Will Robot Process Automation (RPA) Replace Delegation To Human Workers?

Technology is moving at a breakneck pace, and sometimes it feels like the world is stepping into the future faster than anticipated.

One of the biggest signs of this is the rise of what is known as Robot Process Automation – or RPA.

Smart businesses have known for a while that delegation of work is a good thing. Delegation of processes to outside companies with a different expertise allow for faster accomplishment of tasks, lower costs and more time to focus on your company’s own core competencies.

But have we reached that point where the delegation of work will bypass the traditional third-party companies or even our own in-house departments and go straight to machines instead?

It’s fair to start asking those questions. The fast-growing UiPath (that’s a startup that is part of the RPA field, recently announced a valuation of $3 billion, already triple what it was just seven months ago) is bringing RPA into large companies, where it is automating tedious, repetitive processes.

Even companies like Accenture, a major player in the BPO field, has now begun to embrace RPA. Instead of being threatened by the new technology – chatbots, for example, are now replacing manpower at process centers – they have started implementing RPA into their own services.

So while the industry does seem to be heading into that direction, the advent of RPA and artificial intelligence has also exposed the limitations of these machines.

While automation can be great at repetitive jobs, as of now, it offers little in terms of judgement and decision-making. Machines are great at doing jobs, but they must first be directed which jobs to do and taught how to do it.

What’s becoming clear is that the ideal process does not involve machines replacing human workers, but a collaboration between the two. Instead of losing jobs to robots, humans will likely see their roles evolving, redesigned and reimagined around a shared capacity with smarter machines.

The technology is here, but since many companies will not find it easy to transition to RPA right away, it seems that those companies in the delegation field, like BPOs, could be taking the lead in helping other businesses get there.

In that regard, not much will change. Businesses looking to delegate work will not have to do things differently, partnering with the same companies to accomplish the same goals. It will be the same humans making sure those jobs get done, too, albeit with machines helping out in all-new ways.

Could your company grow faster with the help of delegation – human or otherwise? Get in touch with TukkoLabs to find out which services can support your own operations.

SOURCES:

“Threat Or A Gift? What RPA Really Means For Outsourcing.” Forbes, 26 September 2018, Web.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2018/09/26/threat-or-a-gift-what-rpa-really-means-for-outsourcing/#626abf1520ea

“UiPath lands $225M Series C on $3 billion valuation as robotic process automation soars.” Tech Crunch, 18 Septermber 2018, Web.

https://techcrunch.com/2018/09/18/uipath-lands-225m-series-c-on-3-billion-valuation-as-robotics-process-automation-soars/

“Before Automating Your Company’s Processes, Find Ways to Improve Them.” Harvard Business Review, 13 June 2018, Web.

https://hbr.org/2018/06/before-automating-your-companys-processes-find-ways-to-improve-them