Ansible Automation Platform Automation Dashboard: Measure ROI and Operational Metrics (Complete Guide)
By Luca Berton · Published 2024-01-01 · Category: troubleshooting
Learn how to use the AAP Automation Dashboard to measure ROI, track job metrics, and report automation value to stakeholders.
The Automation Dashboard in Ansible Automation Platform provides a centralized view of your automation's operational impact and cost savings. Now embedded directly in the platform UI, it helps teams quantify the value of automation for stakeholders and leadership.
Dashboard Overview
The Automation Dashboard displays key metrics at a glance:
| Metric | Description | Example Value |
|---|---|---|
| Total cost savings | Money saved by automating vs manual execution | $673,890.00 |
| Manual execution cost avoided | What manual tasks would have cost | $172,815.34 |
| Automation development cost | Investment in building automation | $555,994.06 |
| Total hours of automation | Time saved through automation | 2,206.76h |
| Successful jobs | Total jobs completed successfully | 10,950 |
| Failed jobs | Jobs that encountered errors | 141 |
| Templates used | Unique job templates executed | 12 |
| Total hours of automation | Cumulative automation runtime | 39.27h |
| Hosts automated | Number of managed hosts | 11,091 |
| Hosts automated per organization | Breakdown by team/org | 11,113 |
Customizable Cost Parameters
The dashboard allows you to customize the economic model:
- Time taken to manually execute tasks: How long the equivalent manual work would take
- Time taken to create the automation: Development investment for playbooks and roles
- Average cost of employee per minute: Labor cost for ROI calculations
- Cost of AAP per minute: Platform operating cost
See also: How to Use the AAP 2.6 Automation Dashboard to Measure ROI
Filtering and Reporting
Filter Options
- Template: View metrics for specific job templates
- Organization: Compare automation adoption across business units
- Project: Track value by project/repository
- Label: Custom grouping via AAP labels
- Time period: Select reporting windows (week, month, quarter, year)
Export Capabilities
Reports can be exported in two formats:
- PDF: Formatted reports for executive presentations
- CSV: Raw data for custom analysis in spreadsheets or BI tools
Key Dashboard Metrics Explained
Job Execution Metrics
Total number of successful jobs: 10,950
Total number of failed jobs: 141
Total number of templates: 12
Total hours of automation: 39.27h
Number of directly automated hosts: 11,091
Number of hosts automated per organization run: 107,644Cost Analysis
The dashboard calculates savings using the formula:
Cost Savings = (Manual Time × Employee Cost/min) - (Automation Dev Time × Employee Cost/min + AAP Cost/min × Runtime)Top Templates and Projects
The dashboard shows:
- Top 5 Templates: Most frequently used job templates
- Top 5 Projects: Most active automation projects
- Job distribution charts over time
- Success/failure trend lines
Using the Dashboard for Business Cases
Monthly Automation Report
# Example: Automate dashboard data collection
- name: Collect automation metrics
hosts: localhost
connection: local
tasks:
- name: Query AAP API for job metrics
ansible.builtin.uri:
url: "https://aap.example.com/api/v2/jobs/?created__gte={{ report_start }}"
method: GET
user: "{{ vault_aap_user }}"
password: "{{ vault_aap_password }}"
force_basic_auth: true
validate_certs: true
register: job_data
- name: Calculate success rate
ansible.builtin.set_fact:
success_rate: "{{ (job_data.json.results | selectattr('status', 'equalto', 'successful') | list | length / job_data.json.count * 100) | round(1) }}%"
- name: Generate report
ansible.builtin.template:
src: monthly_report.j2
dest: "/tmp/automation_report_{{ ansible_date_time.month }}.html"Presenting to Leadership
The dashboard provides executive-ready data points:
- Cost savings: Direct dollar amount saved vs manual processes
- Efficiency gains: Hours returned to the team
- Scale metrics: Number of hosts managed automatically
- Reliability: Success rate trending over time
- Adoption: Growth in templates and organizations using automation
FAQ
Is the Automation Dashboard available in AWX?
The Automation Dashboard is a feature of the commercial Ansible Automation Platform. AWX provides basic job metrics but not the full cost analysis and reporting capabilities.
How accurate are the cost savings calculations?
The accuracy depends on the input parameters you configure. Work with your finance team to set realistic values for manual execution time, employee costs, and platform costs.
Can I integrate dashboard data with external BI tools?
Yes. Export to CSV for import into tools like Grafana, Power BI, or Tableau. You can also query the AAP API directly for real-time data integration.
When was the dashboard added to AAP?
The Automation Dashboard was introduced in AAP 2.6 (Q3 2025) and enhanced in AAP 2.7 with direct embedding in the platform UI.
Can I schedule automated reports?
Use Ansible itself to query the AAP API on a schedule, generate reports, and email them to stakeholders using the community.general.mail module.
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