Operational Context
In early 2024, our team was handling high volumes of RTC (Real-Time Compliance) images. These images arrived in bulk and needed to be sorted into specific state and format folders for auditing. What started as a manual "drag and drop" task eventually became the perfect candidate for iterative automation development.
The Journey: From v1 to v2
Many automations are built as "one-off" scripts, but the best systems are refined over time. This post breaks down the jump from a basic helper to a robust production tool.
v1: The Brute Force Mover
The initial version of the script was a standard "Brute Force" automation. It would look at a source folder and move all files to a single destination.
- Problem: It didn't distinguish between file types (JPG vs PNG) or specific audit requirements.
- Workflow:
- Select source.
- Select destination.
- Move all.
v2: The Intelligent Sorting Engine
As requirements grew, v1 became a bottleneck. I refactored the logic to implement Conditional Extension Processing.
- Improvement: Added a logic branch that identified the file extension before the move.
- Story: This allowed the bot to automatically route
.jpgfiles to one folder and.pngfiles to another, ensuring the destination hierarchy was preserved without human intervention.
5-Point Production Structure
1. The Strategy
The shift was from Task Completion (just move the files) to Process Intelligence (sort while moving).
2. The Logic
I replaced the single "Move Files" block with a Loop + Case Switch structure.
- PAD Detail:
If FileExtension contains 'jpg'->Move to Folder A.
3. Verification
We staged 1,000 mixed-format files in a test directory. v2 successfully sorted them with 100% accuracy, while v1 would have required 3 separate manual runs to achieve the same result.
4. Implementation
By making the script "format-aware," we reduced post-processing time for the audit team by approximately 45 minutes per day.
5. Troubleshooting (RCA)
Insight: Files with no extensions or hidden system files were causing the bot to hang. Fix: Added a file-type filter to only process known image formats, ignoring system overhead files.
Career Signal: Refactoring for Scalability
This evolution demonstrates the core of a Business Analyst mindset: identifying a working-but-flawed process and iterating on it to create higher ROI. It's not just about making it work; it's about making it smarter.
