Robotic Process Automation - IBM

Robotic Process Automation Leading with robotics and automation in a fast-paced, digitally disruptive environment

Removes the human element from a multi-step repeated task

Can help improve accuracy and reduce errors downstream Helps create value by re-appropriating high value skills to innovation

Enables competitive advantage through 24/7 operations as robots are programmed to operate nonstop without breaks “Disruptive innovation” is now a regular occurrence. This term describes how new entrants target the bottom of a market and then relentlessly move up market, eventually ousting established providers1. To mitigate the impact of digital disruption in this fast-changing global economy, companies are taking a new look at their processes for ways to drive cost improvements and operational efficiencies. While the ability to automate processes has been around

Reduces risk and delivers measurable outcomes with visible impact

for a very long time, it has evolved to enable cognitive automation through autonomous decision making, new insights through data discovery and personalised support. Today, outsourcing and shared services solutions can leverage robotic automation to increase accuracy and reduce costs. RPA ‘robots’ are revolutionising the way we think about and administer business processes, IT support processes, workflow processes, remote infrastructure and back-office work.

“Automation is delivered at different levels, each offering a broad spectrum of business process benefits and capabilities.” Robotic Process Automation (RPA) explained RPA is the automation of a wide range of administrative tasks through specific software algorithms that interact with multiple applications and computer-centric processes, to execute transactional processes at User Interface (UI) level. It is best and most commonly employed for rules based, predictable, and replicable processes that require handling high volumes of structured data. It is an intangible asset. RPA offers excellent opportunities to automate process activities in the “white space” that falls between different technologies. It is different from previous automation innovations in that it is highly accessible and visible, allowing users to monitor and audit logged processes completed by RPA tools. RPA can deliver benefits in functional areas including Human Resources, Finance, Accounting and Customer Service. Specific industries such as telecommunications, utilities, mining, travel, retail and highly regulated industries including healthcare and financial services can also utilise RPA. It can be integrated into any industry where highly repetitive, rule based processes are performed on a high frequency basis. Banks can embed RPA in credit card fraud management, including account closures and chargeback processes, to enhance compliance levels, customer query resolution timeframes and accuracy.

One of the key benefits of RPA is that it can operate 24/7 Unlike FTEs, it allows a business to remain operational outside of standard working hours and maintain operational efficiencies. It is also highly scalable and responsive to fluctuations in work demands, allowing deployment as needed. Implementing robotics is more likely to shift Human Resources Managers' focus to recruiting higher-value adding roles rather than routine based roles.

Taking advantage of robotics to improve back office functions

Automation and cognitive technologies has been identified as key C-Suite priorities

The delivery of business processes typically involves several low value repetitive tasks like entering data or moving between multiple screens. These tend to be time consuming and error prone due to human involvement.

There is increasing focus on moving to a greater use of digitisation as companies build the foundation to enable them to implement a path to cognitive operations. Cognitive computing dramatically transforms business processes through automation and intelligence. IBM Watson drives and manages RPA by applying cognitive analytics to monitor customer, supplier and employee behaviour through its ability to:

A number of technologies can be deployed to minimise or remove these types of tasks and automate access to the appropriate screens. One such technology is Desk Top Automation which is a technology that can remember the key strokes of a given process and store them to be called later by the operator. Once this has been automated in the technology, then only the minimum data requirement needs to be entered, such as client code, and the system will automatically call the appropriate screens and add data into the necessary fields.

• Understand natural language, structured and unstructured data • Generate and evaluate hypothesis’ for better outcomes • Adapt and learn from user selections and responses IBM’s establishment of dedicated Centre of Excellences’, market visibility, delivery and execution are only a few reasons why IBM was identified as a “market specialist” in the Mindfield’s Robotic Process Automation Report 20152.

The impact of this is to virtually automate the process and remove all of the micro steps - greatly reducing the time the process takes to execute. high

MARKET SPECIALISTS Genpact

Sutherland

high

Cognizant IBM

MARKET VISIBILITY

EMERGING PLAYERS

Wipro

MARKET SPECIALISTS Infosys

HP

EXI

Genpact

Sutherland

MARKET VISIBILITY

EMERGING PLAYERS

Cognizant IBMWNS Wipro EXI

Dell

HP

Infosys EXPERIMENTERS Tech Mahindra

WNS

iGate

low

Dell

low

high

DELIVERY AND EXECUTION

EXPERIMENTERS Tech Mahindra Source : Mindfields.net.au

iGate

Source : Mindfields.net.au

low low

DELIVERY AND EXECUTION

high

Why IBM IBM brings a total service value derived from our ability to listen, understand your business needs, then assemble and deploy the full breadth and depth of our considerable resources, creating economies of scale and end-to-end process harmonisation for your enterprise. IBM’s RPA offerings require very little implementation time and can often be delivered within 1 to 3 months, allowing your business processes to be improved, and deliver results to end users in a minimal amount of time.

Learn more To learn about our Robotic Process Automation capabilities, please visit: ibm.com/bpoutsourcing/au Or for more information, please call: 1800 557 343

1. IBM Institute for Business Value. “Redefining Boundaries: Insights from the Global C-suite Study 2015”. IBM Corporation. http://www-935.ibm.com/services/c-suite/study 2. Robotic Process Automation: Driving The Next Wave Of Cost Rationalisation. 2015. © Copyright IBM Corporation 2016 All Rights Reserved. IBM and the IBM logos are trademarks of IBM Corp registered in many jurisdictions worldwide. A current list of IBM trademarks is available on the Web at "Copyright and trademark information" at www.ibm.com/legal/copytrade.shtml.