calculate the cost saved by workflow in sap

Calculate the cost of the manual process in terms of man hours. Don't neglect the time spent gathering information. Ask the following questions:

1. Is the user forced to log into different systems, or scan through printed documentation....?
2. Does a skilled user spend time on parts of a task, where less skilled (less expensive) user could do the groundwork? I.e. Can a single task be split into skilled and unskilled tasks to free the skilled worker for work where his/her skills are really needed?
3. Is time spent researching the progress of a process (usually done by someone not involved in the process directly)?
4. Is time spent determining who to give the task to next?

Probably the most significant cost will the be the cost of failure?

1. How often does the process fail?
2. What is the real cost of failure? Loss of a contract? Loss of a customer? Law suit?
3. If the failure can be rectified, how labor intensive is it?