Avoiding false cost savings from Robotic Process Automation (RPA)

Avoiding false cost savings from Robotic Process Automation (RPA)

If you find that your automations have had little or no effect on workflows in the finance and accounting department, there are a few things you can do to find out what is standing in the way.

To get to the root of the problem, a full root cause analysis (RCA) is necessary. While this is clearly an effective way of identifying the cause, it can quickly become time-consuming and costly if you have no indication of where to start. Knowing where to look first can save a great deal of time. There are a couple of areas worth investigating first, where the cause is most likely to be found.

Changes in the team

The biggest mistake people make when automating processes is overlooking the role of employees in the change and ongoing operations. Automation is meant to streamline processes and free up time for employees to focus on more value-adding tasks. If employees are not fully on board with this change, you will not see increased value as a result of the automation.

Pay attention to shifts in team dynamics. Changes in the team can have a significant impact on the return from automation. Have you taken on new employees, or has someone left? When you are in the middle of a large automation project, it is easy to forget or overlook how much staff turnover can affect team dynamics and ways of working. Shifts in motivation also matter. If you have sold automation as a cost-saving measure, this can have a negative effect on morale within the business and undermine the returns you may have expected.

Overestimated gains

This will happen at some point, whether intentionally or not. A team may exaggerate the potential return from their automation proposal in order to be prioritised. This means that calculations are based on average processing times, while only the simplest transactions end up being automated. When this is discovered, it is relatively straightforward to correct.

It becomes considerably harder to fix, however, if the process has only been partially automated. If, for example, 50% of a process is automated but the handoffs between automation and employee — or parts of the automation within the process — create manual work that did not previously exist, you have a problem.

You can work your way out of this by filling in the gaps and streamlining the handoffs, but unless this was a planned transition phase that was factored into the calculations, the return on automation was miscalculated. There is nothing to do but accept it and learn from it. Implement corrective and preventive measures, and move on. Experience is valuable; getting stuck in a negative cycle is not.

How to get ahead of it

Everyone who will be involved in the automation must be brought on board. This applies not just to managers, but to everyone involved. Without a team that trusts you and that you can trust, the project will become an unnecessary struggle.

As the person leading this change, you need a clear plan for how the gains from automation will be realised. This plan must be communicated clearly to your employees so that they understand both the purpose of the change and how it can improve their working lives.

To ensure employees feel secure, no redundancies should be made in connection with the automation. Hold off on recruiting new people and instead redeploy staff internally. If you are planning to reduce headcount, do it quickly so you can return to a stable position and avoid prolonged anxiety among employees. Review your return calculations frequently, and look for instances where manual tasks are being carried out around the automated ones.

Last but not least, adapt. Return calculations are a forecast. You will need to make adjustments to hit your target. The sooner you accept that changes will need to be made, the easier those changes will be to implement. Everyone will benefit.

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