Example Co. · IT Service Desk · 2026-10-19 to 2026-10-23
That is 1.2–1.9 full-time people of capacity, worth $134K–218K a year at $62/hour loaded labor cost. 47% of the low estimate comes from 4 tasks agents can run, with a person approving each change; 44% from 2 tasks an agent could take on once the team settles on one way of doing them; the rest from AI helping people work faster.
| Task | Recommendation | Team h/wk | Back h/wk | $ / year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Status update emails to users 323× a week · 6 people · Microsoft Outlook | Automate (after one way of working is agreed) A Copilot Studio agent with Power Automate reads each ServiceNow ticket's status and work notes, drafts the follow-up or resolution note in the standard wording, and queues the Outlook email to the requester. Because policy bars unattended actions, the analyst approves each email in one step before it is sent, and the agent then saves the resolution note on the ticket; unusual or sensitive tickets go to the analyst to write. With: Copilot Studio, Power Automate, Microsoft 365 Copilot | 34.4 | 12.0–18.9 | $34K–54K |
| Password resets and account unlocks 283× a week · 6 people · ServiceNow, Active Directory Users and Computers, Confluence | Automate Build a self-service flow in Copilot Studio with Power Automate that verifies the caller through the company's identity check (for example a manager or registered-device confirmation), then prepares the password reset or unlock in Entra ID/Active Directory and writes the resolution note in ServiceNow. The analyst approves each reset or unlock in one step before the agent applies it and closes the ticket, and handles callers who fail verification or have unusual cases. With: Copilot Studio, Power Automate, ServiceNow | 33.1 | 11.6–18.2 | $33K–52K |
| Triage and route incoming tickets 294× a week · 6 people · ServiceNow | Automate (after one way of working is agreed) An agent built in Copilot Studio with Power Automate reads each new ServiceNow ticket, sets category and priority from the description and the requester's details, and assigns it to the right group using the existing routing rules. Unclear or low-confidence tickets go to an analyst queue, and the analyst approves the prepared category, priority and assignment in one step before the agent applies it, since policy doesn't allow unattended changes. With: Copilot Studio, Power Automate, ServiceNow | 24.7 | 8.6–13.6 | $25K–39K |
| Provision software and access requests 126× a week · 6 people · ServiceNow, Microsoft Edge Takes 7–12 min on average depending on the person; worth checking whether the steps could be standardized. | Automate A Power Automate flow, with a Copilot Studio agent for unclear cases, reads each approved request in ServiceNow, confirms the manager's approval is recorded, and maps the item to the right Entra ID group or Microsoft 365 license. The analyst approves the prepared change in one step, then the flow applies it, updates the ticket and writes the resolution note. Requests with no recorded approval, unrecognised software or licence shortages go to an analyst. With: Power Automate, Copilot Studio, ServiceNow | 19.9 | 7.0–10.9 | $20K–31K |
| New-hire device setup 12× a week · 5 people · Microsoft Edge, Microsoft Excel Takes 26–55 min on average depending on the person; worth checking whether the steps could be standardized. | Automate When a new-hire ticket in ServiceNow has a recorded manager approval, a Power Automate flow looks up the Autopilot device and the user in Intune and Entra ID, prepares the assignment and checklist updates, and the analyst approves the prepared change in one step before it is applied. The flow then adds the resolution note to the ticket, and the analyst handles exceptions such as missing devices or hardware problems. With: Power Automate, Microsoft Intune, ServiceNow | 7.2 | 2.5–4.0 | $7K–11K |
| Remote troubleshooting sessions 83× a week · 6 people · Event Viewer, Quick Assist, Device Manager | AI assist The company asked to keep remote troubleshooting with people, so analysts still run the Quick Assist sessions. Microsoft 365 Copilot can suggest likely causes and fixes from past ServiceNow tickets and Confluence articles before and during the session, and draft the resolution note for the analyst to check and save on the ticket. With: Microsoft 365 Copilot, ServiceNow, Confluence | 26.3 | 2.1–5.3 | $6K–15K |
| Search and write knowledge articles 134× a week · 6 people · Confluence Takes 5–7 min on average depending on the person; worth checking whether the steps could be standardized. | AI assist Put a Copilot Studio assistant over the Confluence knowledge base so analysts ask a question inside ServiceNow and get the relevant steps and article link, instead of opening and reading articles. Copilot can also draft new or updated articles from the ticket's resolution note, and the analyst reviews and publishes them. With: Copilot Studio, Microsoft 365 Copilot, Confluence | 13.1 | 2.0–3.9 | $6K–11K |
| Specialist tasks (done by fewer than 5 people) Pooled so no individual's time can be identified. |
| 2.7 | 1.1–1.8 | $3K–5K |
These are "swivel chair" steps: people carrying information from one system to another. Connecting the systems directly usually removes the step entirely. The biggest: ServiceNow → Active Directory Users and Computers, about 270 times a week.
| From → to | Mostly during | Times / week | Copy-paste |
|---|---|---|---|
| ServiceNow → Active Directory Users and Computers | Password resets and account unlocks, Search and write knowledge articles | 270 | 72% |
| ServiceNow → Microsoft Entra admin center | Provision software and access requests | 93 | 58% |
| ServiceNow → Microsoft 365 admin center | Provision software and access requests | 12 | 92% |
The rest were retyped by hand. Detected from a value seen in one app reappearing in a field being edited in another; the values themselves are never stored.
Possible entry errors: 8% of values retyped from ServiceNow into Active Directory Users and Computers were one character off from the source.
What the team's leads estimated at the start, next to what was measured. Differences of 8 points or more are worth a conversation: they usually mean hidden work, or work that has quietly moved elsewhere. This time: Remote troubleshooting sessions, Status update emails to users.
| Task | Estimated share | Measured share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Remote troubleshooting sessions | 25% | 16% | less than expected |
| Password resets and account unlocks | 20% | 21% | |
| Provision software and access requests | 20% | 12% | |
| Triage and route incoming tickets | 15% | 15% | |
| Status update emails to users | 10% | 21% | more than expected |
Measured shares are of tracked work; meetings and chat are not tracked.
How the work actually flows → · Where AI agents fit →
HourBack observed 6 people for about 1 week(s). Results are team totals only; groups smaller than 5 are never reported, and no individual data is available to anyone at the company. Chat, meetings and personal apps were not captured, so total hours are lower than paid hours. Ranges are first-year estimates after review time, exceptions and adoption; the low end is the planning number. Dollar values use $62/hour for IT Service Desk Analyst (loaded hourly cost, provided by sample figures). Yearly values assume 46 working weeks.