What's your strategy for staying current with automation tech?

Having clear goals is obviously crucial to the success of any automation initiative. But it's not really related a lot to staying up-to-date with automation technologies and trends. If the existing solutions that we have and use satisfy our automation needs and goals, such goals don't push us to stay current in any way. Staying up-to-date is a goal on its own. It is very important to consultants and developers, as well as decision makers in organizations that have yet to find a solution that satisfies their needs. It is less important to organizations that are happy with what they already have, and as such, the motivation to keep up lies elsewhere.

The initial step to staying current in automation involves being aware of the latest technologies, which includes reading tech articles and news. However, this alone is not sufficient. I believe the most effective approach is to engage in hands-on projects, whether within a company or by collaborating with professionals on various projects.

????In today's rapidly evolving digital landscape, keeping up with automation technology is not just a one-time effort, but an ongoing journey. As professionals, we must continuously strive to stay current and embrace the latest advancements in this transformative field. ??So, make it a habit to allocate dedicated time for learning, whether it's through attending industry conferences, participating in webinars, or engaging in online courses. ??The key to success is to embrace agile, fail fast, and have a growth mindset. Keep learning, keep growing...cheers!

Only automation can make the best collaboration between from Field to The Data, from machine to people. Vast opportunity for service and innovations in terms of collaboration with hardware and software digital solutions. When it's digitalizing a lot the risk is also growing. So, opportunity to serve this industry is also growing up and up.

I’ve now spent over 10 years fine tuning as approach here. Each Automation technology type is replicating a human characteristic so the best place to both start and scale your automation efforts in the most appropriate way is looking at what characteristics you are looking to automate in your work. Chasing the shiny object will add limited value unless that shiny object is automating a work action you regularly complete. For example if you are reading lots of emails, then NLP would be an area to explore, if you are looking at images vs documents then it is Machine Vision vs IDP/OCR etc. first understand your work, then look at the technologies that best automate that specific action type

Keeping up with the automation wave! Here are a few strategies that fuel my tech journey: Networking trips like diving into tech communities, attend webinars, and connect with industry experts. The insights gained are pure gold. Get Hands-On by setting yourself up on real projects (personal or may be at your company) and contribute to those open initiatives. The real learning happens when you are doing it yourself. Staying current isn't just a goal—it's a journey! #automationtech #continuouslearning

There is so much great content available, from newsletters, to webinars and podcasts. With such a wide array of Rich insight and expertise so readily available, the difficulty is not finding the expert advice, but finding enough time to absorb it all

One thing I have always found useful is participating in communities. There are various communities available - some are centered around a specific tool (such as official user forums, as well as local user groups), while some are tool-agnostic, such as non-official platforms like LinkedIn groups or Discord servers. I personally am a member in several of such communities, where I try to contribute and help others, but at the same time this helps me stay up to date, because I get challenged by users with new problems on a daily basis.

You can build a long and rewarding career in automation by driving deep into your chosen technologies. I don't agree that you have to stay current with automation tech. That is because the capital investments that the end user has to make keep automation at a steady pace. Again, beware of the echo chamber of LinkedIn. If you start following a few of these "experts", you will quickly fall into the trap of hype and spend a lot of time learning skills that don't apply to the real world. Stay focused on the foundation. You can't be a good programmer if you don't know or understand the process you are controlling. Some really cool changes are occurring in the space and they will take time to make their way through.

Continuous learning is very key in keeping up with the automation field. Looking at the pace at which new products and technologies emerge, automation engineers will need to continue to learn as long as they are in the automation field. This is why OEMs, such as Rockwell software and siemens, have learning platforms for their products and some manufacturing companies like mine also subscribe to online training and contents, such as datacamp, for employees.

I would greatly encourage anyone to try and experiment with the MS Power Platform, as it has the capabilities of a no-code/low-code tools for building flows, apps, pages, chatbots, etc., as well as Power Automate Desktop for RPA, and AI capabilities of its own. There are several ways in which a user can get a free development environment to test out all the premium features without paying anything.

One thing I have found helpful is to start with the basic tools. Search the automation tools available and useful for your field. Check and differentiate between coding and no code tools. Start with something basic and if you feel creative learn a new tool depending on the time and need. But it's really helpful to experiment with the new tools. it gives an edge in the workplace. You always have something challenging to work upon. And Keep learning keep growing is something I believe in.

