This article is the first installment in a series aimed at demonstrating how mid-size enterprises and even small business owners can go about implementing robotic process automation successfully.
The topics that we will touch upon in the later installments of this series are
- Incorporating Robotic Process Automation Services as a part of your strategy to gain competitive advantage
- Understanding how to Purchase RPA – We talk about various options, pricing and how to pick the one that best suits you
- The necessity of bringing key stakeholders into the loop early rather than later
- Creating an organization that benefits from Change (Yes, Change with a capital C)
The overwhelming majority of enterprises, including small and medium-sized businesses, use computer applications to record day to day business transactions. At the very least, they use the following
- HRMS(Human Resource Management System)software to maintain employee details, attendance, and payroll
- Bookkeeping and accounting software to track financial performance
- CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software to keep track of leads and close sales quicker
As the scale of the business grows, they start using specialized software to get things done
- Dashboard analytics software to help top management get a good view of business performance
- Industry specific production planning software to automate core processes
- Company wide ERP(Enterprise Resource Planning) tool help departments stay in sync with each other
So where does RPA fit in all of these services?
If you notice, in all of the above examples, the decision to purchase and use a software tool was taken at the highest level of the organization. Each choice was a strategic choice and RoI was a huge factor in determining final purchase. robotic process automation is the same. Treat robotic process automation as a strategic asset for your organization. As a business, you may have vendors for a number of support services such as printing, property maintenance, background verifiers, third-party QC and so on. These are necessary business expenses. Cost may be the major concern while choosing a vendor or solution. RPA done right can contribute to both the top and bottom line of your company. As such, draft strategic goals for robotic process automation in your organization and treat it as an investment.
Examples of strategic goals that can be achieved using RPA
- Increase collection rates for Accounts receivables by freeing up your accountants time to call your customers directly
- Reduce time taken to process sales by automating purchase order processing
- Shorten time to hire candidates for open positions in your organization by automating resume screening
- Ensure that your company ERP has up-to date real time information by automating data entry
- Reduce Inventory levels by making sure that data is processed on time
- Reduce the number of licenses of expensive 3rd party software that you use in your organization by running a robotic process automation bot that can do 2-10 times more work than a human
As of 2019, RPA is all set to make a huge difference to small and medium businesses as the platforms and service providers become more affordable. The next iteration of long-term sustainable competitive advantage is sure to be driven by RPA automation handled at a strategic level.
