As robotics emerge into the way companies do business, there are five keys to reimagine the future of work, according to Michael Quindazzi, managing director of U.S. digital services at PricewaterhouseCoopers L.L.P. Quindazzi spoke at ONE18, The Alltech Ideas Conference, May 21 in Lexington, Kentucky.
No matter the business, including agribusiness, Quindazzi said his five keys can be applied when moving to robotics for process automation.
Those five keys are:
- Business processes: Quindazzi said that, with robotics, we are reinventing work using macros and scripts, robotics process automation, process orchestration, intelligent automation and autonomous intelligence.
- Workforce: Robotics don’t fully replace people in the workforce, Quindazzi said. It creates a workforce that is people plus robots.
- Governance: Companies can’t apply robotics to every process, but they can put some risks on auto pilot, Quindazzi said.
- Technology: Available technology allows companies to have a “toolbox” for their intelligent process automation, meaning they can use many different technologies at once.
- Return on investment: This goes beyond the bottom line, Quindazzi said. Robotics allow companies to get a competitive advantage by allowing them to be more productive or complete processes faster, for example.
“I’ve never seen anyone get into trouble by finding a more automated way to do things,” Quindazzi said, meaning automation and robotics can always help a business operate better.
When considering robotics or automation, companies should look at how it will change their business, experience and technology: assess the business opportunity, reimagine the experience required to streamline the process, and identify how automation can be integrated across the business.