Businesses are increasingly adopting RPA and other intelligent automation technologies to address the new business and market pressures created by the pandemic. At the same time, they still believe that a people-centered approach is essential to future success at work, according to a study by Forrester Research.
In May 2020 (at the height of the crisis) Forrester conducted an online survey of 160 process automation decision-makers for operational groups, shared services, finance and other business units in organizations in France, Germany, Japan, the UK, and the US
Digital transformation
The survey results showed that the pandemic is accelerating digital transformations and sparking a wave of investment in automation. The world has undergone more digital transformation in recent months than it has in the past five years. Intelligent automation technologies, including RPA, support and accelerate this wave.
RPA
With 48% of respondents planning to increase RPA spending in the coming year, companies are using RPA to increase diversity and resilience in their supply chain operations (83%); address extraordinary cost pressures by automating back office and operational tasks (80%); and support staff remotely (75%).
Employees
Automation is needed to address post-pandemic economic challenges, but requires an employee-centric approach. Fifty-seven percent of respondents say their employees are moderately or very concerned about their ability to succeed in their jobs due to automation and pandemic stress.
Training
Because of this, it is critical for companies to provide upskilling and upskilling opportunities so that employees have the skills necessary to thrive in the future of their jobs and maximize the potential of automation investments. Sixty percent of decision makers agreed that providing workplace certifications for transferable digital and machine skills helps their employees deal with the potential impacts of automation and prepare them for the future of work. Organizations must develop a post-pandemic employee experience by providing training opportunities and monitoring employee health.
Shock
“The pandemic has turned the world upside down and the shock has dramatically accelerated the march of companies into the future of work. Automation has become invaluable for organizations to embrace this changing way of working. Now is the time to automate. “Said Tom Clancy, SVP UiPath Learning.” More than ever, digital skills are needed. To increase retention and increase productivity, it is the responsibility of employers to provide digital training – particularly automation training – as part of career development initiatives. “
