Understanding Business Process Automation

Business process automation is a term that refers to using technology to handle manual, repetitive tasks in business. It makes things run more smoothly, more accurately, and allows businesses to focus on more strategic priorities.

What is Business Process Automation, and How Does it Work?

Business Process Automation is the use of technology to automate repetitive tasks through software that can perform functions currently performed manually. Business Process Automation software is given access to the related data sources, programmed to meet desired workflow, and set to run on either a schedule, a trigger, or as needed. This allows organizations to optimize processes for reduced overhead, faster scaling, and more accuracy of work product in less time.
By automating repetitive tasks staff get to spend more time on other engaging work which increases retention and employee satisfaction.

What are the Benefits of Implementing Business Process Automation?

Increased Efficiency and Productivity

Imagine taking a report process that requires downloading information from multiple systems, organizing it in Excel, then emailing to stakeholders. This process that may take ~8hrs of manual labor and is only performed at the end of the month. With Business Process Automation the entire process of data consolidation, reporting, and dissemination can be automated and processed on an ongoing recurring cycle. Realtime data is more accessible, and the team can dedicate their time towards decision making and proactive thought.

Cost Savings and Resource Optimization

An HR employee may spend 8 hours every other week manually entering payroll data, a sales administrator may spend their entire day creating proposals, the contract team may create routine contracts from data they receive over email and prepare it for signature. All this work can be fully automated so staff can spend time on more work that develops the business pipeline without adding staff as the business grows.

Enhanced Accuracy and Error Reduction

Manually entering payroll data from timesheets, typing information from one system into another, moving web form data into a CRM, and any other process that requires a person to re-type existing data will always have a percentage of human error. By programmatically linking these systems together, the data flows automatically from the source, reducing time but also eliminating data re-entry error.

Improved Customer Experience

Access to accurate data is streamlined so customers get what they need in a fraction of the time, mostly via self-service, and it allows customer service to focus on the customer needs and not be distracted by manual and routine work.

Real-time Data and Analytics

Business Process Automation enables access to real-time data by freeing up staff time on manual tasks and automating data entry processes. Imagine a sales call where the potential customer is automatically entered into the customer relationship management system (CRM) via the process of scheduling a virtual meeting. During that call, meeting notes are captured, and information on the potential customer’s business is automatically gathered from online sources. The salesperson normally would do all this manually, or not at all, taking over an hour to complete the process. Now the salesperson can use the saved time on making more connections, researching industries in depth, or creating deeper connections with potential customers.

Imagine the CFO relying on sales data to project revenue, budgets, and cash flow. With Business Process Automation, the data from the CRM and Finance systems is automatically entered into a shared database where calculations are pre-built and displayed via Dashboards. The CFO would normally do this in spreadsheets over a period of multiple days and hours, or sometimes just at the end of month. Now the team can access the data via a live Dashboard on demand.

Which Industries can Benefit the Most from Process Automation?

Professional Services organizations that generate proposals, contracts, and rely on revenue reports.

Financial departments that perform monthly financial closes, reconcile credit cards, prepare board reports or have an annual audit.

Legal departments that generate regular contracts, NDA’s, or BAA’s.

Healthcare organizations that have time consuming repetitive tasks such as scanning data into medical records systems, report generation from their EMR, population health, and call center systems.

HR organizations and departments that recruit and onboard staff, run payroll, and process leave requests.

What are the Potential Challenges in Adopting Business Automation?

The concept of Business Process Automation is new to many companies, so initially there is often trepidation around the unknowns, then there may be a lack of access to the skills needed to create the automations properly and implement the new systems so staff see the benefit and can easily adapt to the new workflow.

Start small with projects that would improve internal processes but not impact major business functions. Find a reputable firm who can help and start with small projects to build the relationship and vet their expertise.
Communicate with staff about the positive impacts this work will have for them, provide internal training, and only implement as fast as the change can be adopted.

Why and When Should Businesses Outsource Business Process Automation?

Businesses should consider outsourcing business process automation when they face specific situations or requirements that make it a strategic and efficient economic choice. Examples include periods of high demand or workload surges, at a time when all staff resources need to focus on the companies core or strategic priorities, and when cutting costs is a priority.

What Can Businesses Outsource as Part of Business Process Automation?

Reduce repetitive manual work

HR/IT employee onboarding
HR/IT employee exits
Proposal or contract creation
Manual data entry
Report generation
Payroll

Insource

Finance/HR/IT knowledge
Technical skills including API connections between systems
Application development
Microsoft Solutions Partner

How Does Business Process Automation Contribute to Digital Transformation?

Business Process Automation is a foundational element of Digital Transformation. It empowers organizations to operate more efficiently, respond to market dynamics, enhance customer experiences, and drive innovation—all of which are essential for remaining competitive and relevant in today’s digital age.

Digital Transformation involves leveraging digital technologies to fundamentally change how a business operates, delivers value to customers, and remains competitive. Business Process Automation is a key enabler of this transformation in several ways:

Efficiency and Productivity
Cost Reduction
Improved Accuracy
Enhanced Customer Experience
Data-Driven Decision Making
Agility and Adaptability
Compliance and Risk Management
Scalability

How can I Integrate Automation into my Overall Business Strategy?

Identify repetitive/scheduled work starting with most time consuming to least
Identify work moving data from one system to another
Identify reporting that is performed manually, i.e. spreadsheet manipulation

The Future of Business Process Automation: AI, RPA, and Beyond

AI (Artificial Intelligence)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is significantly impacting and has the potential to further transform business process automation in several ways:

Improved Decision-Making

AI plays a vital role in enhancing operational decisions. It can process vast amounts of data and provide real-time insights, enabling businesses to make more informed and data-driven decisions.

Enhanced Efficiency

AI-powered automation streamlines repetitive tasks, reducing the time and resources required. This allows employees to focus on more creative and strategic work.

Cost Reduction

Business process automation, driven by AI, reduces labor costs and minimizes errors, resulting in overall cost savings.

RPA (Robotic Process Automation)

RPA tools have become far more accessible and affordable. Companies are integrating AI into these tools so they can be built without knowing any code. Eventually companies can use natural language to describe what they want and the AI will build the automation to your specification.

The Impact of Automation on the Future of Work

Automation will allow companies to scale faster, by freeing up staff to spend time on new work or tasks. Employees will be able to spend time on more impactful work and accurate data will be more readily accessible for decision making. Customer and employee self service will be readily available, adapted to natural language, and create a much more valued experience.

Business process automation (BPA) is the use of technology to automate repetitive and manual tasks in business processes. As you learned it creates a more efficient organization, improves data accuracy, and allows staff to have more time for work that moves the business forward.

If you are interested in learning more and where business process automation can help your organization please contact us.