Looking at Robotic Process Automation With the Individual in Mind

By Marcus Loveland, RPA Analyst Developer, Maitland

Far from sparking fears of job losses, the automation of processes is an evolution to be embraced, not feared, argues Marcus Loveland.

By now, many of us in the area of process automation and Straight Through Processing (STP) are familiar with the concept of Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and the jargon associated with it.

Often, information published about RPA focuses on companies, how they can cut costs by implementing RPA, and how it will improve organisational efficiency and reduce errors. What seems to be ignored is the effect of RPA on individuals as opposed to corporates.

For the uninitiated, RPA is a software technology that allows for the creation of automated processes that emulate traditional human actions.

Many employees will express fear at the prospect of an RPA project. Will it mean job losses? Will the organisation as they know it change? But are these concerns realistic and logical? Or can being involved in an RPA project actually benefit the individual directly, in ways not obvious at the outset?

To begin with, it would be good to understand what makes people feel a particular way. There are many psychological biases that come into play when an individual makes up their mind about a subject. I believe that the two most applicable to the RPA discussion are confirmation bias and framing bias.

Psychological biases

Confirmation bias occurs when people look for information that supports their existing beliefs and reject data that go against these beliefs. For instance, a person may have read a negative article about RPA and, despite any evidence that he or she comes across thereafter that contradicts it, retains the bias that took hold while reading the first negative article.

Framing bias refers to the way that information is presented. I like the example of a stockbroker trying to sell a financial stock by presenting a six-month graph depicting the rapid upward trajectory of the price. This is one frame. Another frame would be to look at the same stock price over a one-year period. Now you may see another picture altogether: a story of a wildly volatile stock that could lose you all your money, quickly. In this instance, neither frame provides you with the full story.

It is often easier to sell cost reduction than the potential for new clients and increased future revenue because cost reduction seems more achievable in the short term. Many marketers produce content that promises cost reduction and direct it at people within the organisation who control the budget, not at the workforce as a whole.

There needs to be a more holistic framing of RPA, to highlight how it can benefit both the organisation, and the individuals making up that organisation.

History tells something

Automating processes that previously needed people, is bound to cause concern for those in effected roles. However, this is far from the first time we have faced such an opportunity.

With the advent of personal computers, there was a lot of fear about computers taking over people’s jobs. However, a whole new industry was created, and an entire revolution began.

Who would now say that it would have been better to say no to computers in order to protect the jobs that used to do the computerised tasks manually? That is not to sound callous and insensitive. The fact is that embracing new thinking, processes and technology leads to the creation of far more roles that require people – it is just that, before the evolution is embraced, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly what those roles will be.

The simplistic framing of RPA as something that will lead to human redundancy is just a combination of psychological biases pushing back against an evolution that will create more work and more opportunities than there would be without RPA.

Nobody is saying that RPA will not lead to redundancy in certain areas, though the opportunities it can create far outweigh this.

Benefits to individuals

Implementing RPA in your area involves far more than just automating a process.

By embarking on an RPA project, if done correctly, you will get so much more out of the project than you would have initially thought. You will meet people with different, fresh perspectives on the process and compare notes with other experts in your field.

One of the greatest benefits achieved through process automation is not the fact that the process is automated, but rather that the process is critically analysed, various solutions discussed, and the best possible solution chosen and implemented.

If you have done a holistic review of all processes, you will have a full picture of those processes. Throughout the research and development, new cross-organisation relationships are forged, internal team relationships are enhanced, team buy-in for processes is achieved, new perspectives are gained and, finally, the stronger, automated process is realised. All of this also results in a happier, stronger, more agile, and more profitable organisation.

It is with this bigger picture framing in mind that teams can start or continue this journey. RPA is not just an opportunity for tech companies – it is available to all organisations. If we don’t embrace change and continually improve, others will.

Survival of the fittest

As technologies move forward and cloud-based solutions gain further traction, it becomes easier for clients to switch providers. What would have been a massive client migration exercise could soon become an update of a field in a database.

This reality is not very far off. The corollary is also true: by evolving, improving, maturing, and providing best in class service, clients will be easier to win over and migrate to a company’s platform.

RPA is a subject that requires understanding from all stakeholders, especially the individuals who make up an organisation. With understanding, the realisation will follow: RPA is an evolution to be embraced, not feared.