration Value: Roy highlighted a use case building automated metrics and analytics that examine system performance data to provide meaningful insights for business owners and executive leadership
Takeaways for Automation Leaders
- Fear is the Main Barrier: The biggest obstacle to automation adoption is fear rather than technical limitations. People who avoid automation typically haven't invested time in learning about or using these tools
- Start with Partnership: When exploring new automation technologies, work closely with vendors to access their expertise and provide feedback that shapes product development. This collaborative approach ensures better outcomes
- Embrace Experimentation: Companies that want to stay competitive must allow their teams to experiment with automation and AI tools, recognizing that failed experiments still provide valuable learning experiences
- AI Enhances Rather Than Replaces: Successful automation implementation focuses on making human workers more efficient and capable of deeper thinking, rather than eliminating jobs entirely
- Executive Buy-in is Essential: Advanced automation initiatives require top-down support and investment, as sophisticated AI and orchestration tools typically require significant financial commitment and organizational change
- CI/CD Pipeline Automation Opportunity: There's significant potential to automate software development processes, with 6-7% of enterprise automation jobs already focusing on CI/CD pipeline automation
Show Links
Roy Dreyfuss discussing HCL automation on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1F6Z_3-xfGo
Roy's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leroy-dreyfuss-cio/
Dan's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dantwing/
Tom's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomorourkeEAE Podcast Home: https://em360tech.com/podcast-series/enterprise-automation-excellence
Feedback & Questions: mailto:eaepodcast@emausa.com
