In recent years, technologies that once seemed impossible to formulate have become an integral part of the day-to-day operations of several businesses across the map. Intelligent process automation services utilize these technologies to increase business efficiency and enhance productivity.
As this segment of the enterprise software market continues to gain more momentum, more and more businesses are inclined to automate their business to keep up with the times. However, process automation isn’t just about eliminating the human workforce. Its primary function is to utilize up-to-date software solutions for better resource allocation to enhance productivity and profitability.
But what is intelligent process automation (IPA)? Continue reading to learn more about intelligent process automation and the benefits you would reap from introducing it to your business.
What is Intelligent Process Automation
Intelligent Process Automation is the application of Artificial Intelligence and related technologies — including machine learning, computer vision, and cognitive automation — to Robotic Process Automation. The convergence of these technologies elicits automation capabilities that significantly elevate business value and offer competitive advantages. The essential technologies in intelligent process automation include:
- Machine learning algorithms identify patterns in structured data through “unsupervised” and “supervised” learning.
- Computer vision tools, including Optical Character Recognition.
- Cognitive, virtual agents that combine natural-language generation and machine learning to learn from data sets, communicate with users, and perform tasks.
- Smart workflow tools that manage, handoff, and integrate processes spanning machines and people.
- Server-based bots or unattended robots that fully automate processes without human intervention.
- Natural language processing tools allow computers to comprehend, interpret and manipulate written and spoken language.
How to Differentiate Intelligent Process Automation from Robotic Process Automation
Robotic process automation refers to the use of computer software ‘robots’ to address repetitive, rule-based digital tasks by interacting with applications and information sources the same way human workers do. However, these robots are only reliable, quick, and excel at performing repetitive tasks.
Although RPA is highly efficient at automating processes driven by structure, most businesses generate large amounts of unstructured data such as emails, letters, and scanned documents; therefore, implementing IPA’s cognitive solutions will allow you to automate these processes, too.
Combining IPA with RPA will enable these robots to learn from performing tasks, making them work better, faster, and accurately. While basic RPA lacks intelligence and is incapable of managing exceptions and nuances, IPA is more intelligent and more flexible, enabling it to augment and build on the valuable capabilities of RPA.
What Are the Top Benefits of Intelligent Process Automation to a Business
1. Enhanced Process Efficiency
Intelligent automation greatly reduces process handling times and significantly enhances process speed, thus increasing customer satisfaction. It also provides enhanced management information and process analytics, which help businesses precisely sight tie-ups and areas for improvement.
Intelligent automation incorporates machine learning algorithm solutions that track, gather, analyze, organize, store, and report valuable data. This data can be used to forecast needs accurately, enhance existing operations, develop better practices, and address and rectify issues in a timely manner to ensure greater process efficiency.
2. Enhanced Customer Service
Intelligent automation utilizes conversational AI or chatbots to enhance customer experience. These chatbots can regulate over a thousand customer inquiries hence reducing call-center wait time and increasing overall customer satisfaction. By leveraging conversational artificial intelligence, businesses can provide personalized assistance, address customer queries in real-time, and deliver a seamless and interactive customer experience. Natural language processing is the type of AI leveraged in this form of intelligent automation.
NLP utilizes learning algorithms and statistics to analyze textual data to understand the intent, meaning, and sentiment. A customer can raise a support ticket through a chatbot as a free text, after which NPL processes this text to determine the sentiment or level of urgency in the request before proceeding to manage the interaction based on the level of priority/severity.
3. Fraud Prevention
Due to the use of key AI tools such as machine learning, intelligent automation can be leveraged in fraud prevention. Machine learning utilizes a vast volume of information to autonomously predict outcomes, learn patterns and act even without being explicitly programmed with distinct tasks. With a substantial amount of user information, intelligent automation can:
- Monitor for suspicious payments.
- Notify account holders of suspicious activity to avoid the risk of fraud.
- Efficiently calculate risk and perform analytics in real-time.
- Verify every single transaction with greater accuracy than any human worker would be able to.
Leveraging intelligent automation in fraud prevention can improve a business’s reputation and guarantee customer satisfaction.
Leverage Intelligent Process Automation for Your Business Today
In your pursuit of efficient workflow software, you will discover that business process management that utilize artificial intelligence to enhance their capabilities often yield the highest returns. Given the power of technology to outsource, analyze, and organize data through intelligent automation, it’s no surprise that intelligent process automation can be leveraged as a driver of profitability, growth, and problem solver in various industries.
