Processes constitute a crucial element of each enterprise’s functioning. The possibility to cover some of them with automation allows significantly improving the general productiveness of companies and effectiveness of organisation, and results in significantly saving funds and time allowing the employee to focus on tasks requiring independent thinking, creativity and intuition. In recent years, intelligent Process automation has attracted special interest among enterprises moving with the times. Intelligent Process Automation – how does it differ from classic automation?
Intelligent Process Automation, also referred to as cognitive or simply smart automation, is the approach to managing in-house processes which is newer and more advanced than classic Business Process Automation (BPA). Intelligent Automation uses various algorithms and technological approaches that directly originate from the area of artificial intelligence (AI). They include mechanisms, such as, among others: language processing, text analysis, data exploration, semantic technologies and machine learning. All of this to make automation of more and more complex processes possible, including those that until now could have been executed only by a human. In contrast with its classic counterpart, Intelligent Process Automation requires being at a disposal of appropriately large sets of data, which is necessary for proper implementation of the machine learning process and access to equipment with high computing power. Therefore, it is usually connected with Big Data tools and cloud computing processes. Furthermore, a significant element thereof includes the possibility to process data originating from paper carriers, photographs and other resources and using tools for OCR, i.e. Optical Character Recognition.
Intelligent Process Automation and its significance for companies’ development
The idea of process automation consists in using a computer and special dedicated software aimed at reconstructing steps and activities of a user during implementation of a given process. Intelligent Process Automation allows enterprises and organisations to introduce innovations and accelerate development thereof by improving the effectiveness of work, diminishing the complexity of systems and operations and offering the possibility of continuous experimentation with new products and services.
Software executing intelligent automation has a very important feature, that is, the ability to learn how to properly react to new situations and circumstances. It allows effective elimination of the most important flaw of classic automation, that is, its lack of the ability to take proper action in atypical situations. In the case of such circumstances, classic tools could at most inform the user of occurrence thereof, yet, it often happened that they did take action, which had nothing to do with the relevant character thereof.
Whereas, due to the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning processes (e.g. with the use of neural networks), intelligent automation is able to make more complex decisions, which makes its functioning similar to actions taken by a human. It is able to properly react even in situations with certain ambiguities or competitive alternatives. Finally, cognitive automation is able to detect and properly react to circumstances in the case of which anomalies occur, there is a high risk of an error and which require bigger supervision.
Advantages of the Intelligent Process Automation’s implementation
Intelligent Process Automation is decidedly the most advantageous to enterprises and organisations with mature approach to processes and management thereof, high standards of functioning and that strive for innovation and competitiveness included in the company’s strategy. Cognitive automation will also work well in the case of companies, which develop the skills of optimising processes and successively increase the possibilities necessary for intelligent automation’s implementation. The possibility to connect tools responsible for classic automation of processes with artificial intelligence also allows at least partial automation of the processes that until now had to be executed by a human, since they required independent thinking and making more complex decisions exposed to higher risk. It allows taking the company’s functioning to a higher level and ensure even better effectiveness and productivity thereof.
Finally, Intelligent Process Automation constitutes an additional opportunity to unburden employees from performance of activities that can be successfully dealt with dedicated business process management software. Therefore, employees gain more valuable time and energy, which they can spend on more meaningful activities, which require their direct participation and have a significant impact on the enterprise’s functioning and development. Thus, intelligent automation does not mean job loss, but offering effective support for employees and contributing to the increase in the effectiveness of functioning of the whole enterprise.
