Attended vs Unattended RPA: Which is for You?

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is changing our work by automating repetitive tasks. This frees up employees to do more strategic work. There are two types of RPA: attended and unattended. Each serves a different business need. For example, an attended RPA is done with an employee in real-time, while an unattended RPA runs independently without human intervention.

I am writing to clarify the difference between them, as our team of Automation Consultants at Lucent Innovation gets many queries regarding the difference between attended vs unattended RPA and which one to leverage in their enterprise. Businesses that want to be more efficient and get the most out of their processes need to know the difference between them.

Here is a fun fact for you before we start: Reports from McKinsey and Automation Anywhere say that Unattended RPA is mostly used in big businesses to automate up to 50% of back-office tasks. This cuts costs by 25–50%. Attended RPA is more common in front desks, and it can boost each employee's efficiency by 15 to 25 percent.

What is Attended RPA?

Bots in Attended RPA assist users in real-time. These bots are triggered by human actions to perform tasks that require immediate attention, usually at the front desk or with customers.

Examples of Attended RPA

• Customer Support: gets and enters info during live interactions.
• Call Centers: updates customer records and handles calls.
• Help Desk: sorts and assigns help tickets that come in.
• Sales Order Processing: checks data and makes invoices.
• Employee Onboarding: helps HR to collect documents.
• Insurance Claims: automatically gathers and checks the first set of facts.
• Real-Time Data Validation: uses cross-references to review info.
• Healthcare Administration: updates patient info during check-ins.
• Loan Processing: checks details and takes care of documents.
• Appointment Scheduling: schedules and calendar changes are done automatically.

Benefits of Attended RPA for Business

• By automating repetitive tasks, attended Robotic Process Automation increases efficiency so employees can focus on more complex work.
• It improves service and response times by providing real-time support, improving the customer experience.
• Business productivity is increased, and errors are reduced by automating processes.
• Attended RPA is cost-effective as it optimizes resource utilization and reduces operational costs.
• It’s a scalable solution for businesses as it’s adaptable to business needs.
• The solution ensures process consistency and accuracy, as well as compliance.
• Attended RPA can be deployed quickly with minimal disruption to current operations.
• It enables better decision-making by providing real-time data.
• Employee engagement and satisfaction are increased by reducing repetitive tasks through Attended RPA.

What is an Unattended RPA

Unattended RPA automates tasks on computers without human intervention. This is ideal for repetitive back-office tasks.

Examples of Unattended RPA

• Batch Invoice Processing: processes large volumes of invoices without human intervention.
• Data Extraction and Migration: transfers and updates data between systems.
• 24/7 System Monitoring: monitors systems and generates reports without human intervention.
• Automated Payroll: calculates and distributes Payroll according to a schedule.
• E-commerce Order Fulfillment: manages the entire order process from receipt to shipment scheduling.
• Inventory Management: monitors inventory levels and replenishes as needed.
• Compliance Audits: Prepare audit documentation and conduct compliance checks.
• Report Generation: generates and sends reports to stakeholders.
• Data Backup: schedules and runs data copies.
• Credit Scoring: automates credit scoring and risk assessments in financial institutions.

Benefits of Unattended RPA for Business

• Unattended RPA runs 24/7, so productivity and task completion are guaranteed.
• It eliminates human intervention by automating repetitive tasks so operational costs are reduced.
• It can manage large functions across multiple systems because of its scalability and flexibility.
• It eliminates human errors in repetitive tasks, so accuracy is increased.
• It ensures tasks are done according to regulatory standards so compliance is increased.
• Quick deployment with minimal disruption to current operations.
• Unattended RPA enables business growth by automating more tasks as the business grows.
• Employees can focus on strategic and creative work by freeing up human resources.
• Tasks and data are processed in real-time, so tasks are completed fast, and data is up to date.
• It enables digital transformation so businesses can modernize their operations.

