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Process automation is the number one operational strategic priority for 80% of enterprise C-suites. Why? Because automation technologies are helping all companies transform critical business capabilities, enable growth and achieve digital dominance.
Yet business process automation has become its own process. And very few companies have reached the finish line. Whether you’re diving into the world of automation, looking to see how you stack up to your peers or are building a case for automation within your organization, this paper can give you a clear outline of the trends that are shaping automation right now.
Many businesses can no longer afford to utilize their employees’ time on what once made up the core of back-office functions: manual data entry, filling out forms and paper-pushing.
It’s no surprise that a majority of businesses have automation projects currently in place or planned
for processes that involve records and document management (81%), reviews and approvals (82%), customer correspondence and helpdesk (76%), accounts payable and receivable (79%) and HR functions such as timesheet processing or new hire onboarding (77%).
Certain areas of the business are falling behind, including manufacturing and warehousing (just 36% are automating or plan to automate), logistics (42%), and research and development (43%). These findings align with the evolving goals of process automation and can be seen as territory to mine for competitive advantage.
Many businesses can no longer afford to utilize their employees’ time on what once made up the core of back-office functions: manual data entry, filling out forms and paper-pushing. It’s no surprise that a majority of businesses have
automation projects currently in place or planned for processes that involve records and document management (81%), reviews and approvals (82%), customer correspondence and helpdesk (76%), accounts payable and receivable (79%) and HR functions such as timesheet processing or new hire onboarding (77%).
Certain areas of the business are falling behind, including manufacturing and warehousing (just 36% are automating or plan to automate), logistics (42%), and research and development (43%). These findings align with the evolving goals of process automation and can be seen as territory to mine for competitive advantage.
The reasoning behind process automation and improvement efforts are changing. In recent years, Forrester found that the same group of companies who once prioritized cost reduction (30%) and productivity gains (22%) had amended their future process improvement aims to digital transformation (50%) and customer experience
improvement (31%).
As Forrester explains,
“Today, customer experience sits at the heart of the business technology agenda. For business, to business companies, this means making it as easy as possible to engage and do business together. For business-to-consumer
companies, this means simplifying customer-facing processes to make digital interactions quick and delightful.”
According to the Process Excellence Network’s 2017 State of the Industry Process Excellence Survey, the top methodologies and solutions used to support operational excellence projects are:
Lean 84%, ISO 82%, BPM 80% The top three methodologies and solutions companies are planning to implement to support their operational excellence projects are AI 67%, RPA 51%, Dynamic Case Management 46%.
It is exciting to see that artificial intelligence (AI) and robotic process automation (RPA) have matured to a level where major organizations are starting to integrate them into their IT infrastructure. It is also interesting to note that
some of the contemporary-traditional solutions and methodologies considered critical to business transformation success firmly retain their status.
Many companies are using cloud services (62%), mobile devices and apps (53%), and integration across various systems and repositories (50%) to capture, store and route the data that drives processes, promotes collaboration and supports the growth of their information ecosystems.
In order to gain the full benefit of these types of functionalities, one assumes that companies are drawing out a clear digital transformation approach and making sure that technical requirements are aligned with the requirements the business demands. Which leads us to our final examination of process automation — the human element.
Who is working on process automation projects?
The majority of companies have less than 50 employees tasked with process improvement full time (84%). Again, most companies expect to either keep their numbers of process improvement professionals the same or increase them (82%).
Even more important than the number of employees driving digital transformation efforts within an organization is the number adopting them. As the Process Excellence Network puts it, “Companies need to ensure that all their employees are invested in process excellence, and not just those who have been designated to a specific process improvement project or program. They need to ensure that they are hiring and retaining the operational excellence leaders of the future.
Leaders who are able to deal with uncertain and volatile markets and empower their own teams to create business growth.” an article by K2
Contact Musato Technologies today to learn more about our ICT services and solutions.
Gideon Ebonde M. is the CEO and Chief Software Architect at Musato Technologies. He is experienced Software developer with a demonstrated history of working in the information technology and services industry. He has a strong engineering professional skilled in Mobile Application Development, Enterprise Software, AI, Robotics, IoT, Servers, Cloud and business application. He is an accomplished DevOps software engineer and a visionary computer scientist and engineer.
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