Build one repeatable workflow.

Choose a task small enough to inspect.

A useful first workflow has a clear start and finish. “Automate my business” does not. “Turn these approved meeting notes into a draft action list for my review” does.

Define the result before connecting tools.

Write down what the result must contain and what it must never change. For an action list, that might mean retaining exact names, separating decisions from suggestions and refusing to invent a deadline.

Keep the first run manual.

Run the steps yourself with a permitted input. Save the result from each step so you can see where an error entered. Use a small sample, including a case with missing or contradictory information.

• Capture the input and the intended result.
• Run one transformation at a time.
• Inspect the output before handing it to the next step.
• Keep actions such as sending or publishing behind a deliberate review.

Define failure as carefully as success.

Decide what happens when a field is missing, a service is unavailable or an output cannot be verified. A workflow should make an incomplete state visible. It should not silently turn an unknown into a completed task.

Measure the whole job.

Record generation time, checking time, correction time and whether the final result was useful. Compare that with the original process.

Automate only what you understand.

Repeat the manual workflow until its useful parts and failure cases are clear. Then automate a bounded step, preserve the evidence, and keep a way to stop or return to the previous version.

An introductory TQO guide. This is a suggested practice, not a report of a test Tee has personally run.