How to get the best out of RPA
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) allows human tasks to be automated with computers, it follows the same steps as a human and tries to get the same outcome. According to Gartner in 2018, RPA software revenue grew 63% “although RPA software can be found in all industries the biggest adopters are banks, insurance companies, telco and utility companies”¹. RPA puts power into the business but it is not the strategic solution for dealing with legacy systems.
When new technology becomes available the temptation is always there to slot it into the existing ways of working and carry on. With RPA we see human tasks becoming automated but we risk simply making an efficient process faster rather than looking to the opportunities to get more out of it.
RPA as a tactical solution
RPA can be defined as software robots that take the work that is done by a human and gives it to an automated system. RPA offers a good short-term solution to extend the life of a legacy system as a part of a wider integration project. It reduces employees’ time spent on high-volume, laborious and repetitive tasks whilst saving companies money.
It can be tempting to simply automate the work that is already done but that only be a tactical solution, it can extend the life of a legacy system by hiding it from the users but it will still need to be dealt with eventually.
To get the most out of RPA, 6point6 helps guide businesses to create a well-designed approach that considers their long-term business goals, the details of the processes and most importantly, makes use of a hybrid of automation technologies. This is called Intelligent Process Automation (IPA). It combines our experience of business process management (BPM), combined with RPA and our knowledge of machine learning and AI to meet your long-term business goals. But RPA needs to be implemented as part of a broader strategic project to get the most out of it.
The right way to RPA
Our approach to automation has transformed the daily operations of our clients because we use RPA strategically, looking at the whole company’s processes by leveraging process management and AI.
The approach gets the best out of three core technologies – Workflows, RPA and AI:
- Workflow software allows process modelling, human workflow automation and integration with most existing, modern applications.
- RPA creates a layer of automation over the top of legacy systems that you don’t want to modernise in the short term.
- AI is then the extra layer to automate the decision points in the BPM processes.
We have found that our approach delivers:
- Reduces costs, improves operational efficiencies, and meets compliance obligations
- Identifies areas that can be successfully automated using best practices
- Balances the need between the solutions to meet business outcomes while being technology agnostic
- Recommendations and prioritise implement for the future
Process automation from 6point6
6point6 offers superior automation which delivers faster, highly scalable and automated decision making by automating your business processes using BPM, RPA and AI as depicted in our three-pillar solution:
Our approach to deploying automation at scale begins with an assessment. This is the analysis stage where we engage with your teams and senior management to understand your needs, goals and processes – both in terms of how they work now, and how you want them to work in the future. In this way, we can identify repeatable processes that can be automated and how automation might impact the rest of the company. Our assessment enables you to better understand what automation is needed, and you can use these findings with no obligations.
Get in touch if you’d like to chat to us.
