Implementing Robotic Process Automation (RPA) in your organization may at first seem like a double-edged sword. While it offers the promise of cost savings and business growth, executives and employees are understandably concerned about the threat of job destruction. On the contrary, automating your employees’ mundane tasks through RPA can improve productivity and transform your workforce.
The Current State of Workforce Productivity
The biggest obstacle for employee productivity today is the administrative duties that are taking away time from business-driving activities. Harvard Business Review states that knowledge workers spend about 41% of their time on repetitive low-value tasks, leaving little time for more impactful tasks that truly require human interaction. As a result, companies in the United States alone spend an annual average of $687 billion on administrative work unrelated to employees’ core responsibilities.
Employee Engagement is Vital
Routine tasks don’t just cost your company money; it may also cost you your employees. According to Deloitte’s Talent 2020 survey, 42 percent of respondents who are seeking new employment feel that their talents are not being utilized at their current jobs.
On the other hand, 72 percent of surveyed employees who plan to remain at their companies feel that their skills are fully utilized. To retain their talent, business leaders must offload their employees’ low-value tasks to give them more time for meaningful work.
What Tasks Can RPA Automate?
Robotic Process Automation unburdens your employees by reducing their repetitive tasks. For example, RPA robots can extract and process content from PDFs, emails, and documents. They can also make calculations, scrape data from the web, open emails and attachments, and more. Through RPA, business processes that are rule-based can be completed 24/7 without risk of human error.
How RPA Can Increase Productivity
Over time, mundanity can take a toll on your employees, decrease job satisfaction, and increase employee turnover. Implementing RPA in your organization can therefore liberate your teams.
Contrary to popular belief, RPA will not destroy jobs, but rather eliminate low-value responsibilities. Employees will no longer have to waste their skills from being inundated with tedious tasks. They will have more time to focus on activities that truly add value while robots handle automatable tasks, thereby increasing operational speed and scalability. Your employees will also feel more engaged and fulfilled in their roles, which will spur innovation within your organization.
The Growing Field of Robotic Process Automation
Gartner predicts that by 2024, organizations will lower operational costs by 30% by combining hyperautomation technologies with redesigned operational processes. LinkedIn’s 2020 Emerging Jobs Report also states that the demand for RPA professionals has grown 40% annually in the past four years.
To reap RPA’s benefits and stay ahead of the competition, business leaders must invest in building RPA talent in their companies. Only then can they free up their employees’ valuable time, improve productivity, and remain competitive in today’s digital landscape.
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