The participants in the survey were 151 people from businesses in six different industries located all across the United States. The most popular RPA programs among respondents are Automation Anywhere and Microsoft Power Automate. RPA was most effective when applied to processes that can be measured in measurable savings.
Since business leadership has yet to embrace and comprehend the advantages of RPA completely, IT teams are driving the RPA initiative. RPA is unknown to 51% of people, or they know very little about it. Due to RPA’s high level of precision and rule-driven nature, Finance and Accounting received the highest implementation ratings. The least important element on the list was customer service, which can vary greatly depending on the circumstances.
The respondents commented that once established, maintaining RPA systems is quicker and more straightforward than initially thought.
A detailed account of the Industry Trends Survey
Technology/tools used –
67% reported using Artificial Intelligence (AI), 63% use Machine Learning (ML),and 32% use NLP.
Automation tools used –
64% use Microsoft Power Automate, 56% are currently using Automation Anywhere, 20% use BluePrism, 24% prefer UiPath, 30% use Appian RPA, and 17% use WorkFusion.
Processes best and least suited for automation –
The two types of best-suited processes are:
- 68% agreed that quantifiable processes that result in demonstrable cost savings are the best-suited processes for automation while
- 61% agreed that processes that are dependable, predictable, and well-documented are the best suited
The two types of least-suited processes are:
- 28% believe that processes with high volume/high frequency, which frequently result in a quicker ROI, are unsuitable for automation while
- 25% believe that processes that don’t need complicated human intervention
RPA implementation in their organization –
15% of the respondents currently use RPA in their company, while 51% expect to implement RPA this calendar year. 5% plan to implement RPA within the next 12 months, and 5% within 24 months. 24% of the respondents do not know about the status of RPA implementation in their organization.
If their leadership understands why implementing RPA is necessary –
12% reported that their company’s leadership has never heard of RPA. 49% have some information and ideaof RPA. 2% said they want to understand more, while 15% said their leads have a good understanding of the concept. 22% believe that their company leaders have a deep knowledge of RPA.
What path would they choose to take to implement RPA in their company –
15% said they would develop internal talent,and 58% believe that partnering with an RPA service provider is a better option. 14% would outsource RPA works to a technology provider,and 13% would hire RPA professionals.
Current challenges –
52% said it lacks clarity on the business case,while 17% agreed it is process standardization and organizational difficulties. 13% report the lack of knowledge on RPA is a challenge, and 10% do not see a tremendous business value. 6% feel there is a lack of business and IT alignment, and 2% said resistance to change is a hurdle to implementing RPA.
Areas that are best suited to implement RPA –
61% said that Finance & Accounting is the best area to implement RPA, while 43% agree that it is Sales & Marketing. 3% believe it to be Data Management, 27% Human Resources, 19% Information Technology, and 18% said it is Customer Service.
Driving factors of implementing RPA –
The three factors with the most influence on deciding on your RPA software platform are:
- Ease of implementation
- Cost
- Availability of implementation/support resources
The least significant influencing variables are:
- Flexible but not a functionary
- Security
Other factors with a moderate influence include:
- Capabilities for performance analytics
- Capabilities for artificial intelligence
- Case studies and examples from their industry
Benefits of process automation –
The three areas where RPA adoption is expected to have the most significant positive effects are:
- Improved reporting and analytics
- Optimized resource use
- Increased security.
And factors having a moderate influence include:
- Accuracy and dependability
- Compliance
- Productivity
Between IT and Operations, the need to implement RPA comes from –
62% said that the need was driven by operations and then executed by IT. 25% reported that Operations drove demand and implementation. 14% said that need and implementation driven were by IT.
The difficulty level of maintaining RPA bots –
54% agreed it takes less time/resources to keep than expected, while 18% said it takes more time/resources to maintain than expected. 15% are not using bots, while 13% reported that it takes the expected time/resources to maintain RPA bots.
Challenges to scaling RPA –
54% said the shortage of RPA skills,and 41%said that arehigh RPA costs. 39% felt security risks, and 38% said integrating RPA with other technologiesis the main challenge. 21% of the respondents said that the main challenge is the lack of a company-wide digital transformation strategy,and 9% said it was low ROI.
The state of RPA in the next five years –
52% of the respondents believe companies will adapt to moderate usage of RPA, while 28% believe the technology will be adopted widely. 12% said they predict a low use of RPA, and 7% said they think RPA will be replaced by newer technology.
