A new whitepaper from shared services provider SSON and sponsored by RPA provider Nintex, looks at the evolution of RPA to intelligent automation (IA) and states the case that IA has reached a stage in its development where it solves the problem of unlocking the potential of a workforce in a time when it is difficult to find, train and retain quality talent.
The paper, 2022 State of Industry IA Market Report: Automation All Grown Up, says the confluence and combination of advancing technologies (i.e., intelligent document processing, natural language processing, machine learning, attended automation, workflow optimization and cloud capabilities) along with rising costs associated with manual work and the fact that workers are looking for better, more creative outlets in their work life, all intersect with IA providing an opportunity on par with offshoring in the 1990s.
“It was the defining moment of globalization. In a very short period of time, global enterprise could take advantage of labor anywhere on earth,” the report’s authors note. “Suddenly the notion of ‘follow the sun’ operation was a reality. In the same vein, lower-level work being performed in high-cost locations could be relocated.”
The report notes that IA is equal to “digital labor” and can be thought of as the modern equivalent to offshoring. It warns, however, that offshoring wasn’t easy for the vanguard, just as implementing IA takes commitment from forward-thinking organizations now.
“Like our prior experience with shared services and offshoring, this is not a ‘one and done’ activity,” the authors say. “Integrating digital labor into your core operations is not a project that is one day declared complete. It is a decision to be a different company.”
To download the paper, click here.