Chances are, you’ve already heard of the Future Workforce or the Intelligent Digital Workforce, which essentially is a newer way of referring to Robotic Process Automation (RPA). For the sake of clarity, let’s quickly define it and move on to why you need to adopt this disruptive approach.
RPA is a practice of automating existing repetitive, high-volume, and complex tasks with the help of software “bots.” The bots emulate human-like interaction with multiple systems without changing the current IT landscape.
Another way to look at it is, while humans focus on creating the intellectual value for you; the bots carry out the mundane work much more efficiently and cost-effectively. The best part, you’re always in control of scaling this digital workforce up and down as and when required.
When first introduced, robotic process automation was met with resistance, however, since then it has proven itself to be industry agnostic, and the initial cost of setup is typically dwarfed by internal cost reductions and the significant ROI.
As one of the first steps in digitizing your business, automation will bring control, efficiency, and profitability across operations while you focus on implementing other growth strategies. Keeping the above in mind, let’s get into some RPA success stories that were implemented by UXPLORE; one of our preferred partners in robotic process automation.
Case Study 1: Trade Spend Analysis & Sales Insights
A leading CPG distributor serving all major retailers in Canada used to gather weekly sales data at a store level manually. The data was then cleansed and mapped to product SKUs. Trade spend analysis were performed and shared with stakeholders.
On average, it took 2-3 days to perform this process manually.
Manual Process.
Log into retailer portal to download raw sales data. Repeat for all retailers. Check for data validity and escalate to retailer if any issues. If raw data is valid, clean and transform data. Map data to item code / SKU. Aggregate sales data by SKU. Perform Analysis by SKU. Generate Reports company / brand partner. Share Trade Spend Analysis with each company. “This manual process takes me 2 – 3 days to finish the whole process”.
And now the software bot does it in a few hours or on the same day!
After implementing Process Automation.
Bot gathers sales data per schedule. Bot automatically repeats for all retailers. Apply data validation rules to accept/reject files and auto-escalate. Automatically clean and transform RAW data. Map retailer code to standard item code for each row. Aggregate data at item level. Perform Analysis by SKU. Auto-generate PDF reports for each company. Distribute weekly Trade Spend Analysis and Sales Insights to each company. “Well, with Automated Process give me same day or overnight for that”.
Distributor’s success:
- A fully automated workflow except for escalation management
- 100% accuracy and a 50% reduction in the time cycle
- Increased bandwidth of Financial Analysts
Case Study 2: Purchase Order Management
A telecom operator with more than 200+ suppliers and 1000s of active POs to manage daily needed to ensure that all orders were coordinated, acknowledged, and accurately tracked.
On average, it took 8 hours to perform this process manually.
Manual Process.
Log into Email. Check if any new emails from any suppliers. Save attached PDF. Process the PDF. Lookup PO In SAP. Update PO status with details from supplier. Check for any anomalies. Escalate to Procurement Manager for follow-up. “This manual process takes me 8 hours to finish the whole process”.
And now the bot does it in less than an hour!
After implementing Robotic Process Automation.
Bot monitors incoming emails. All received emails are handled. PDF attachments are stored automatically. PDF attachments are processed. Relevant POs are automatically retrieved in SAP. PO details and status updated per information received. PO is audited per predefined rules post update. Trigger escalation if applicable. “Well with Automated Process, I can do it in less than an hour”.
Company’s success:
- Near real-time processing of POs, improving handling time by 90%+
- Same day escalation when required
- 100% accurate and up-to-date PO status in SAP
Case Study 3: Hiring – Offer Generation, Onboarding, and New Hire Integration
A fast-growing talent recruitment firm that regularly hires a large number of employees and contractors needed a way to streamline the process once the hiring decision was made.
On average, it took 2.5 hours to perform this process manually.
Manual Process.
Hiring Decision. Generate Offer. Email Offer to New Hire. Receive Offer Acceptance. Notify New Hires Manager. Background Check. Setup New Hire in HRIS. Email Account Setup. Setup Payroll. Request Access Cards. Send Welcome Email to New Hire. New Hire Day 1. “This manual process takes me 2.5 hours to finish the whole process”.
And now the bot does it in 8 minutes!
After implementing Process Automation.
Generate Timesheet Report – First Audit. Apply Rules and Filters. Identify Employees with Timesheets Pending. Individually Email Employee a Reminder. Repeat Same Steps for Second Audit. Generate Timesheet Report – Escalation. Identify Employees with Timesheets Pending. Escalate to Manager of Each Employee. Check Timesheet Approval Status. Followup with Managers who are yet to Approve. “Well with Automated Process, takes less than an hour”.
Recruitment firm’s success:
- Increased team capacity by replacing 80% of the manual process
- 100% accuracy of employee master data
- Significantly improved new hire experience through response time
Case Study 4: Time & Attendance Record Tracking & Validation
A leading technology-services provider (this is us actually; mobileLIVE) delivering hundreds of enterprise-grade projects needed to find a way to manage their resources efficiently; more specifically, they needed to accurately track the time spent on projects to ensure revenue and margin assurance.
On average, it took 6 hours to perform this process manually.
Manual Process.
Generate Timesheet Report – First Audit. Apply Rules and Filters. Identify Employees with Timesheets Pending. Individually Email Employee a Reminder. Repeat Same Steps for Second Audit. Generate Timesheet Report – Escalation. Identify Employees with Timesheets Pending. Escalate to Manager of Each Employee. Check Timesheet Approval Status. Followup with Managers who are yet to Approve. “This manual process takes me 6 hours to finish the whole process”.
And now the bot does it in less than an hour for us!
After implementing Process Automation.
Generate Timesheet Report – First Audit. Apply Rules and Filters. Identify Employees with Timesheets Pending. Individually Email Employee a Reminder. Repeat Same Steps for Second Audit. Generate Timesheet Report – Escalation. Identify Employees with Timesheets Pending. Escalate to Manager of Each Employee. Check Timesheet Approval Status. Followup with Managers who are yet to Approve. “Well with Automated Process, I can do it in less than an hour”.
Our success:
- Fully automated workflow with no manual effort or intervention
- 100% follow-up rate with all notifications sent within minutes and multiple times when required
- Significantly increased HR capacity to focus on more value-added initiatives
Small Step – Higher ROI
While you may view process automation as a means to increased profitability and efficiency, in reality, it does much more than that. By teaming humans and bots together, you are relieved of time-consuming, repetitive, but essential tasks. Instead, you will find more energy to focus on implementing growth strategies and business-critical decisions.