Intelligent automation (IA) technologies are evolving from basic operational roles to becoming pivotal strategic assets, and the positive impact on financial performance is noteworthy.
A recent study by SS&C Blue Prism, carried out by Forrester Consulting and released in April, developed a composite organization based on interviews with five clients. The findings indicated significant IA gains over three years, ranging from increased productivity to cost savings in compliance, along with enhancements in employee experience and retention. This translated to an impressive net present value of $53.4 million (£42.5m) for each customer.
This analysis may merely scratch the surface. Dan Segura, the enterprise sales manager at SS&C Blue Prism, highlights one healthcare client that, based on conservative estimates, achieved savings exceeding $140 million in cost avoidance and recoupment. Another healthcare organization presented a case where a bot managed to reclaim $43 million in overtime pay for nurses and staff during the pandemic.
“They built it in just one afternoon,” Segura notes. “It’s a prime illustration of being positioned perfectly, coupled with the right skills and technology.”
The technologies involved in intelligent automation, such as traditional RPA (robotic process automation) and OCR (optical character recognition), have been established for quite some time. However, SS&C Blue Prism’s document automation, part of the latter, is termed a ‘game-changer’ by Segura. “Many of these processes can be carried out by either a robot or a human,” he explains. “First and foremost, we must extract data from documents.”
“Automation has progressed beyond mere task execution due to the integration of AI and generative AI,” he continues. “There is now a deeper understanding, whether in analyzing information from documents, messages, or organizing semi-structured and unstructured data, to propel or complete processes.”
Meanwhile, Segura refers to the broader business process management (BPM) and process orchestration tool Chorus as ‘one of the world’s best-kept secrets.’ Although it was previously less recognized, November marked its recognition as a leader and star performer in the Everest Group’s Process Orchestration Products PEAK Matrix.
This tool is expanding its reach beyond conventional finance and insurance sectors. “It’s how countless transactions and tasks are accomplished daily,” Segura states. “We are now witnessing its adoption across various domains, facilitating work orchestration, visibility, and efficiency enhancements.”
So, how does a use case materialize? Often, it is a blend of inspiration and hard work. SS&C Blue Prism is here to ‘help customers catch lightning,’ as Segura puts it. “We’ve all experienced moments where we think, ‘if I were in charge, this is what I would pursue’,” he mentions. “Intelligent automation offers a chance to rethink processes and reshape how work is executed. Once that light bulb goes off and the initial use case is created, that’s the real secret to SS&C Blue Prism; it’s the realization of what intelligent automation can achieve.”
“We continuously learn from our customers,” Segura adds. “It’s at their guidance since they possess the deepest understanding of their business and processes. By merging their expertise with the transformational strength of intelligent automation and its digital workforce, that’s when the magic occurs.”
According to Segura, every organization has potential change agents and citizen developers waiting to be unleashed. Don’t mistake this for a misnomer; they are indeed ‘builders.’
“I hear about these citizen developer programs, and they mention having 500 or even 1000 developers. What they don’t share is, ‘and with this army of citizen developers, we achieved this’,” Segura says. “In contrast, I have customers where just two individuals have effectively become citizen builders with a more structured approach.” The $43 million healthcare single use case exemplifies this. “This reflects the core philosophy of SS&C Blue Prism,” Segura emphasizes. “We aim for high-value chain automations that can significantly impact crucial company objectives.”
So you have the concept, the value proposition, and the ability to implement it. How do you ensure its sustainability? Each organization is unique; however, having a continuous process improvement department can serve as an excellent starting point. Segura likens this to offshoring processes. “You can’t just let them go and forget about them,” he explains. “Ultimately, they still need to operate.”
“You’re not merely ‘digitizing’ [automation] and assuming it will manage itself. Someone must ensure continual process improvement; someone has to monitor when business rules or regulatory compliance changes occur; and someone must keep those adjustments agile,” he adds.
One of SS&C Blue Prism’s longstanding, substantial US retail clients exemplifies this synergy of capturing lightning with the right internal culture around automation. This organization boasts 72,000 employees and 60 ‘digital workers’ executing over 150 automated processes. One specific automation utilizes OCR technology to streamline processing of inbound customer orders transmitted via digital fax.
The cumulative result is over 6.2 million transactions processed thus far, equating to 250,000 hours of work returned to the business. However, an additional crucial ingredient is necessary, particularly for a large organization: discipline.
“It took them some time to reach that level of maturity,” Segura clarifies. “They indeed have a centralized intelligent automation team, but consider that one of those processes pertains to supply chain management. This process oversees regular reviews of 4.2 million purchase orders, monitors 50 million inventory cases, and processes two million SKUs for 8,000 suppliers.”
“This is an iterative process, involving a ‘lightning rod’ to capture requirements and empower non-technical staff with a platform and methodology to work closely with the intelligent automation team,” Segura emphasizes.
Therefore, SS&C Blue Prism can be viewed as bestowing a superhero cape upon those who otherwise might remain in the shadows. This is a message the company intends to amplify at the Intelligent Automation event held in Santa Clara on June 5-6.
“SS&C Blue Prism enables your citizen builders to make a significant impact, delivering strategic advantages to the organization,” Segura asserts. “You’re not just dabbling in a pilot project; you’re genuinely engaging with the strategic goals of the company.”
Interested in expanding your knowledge about AI and big data from industry experts? Don’t miss the AI & Big Data Expo happening in Amsterdam, California, and London. This comprehensive event is co-located with other leading conferences including Intelligent Automation Conference, BlockX, Digital Transformation Week, and Cyber Security & Cloud Expo.