Experimenting with tooling/technologies is definitely a crucial element to do; however, businesses should consider the larger / overall picture on the possible impact leveraging new technologies within the organisation. Try to take small steps at the beginning and grow the use case whilst accomplishing smaller achievements.

to stay current is by engaging with online communities, forums, and attending webinars or conferences related to automation. Networking with professionals in the field can provide valuable insights, tips, and updates on the latest trends. Subscribe to industry publications and blogs, follow thought leaders on social media, and participate in online discussions. Continuous learning and hands-on experience will empower you to adapt to new technologies and make informed decisions in implementing automation solutions.

As Agnius have suggested, I've done myself this and walked trough MS Power Platform tools, such as Power Apps/Power Virtual Agents (Chatbots) and Power Automate (Cloud) getting to perform desired use case functionalities on the background via extending Microsoft's free trial program several times only with a professional account of my organization as requirement.

Certifications and training from professional societies help to validate your skill sets. For example, the Certified Automation Professional (R) from the International Society of Automation (ISA) is a very relevant and valuable cert to demonstrate a well rounded automation professional. The same goes with a professional license from your state of choice for those of us in the US. A licensed Professional Engineer demonstrates you value your work and are making a commitment to protect the public. Vendor certifications are less valuable but can also be important for demonstrating specialization. And as stated by others, a tremendous amount of content is available online. Just make sure you are getting it from a reputable source.

One thing I find to be more or less useless is chasing certifications. While it might be a nice way to get an intro-level idea of what the tool is all about, but really it doesn't help to stay up-to-date at all, as most certification programs do not actually get updated as frequently as the tech itself. Also, it does not provide much of actual practical experience. I would value experimenting with the tool, participating in events and challenges, as well as being a part of communities much more over any formal or non-formal education/certification on the topic.

Learning is highly subjective by person and relating to Automation Technology can be categorised into: 1.) Formal learning through online or hybrid presence to acquire role or topic specific automation tech skills. They differ in density, cost & certification levels. They often include capstone projects to prove qualifications. Examples here: Academy offerings of Tech Providers 2.) Informal Learning where skills get acquired through self-paced studies using webinars, podcasts, tutorials, networking, mentoring etc. Examples here: Linkedin Courses or various podcasts focusing on Process Automation 3.) Social Learning through communities on DISCORD, blogs, posts or videos on Youtube. Examples here: Expert Group forums on LinkedIN

Consulting blogs and content on your own network (Linkedin) and forums specialized in RPA, as well as certifications and training help with new knowledge, resulting in new skills in the long term. Focused study tracks also help, however it is important to understand the concept regardless of the tool being studied.

Here are the three steps i can essential to learn new skills Continuous Learning: Dedicate time to regularly update your skills through courses, tutorials, and reading. Hands-On Practice: Apply new concepts and technologies in real-world automation projects. Community Engagement: Participate in automation communities, forums, and networking events to exchange knowledge and stay informed.

In an ideal world, this would definitely be done and lead to continuous improvement. In the real world, most of us do not prioritize improving existing (and functioning) projects, when there are new projects to build or existing malfunctioning projects to support/maintain. When we do have the resources available to continuously improve existing solutions, it is a great way to both keep yourself up-to-date, as well as making sure the solution itself is as efficient as possible. But the resources limit us to a point where this is usually a much lower priority than anything else.

Absolutely, regularly reviewing and improving automation projects is essential. Monitoring and measuring performance ensures that automation solutions meet their goals, while iterative improvements ensure they remain efficient and aligned with evolving business needs. This approach fosters continuous innovation and maximizes the value of automation technology.

The latest Automation Tech trend may already be over once you get to know about it. Build your automation tech radar capabilities by staying immersed in the community through regular chats with experts, conferences, videos and posts and gaining sufficient level of knowledge from "learning by trial or doing". Up your skills at distinguishing what is a real trend and valuable new technology vs what is a mere distraction.

I honestly do not believe in reading books as a means of staying up-to-date with technology. Books is a great way to learn things that do not change. Some constant foundation-level knowledge that stays relevant over decades. There are quite a few great books on software design, clean code, etc., which are definitely worth a read. But I believe books on no-code/low-code, RPA and similar technologies simply make no sense. It just feels like the authors want to use the hype of these technologies as a means to earn money and fame. But the books will become irrelevant and outdated before they reach the bookstores more likely than not. Reading such books are a great way to stay outdated, and not up-to-date with technology.

As per industry 4.0 requirement, the organization should think and act holistically where security, compliance and business continuity on top. The strategy for the automation should be aligned to provide a secure & error proof system.

In terms of automation, the understanding of your processes your business adheres as well as the capabilities of automation is a must have. Partnering with an IT business (or in-house) that understands both is a win-win.