If you are looking to implement new tools or tech into your business, then chances are that you have heard of Robotic Business Automation, or seen its acronym—- RBA, or also known as Robotic Process Automation RPA. However, you may not fully understand what exactly the term encompasses.
Keep reading to learn more about what RBA is, as well as how this technological application has the potential to benefit your business operations and your bottom line.
What Is Robotic Business Automation
First things first, what is Robotic Business Automation? This is a type of technology software, also referred to by its acronym of RBA. It is used in many different forms in business, but most commonly for the purpose of automating certain tasks. Robotic Business Automation, by definition, is a technology that helps businesses to build and set up software bots that mimic the interactions and actions of the human staff of a business. They are able to interact with digital systems and software, and can be either internally focused or can be client facing software instead!
Examples of Robotic Business Automation
There are plenty of ways that Robotic Business Automation is implemented into businesses of different sizes, and you may have interacted with some of these client facing examples yourself without realizing it! We will go over the many uses of Robotic Business Automation in greater detail further on in this article, but some common examples of RBA are data entry and data processing bots that can collect information automatically, and other robots and systems that are able to automate different tasks within a business. Client facing bots such as IT help bots or other types of chat bots can also be considered to be a part of Robotic Business Automation.
Benefits of Robotic Business Automation
Now that you are more familiar with what RBA is, you may wonder why it is used. Read on to learn more about some of the key benefits of Robotic Business Automation, and why it is becoming such a popular solution for organizations across all sorts of industries.
Cost Savings
One of the big benefits of Robotic Process Automation is that it can decrease the money spent by a business, therefore RBA offers huge cost savings. It’s been said that the use of robotics can cut operational costs in a business by between 25 to 50%. The use of robots for time consuming tasks can save on man hours that would have otherwise been paid out to your employees, for instance. It also reduces errors in certain areas, which can cost a company money to fix. RBA performing certain tasks can also make it unnecessary for you to hire a full time employee to deal with certain complex or time consuming tasks.
Accuracy and Quality
Typically, RBA offers improvements and services that are targeted and meant to deal with the processes or responsibilities that have a high risk of human error. Therefore, when they are utilized, rather than utilizing human workers, they are able to increase the accuracy of these tasks and the results or conclusions drawn. As we know, robots are reliable and are consistent. They are also able to work without fatigue, unlike people. This means that, even after working on a long or involved task, or by the end of the work day, the quality of RBA work will not deteriorate. All of this helps to decrease the need for re works or re doing certain tasks. In addition to all of this, RBA can increase the capability of a business.
Saves Time and Increases Productivity
Robotic Business Automation technology helps to increase the productivity of a human worker and the business as a whole. This is because the software helps us to save time by having the ability to automate tasks and taking over mundane tasks, repetitive processes and those that are data heavy— which would usually tie up the staff of a company. There is no arguing with the fact that we humans cannot be faster than a machine, after all! With RBA, the bots and the humans being utilized in a company are both able to do what they excel at, which has the direct effect of saving time and increasing productivity across all fronts.
Improved Analytics
Analytics are one of the areas where human error can affect accuracy. We did go over some of the benefits of Robotic Business Automation when it pertains to accuracy above, but improved analytics are another aspect of business that can be affected by using RBA software. This software can be automated to collect information and pull reports, without having to do manual tasks by a human member of the staff. RBA is especially effective for these sorts of data heavy tasks. The software can also be tailored to pull certain information, and not to pull other data that the business is not interested in looking at, for better reporting. Having access to improved reports can also help to make improved business decisions.
Better IT Support
One of the many benefits of implementing Robotic Business Automation software is that it can also help to improve the quality of your IT team and IT support. How does it do this, you may wonder? The RBA software that you set up in your business can help to monitor your network, for example. It may also be able to automate certain help desk responses to get answers to those in need faster, and can create tickets automatically for outstanding issues when IT is contacted. When RBA is used for IT, then it can help to prepare for issues like short term spikes, without meaning that the company needs to hire more staff to account for this.
Uses of Robotic Business Automation
You now know why RBA is used, but it is also important to understand how it is used in business processes, too. Below, we will go over some of the many uses of Robotic Business Automation so that you can determine how it can best be utilized in your own business to benefit you and your team the most.
