Robotic process automation is a rapidly growing market with many vendors. Gartner expects the market to grow by over 30% per year over the next five years, with the number of RPA users increasing significantly.
It's a complicated technology to deploy but worth it as a way to increase efficiency and improve speed and accuracy for a range of processes. It allows for higher productivity and reduces time and costs spent on repetitive tasks.
To ensure success, you must have a firm grasp of the different automation technologies available and the use cases that can be beneficial to your organization. It is here that the right partner can assist you in navigating the complex maze RPA offers and finding a solution to fit your unique business requirements.
Robotic process automation (RPA) is a form of software which uses scripts to automate business processes. This includes everything, from back-office activities to sales, customer service, and marketing functions.
In the financial sector, this software reduces the time and costs associated with journal entry and account reconciliation processes by eliminating human error. Financial analysts are able to spend their time more efficiently on tasks that are high-value and require accuracy.
It's a growing area, with 80% implementing or planning the implementation of this technology. It is a complex field to adopt, however, it is worth the effort, as it allows for increased efficiency, improved speed, accuracy and compliance.
As the RPA sector matures, AI integration is increasing. This is in response the trend towards 'hyperautomation,' where organisations are looking to automate a variety of corners of their operations using artificial intelligence, machine-learning, computer vision, and other emerging technology.
By 2024, the research firm expects organisations to adopt at least 3 of the 20 types of process-agnostic software that enable hyperautomation. This kind of automation market will be significantly larger than RPA.
Some RPA solution providers, including UiPath Automation Anywhere, made significant investments into cognitive and artificial intelligence to complement their RPA suites. This has helped them gain a strong reputation for innovation and a broad customer base, according to the report.
UiPath, for example, has developed a machine learning system based on its ability to simulate human brainwaves. This powerful technology can be used to detect patterns, and then trigger actions, in the form "bots." It has also been able develop a large customer ecosystem with more than 10,000 organizations across all verticals using it.
Its recent acquisition of Fortress IQ, which provides process discovery and workflow automation, is an indication that it has the right mindset for a growing market. Its cloud focus, extensive deployment options and marketing and technological expertise also give it an important advantage in the industry.