Besides the pervasive media references to artificial intelligence, the runner-up has to be robots. Historical thinking is that Robots are going to take over the world, especially now that they are fortified with AI. But there are also references to Robots that don’t involve scary, shiny, blinking physical contraptions.
Robotic process automation is generally defined as business process automation based on software or AI agents, according to Wikipedia. No physical component at all. That sounds a lot like workflow. Wikipedia defines Workflow as “orchestrated and repeatable patterns of activity enabled by systematic organization of processes to get information processed.” Use either term, just don’t be left behind because robot or not, there are clear advantages.
The first advantage over manual processes is the amount of time saved in the completion of tasks. This is a result of several factors. Technology can serve up information at each step in the process to aid the user in their task. Printing or walking of approvals around the office are both eliminated.
Possibly the most beneficial aspect of workflow is the real-time tracking and reporting. If you want to know where the process is stalled, just check the workflow reports. If you want to know user or process metrics, check the reports. None of this is available or trustworthy in manual processes that are dependent on spreadsheets.
Lastly, workflow provides a fully auditable compliance component unlike any other method. Want to see the full history of an approval process, check the workflow logs. By the way, workflow also ensures that all documents included in the process are archived and in essence validated as the final version. This is compliance and downstream user nirvana.
The efficiency gained, and money saved, by automating your business processes is real. There are also benefits such as more timely completion of tasks, greater accuracy of data capture, improved decision making and far less missed critical dates. Not so scary after all.
Millennia Group, LLC has been providing workflow and secure document archive solutions since 1996. Contact us at info@mgdocs.com or www.mgdocs.com or 630-279-0577 x122.
