TL;DR: The most forward-thinking organizations now have an automation champion — someone responsible for scaling AI, streamlining processes, and turning technology investments into measurable ROI. Whether or not they hold the title “Chief AI Officer,” every company needs a leader who owns the automation agenda.
AI adoption is accelerating, but here’s the truth: most companies don’t need more tools — they need someone to make sense of them.
Enter the Automation Champion — part strategist, part technologist, and part change agent. They’re the person who wakes up every day thinking about how to make the business faster, smarter, and more efficient using automation and AI.
And according to Zapier, if your organization doesn’t have one, you’re already behind.
Zapier’s 2025 report calls this role the AI Transformation Leader — the person responsible for connecting automation to business impact. Titles vary — Director of Automation, Head of Digital Transformation, VP of AI Strategy — but the mission is the same: make AI real.
Why this matters now:
The Automation Champion bridges that gap — translating hype into measurable performance.
Gartner and Deloitte echo this trend, highlighting the rise of Automation Centers of Excellence (CoEs) — internal teams led by champions who coordinate strategy, governance, and execution. It’s not just a tech initiative; it’s a new discipline of operational leadership.
Automation champions aren’t coders buried in scripts — they’re cross-functional leaders who:
In essence, they serve as the Chief Efficiency Officer — driving the digital transformation agenda while ensuring it aligns with financial outcomes.
Without an automation champion, transformation stalls.
Zapier’s research found that organizations without a dedicated automation leader struggle with:
In contrast, companies with a central automation leader scale automation 3x faster, according to Gartner’s 2024 Digital Operations report.
Because at the end of the day, technology adoption isn’t a side project — it’s a leadership function.
At one fast-growing SaaS company, the operations director quietly became the de facto automation champion. They started by streamlining the deal desk and approval workflows using no-code tools. Soon, finance and HR followed suit, creating automated handoffs between departments.
Within a year, they’d:
They never received the title “Chief AI Officer.” But in practice, that’s exactly what they were.
These leaders already exist inside many organizations — they just need recognition, resources, and support.
Ask yourself:
If you can name that person, empower them. If you can’t — it’s time to find one.
Automation won’t scale on its own. It needs ownership.
Not every organization can hire a “Chief AI Officer” right away — and that’s okay. The role can emerge organically from your existing leadership team.
Here’s how to formalize it:
This doesn’t require a reorg — it requires intent.
The biggest obstacle to AI success isn’t technology — it’s fragmentation.
Too many organizations are stuck in pilot mode, experimenting without integration. The automation champion shifts that mindset, creating a culture where innovation becomes operationalized.
This person sets standards, drives adoption, and ensures automation becomes part of the company’s muscle memory.
As Zapier notes: “If you don’t have an AI Transformation Leader, you’re already behind.” The speed of AI adoption is no longer just a competitive advantage — it’s a survival requirement.
Mello empowers automation champions to execute their vision without custom development or vendor sprawl.
With Mello, leaders can:
In short: Mello gives automation champions the control and visibility they need to deliver measurable outcomes.
Every business is now a technology business — but not every company is led like one.
The rise of the automation champion marks a turning point: a shift from scattered experiments to strategic execution. These leaders don’t just implement tools; they redefine how work happens.
You don’t need a “Chief AI Officer” on your org chart.
But you do need someone who owns automation — because the future of efficiency, agility, and innovation depends on it.