What’s the difference: Attended vs Unattended RPA

If businesses understand the differences between attended and unattended RPA, they can choose the best automation option and achieve their operational goals faster.

Human Intervention

• Attended RPA requires human interaction. Users and bots work together; user actions often trigger bots.
• Unattended RPA runs on its own, without human intervention. Bots do tasks autonomously, based on schedules or triggers set.

Examples

• Attended RPA is for immediate tasks like customer interaction and decision-making.
• Unattended RPA is for back-office tasks that can be automated in bulk without human intervention.

Execution and Triggers

• Attended RPA is triggered when a person does an action, like clicking a button or entering data. Bots start and stop based on what the user wants.
• Unattended RPA runs on schedules, triggers, or events that initiate immediate execution. Bots can run all the time or only when told to.

Environment and Deployment

• Attended RPA bots are installed on users’ desktops or workstations to help them with their daily tasks.
• Unattended RPA is deployed on servers or virtual machines and can automate tasks across multiple systems and configurations.

Scalability

• Attended RPA is not scalable because it’s user-dependent. It’s best for user-driven processes.
• Unattended RPA is highly scalable and can handle large workloads across multiple departments without additional human resources.

Cost and Implementation

• Attended RPA has lower start-up costs and faster deployment because it’s built to work with users' existing workflows.
• Unattended RPA infrastructure may require a more significant upfront investment but will save more in the long run.

Task Complexity

• Attended RPA is for tasks that require human judgment or decision-making.
• Unattended RPA is for rule-based tasks that are fully automated and have no human intervention.

Maintenance and Monitoring

• Attended RPA requires minimal contact and little oversight because the user is watching what the bot does.
• Unattended RPA needs robust maintenance and monitoring to ensure bot performance without human supervision.

Selecting the Right RPA for Your Business

To choose the right RPA for your business, you must know what you want and your operational goals. To decide if Attended or Unattended RPA is for you, do the following:

Your Business Needs

First, think about what tasks you want to automate. Attended RPA might be for your business if you need to make decisions fast and there’s a lot of human interaction, like helping customers or entering data. Unattended RPA might be for you if your processes are repetitive and high-volume and can be done without human intervention.

Consider This

• Task Complexity: Attended RPA if your tasks require human judgment or a lot of decisions. Unattended RPA is if the functions are simple and rule-based.
• Task Volume: When many tasks are fast and correct, unattecorrectlyA is better. Although attended RPA is not scalable, it’s suitable for smaller tasks that require immediate attention.
• Business Goals: Make sure your chosen RPA aligns with your business goals. Attended RPA can help improve customer communication and reduce response time. Unattended RPA has significant benefits if you want to streamline back-end tasks and lower business costs.

Scenarios and Recommendations

• Scenario 1: Frontline Customer Service

In customer service, where workers need help right away to answer questions, Attended RPA works. It can help agents find information quickly, handle customer requests in real-time, and speed up response time without taking their attention away from the conversation.

• Scenario 2: Batch Processing in Finance

Unattended RPA works to process invoices, manage Payroll, and perform other repetitive high-volume tasks in the finance department. Bots can work 24/7 without any human intervention.

• Scenario 3: Sales Order Processing

It would be best if you used both Attended and Unattended RPA together when sales orders need to be processed and checked by people. However, some parts of the job can be automated, like data entry or the first check. Unattended bots work in the background, while Attended bots help sales staff in real-time.

Before you choose which type of RPA will benefit your business the most, you need to understand your processes and goals. Your automation plan will be effective and efficient if you choose the right one for your needs, whether you need the immediate human-enhanced capabilities of Attended RPA or the autonomous large-scale power of Unattended RPA.

Conclusion

This article is to help you understand the difference between Attended and Unattended RPA so you can use it to automate your business processes. Now that you know the difference, you can choose the automation approach. If you want to learn more about the ROI of implementing Robotic Process Automation, our RPA consultants are here to help you figure out what you need and offer the right RPA tools and solutions.

Happy Automating to you!