Robotic process automation helping organisations to stay competitive

In a recent survey, carried out by the software company Pegasystems Inc., 500 decision makers from global businesses in a mix of industries identified the scope, strength and shortcomings of running operations with bots, a key aspect of digital transformation. Going by the survey trends, robotic process automation (RPA) and robotic desktop automation (RDA) to be highly effective in streamlining work — though achieving and maintaining those results isn’t as simple as it seems. 

The report found that RPA has become a buzzworthy solution for organisations under pressure to modernise their legacy IT infrastructure and stay competitive. Gartner recently reported that “RPA software revenue grew 63.1 percent in 2018 to $846 million, making it the fastest-growing segment of the global enterprise software market.” It’s often positioned as a quick and easy path to digital transformation by automating cumbersome and mundane processes.

Right rules

According to Gartner, with digital transformation being a rapid, irreversible transformation, there is a need to address the complex question of regulation. It suggests that rather than a few all-encompassing laws, it is more likely that regulation would be a blend of different rules, rule makers and subject areas. This creates the need for a framework to organise, evaluate and develop regulations with clear outcomes, focus and scope. 

And for this, CEOs, CIOs and other executives must collaborate on new rules to protect individuals and groups. They should be able to recognise the main levels of digital society that sit atop a substructure of commercial, communications and technologies capabilities, according to experts. “Trust in digital institutions such as social media has declined, concerns about data protection and privacy are increasing, and employee and company activism is increasing,” said Mark McDonald, research vice president at Gartner.