The rise of automation and RPA

Automation and RPA are already a reality in almost all companies.This technology has advanced at dizzying rates, a large percentage due to the pandemic, despite this, it is clear that there are still many tasks to automate




Gartner points out that global investment in software for process automation will reach a total of $2.9 billion by 2022. This investment and the improvements in efficiency and cost savings will allow organizations to focus on their essential business function since automation allows for faster problem-solving and customer satisfaction.


For some years now, IT automation has been implemented tactically, in small areas and in isolation. Currently, as Pablo Ráez Rosal, Cloud & Automation, business development manager, Red Hat, points out, “it is vital that automation is deployed strategically and holistically. But it is also important that automation not only stay in the IT field but that it be transversal throughout the organization”, explains Pablo Ráez Rosal, Cloud & Automation, business development manager, Red Hat.


RPA and Automation
RPA is not the only protagonist of process automation. When we talk about “process automation” and “hyperautomation”, the implications of RPA in business investment should be considered as one more element.


In the difficult and changing environment that we are experiencing, where it is increasingly important to be more efficient and competitive, with a growing and in many cases unexpected erosion and greater competition, automation becomes a great ally.


Javier Campelo Pi?ón, Head Analytics & AI Solution Leader at aggity, emphasizes that many companies manage to position themselves as an innovative and digital company without being at the forefront of technology, and even without the need for large investments, through Digital Experience and the use of RPA. "To do this, it is necessary to rethink the way of interacting with customers, suppliers or employees, through an attractive and easy-to-use interface that, thanks to RPA and AI, allows you to simplify operations and abstract yourself from complex processes or legacy systems", Add.


Undoubtedly, the continuous improvement of efficiency is a priority objective for companies and with this objective in recent years they have been carrying out RPA projects with significant long-term investments.


For Juan José Berdoy, Director Consulting Expert, Spain Delivery Center – Artificial Intelligence of CGI, this is a clear indicator that the commitment to robotic process automation is clear, "we perceive an upward evolution that is also aligned with a strong commitment from solution/tool providers such as UiPath, Blue Prism, and ElectroNeek along with the industry, service providers are also contributing to the democratization of these solutions through their simplification. We can affirm that this revolution may imply that each employee will have a robot console in the future to carry out repetitive and time-consuming tasks”.


labor force multiplier
We needs to double the number of ICT professionals in the coming years to meet the goal that has been set in the Digital Decade. In 2030 the European Union is expected to have some 20 million ICT professionals, but currently, the 27 only have almost 9 million, of which 806 thousand come from the Spanish market. This means that more people need to be trained to join the ICT sector.


In relation to this, and against the false belief that the increase in the use of automation tools will affect employment, Red Hat explains that "Spanish companies can partially alleviate this shortage of ICT professionals by using automation precisely in the tasks repetitive and those that take more time, so that workers can spend their time on tasks that add greater value to the business.


RPA provides many benefits, starting with higher levels of quality and productivity
This same opinion is shared by Ozona Tech, reiterating that “automation should not be seen as a reduction in jobs, but rather as the use of human capacities for high-value tasks. Automation generates a new job profile in the organization with a greater orientation towards technological capabilities”.


Also, Roman Spitzbart, VP EMEA Solutions Engineering of Dyncatrance adds that in the IT area they see few jobs eliminated. “In fact, automation allows corporations to focus their resources on developing new products and services; dedicating itself to innovation instead of focusing on basic tasks of maintaining existing systems”.


Companies are thinking more and more about Digital Transformation with two very specific objectives, efficiency and improvement of the digital experience of customers/suppliers/partners, and are taking the opportunity to rethink and automate their processes, with a focus on UX (User Experience).


Throughout this journey, data, AI and RPA make a great combination, complementing other key tools in the digital age.


Digital Experience: where platforms like HCL are complemented by cognitive solutions to predict and interact like a human, and RPA to automate and make workflows more efficient, eliminating the complexities of legacy systems and information silos.


Cognitive Assistants: new forms of communication, more open, close and easy to use (voice, whatsapp, mail) led by an AI that has RPA as its main ally, connecting to different systems to collect everything you need to make the best decision and transfer it to the client.


People Analytics: the employee plays an increasingly important role in the company and it is essential to attract and retain talent, as well as motivate and generate engagement with them. For all this, the RPA can make life easier for the HR department by doing all the "routine" work, as happened with payroll, to focus on adding value. Some examples could be the issue of onboarding, asking people to comply with internal procedures (sign in, fill out time sheets, request vacations, take courses...).


Technological evolution and migration to the Cloud: more and more companies have difficulties in handling different types of systems, applications and technological solutions, so RPA solutions for data integration, system interconnection or use for monitoring and automation IT tasks or Back Office processes are more common. In the future, these processes will be increasingly linked to DevOps, CI/CD (continuous integration and continuous delivery) or IA Factory or Data Mesh issues.


While Roman Spitzbart adds that, in the medium and long term, he sees the data explosion as the biggest trend in the area of observability. “Digital transformation happens in the cloud for most organizations, these multicloud architectures produce a huge increase in data, creating complexity that cannot be managed manually. How companies deal with this challenge, how they ensure that amounts of data are processed, stored and made accessible for analysis – both AI-driven and manually – will be the key decision factor in determining who reaches and it continues to be successful,” he says.


In line with what was mentioned before, Juan José Berdoy explains that RPA technology will maintain its relevance, but part of the investments directed to RPA will move towards automation solutions with AI. “In this sense, CGI, through its specialist consultants and data scientists, is already identifying use cases aimed at its clients to use data intelligently and transform it into action, including disruptive services that allow them to differentiate themselves from their competitors. ”, he concludes.