Automation and Abstraction

1. the concept of "[[automation]]":

    - a) [[Process Substitution]]:
                - - Refers to automation in the narrow sense
                - - Substituting specific business processes or tasks with machines or software

    - b) [[Business Transformation]]:
                - - Refers to automation in the broadest sense.
                - - Comprehensive automation, including efficiency and optimization, by reviewing the entire operation

2. the concept of “abstraction”:

    - a) [[Implementation Abstraction]]:
                - - Refers to abstraction of data and processing
                - - Abstraction of data structures and algorithms in programming

    - b) [[Business Modeling]]:
                - - Refers to abstraction as a model of business operations
                - - Abstraction to form a "view of operations"

    - c) [[Thought abstraction]]:
                - - Refers to abstraction as a thought process for problem solving
                - - Ability to think logically and generalize

He said he would reorganize the discussion using these names:

1. Mr. A mainly emphasized the importance of “business transformation” and “business modeling.
2. Mr. B pointed out the importance of “implementation abstraction” and “thought abstraction” as necessary skills for “process substitution.
3. Mr. C focused on “process substitution” and suggested specific skills (proceduralization, rigor, and uniformity of work) necessary to achieve this goal.
4. the discussion between Mr. D and Mr. B was mainly about the timing of acquisition and trainability of “thought abstraction”.
5. Mr. A’s final argument was that extensive “business modeling” was necessary for effective “business transformation.

The following useful insights may be gleaned from this arrangement

• By breaking down the larger concepts of “automation” and “abstraction” into more concrete elements, the focus of the discussion and the arguments of each participant become clearer, allowing for a more constructive dialogue.
• In order to achieve effective automation of operations, it is important to take the perspective of automation in a broad sense (business transformation) as well as automation in a narrow sense (process substitution).
• The ability to abstract and model the entire business (business modeling) is essential for successful business transformation.
• In addition to programming skills (implementation abstraction), logical thinking skills and the ability to generalize (thinking abstraction) play an important role in process substitution.
• The capacity for thought abstraction may be improved by early training.

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