Tuesday, 10:15: Priya copies a number from one screen to another for the 40th time

Pick a process you know. For each step, tap whether a person is reading, typing, copying between systems ("swivel-chair") or deciding. The counter totals the swivel-chair steps and estimates the hours a week they take, using numbers you enter (how many times a day, minutes each). It shows hours, never money. The swivel-chair steps are your automation candidates; the "deciding" steps usually stay human.

You documented processes so developers could build systems. Automation BAs document processes so they can be automated — with RPA, workflow tools or AI — and work out what's worth it. You'll pick a process you mapped before and find the automation case.

Assumes 2–3 hours a day alongside job applications, a laptop and a phone, and free plans only. Every step has a smaller version and a way to pause. Use them. It runs in three blocks of 30 days, each ending with a signal that you're on track. A signal is not a promise of a job or income.

What AI changed in your old tasks

Your first 7 days

Days 1–30: A PDD with a working flow

Signal by day 30: An RPA developer reviews your PDD.

Days 31–60: UiPath basics

Signal by day 60: A screening call.

Days 61–90: Interviews for automation BA roles

Signal by day 90: A case round.

The two worries we hear most about this move

Is RPA (robotic process automation) dying? The tools are changing, with more AI in them, but the need to map messy processes before automating them isn't going away. That mapping is the BA part. Learn one tool's free version so you can talk about it concretely. Will I be stuck documenting while others build? In some teams, yes. If you want to build too, Power Automate's free options let you automate one small process yourself for your proof project. That makes you the BA who can also prototype.

Other worries, such as age, a career gap, no degree, English, family pressure and savings, are covered on the route page and the role page.

One search that fits your background

The full set of search strings for this move is on the route page. They work on LinkedIn, Naukri and foundit; Instahyre and Cutshort are worth a weekly look too. Add your old job title to any of them with AND, so recruiters who want both skills find you first.

Job-hunt moves that matter for this route

• Search 'RPA business analyst', 'automation BA', 'process analyst' on Naukri.
• Service companies and GCCs hire automation BAs.
• Hours-saved numbers make your PDD credible.

Q1. Have I ever drawn an as-is process? If yes, you have the core skill. If no, draw.io and one beginner BPMN tutorial will get you there in a weekend (drawio.com, free).

Q2. Do I enjoy finding where time goes, or only writing it down? Automation BAs measure. Volume, time per item, error rate. If counting excites you even slightly, good sign.

Q3. Am I okay building small things myself? Many automation BA roles want you to build a prototype, not just spec it. Tools like Make and n8n let you do that without code.

Q4. Can I say "don't automate this"? The best automation BAs reject half the candidates. Rare, judgement-heavy or constantly changing steps fail in production.

Q5. Do I know one platform's vocabulary? UiPath, Power Automate, Make, n8n — each has its own words. Pick one to learn properly.

Q6. Can I explain an exception path? "What happens when the invoice number is missing?" is the question that saves projects.

Q7. Am I comfortable with a little data? Basic Excel is enough. You'll count things.

Q8. Who would I show my proof to? Write three names. If you can't, that's your first task for week two.

You already know the hardest tool here: a stakeholder workshop. For the rest, start with draw.io for BPMN, since it's free and nobody at a services company will ask you to install anything. Pick one builder to prove a flow works. Make has a free plan; Power Automate is the safer bet if your last employer ran on Microsoft 365, which most Indian IT services clients do. UiPath Academy's Automation Business Analyst learning plans are free to start. The full tool list, with links and prices, is on the automation BA route page.

1. Choose a dull, frequent process — invoice intake, leave requests, lead capture from a web form to a sheet.
2. Draw the as-is in BPMN with swimlanes. Mark swivel-chair steps.
3. Score candidates on frequency, rules, stability and exceptions (1–5 each).
4. Draw the to-be: what's automated, who handles exceptions, what gets logged.
5. Build one step in Make, n8n or Power Automate using test data only.
6. Record a 2-minute video: before, after, and what you deliberately didn't automate.

Searches for this exact title are small in India (in the low hundreds a month, per OpenSEO on 24 Oct 2026; numbers on the route page). For a BA, that means your old title still matters: recruiters at Infosys, TCS, Wipro and Accenture often post these roles as "process analyst", "RPA BA" or "intelligent automation analyst". Save a Naukri alert for each.

We haven't verified pay data for automation BA or process analyst roles. Compare live listings for your city and experience level rather than trusting any figure quoted in a course ad.

Watch for "RPA job with training" offers that charge a fee first, or "bot testing" tasks paid via personal UPI. UiPath training is on academy.uipath.com. Never share OTPs or UPI PINs with anyone. Use official domains only. Report in India at cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930; in the US at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

Automation BA route · Back to business analyst