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As technology continues to advance at an unprecedented pace, businesses must keep up with the latest trends to remain competitive. In just two months after its launch, the AI-based application ChatGPT has already gained over 100 million monthly active users. People are learning how to use it more effectively, and sharing their learnings in a positive feedback loop. Communities have been built with the purpose of sharing input prompts and ideas for extracting the best quality output from the tool. Microsoft is betting heavily on the future success of ChatGPT with a massive investment in the partnership with OpenAI.
The Potential of Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
While AI has made significant inroads into our lives and businesses, it is not the only technology that organisations need to consider as part of their digital transformation journey. Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is another technology that has started to gain significant traction in recent times, particularly due to its potential to streamline business operations. RPA is a technology that enables businesses to automate repetitive tasks with greater accuracy and speed than humans. RPA will not make assumptions based on outdated or potentially incorrect data sources to provide a result, and the automation workflow is completely visible to the business, enabling it to be updated as new requirements are identified.
The Growth Trajectory of RPA
With its first-mover advantage, the market for RPA experienced growth of around 20% in 2022 and is expected to continue this growth trajectory for many years to come. The potential for RPA to transform businesses is immense, as it frees up employees' time, reduces human error, and improves efficiency. RPA also enables businesses to scale operations without adding extra personnel and expenses. If you are able to grow the wallet share of your existing service catalogue by delivering the same services faster, cheaper or with more accuracy than your competitors with the use of automation, it is a fairly easy calculation to quantify the return on your investment.
When COVID first enforced business shutdowns and working from home there were quick transitions made by businesses which changed established ways of working and used technology to speed digital adoption and enable new modes of delivering business services. Introducing RPA was part of this transformation for a number of businesses around New Zealand. Many organisations have realised the need for automation to ensure business continuity, and as a result, we have seen increased interest in RPA from customers across every sector in the last 12 months.
Industry Leaders Shaping the Future of RPA
RPA industry leaders UIPath and Microsoft have the largest brand awareness in New Zealand. They are both in the upper right of the Gartner magic quadrant for 2022 and have a proven ability to partner which ensures customers of The Instillery will achieve their automation goals. Both Microsoft and UIPath have process discovery tooling (Task Mining and Task Capture respectively) which reduces the need to engage technical BA resources to complete process mapping and enables a faster path to automation.
Getting Started with RPA
Getting started with RPA can seem daunting, but following a few key steps can help ensure success:
- Establish an automation Centre of Excellence (CoE) within your organisation. This will help ensure that automation efforts are coordinated and aligned with business objectives. The CoE can also provide governance, training, and support to those involved in automation.
- Choose the appropriate RPA tool for your organisation. There are many RPA tools available, and selecting the right one will depend on your specific needs, budget, and technical expertise.
- Implement the chosen tool. This will involve configuring the tool, integrating it with existing systems, and creating automated workflows.
- Start with low-hanging fruit. Begin by automating simple, repetitive tasks that can deliver immediate benefits. Resource management, accounts payable, accounts receivable, and unstructured data ingestion are good candidates for automation.
- Retask employees on different value-added tasks. As automation takes over mundane tasks, employees can be freed up to focus on higher-value, more strategic work.
- Measure ROI. It is important to track the impact of automation on the business. Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) and regularly review them to ensure that automation is delivering the expected benefits.
If you're interested in learning more about how RPA can benefit your business, don't hesitate to contact us! Our team of experts is ready to assist you in your automation journey and help you achieve your business goals.