Payroll
One of the different applications of RBA is in the payroll department. This is a usage of Robotic Business Automation that can be used no matter what industry your business is in. Processing payroll is one of the areas where accuracy is especially key, and any human errors want to be avoided— as they can have a big effect on the bottom line. A RBA solution can be set up to collect relevant information from timesheets and such inputs, then using it to calculate the pay of each employee at the company. Bonuses, expenses, and other factors can be accurately factored in, too.
Website Scraping
Website scraping is one of the steadily growing utilizations of RBA. One of the reasons that Robotic Business Automation is being used for website scraping is because it means there are fewer errors, or is able to eliminate the occurrence of errors entirely. Plus, by using RBA for website scraping, you no longer need to have coding knowledge in order to perform this sort of task. This is a job that would usually be done manually, but an RBA system can now be set up to get it done.
Processing Orders
If you are in the e-commerce or product based business space, processing orders is an important part of your business daily tasks. It directly affects your bottom line, of course, as it is how you are making money, and it is a business process that can be very time consuming! Luckily, business process automation can replace your existing systems and can be used to process your orders instead of having to do it manually. This can also help you to process orders faster and therefore get the product out to your customers quicker. This can improve customer satisfaction and make you more money as well in your business.
Customer Complaints
We never want to have customer complaints, but unfortunately, it is not possible to avoid them completely. In situations like this, it is still possible to turn your customer back into a happy customer, if you are able to satisfy them with your response and also respond quickly. Robotic Business Automation can help you to deal with customer complaints and deliver even better customer service. If you have existing conversations or previous complaints from the customer, the RBA system will also be able to pull these up and refer to them. RBA implementation is also helpful for larger companies that deal with high volumes of customer complaints or communications which can help the overall customer experience.
Credit Card Applications
Last, but not least, is the use of RBA for processing credit card applications. If your business offers a store card, for example, an RBA system can be set up to pull the necessary date for approvals, such as credit reports and background checks. The RBA software robots can then also determine whether or not the application for the card was approved or was denied. This is something that can be instantaneous when done by RBA!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is robotic process automation in business?
Robotic Process Automation, or RPA, as it is sometimes shortened to, is a type of technology that we see in business— often more than we might think we would see it occurring! Essentially, Robotic Process Automation RPA refers to software technology that make it easier to build and deploy software robots that mimic human interactions to make running your business easier. The continued business process management of these robots, or bots, is also considered to be included as part of RPA software. The bots interact with customers and software, and are able to do a number of different tasks, taking these data heavy or repetitive tasks away from human staff members and being able to automate processes, so that they can better focus their energy elsewhere. An example could be a chat bot that is set up on your website to talk to potential leads and customers.
What are the business applications of robotic process automation?
Robotic Process Automation can be used in business for a variety of different purposes, and it can be used for not only larger businesses and corporations, but for small businesses, too. How is it typically used, you may wonder? RPA can be used in different ways in different industries, too. In finance industries or for finance teams, for example, it may be used for purposes like automating governance, processing invoices, or reconciling accounts. It is typically used for automation, and can automate a variety of tasks to save time for the human members of the team. Some of the business processes that may be automated with RPA include data entry, predictive maintenance, and other high volume or repetitive tasks.
What is robotic business?
Robotic business can be used to refer to the business of making and selling complicated robotics or robotic systems for a variety of different purposes. They can be used in businesses, for consumer use, for industrial use, and more! This term can also be used to refer to the use of robotics in businesses, such as the use and implementation of Robotic Business Automation, or RPA. This is the use of bots or robotic systems (artificial intelligence) that can help make running a business smoother through such things like automating tasks. It has many benefits for the business, including costs savings, saving time and also reducing human errors in data centric or data heavy tasks.
What is an example of robotic process automation?
Robotic Process Automation RPA tools have many benefits in business, and is a great way to save time, money and provide automation solutions— regardless of the industry the company is in, or the size of the company using RPA tools. It can also be utilized in plenty of different ways, and some are better uses of RPA software for others, depending upon the business’ individual needs. One example of Robotic Process Automation in business is in credit card applications, where the RPA bots are programmed to collect the relevant information like credit and background checks. Another example of this RPA software tools is having a chat bot on the company’s website or social media to answer help questions or chat with potential leads and clients, these are all examples of intelligent automation with robotic process automation tools.
