RPA is one of the most innovative technologies to emerge in recent years. But what is RPA? In short, robotic process automation utilizes “digital workers” that can mimic human tasks through the power of software bots. Learn more about robotic process automation in our blog.

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What is RPA?

If you follow business trends, you’ve likely heard of the benefits of RPA. RPA adoption is happening at a massive scale, and businesses certainly don’t want to get left behind. But what is RPA and what are its benefits? If you’re familiar with the tenets of business automation, artificial intelligence, and software bots, you’re well on your way to understanding RPA. If you’re needing a primer, or simply a refresher on what is RPA and how powerful it can be when it's implemented in a business, check out our breakdown below.

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What You Need to Know about RPA

RPA, shorthand for robotic process automation, is when you teach software bots to mimic and perform tasks that would normally be done by humans. Robotic process automation software bots are able to perform these actions in a digital environment, and they can perform these actions much more efficiently than the human workers they’re mimicking. Think of them as a virtual workforce. This makes many business processes more efficient and effective. It also frees up human staff to do more strategic and billable work. Meanwhile, your bots are working 24/7, on holidays and weekends, without needing to stop. These automated tasks can always be happening in the background, greatly increasing the amount of work your business can take on. 

Let’s take a quick look at a video of business process automation in action to show you how powerful it can be. In the video below, bots are able to complete a 20-minute task in 45 seconds. This is just one example of how RPA implementation works:

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What are the Capabilities of Robotic Process Automation Bots?

Although RPA can feel like magic at times, it does have its limits. Robotic process automation is capable of performing many kinds of tasks and optimizing thousands of potential workflows. But that doesn’t mean it can do everything. When it comes to robotic process automation bots, they have to follow some simple principles. Here are several things to keep in mind to determine if a process is a good fit for RPA implementation:

• They must follow rule-based processes. 

• In other words, the task should be defined by simple rules and should require little to no decision-making on the part of the bot. An example would be automatically updating data.

• The process must either be interval-based or have a defined trigger. 

• Put simply, the bot needs instructions as to when it should perform a task. Those instructions could indicate a certain time the task needs to be performed or indicate a certain action that causes the task to be performed. 

• The process should be high-volume. 

• RPA works best when it’s taking care of large volumes of work that would be extremely slow or tedious to do manually.

• The process should have defined inputs and outputs. 

• In simpler terms, the start-points and end-points of a process should be clear and easily read. 

• The process can have a high rate of error.

•  RPA is great at handling tasks that would normally cause multiple errors if done manually.

• The process can take place off-hours. 

• Bots don’t get tired and they can work around the clock. RPA is a great solution for businesses that need tasks constantly running in the background or running all hours of the day and night.

These are just a few of the types of processes that are good fits for robotic process automation.

There are more processes that can be automated than you might think. Even processes that require some level of human intervention can benefit from RPA bots doing the batch processing.

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How Can RPA Technology Benefit My Business?

Robotic process automation benefits businesses across a myriad of industries. Organizations that take advantage of RPA technology almost unanimously agree that it meets or exceeds their expectations, according to a survey done by Deloitte. An impressive 92% of respondents indicated that RPA technology is beneficial to them. If you haven’t used RPA before, you might be surprised by the number of applications it can be used for. If your business starts taking advantage of the potential of robotic process automation, here are just a few of the benefits you might expect to see:

Cost Savings and Significant Return on Investment‍

RPA bots can prevent time from being wasted on manual tasks. Employees can significantly cut down on these menial, repetitive tasks and put more hours into strategic work. Thus, cutting costs while also driving profits.

Happier, More Engaged Employees

‍When employees are able to work on meaningful, strategic work and not be bogged down by repetitive tasks, they enjoy work more. Businesses with robotic process automation solutions implemented often see less turnover and more engaged employees overall.

Increased Productivity‍

Not only can RPA take care of repetitive tasks for workers it can also expedite workflows that are more hands-on. When your employees don’t have to be hands-on with menial tasks and when they can automate aspects of their current processes, a sharp increase in productivity is to be expected.

Fewer Human Errors and Simpler Compliance‍

When human workers are taking care of administrative tasks, it can be easy to make mistakes or let something slip through the cracks. With bots, you don’t have to worry about them getting tired or missing things. You don’t have to worry about human error and you’ll see fewer errors in general. Also, bots can help automate compliance-related applications. You can program your bots to adhere to compliance regulations and identify potential errors in documents and tax forms.

Easier Scalability‍

Robotic process automation bots are flexible and adaptable. When you’re seeing an increase in demand, it’s simple to ramp up. If you’re needing to scale a process to the next level, it’s easy to do this as well. With RPA, you can be prepared for exponential growth at any time. 

