RPA use cases that take RPA to next level
Bots on the rise
The use of RPA is on the rise. Deloitte’s 2018 Global RPA Survey, its most recent release, found that 53% of the 400-plus respondents have already started using RPA, with another 19% planning to implement the technology within two years.
The report predicted that RPA “will have achieved near-universal adoption within the next five years” if the current adoption rate continues.
Despite the aggressive adoption rates, however, organizations haven’t yet widely deployed bots. The same Deloitte survey found that 30% of respondents have investigated or built a proof of value for RPA deployment, with one to five robots in operation. But only 12% have six to 10 robots, only 8% have 11 to 50 robots and a mere 3% have 50 or more.
A report from consulting firm Protiviti drew similar conclusions.
Its 2019 survey, Taking RPA to the Next Level, conducted in collaboration with ESI ThoughtLab, surveyed 450 executives around the world and found that, on average, companies are investing a hefty $5 million in RPA in the current fiscal year, with the highest investment — $10 million to $20 million — coming from the largest organizations surveyed.
Yet, it also found that 40% have trouble prioritizing potential RPA initiatives, 32% struggle to make convincing business cases for its use and 30% find it difficult to decide on the best applications of the technology.
Tony Abel
“We’re still talking to a lot of organizations who are just sort of figuring this out, so they’re contemplating really small starting points. There are still uncertainties, questions about whether this is something they should be doing and whether the technology is going to be around,” said Tony Abel, managing director of the supply chain solutions practice at Protiviti. “They’re just not thinking about the business case and the ROI comprehensively enough. They’re thinking, ‘Let’s just see what this thing has to offer.'”
Such thinking is a mistake, one that could cost organizations both savings and revenue, according to Abel.
Instead, enterprise leaders need to develop strategies to move beyond proof-of-concept projects and easy-win RPA use cases and into the development and deployment of bots that automate more and more complex processes as part of the organization’s larger digital transformation roadmap.