All businesses benefit from saving time, resources, money and streamlining their business operations. So, what do they do? They automate certain manual and repetitive tasks using automation tools. Instead of a human workforce, these menial yet crucial day-to-day business operations are carried out by software tools, leaving the employees ample time and resources to focus on more important tasks.
This process of applying technology to automate business tasks is known as Business Process Automation (BPA). In its simplest form, this workflow automation software makes life easier for your employees through technology and software. Businesses of all sizes deploy BPA tools to improve overall productivity. These BPA tools often eliminate the human element, thus also limiting the margin for human error.
So, How can BPA tools help your company? Which devices are commonly employed by businesses? What are the use cases of BPA? All these questions and much more will be answered in this article. It will also explain the four types of business automation tools, how they function and what benefit they bring to the table. But first, let’s begin with the basics.
Business Process Automation: A Quick Guide
As mentioned above, BPA refers to utilizing technology to automate recurring and menial business processes to minimizE effort, errors, enhance efficiency and boost productivity. Please remember that BPA is not to be confused with BPM or Business Process Management which is an entirely bigger discipline, of which BPA is an integral part. Simply put, task automation is a vital component of Business Process Management.
So, how do you determine what tasks to automate? The tasks that indicate high volume, multiple human engagements, time sensitivity and showcase the need for audit trails would likely require automation. To help us understand this better, let’s look at some of the use cases or examples: employee onboarding, purchase orders, operations management, account management, customer support, social media management, etc. Automation aids all these tasks to run smoothly and efficiently.
When you automate these tasks, you naturally expect to see multiple benefits. These include streamlined tasks, a boost in productivity, process transparency, cost savings, improvement in employee allocation, better customer service, increased customer satisfaction, etc. There are countless benefits to BPA beyond these. However, where there are perks, there exist perils too. Some of the challenges with BPA are unclear and confusing workflows, doing too much too soon, undefined and unspecified goals, inadequate software, complex tools, etc. If you can manage to overcome these, then your benefits may outweigh the disadvantages.
Four Types of Business Process Automation
Now that we have covered a quick overview of BPA let’s explore the different types of automation used by industries today. There are four types of BPA, and each is unique in the way it functions and its role for users. Before we learn more about the different types, let’s remember that every business has individual needs, and each kind of BPA may suit other requirements. Some enterprises use single, multiple or a combination of these, depending on their specific needs and goals.
Here are the four types of BPA:
1. Basic Automation: As the name suggests, basic automation refers to automating simple tasks and creating simple workflows. For instance, a messaging tool would be a great example of basic automation, which ensures all communications take place in one place. This type of automation also gathers information and centralizes it into one clear place so that everyone can access it easily. SharePoint development is an excellent example of this type.
2. Process Automation: More complex than basic automation, this type streamlines tasks, processes, and projects to make everything stable and consistent. When all processes are automated, it boosts productivity and efficiency within the organization. This tool consists of a network of software and apps to manage all your business processes.
3. Integration Automation: Being the starting point of automation, this type utilizes machines or software to automate tasks typically performed by team members. With limited human engagement, integration automation tools monitor and analyze how employees perform functions and replicate or imitate those tasks. Human interaction is limited to set rules and regulations.
4. Artificial Intelligence (AI) Automation: This type of automation stays one step ahead of integration tools and makes decisions and performs tasks just like an actual human employee would; a smarter combination of AI with integrated software tools.
There are other types of automation such as marketing automation, accounting and bookkeeping automation, HR automation, server automation, database automation, etc. However, the four types mentioned above are the basic umbrellas that everything else falls under. All these types have one thing in common, though: continuous process improvement. This feature ensures that tasks are automated in a consistent manner that promotes efficient steps towards your goals.
