It is a well-known fact that robotics is already a reality when it comes to transforming business processes. But many people are still trying to understand how process automation changes human responsibilities in the chain of activities, without eliminating jobs. In this sense, it is worth noting that RPA (robotic automation process) is actually freeing employees to handle larger workloads and focusing on higher value-added activities.
RPA is a technological application that allows companies to configure software (or robot) to capture, interpret and process information used in the daily business routine. Several departments and areas of companies – whether small, medium or large – are undergoing revolutionary changes.
Automation is dramatically changing the way companies work.
This technology can be subdivided into three categories:
- Rule-based automation – Robots that obey a set of predefined rules that describe tasks.
- Enhanced/smart process automation – Robots that can understand unstructured data, human communication (e.g. voice or email) and come to conclusions after cross-checking data.
- Cognitive platforms – Robots that learn from experiences in the same way that humans do, with the aim of performing complex tasks without human interference.
However, employees will need to learn new skills to become business analysts dedicated to creating strategies on business growth and how to make existing business processes smarter and smoother. Or they can also be trained to become RPA experts (does the new process comply with regulatory requirements?), RPA evaluators (deciding what to automate next) and RPA strategists (responsible for the change management needed to ensure a successful RPA implementation).
Large organizations need to innovate, execute and evolve constantly to stay competitive. Nowadays, data is a big part of processes, and we have so much data that we need to not only digitalize, but also operationalize. Organizations need to change their mindset to automate anything that can be automated.
In the coming years, RPA will impact virtually all vertical processes, including finance and accounting, HR, customer service and much more. Companies that have deployed RPA will begin to notice promising automation opportunities almost everywhere they’re looking for.
Repetitive tasks will soon be fully automated, allowing human workers to work on business growth strategies and make existing business processes smarter and smoother. The idea of a “digital workforce” to augment the human workforce will no longer be just a concept; it will be a reality. We will enter the era of the bot-enabled human.
