SUBSCRIBE TO TMCnet
TMCnet - World's Largest Communications and Technology Community

CHANNEL BY TOPICS


QUICK LINKS




Is Business Process Automation Right for Your Company?

TMCnews Featured Article


February 03, 2010

Is Business Process Automation Right for Your Company?

By Patrick Barnard, Group Managing Editor, TMCnet


Companies today are doing everything they can to find new operational efficiencies and boost the bottom line. In particular they are looking to reduce the amount of labor needed to carry out basic, routine processes – only without impacting customer service.


As a result, many organizations are adopting business process automation software. In general, this is software that is used to automate certain “people-centric” business processes – such as the on-boarding of employees in a human resources department; the registering of students in a college registration office; or the processing of auto loans through a bank. These are processes that are relatively simple to automate – yet they still require human oversight, and in many cases, human interaction. The goal of most BPA solutions, therefore, is not to take the “human” out of the process, but rather to streamline and speed the process via software and systems.

The challenge for organizations seeking to automate specific processes is determining first whether or not they are worth automating, in terms of both cost and complexity; what the impact of automating them will be on the employees using them, as well as the rest of the organization; and, last but not least, which BPA solution to choose to automate a particular process or set of processes.

To help organizations make these important decisions, Interactive Intelligence (News - Alert) -- which is expected to announce the launch of its new BPA solution, Interaction Process Automation, any day now -- recently released a white paper “A Practical Guide to Automating Key Business Processes,” outlining five key considerations when planning a BPA initiative. The five considerations include:

1. Defining and aligning clear business objectives
2. Involving the right people
3. Automating the right processes
4. Using the right technology
5. Supporting “quick win” as well as continuous improvement initiatives

As the white paper points out, selecting the right BPA technology should be the last part of the overall process. Otherwise organizations are putting the cart before the horse. Companies must first determine whether or not BPA will truly help them carry out their business objectives effectively and affordably. Then they must determine how implementing a BPA solution might affect the employees who will be using such a solution – and how automating a process might affect employees in other, related departments. They must also carefully decide which processes are cost-effective to automate: There can be a wide range of factors that can change or “shape” how a process is carried out over time. If the process is expected to change in the months or years to come, will it still be feasible to automate it, using software, once those changes take place?
 
To download the free white paper and learn more about what should be driving your decision to adopt BPA technology, click here.

Patrick Barnard is a senior Web editor for TMCnet, covering call and contact center technologies. He also compiles and regularly contributes to TMCnet e-Newsletters in the areas of robotics, IT, M2M, OCS and customer interaction solutions. To read more of Patrick's articles, please visit his columnist page.

Edited by Patrick Barnard







Technology Marketing Corporation

2 Trap Falls Road Suite 106, Shelton, CT 06484 USA
Ph: +1-203-852-6800, 800-243-6002

General comments: [email protected].
Comments about this site: [email protected].

STAY CURRENT YOUR WAY

© 2024 Technology Marketing Corporation. All rights reserved | Privacy Policy