Better Customer and Client Service‍

RPA robots allow you to automate processes related to customer and client service user interfaces, making it faster and easier for them to get the help they need. With RPA, the customer experience will go much smoother. 

This list of benefits is by no means exhaustive. There are numerous benefits, tangible and intangible, that businesses see when they start utilizing robotic process automation tools in earnest. The transformative powers of robotic process automation can be overstated. With the right bots in place, you can really revolutionize your workflows. 

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What Industries Can Utilize RPA?

A better question is what industries can’t utilize robotic process automation? RPA is becoming so prevalent in the modern business environment and its capabilities are so vast that almost any industry can benefit from the advantages RPA brings to the table. 

Here are just some of the industries that are using RPA on a widespread level:

• Healthcare
• Insurance
• Finance
• Information Technology
• Manufacturing
• Public Service Sector
• Legal
• Life Sciences
• Telecommunications
• Consumer Packaged Goods
• eCommerce
• And many more

If you’re looking to start utilizing RPA software in your business, and you’re not sure if it’s a good fit, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. As a service provider, we’re happy to provide you with a free consultation to figure out your potential automation needs.

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Robotic Process Automation vs. Artificial Intelligence

When the robotic process automation conversation is brought up, it’s common to get it mixed up with artificial intelligence and machine learning, a subset of AI. Although these two technologies aren’t the same, they don’t have to be mutually exclusive. In fact, artificial intelligence can actually improve the performance of robotic process automation. 

Artificial intelligence is programmed to think like a human and apply what it learns to help make human-like decisions, without the need for actual human input. Robotic process automation solutions are simpler. You tell the bot how to do a task and it performs that task. However, you can integrate artificial intelligence technologies with RPA software with the right programming know-how. You can give your bots abilities like image recognition, machine learning, and more.

So, although these two technologies are different, they can actually work in tandem to make your automation systems even more robust and complex. 

If you’re wanting more information on the differences between these two technologies, this video provides a great, quick primer that’s a little bit more in-depth:

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Getting Started with RPA Applications

Now that you have a sense of what RPA software is capable of, you might be wondering where you should even start. A quick way to get started would be to utilize some free versions of some common automation platforms, such as UiPath and Automation Anywhere. These platforms have solutions that can help you automate simple workflows and get started with RPA. 

Alternatively, if you’re ready to jump into the deep end, it’s a good idea to hire an RPA service provider. An RPA service provider can implement all of your automations in the most impactful way possible. They can also do it much faster than if a company tried to take care of implementation themselves. So, here are a few different places for you to start if you’re ready to give robotic automation a try:

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UiPath, Automation Anywhere, and other Robotic Process Automation Platforms

When it comes to plug-and-play RPA processes, RPA vendors and automation platforms are about as close as you can get. They allow you to implement front and back-office RPA applications in your business, utilizing the RPA tools that are available on the platform. There are free versions of many RPA platforms, but if you’re looking for an enterprise-level solution, it’s often necessary to upgrade to a higher tier. These RPA platforms allow you to set up both attended automation and unattended automation, as well as intelligent automation. Attended RPA bots are activated by employees and help expedite processes that require human actions, while unattended bots operate off a logic trigger or a set schedule. 

Although there is often a learning curve to using these RPA platforms, many businesses are able to start seeing the benefits of RPA software bots by utilizing these platforms.

Need some more comparison between these platforms? Check out this RPA tools comparison video to learn more: 

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Done-for-You RPA

If you’re looking to maximize RPA’s potential, then choosing an RPA service provider is the way to go. An RPA service provider will be able to look at your entire business operation and find the areas where RPA systems can make the most impact. They also take care of all the integrations and implementations for you. This means no training for the platforms necessary, no hours going into implementation on your part, and no errors in your workflows. RPA service providers make sure you’re getting the most out of RPA software robots. This is definitely recommended if you’re wanting to implement RPA solutions on a company-wide scale while also keeping your legacy systems, as you can run into a lot of problems when you go the DIY route with implementation.

If you’re in need of a service provider, we here at Bailey are automation experts. With a full team of RPA developers, consultants, and experts you can always utilize us to take care of your robotic process automation implementations. We also offer free consultations, so you can always find out if it’s a good fit before truly diving in.

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Utilizing the Full Potential of Robotic Process Automation

As you can see, robotic process automation is full of potential and has the ability to transform a business on a macro and micro level. RPA software is so multi-faceted that it can be a bit intimidating to start implementing. If you have any questions about getting started with an RPA developer or expert, or questions about RPA solutions in general, feel free to drop us a comment below.

Robotic process automation isn’t just a flash in the pan, it’s here to stay. With robotic process automation a vast array of industries can automate and expedite their workflows, providing them with incredible benefits and results.