Digital workflows can sound amazing or perplexing depending on your perspective, but what can they really mean for a small company? Business automation isn’t just for big firms with large development teams. Software solutions—either out of the box or custom—are putting automation within reach of enterprises of any size. Companies can certainly invest in complicated and high-functioning RPA, but even simple automation can make a huge difference in efficiency and capabilities for small businesses.
So what is RPA? Well, in short, it stands for robotic process automation. Of course, it doesn’t involve actual robots. It’s more about taking advantage of artificial intelligence and machine learning via software to perform simple and easily repeatable tasks. For instance, an employee can program an application to scan all invoices for payments to identify ones from a certain customer or automatically generate a building clearance when a new employee is entered into the HR system. And new software solutions are making it easy for any employee to set up a digital workflow, even if they aren’t trained coders.
When teams are able to hand off the drudgework that can easily be handled by machine, it can only mean good things for companies. Employees are freed up from mindless data entry and have more time for the truly creative and innovative work that only humans can do. And for small companies, having their manpower go further can give them the ability to take on more than they ever thought possible.
Still wondering how your company might implement digital workflows? We’ll outline how small companies can (and have successfully) reap the benefits of digital automation.
Finance and Accounting
Your finance function might have the most turnkey applications for RPA, particularly when paired with AI and ML. For instance, no one will miss taking the time to submit or process invoices. Employees can just scan their receipts and allow AI to pull the relevant expense information. At the same time, algorithms can take the amount from scanned invoices and enter it into your financial system or match invoices to purchase orders. The list goes on and on, from reconciling bank accounts to taking information from files and building tax returns, to any number of other basic accounting tasks. And many common enterprise accounting software programs are already built to seamlessly work with RPA, meaning you won’t need new licenses to find new efficiencies.
Human Resources
So much of the work that HR specialists want to do includes employee development, recruitment, and making your company a better place to work and a place that talent wants to stay. What do they actually end up doing? So much busywork. Digital workflows can relieve the burden, from automating the onerous process of onboarding new employees to scheduling interviews and templating emails to candidates.
Business Development
Looking to stay on top of the competition? RPA can help with everything from compiling news on your competitors to scraping the financial statements displayed on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s website.
Customer Service
Respond to customer issues faster with smart workflows. Your team can set up a program to go through customer messages and identify keywords to automatically route complaints to the right inbox or individual. Or, if your products get lots of reviews, AI can determine common terms to help you get faster customer feedback and improve your offerings.
Application Development
From quality assurance to software deployment, there are plenty of tasks that are easy to automate. Automated testing, in particular, makes it efficient to certify large, complex applications and ensure a smooth launch.
General Tasks
Every employee has that mundane task that sucks up their time, from data entry to scheduling to sorting through emails. RPA, particularly when paired with AI and ML, can help with everything from cutting and pasting data to checking and autocorrecting information so that everything is in the right format.
Industry Applications
Industry-specific applications are endless. Insurance companies can process claims, financial institutions can handle loan or mortgage paperwork, utility companies can field change of address notifications, and more. If your industry has a repetitive, data-based task, rest assured that RPA can make it simpler.
Want to know how digital workflows can work for your company? Whether you have ideas for RPA or just a vague inkling that you can work better with digital automation, DOOR3 can help. Tell us what your company needs and we’ll work with you to come up with a digital workflow that’s right for your business.
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