What You Need to Know about Robotic Process Automation
Let’s start with the most sensitive of these, cost reduction. One could quickly conclude that automation of any kind is an attempt to reduce headcount. After all, simple math shows a bot running 24/7 could eliminate three full-time equivalent associates working eight hours/day. While cost savings is certainly a benefit, it turns out it’s not the main motivator behind RPA. Case studies show most organizations that have implemented RPA note increased efficiency and effectiveness of their workforce as key factors. The associates relieved of routine tasks are re-focused toward more valuable or rewarding activities. Furthermore, with more advanced and complex automation comes not only increased efficiency, but also an increased dependency on the accuracy and skill of the human operators. More efficient, more effective and more optimal use of the workforce often leads to increased associate and customer satisfaction. Associate burnout and fatigue are reduced while customers receive faster, error-free service.
Measuring Robotic Process Automation Success
How is successful RPA measured? In its simplest form, ROI is often directly associated with financial benefits divided by cost. To get a true picture you must define “benefits.” Certainly, benefits can come in the form of increased revenue. If only it were all that simple. With RPA, an organization must consider the value of increased hours back to the business, the cost of improved customer experience, decreased time to market, business agility and ability to scale up/down, and employee delight. Of course, each of these areas has its own ROI calculation, but now the simple formula becomes complex–and perhaps ROI is no longer a simple math function. Organizations that have successfully implemented RPA enter the initiative with clear objectives and a picture of the desired outcomes across multiple functional areas such as those listed.
We’ve covered the definition of robotic process automation. We also touched on some examples of how RPA bots perform functions, add accuracy, add efficiency, and help with management and compliance. And we poked around RPA strategy, benefits and ROI. You might ask what’s next. Look no further than artificial intelligence and machine learning, both of which will play a bigger role in RPA. While AI/ML is expanding the scope of what tasks we consider automatable, the biggest impact is on the type of information RPA can ingest. Integrating AI and ML capabilities into RPA solutions can unleash powerful new functions. For example, extracting and indexing data from email attachments can be challenging, especially if every customer uses a different layout for their purchase orders. AI and a trained ML model can identify what is in a document and then process or route as necessary.
Explore RPA Opportunities
Interested in exploring RPA opportunities? Ingram Micro has partnered with Gartner Magic Quadrant market leader, UiPath, to deliver RPA solutions. UiPath offers a powerful set of RPA software solutions that can help organizations speed up their digital transformation and is genuinely considered a catalyst for introducing automation strategy into the workplace. Ingram Micro has built up considerable expertise in UiPath’s products and licensing requirements. Ingram Micro has consulting expertise that can assist partners in opportunity identification, design thinking and advisory services.
For more information, contact [email protected].
Andrew Schmidt is Senior Business Transformation Engineer at Ingram Micro.
This guest blog is part of a Channel Futures sponsorship.
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