Digital transformation through automation

It would not be right to view the world in silos or segments. World events alongside national and even personal events provide a mixing bowl that affects decisions all along the spectrum. The emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic and recent conflicts have put companies in a situation where they need to compete more creatively and perhaps even more aggressively. Each business, whatever the size, is being compelled to complete their digital transformation at a faster rate to stay relevant

One strategy that is taking on a new role in assisting this transformation is that of automation of processes and repetitive dayto-day activities. Automation has started to play a significant role in enabling companies to transform themselves to remain relevant. There was a time where in order to innovate and keep abreast with challenges, one had to change software by removing older systems and replacing them with new ones. Recently, many companies have resorted to adding a new layer to their application stack. That of an “automation layer”. The automation layer sits right at the very top of the stack, above the application layer; a layer that sits in between the user and the various applications.

Automation is carried out using software robots that can mimic back-office tasks such as extracting data, filling forms, sending emails, and moving files just like a human operator would do. Using APIs and the user interface provided, robots can perform repetitive tasks consequently freeing users to focus on higher value duties.

Many-a-time accuracy and speed are overruled by compliance regulations. Mistakes in compliance can prove to be very costly for businesses. This with the additional pressure of the pandemic and other local regulations and audit verifications that one must comply to. Accuracy and efficiency quickly become the prime need for a business to operate properly. Time and time again, many are turning to software robots to get the job done. Robots deliver tirelessly and are more reliable than the human workforce as they are not affected by the surrounding environment.

Before the use of robots, it was left to people to periodically extract data from different sources and compile the necessary reports. Robots, once correctly configured, will do the job quicker and eliminate errors.

There are many situations where robotic automation can be beneficial in a wide range of industries and their respective processes, such as:

• Banking and Finance

• Customer onboarding

• High-volume data entry

• Compliance

• Insurance

• Underwriting tasks

• Claims processing

• Compliance

• Retail

• Customer relationship management

• Customer feedback

• Fraud detection

• Health Care

• Compliance

• Information management

• Prescription management

• Insurance claims

• Payments

Benefits to automation are plenty, such as saving time on operational tasks, reducing costs or reducing human errors. But one must be careful when considering a move towards the adoption of robot automation within an organisation. Typically, consideration must be given to the size of the operation to be delegated to robots. Several questions must be put forward, such as: what impact would the automation of such a process have on the organisation at large?

If the area of deployment is small or else infrequent in execution and doesn’t significantly contribute to the overall business, then one should reconsider introducing automation. On the other hand, if the benefits are clear, one must make sure to leverage them as best as possible. Look for quick wins within the organisation where benefits are visible and easily measurable. Easy quick wins will be high volume processes that are lightly integrated to others. This will help achieve visible results and confidence in the technology in the short run.

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