Turning Crisis into Scalable Automation with a Lean IT Team
Industry: Retail • 
Employees: 5,000+
Challenge
A shrinking IT team managing 9,000+ devices with no automation, increasing alert fatigue, and manual ServiceNow processes.
Solution
Introduced low-code workflow orchestration through Itential, enabling a non-developer network supervisor to build production-ready workflows.
Why Itential
Selected Itential for its low-code simplicity, tool orchestration, and ability to act as a force multiplier for small, resource-constrained teams.
Doing More with Less in a 1000+ Store Operation
When the network supervisor at a leading retail and fuel chain learned they were about to lose a key consultant, one thing was clear: the network team’s workload was about to double with no increase in support.
“We’re going to be reduced to a team of two soon, and leadership doesn’t want project timelines to slip.”
The challenge extended far beyond staffing. Supporting 9,000 network devices across 1,000 distributed locations meant the small IT team was constantly firefighting just to keep operations running.
Every alert, no matter how minor, was routed directly to the network team. Overnight VPN alerts would trigger wake-ups, even if a backup path was already active. Systems engineers lacked the automation needed to determine alert criticality, forcing manual intervention every time.
Routine operational work consumed most of their day:
Manual Firewall Ticket Review
ServiceNow tickets for firewall changes required manual review and validation to avoid creating duplicate rules.
Repetitive Discovery for Network Changes
Each request involved repetitive discovery steps to confirm the right objects and configurations.
Constant Ticket & Alert Load
Strategic projects and modernization initiatives were delayed because engineers were stuck managing tickets and alerts.
The network team knew they needed something more than a tool, they needed a force multiplier.
We don’t have a lot of developers to help us plug APIs into things, we run a really lean IT organization.
Department Supervisor, National Retail + Fuel Chain
The Turning Point: Automation Without Developers
The team partnered with Itential to explore how low-code network orchestration could help them deliver more with fewer resources.
In a single two-hour workshop, the network supervisor – with zero prior automation experience – built a working configuration change workflow using Itential’s drag-and-drop visual studio.
That first success proved a powerful point: automation was no longer out of reach.
With Itential’s low-code platform, the team could build, run, and scale workflows without writing a line of code or waiting on developer resources.
What we built was a simple workflow to update an interface configuration. Someone else on the team could come in later, choose their device and interface, and the workflow would handle the rest.
Department Supervisor, National Retail + Fuel Chain
Key Breakthroughs:
No Coding Required
Engineers used drag-and-drop workflows, not scripts.
Instant Validation
A working automation built in a single session.
Reusable Patterns
Workflows could be cloned and repurposed for other use cases.
Empowerment
The team could own automation directly without new hires.
This early win reframed what was possible. Automation was no longer a long-term vision; it was a practical solution ready to deploy immediately.
From After-Hours Alerts to Strategic Work
Building on their first success, the network team began rolling out five high-priority automation use cases to reclaim time and reduce operational pain.
Anything that acts as a force multiplier helps, Itential lets us build what we need without waiting on developers.
Department Supervisor, National Retail + Fuel Chain
Automation Use Case & Operational Outcomes
ServiceNow-Driven Change Automation
Eliminates manual discovery for firewall and network change requests, reducing tasks from hours to minutes while preventing duplication.
After-Hours Alert Remediation
Automatically diagnoses common network issues, determines criticality, and either self-remediates or escalates with full diagnostic context. Targeting a 60–80% reduction in overnight escalations.
Reusable Workflow Templates
Enables faster scaling of automation across new network operations.
Assurance-Driven Workflows
Incorporates network validation before and after changes, eliminating the need for a separate assurance platform.
By automating repetitive work, the team freed up valuable time to focus on modernization and strategic delivery.
The Cost of Not Automating
Without automation, leadership would have needed to backfill the lost consultant – an estimated $150,000 in annual cost – just to maintain the same level of output.
Instead, automation allowed the small team to scale operations while improving responsiveness and consistency.
The team transitioned from reactive firefighting to proactive, scalable operations – delivering results leadership could measure.
Quantifiable Benefits:
- 60-80% reduction in middle-of-the-night escalations.
- Time-to-completion reduced from hours to minutes on change requests.
- Significant annual cost avoidance from not needing to hire additional staff.
- Operational resilience with standardized, repeatable automation.
- Higher team morale from fewer alert interruptions and repetitive tasks.
Why They Chose Itential
When asked if Itential could replace the need for a separate network assurance tool, the supervisor didn’t hesitate: “Absolutely.”
Itential was the only platform that met the team where they were – lean, overextended, and focused on doing more with less.
What Made Itential the Clear Choice:
Low-Code Workflows
Built by engineers, not developers
Fast Time to Value
Production-ready workflows built in a single workshop
Integration Across Existing Systems
Connect with SolarWinds, ServiceNow, Meraki, Azure, and PagerDuty
Turnkey Orchestration Layer
Eliminate silos and simplifies management
Governed Automation
Leverage audit-ready workflows and standardized processes
Assurance-Ready Automation
Reduce need for additional tools
True Force Multiplier
Let small teams managing large infrastructures
The more turnkey, the better. With Itential, we can actually build and run what we need, fast.
Department Supervisor, National Retail + Fuel Chain
Turning Crisis into Competitive Advantage
What began as a staffing challenge evolved into an automation-driven transformation.
With Itential, the retail chain’s network team:
- Automated repetitive work to reduce human error.
- Eliminated overnight firefighting for common alerts.
- Accelerated ServiceNow-driven workflows.
- Freed engineering time for strategic initiatives.
- Delivered greater business value without additional headcount.
Today, this lean IT team isn’t just keeping up – they’re leading change across their network operations. Their journey shows how automation, when accessible and intuitive, can empower even the smallest teams to operate at enterprise scale.
Itential is the force multiplier that turns lean teams into high-performing automation leaders – helping every engineer automate, integrate, and innovate without writing a single line of code.
