Automation in Practice: Partner Onboarding Case Study

Automating Complex Business Processes with AI Assistance: A Case Study in Partner Onboarding

The Challenge

The process of launching a white-label solution was both time-consuming and cost-intensive, typically requiring approximately 30 days and an investment of around €30,000 per partner. This was due to the repetitive nature of tasks, manual coordination across multiple teams, and the need to customize parameters such as theme tokens, domain names, brand names, and partner IDs for each brand.

Key Achievements

• 90% reduction in partner onboarding time (~30 days → 3 days)
• 90% reduction in costs (~€30,000 → €3,000 per partner)
• Elimination of manual coordination bottlenecks
• Standardization of processes across all partner integrations
• Scalability to handle increased partner volume efficiently

The Manual Process Breakdown

Before automation, launching a new partner required extensive manual coordination across 8-10 repositories:

Repetitive Manual Tasks

• Brand Asset Repository: Manual logo uploads and asset management
• Search Configuration System: Manual search configuration updates
• Infrastructure Management: Manual domain and SSL certificate setup
• Booking Integration System: Manual booking flow configuration
• Analytics Platform: Manual analytics setup and tracking configuration
• Data Processing Pipeline: Manual data pipeline configuration
• External Service Management: Manual configuration of third-party services like Osano,Mapbox
• Project Management: Manual stories and epic creation in shortcut

Cross-Team Bottlenecks

• Multiple Teams: Different teams responsible for different systems
• Manual Coordination: Creating stories in Shortcut board for each team
• Priority Conflicts: Teams had competing priorities and limited availability
• Timeline Delays: Dependencies between teams caused cascading delays
• Communication Overhead: Extensive coordination meetings and status updates

The Repetitive Nature

For each brand, we were doing the same things again and again, only changing a few parameters in all of the repositories.

Solution: An ideal candidate for automation

We developed a comprehensive automation that orchestrates multiple internal systems . The system features a user-friendly interface where all necessary inputs are provided, then automatically applies these inputs across all relevant codebases.

AI-Assisted Development: Dramatic Time Acceleration

While the Whitelabel Management System dashboard itself isn't rocket science, the AI-assisted development process using Cursor and AI tools dramatically accelerated our development timeline:

Traditional Development Timeline

• Normal Workflow: A project of this complexity would typically take 3-6 months to complete
• Team Requirements: Multiple developers working full-time across different phases

AI-Assisted Development Achievement

• Actual Timeline: Completed the entire CMS dashboard in weeks instead of months
• Accelerated Development: AI assistance with Cursor enabled rapid prototyping and implementation
• Rapid Iteration: Quick testing and refinement cycles

Impact on Project Success

• Faster Time-to-Market: Weeks instead of months to deliver a working solution
• Reduced Development Costs: Lower resource requirements due to accelerated development
• Innovation Focus: More time available for creative problem-solving

Human-in-the-Loop Approach: Automated PR Creation with Review

Our automation strategy maintains human oversight through PR management:

Automated Pull Request Generation

• Direct PR Creation: The system automatically creates pull requests with all necessary changes across multiple repositories
• Reviewer Assignment: Automatically assigns appropriate reviewers based on the changes and affected systems
• Comprehensive Change Documentation: Each PR includes detailed descriptions of all modifications made

Strategic Human Oversight

• Quality Assurance: Human reviewers validate the automated changes before deployment
• System Confidence Building: Gradual trust-building process as the system proves its reliability
• Iterative Improvement: Feedback from reviewers helps refine the automation for future enhancements
• Future Full Automation: This approach prepares the foundation for eventual 100% automated deployment

Benefits of This Approach

• Risk Mitigation: Human oversight prevents potential issues from automated changes
• Learning Opportunity: Reviewers gain insights into the automation patterns and can suggest improvements
• Gradual Transition: Smooth path from manual to fully automated processes
• Quality Maintenance: Ensures high standards while reducing manual effort

Automated External Service Integration

Our system seamlessly integrates with multiple external services through their APIs, eliminating manual configuration tasks:

AWS S3 Asset Management

• Automated Logo Upload: System automatically uploads brand logos and favicons to AWS S3 using aws-sdk
• File Handling: PNG files saved to local packages, SVG files uploaded to S3 for scalable branding
• Path Management: Automatic generation of proper S3 paths and file naming conventions
• Asset Organization: Structured storage with provider-specific directories

