TALKING
‘‘ business
Umbrella or towel ?
If the underlying processes are not optimal and are not delivering what they should , the only thing automation will do is perform the incorrect action faster .
Ultimately automation ( and any transformation ) needs to be informed by business strategy and by context first , so that problems can have effective solutions . To take a simple analogy , if a person is wet , you can either give them a towel or an umbrella . Each is a solution , but they apply to different situations – if the person is standing in the rain , a towel will not be helpful ; conversely if the person fell into a pool , then an umbrella will be useless .
The opportunities are many , and we are only just beginning to explore the potential of automation . One thing that businesses need to consider however is that you cannot automate the front-end ( for example by automating invoice payment ) without also deploying automation in the back end ( if the invoice is posted rather than being digitally submitted , the entire automation chain will fail ). Process and function automation need to be end-to-end , and it needs to be driven by an appropriate business case . The environment as well as external third parties and suppliers must be considered as part of an overall automation strategy .
Processes also need to be relooked and optimised before they can be automated , because automating a bad business process will just ensure that ineffective things happen at a more rapid pace . Strategy and planning are key , and automation should always be done with the purpose of transforming your business , not just for the sake of adding technology into the stack . Finally , data , applications and legacy infrastructure can all be stumbling blocks on any automation journey , which again makes strategy essential . The right IT partner can be an invaluable asset in ensuring that strategic , end-to-end transformation is the focus and that the appropriate platforms and solutions are in place to enable this to happen . p
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