Written by Sven Van Hoorebeeck
Under the current COVID-19 circumstances many companies have been pushed to take cost saving measures. Each organization has had to cut down on expenses to be as efficient as possible while feeling the pressure to increase the productivity of the remaining teams. Keeping all those balls up in the air is challenging. Not only do companies have to deal with the ongoing limitations but they also have to think about their strategy to survive the crisis. Some tools could be very useful to help you with these challenges, especially Robotic Process Automation (RPA).
RPA… What?
Robotic Process Automation, or RPA is computer coded software that automates repetitive, time-consuming, business processes to allow your people to have more time to focus on more value-adding tasks. RPA can be used for administrative operational, financial and IT tasks, as well as for back-office support work and might be exactly what you need to revitalize your business.
But I need results & payback fast… I do not have time to wait!
RPA can be implemented quickly and increases operational excellence immediately. RPA is significantly faster when compared to the development time needed of a regular application development project. RPA software mimics the clicks, copy-pastes as well as the logic decisions you make, as a user. This means that RPA software is like a layer on top of your existing applications, behaving just as you would.
Some BrightWolves examples, and the impact they had:
For an HR department, automating 5 processes in applying and offering information to employees. Resulting in
Decreasing throughput time by 95%
Getting customer satisfaction up by 63%.
Manual effort needed from 200 hours / week to 60 hours / week, resulting in a payback period of 8 months.
For a Finance department, automating 3 processes concerning client retributions. Resulting in
Faster client service
Increasing data quality and accuracy
Manual effort decreased with 80 hours / week, resulting in a payback period 6 months
For a Supply Chain department, automating 4 processes in handling order requests. Resulting in
Order throughput time decreased by 60%
Getting customer satisfaction up by 48%
Manual effort decreased with 50 hours / week, resulting in a payback period 3 months
As demonstrated, implementing RPA will save you significant costs in the short term and will pay back itself in only a couple of months. Moreover, it grants the opportunity to your employees to focus on client interaction and intimacy, as you are freeing them from mundane, low value adding tasks so they can turn their efforts to other parts of business where a human touch is crucial.
Nothing but advantages
People focussing on tasks that require human strengths such as reasoning, judgement and emotional intelligence is exactly what your company needs in this crisis. Implementing RPA can help you to focus on those human tasks that really matter. Moreover, we’ve seen that RPA can boost productivity and employee satisfaction all while increasing your customer service level and gaining long-time loyalty.
Finally, RPA will strengthen your business continuity. Unfortunately, the chances of a resurgence of COVID-19 or similar cases are high. By automating your processes, working remotely becomes easier and fewer human interventions are required. This will help your company tremendously to tackle the real challenges a crisis such as COVID-19 invokes. RPA is not just a nice-to-have but a solid tool, with a proven track-record, to help companies weather this COVID-19 storm.
Reach out to BrightWolves to help you delivering fast results with RPA, and bounce back stronger from COVID-19.