It might be bit difficult to accept the argument that robots are good for human race if you still live in the fantasy world of sci-fi movies. In real, the combination of machines and humans working together is something we have recently started accepting. Robots or you can say automated machines have taken the work load from human beings and have left us with time and energy which can be invested in achieving important value driven objectives.
What is Robotic Process Automation?
Robotic process automation (RPA) is the usage of computer software or a “software robot” for automating transactions, triggering events, processing data and communicating with other systems.
While automation has been around for two decades but last two years has seen an exponential progress and impact in many industries. The acceleration of RPA has not only opened opportunities for enterprises to further save on cost but also streamlined the business processes by automating the tasks performed with human intervention. Quite a few businesses are using RPA to optimize operational efficiencies while also developing a motivated and a high impact team.
Some human intervention will be required to monitor and update the RPA tool, but there are sufficient examples and case studies where productivity has been achieved by deploying RPA.
Four Use Cases Where RPA Delivers Proven Value
1 - IT Support & Management
IT Teams are highly skilled and have valuable resources. But they spend too much time manually undertaking administration tasks, taking back ups, running system checks and managing batch process. Companies can optimize their IT resources with the support of automation which can take over mundane administrative tasks and can consistently investigate and solve problems for faster throughput. RPA facilitates IT department to deliver technology based services and solutions more reliably and efficiently.
2 - Banking
With the widespread adoption of virtual banking, the financial firms had to step up their game to deliver the best user experience to the customers so as to create a mark among competitors. Like many other industries, financial field is heavily dependent on the documents and legacy systems. From the initial application to account management documents, to deposits & withdrawals to loan documents, there is whole lot of daily transactions that generate documentation. With RPA it is easy to bridge the legacy systems and create a uniform approach to data management. By moving tedious, manual tasks from human to machines, banks have seen a direct impact on everything from performance, efficiency level to recurring expenses. RPA also creates a transparent environment where every single data transaction is recorded, stored for easy retrieval at any given point of time.
3 - Big Data
More and more data is being generated across multiple sources and it’s becoming difficult to manage and analyze it. Manual and human intervention leaves a greater margin for error. With RPA, you can automate this high volume, low complexity tasks that would ensure optimal resource utilization and improve employee productivity. RPA can replace human activities and can be deployed to transfer, manipulate and migrate system data quickly which reduces the high instances of human error.
4 - Human Resources
The arrival of different softwares hasn’t changed the job of HR. HR managers are juggling with multiple systems and managing the information on current employees, past employees, new hires, payroll and benefits. Deploying RPA automates the highly mundane, repetitive tasks of HR and it facilitates team to focus more on strategic and value added work. Employees can be redeployed to focus on work that requires human judgement and creativity.
Robotics has been a part of our lives since a long time now and will continue to add to human abilities of work, home and play. The capabilities have evolved so much that we are now looking at it with renewed interest. RPA definitely will open up more opportunities than a traditional sourcing model in order to manage a fundamentally changed environment. Analysts strongly believe that RPA advantages like reduced staff costs and improving accuracy level will further enhance RPA implementation in the industry.
Over the years, CIGNEX has leveraged the best of automation and business process management combining with our Open Source technology expertise to streamline operations of our clients. Click here to learn more about our RPA services.
The article has been featured in CMS Report written by Chandni Bhagchandani, Corporate Communication Manager, CIGNEX. You can read the same here.
