7 steps to successful robotic process automation

The transfer of most employees to remote work posed a number of challenges for companies. And if people cope with creative tasks at home easily, routine processes often cause problems: print the report in PDF and send it to colleagues in time, go into two systems to get data for comparison, etc. Problems with home Internet, with remote access, with the availability of colleagues – all this significantly slows down the processes and reduces work efficiency.

RPA (Robotic Process Automation) successfully solves the problems that have arisen. Robots do not get sick, always work, do not make mistakes and send the necessary information by e-mail. They can be easily administered and modified by remote. In addition, RPA solutions integrate perfectly with corporate systems, and in conjunction with the BPM system they can implement comprehensive automation of most of the company's processes.

Implementation of software robots does not take much time. It takes two to four weeks to robotize a single process. This is despite the fact that processes can be robotized in parallel, and one robot is capable of processing several different processes. However, pitfalls exist here as with the implementation of any IT solution.

Further, I propose 7 steps that will help you to robotize your processes quickly and without errors.

Step 1. Identify suitable processes

One of the most common mistakes is robotization on the principle of "robotizing what is easier and more understandable." Robots will work, but it will not always pay off. At the company we highlight three key features that indicate that the process needs to be robotize:

• First: the process is often repeated. It makes no sense to robotize a process that runs once a month or less, unless it contains a lot of manual work.
• Second: the process input always has a standard data format. The robot will not be able to process handwritten text or an ever-changing format (although solutions for these two cases are gradually appearing).
• Third: the process is clearly formalized. It will not change in the near future. It often makes sense to optimize the process first so that it does not change in the coming months.

It is also very useful before starting work to conduct an express examination of the processes and draw up a so-called "heat map", i.e. rank processes according to the speed of robotization and the effect of it.

Step 2. Optimize selected processes

Companies often skip this step and optimize the processes "as is". However, a critical look at existing processes does not take much time, while allowing to reduce the execution time and cost of the process in the future. Often, when you look from the side at a process that has been running for years, you find the following problems:

• Some steps of the process do not serve any purpose and are not needed by anyone – they can be abandoned altogether.
• Some steps are repeated several times, although once is enough.
• The data format that is the result of the process is outdated. Its change will make life easier for colleagues in the neighboring department.

Many more examples can be given, but there is only one sense – the process needs to be optimized before it becomes robotic.

Step 3. Choose the system that suits you

A sufficient number of RPA systems are now on the market. With such a variety, the choice is not always easy.

We successfully cooperate with such vendors of RPA solutions as UiPath, Automation Anywhere and PIX Robotics. Our experts will be happy to advise you on choosing a suitable system.

Here are some tips for buying licenses:

• Vendors often offer good discounts when buying multiple licenses at once. If you plan to expand robotization, be sure to take an interest in such offers.
• You can get discounts if you conclude a license agreement not for one year but, for example, for three or five years.

Step 4. Make a pilot project

Set aside time for a pilot project. This will allow to both see the capabilities of the selected system and "sell" the technology to your colleagues and management. It makes sense for the pilot to choose a very simple and at the same time an indicative process that can be robotized in just a day or two. For the pilot process, I recommend choosing integration with a maximum of one corporate system and realizing the ability to send emails by the robot to you and your colleagues.

The pilot's great advantage is the ability to build communication with the solution provider, configure the test and development environments. What is also important, the "pilot" will allow to work out interaction with the information service and the security department. They are often the stumbling block in fast robotization and should be involved in the project at an early stage.

Step 5. Combine team

Often companies choose two opposing approaches to robotics. The first is "we do everything ourselves, sell us only licenses." And the second – "we don't understand anything in robotics – come and robotize our processes."

Both approaches have disadvantages. In the first case, as a rule, due to the lack of experience of their own team, robotization moves slowly and with errors. In the second case, the processes can be quickly robotized, but difficulties arise at the support stage due to the lack of competencies within the company.

For successful robotics, we usually offer a combined approach. We begin to robotize processes and simultaneously transfer knowledge to several employees of the client. This allows you to quickly and efficiently robotize the main pool of processes while maintaining knowledge within the company. If the client wants to organize a full-fledged Center of Excellence in robotics, we will attract exactly those client employees who from the very beginning actively participated in robotics.

Step 6. Create your own Center of Excellence

The most effective way to successfully develop robotics in a company – create your own Center of Excellence.

It is possible to write a separate article on creating a Center of Excellence, but I will offer the first steps:

• Find in your company two or three people who are interested in robotics and who are ready to learn.
• Give them the opportunity to take robotics courses so they can quickly get involved in the process. For example, NFP provides various RPA courses (you can study remotely).
• Include them in a team of external consultants so that your employees can help with robotics and learn at the same time.

After the introduction of software robots, the internal Center of Excellence will take on the role of developing RPA, supporting robotic processes, training other company employees, searching and evaluating new processes for robotization. One of the important tasks of the Center is to ensure the efficient use of already implemented robots.

Step 7. Manage changes

One of the most common questions we hear from customers is: "How stable are robots after implementation?" And here it all depends on the customer himself: how well he works with updates and making changes to IT systems.

A working robot is sensitive to changes in the systems with which it is configured to integrate. For example, if in the new version of the system the button on the form is located not at the top, but at the bottom, the robot will not be able to determine it. And although intelligent computer vision systems are gradually appearing on the market, they have not yet received wide distribution.

Therefore, for the robot to work stably, it must be included in the testing circuit of those systems with which it interacts. For this, the joint work of the IT department and the Center of Excellence for robotics is very important. The IT department should inform about planned updates and changes in the systems and involve the Center of Excellence in the testing process.

In conclusion

Robotization as an urgent measure can significantly facilitate the work and simplify the transition to "remote". Many companies that had doubts yesterday, weighed the pros and cons, today are forced to make decisions in a few days. At the same time, being an urgent decision, the robotization of processes in the long term will become a serious competitive advantage. And of course, the company's efficiency in the new conditions will only increase.

RPA project manager at NFP Sergey Tkachev talks about how to transfer employees to remote work and successfully maintain or even increase work efficiency.

Sergey Tkachev
RPA project manager at NFP