Osano Cookie Consent Configuration

• Automated Setup: System automatically configures cookie consent management through Osano API
• Domain Registration: Automatic registration of production domains for cookie consent
• Configuration Management: Setup of consent preferences and privacy policies
• Duplicate Prevention: Detection and prevention of duplicate configurations

Mapbox Domain Management

• Automated Domain Allowlisting: System automatically adds domains to Mapbox allowlists via API
• Token Management: Generation and configuration of Mapbox access tokens
• Geographic Services: Automated setup of location-based services and mapping capabilities
• Security Configuration: Automatic application of security policies and access controls

WMS dashboard Interface: User Experience

The automation system features an intuitive dashboard that guides users through the entire partner onboarding process:

Figure 1:Main dashboard showing the two core functionalities - Whitelabels management and Shortcut Manager integration

Figure 2: Step 1 of the wizard - Brand Configuration interface collecting essential brand information, whitelabel type, and domain settings

Figure 3: Step 2 of the wizard - Brand Assets interface for uploading logos and favicons with automatic file type handling

Figure 4: Step 3 of the wizard - Deploy & Integrate interface showing automated deployment options and pull request management

Figure 5: Real-time configuration preview showing the JSON structure that gets generated and applied across all systems

Figure 6: Project management automation interface for creating epics and stories in Shortcut with team assignment

Flow Diagram

Figure 7: Flow Architecture showing the complete process from user input through processing to multi-system integration

The Approach: Why We Chose This Solution

Why Automation

We chose automation because it could:

Eliminate Repetition

• Automate the same tasks that were being done manually
• Handle parameter variations
• Reduce human error in repetitive processes

Streamline Coordination

• Centralize the entire process in one interface
• Automate cross-team coordination and task creation

Scale Efficiently

• Handle multiple partners simultaneously
• Reduce per-partner resource requirements
• Enable rapid business growth without proportional resource increases

2. Project Management Automation with Shortcut Integration

Our system includes comprehensive project management automation through Shortcut integration, enabling seamless workflow management:

Epic and Story Management

• Automated Epic Creation: Epic creation with predefined templates and context-aware configuration
• Story Generation: Automated story creation with task breakdown and assignment
• Workflow Integration: Seamless integration with existing project management workflows
• Template System: Templates for different types of projects and automation tasks

The Results: What We Achieved

Dramatic Time Reduction

• Before: ~30 working days manual process
• After: 3 working days automated process
• Improvement: 90% reduction in onboarding time

Significant Cost Savings

• Before: ~€30,000 per partner
• After: €3,000 per partner
• Savings: €27,000 per partner (90% cost reduction)

Quality Improvements

• Error Reduction: validation prevents configuration errors
• Consistency: Standardized processes ensure uniform partner experiences
• Scalability: System can handle multiple partners simultaneously
• Team Independence: Reduced dependencies on other teams

Operational Efficiency

• Faster Time-to-Market: Partners can launch in days instead of weeks
• Reduced Resource Requirements: Less team coordination and manual work
• Improved Reliability: Automated processes reduce human error
• Better Scalability: Can handle increased partner volume without proportional resource increases

Lessons Learned

1. Start with High-Impact, Repetitive Tasks

• Identify processes that are done frequently with minimal variation
• Focus on tasks that consume significant time and resources
• Prioritize processes with clear, definable inputs and outputs

2. Design for Safety and Reliability

• Implement duplicate detection and prevention
• Build in comprehensive error handling and recovery mechanisms
• Ensure all automations are safe to run multiple times

3. Maintain Human Oversight

• Provide clear status indicators and progress feedback
• Include warnings for potentially risky operations
• Keep humans in the loop for critical decisions and approvals

4. Focus on User Experience

• Design intuitive interfaces that guide users through the process
• Provide prefilling and smart suggestions
• Ensure clear feedback and status updates throughout the process

5. Plan for Scalability

• Design systems that can handle increased volume without proportional resource increases
• Implement resource management and optimization
• Build in monitoring and analytics for continuous improvement

Conclusion

Our journey demonstrates the transformative power of AI assisted automation in addressing complex business challenges. By focusing on What we were facing (repetitive manual processes), Why we needed automation (bottlenecks and inefficiencies), and How we implemented it (systematic automation approach), we achieved remarkable results

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Special thanks to the incredible team: Dario, Denis, Larissa, Gerrit, and Luis for their dedication, technical expertise, and collaborative spirit that made this automation system a reality. Their contributions transformed our vision into a solution that delivers immediate business value.