STAMFORD, Conn., Sept. 17, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A new study from
Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III), a leading global
technology research and advisory firm, reveals the struggles
companies face when trying to scale automation initiatives across
the enterprise, and what they need to do to become high-performing
"Bot 3.0" companies.
The ISG Insights™ study "Is Your RPA Program 'Bot 3.0' Ready?"
finds that many organizations have hit the "RPA wall" and are
struggling to get beyond automating 10 to 20 processes.
"We see intense interest in robotic process automation (RPA)
from enterprises looking to reduce costs, improve productivity and
increase speed – all areas critical to competing in an increasingly
digital economy," said Stanton
Jones, principal analyst, ISG Research, and author of the
study. "The great news is that it's easy to get started with RPA.
Building a few bots to automate repetitive processes is not a major
hurdle for organizations. What's difficult is scaling automation
across an enterprise."
The ISG study combines results from a global survey of 321
business and technology executives, a live "swarm" session with 40
executives measuring group consensus on the future of automation,
insights from ISG advisors, and forecasts from enterprise
automation leaders to provide a 360-degree view of the current and
future state of business automation.
ISG found the majority of organizations are only at the
beginning stages of deploying RPA. ISG's maturity curve shows 18
percent are at Bot 0.0 (conducting a proof of concept or pilot) and
58 percent are at Bot 1.0 (some processes automated, with a center
of excellence launched). Only 7 percent have reached ISG's highest
level of maturity, Bot 3.0, having expanded RPA to multiple
functions across the enterprise and using cognitive technology
along with their RPA.
Bot 3.0 companies, the study finds, are:
- Extending RPA beyond finance and IT, the typical starting
points for automation, to other functions such as customer service
and sales and marketing;
- Focusing more on productivity gains and efficiency ("returning
hours to the business") than cost reduction;
- Standardizing and re-engineering processes before automating
them; and
- Establishing centers of excellence before launching their first
bot, a key factor in their ability to scale automation across the
enterprise.
Bot 3.0 companies also report they are adopting RPA faster than
their service providers; 59 percent say their providers aren't
incorporating RPA into their services fast enough.
The ISG study also examined automation adoption by industry.
Executives in the banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI)
sector – the earliest and most pervasive industry adopter of
automation – say they will run out of processes to automate with
basic RPA within two years, whereas retailers see no end in sight
to their automation opportunities.
Other key findings include:
- More than a quarter of companies will make automation a
board-level priority in 2019;
- Most organizations began piloting RPA 18 to 24 months ago and
deployed their first bot three to six months after the pilot;
- More than 80 percent of organizations use one or two RPA
vendors; 5 percent use five or more;
- Productivity and speed are the primary metrics by which
automation ROI is determined;
- Organizations are realizing more compelling automation results
related to productivity, data accuracy and customer experience than
to cost savings, compliance and employee satisfaction;
- Organizational resistance to change will be the greatest
challenge to automation over the next three years;
- Governance is the hardest thing to get right, with a lack of
technical capability, especially in cognitive and AI, also
challenging respondents – even Bot 3.0 companies.
"Three factors differentiate Bot 3.0 companies from Bot 2.0
companies: a focus on business value realization, the dedication of
RPA roles and a strong understanding of cognitive technologies and
their application," said Mark
Davison, global partner, ISG Robotic Process and Cognitive
Automation.
"Bot 3.0 companies, with their strong process-orientation, know
what to automate. They have a common understanding of how
automation is best achieved, and they leverage best practices to
build and support bots through a center of excellence. They have a
strong governance framework to get the most out of their RPA
investment, and a clear picture of where they are going tomorrow,
with a well-defined automation roadmap," Davison said.
"Is Your RPA Program 'Bot 3.0' Ready?" is available to ISG
Insights™ subscribers. For more information, please visit this
webpage.
ISG will discuss the highlights of this research study during an
ISG Smartalks™ webinar on Tuesday, September
18, beginning at 1 p.m., U.S.
Eastern Time. Click here to register for this free webcast.
About ISG
ISG (Information Services Group) (Nasdaq: III) is a leading
global technology research and advisory firm. A trusted business
partner to more than 700 clients, including 75 of the top 100
enterprises in the world, ISG is committed to helping corporations,
public sector organizations, and service and technology providers
achieve operational excellence and faster growth. The firm
specializes in digital transformation services, including
automation, cloud and data analytics; sourcing advisory; managed
governance and risk services; network carrier services; technology
strategy and operations design; change management; market
intelligence and technology research and analysis. Founded in 2006,
and based in Stamford, Conn., ISG
employs more than 1,300 professionals operating in more than 20
countries—a global team known for its innovative thinking, market
influence, deep industry and technology expertise, and world-class
research and analytical capabilities based on the industry's most
comprehensive marketplace data. For more information, visit
www.isg-one.com.
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SOURCE Information Services Group, Inc.