Employers, irrespective of the sector they work in, perform certain repeatable tasks on a daily basis. Executing the same business process daily becomes troublesome as well as takes time. With an aim to automate such business processes and enhance productivity, Robotic Process Automation(RPA) was introduced. It is a technology in which software can be configured to execute basic tasks across digital systems that are usually performed by humans. Jobs like sending a receipt email, moving files and folders, filling a form, maintaining records, and triggering responses, can be done in a jiffy by using RPA. This results in reduced costs, saving a large percentage of employee’s time, and minimized human error. All these features and benefits have led to many people being interested in the RPA using UiPath certification training online course.
Adoption of RPA
Robotics and artificial intelligence have received intensifying popularity over the years. Various industrial sectors are interested in RPA adoption and reap its benefits. According to the RPA Industry report of Grand View Research, the global market size of Robotic Process Automation (RPA) stood at USD 357.5 Million in 2017 and is expected to register at a CAGR of 31.1% by 2025. The report emphasizes how organizations can streamline their business processes by adopting software robots.
According to a Global RPA survey conducted by Deloitte, out of 400 participating individuals, 53% of the respondents had already started their RPA journey, and a further 19% of the respondents had plans to adopt RPA. Such respondents achieved various benefits through RPA like improved compliance (92%), improved quality/accuracy (90%), improved productivity (86%), cost reduction (59%).
Industries Where RPA Can Be Used
RPA can prove to be a critical growth driving factor for many industrial sectors. Some of them include:
Banking and financial services
Banking and financial services can make the most out of RPA to improve their efficiency and accuracy. Processes in banking like risk and compliance reporting, know your customer (KYC), capturing data for the accounting, financial and management reporting, data validations, and so on can be automated using RPA tools to enhance the customer experience.
For example, BNY Mellon adopted RPA in 2016 and saw 88-percent improvement in transaction-processing times and account-closure validations, among various other benefits. The bank had 250 bots in operation as of 2017. The bank further planned to leverage automation and streamline their operations.
Healthcare
Many healthcare executives are ready to explore the ways in which they can incorporate RPA in their workflow. Hospitals can rely on RPA for doing time-consuming administrative tasks, speeding up authorizations and paperwork necessary for treating patients, claims processing, data entry in health record systems, etc.
For example, Ascension Health, a health care system in the U.S, is using Blue Prism’s RPA technology for its ERP stack, processing team, email system, and case management system.
Telecom and IT
Telecom sector has many business operations like customer service management, IT and infrastructure services, database management, purchase order management, and more. With the implementation of RPA in such activities, telecom service providers improve performance and enhance customer experience.
Manufacturing
While the Manufacturing sectors have included automation in their core processes, RPA can be adopted for automation of non-core time-consuming tasks like preparing Bill of Materials (BOM), customer communication, procurement, inventory management, and payment processing. Manufacturers always have challenges to remain competitive in the market, reduce costs and at the same time improve their efficiency. These constraints became the driving factor for adopting automation in the manufacturing sector.
Who Can Start a Career in RPA?
Robotic Process Automation is implemented through RPA tools. There are various RPA tools available in the market such as BluePrism, UiPath, Automation Anywhere, Pega, Cofex, and more. Configuring such tools generally involve drag and drop principles for linking steps in a process, and then the code is generated automatically.
This means that business people can be trained to use these tools irrespective of their educational background. However, basic programming knowledge would be helpful while working with certain tools. Understanding of concepts like iteration, error handling, string functions, database management, can prove to be beneficial. Professionals working as Developers, Architects, Operation Support, Project Managers can learn RPA and take their career ahead.
Skills Needed to Learn RPA
To start a career in Robotic Process Automation, you need the following skills:
- Knowledge of the business processes of your organization
- Basic understanding of MS Office, SQL Server, Web services, etc.
- System Analysis
- Fundamentals of Programming Language like C# or Java
- Analytical Thinking
- Problem-solving skills
- Familiarity with any RPA tool would be an added advantage, for example, UiPath
Looking at the skills mentioned above, a professional with a software background will have an advantage while starting an RPA career. However, it is not mandatory to have an IT background. Professionals from different domains can also begin their RPA career if they get proper training. RPA training helps professionals in learning the following:
- Core concepts of Robotic Automation
- Practical knowledge of Microsoft Office tools
- Understanding of web-based applications
- Working with RPA tools
RPA Developer Growth Prospects
Every professional aim for a rewarding career. Becoming an RPA Developer is one such career path which they can pursue to achieve their goals. RPA developers earn an average salary of $115,035 in the U.S. According to ISG, usage of RPA will grow at 100% in Europe alone by 2020. At the same time, 92% of the European companies would have deployed RPA. This indicates that professionals skilled in RPA will be in huge demand in the future. Some of the job posts available in the field of automation include Automation analyst, Automation consultant, RPA Lead, RPA Analyst, Head of Automation, to name a few.
Final Words
Now that you know the details regarding a career in Robotic Process Automation, you should take the next step and gain the relevant skills that will help you land your dream job. You can do that by taking an RPA course to learn the basic to advanced concepts and mastering the RPA tool of your choice. Without having a second thought, step into the world of automation and become a successful RPA developer.