A client spoke about the important of “Design Thinking” for automation projects in one of our last client meetings. It was suggested to them by a large Management Consulting agency. “Design thinking” is a necessary procedure for a problem-solving approach based on solutions. In the RPA universe, the idea of an “Automation mindset” is equally as paramount. Some people may interpret “Design thinking” and the “Automation Mindset” the same way, but our take on the “Automation mindset is something we want to further shed some light on.
Innovation is Making Changes
Through repetitive analysis and automation, creating a workflow that is more efficient is possible by using this way of thinking. This can provide many benefits to both work environments and day to day life. Its not a bad thing, but us humans are creatures of habit. If we do not start working toward a better result by changing habits and our ways of doing things, then real change cannot occur. Habits exist in business called business processes. Each business has processes that are more efficient with IT, but often these processes result in more IT applications and data that needs processing. Because of this, more employees are needed to work on these IT tasks. Continuously improving and changing IT, the “Automation Mindset” is automating processes. IT application development, APIs, BPM, and robotic process automations all are at one’s disposal.
Implementing Automation
The same way IT was implemented into organizations years and years ago, is the same way Automation and AI need to be implemented today to gain the competitive lead. The results will not be successful without a center of excellence (COE). Training people to create automations is not enough. “Design thinking” has 5 stages: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test. An automation mindset encompasses these stages: Discover, Analyze, Design, Develop, and Manage.
Stages of Automation
The discover stage is a frequentative process used to link business process efficiency and automation with opportunities. Once discovered, the stage of analyzation occurs to determine automation potential and possible redesign within the business process. Once the process has been determined suitable for automation, design can begin. Reuse of existing automations and interfaces is necessary in the design process because keeping maintenance costs and development low is most efficient. A staff member proficient in RPA platforms, APIs and web services then works in the developing stage, creating automations that are powerful. After development and deployment of these automations occur, comes the manage stage. Here, automations are cataloged and managed within a COE. Within a COE is where monitoring, recording, and management of automations represent a vastly important part in the overall automation program.
Change Isn’t Overnight
An “Automation Mindset” takes longer than one day of effort. Automation and AI are an essential part of operations of a business. They are not just “nice to have” and they need a program that is created and nurtured by people who have a strong feeling toward it and feel that it’s a necessity of success today in this world. Otherwise, the result would be no different than the results from a “yo-yo” diet.