Process automation - for more efficiency in day-to-day business
Cost and time savings, error-resistant and transparent processes as well as relieving employees of routine administrative tasks: The digitalization and automation of business processes enables companies to increase their efficiency.
How process automation enables smooth workflow management
Especially in times of ever-increasing data volumes and agile market requirements, process automation not only provides companies with a significant competitive advantage – it is increasingly becoming a decisive success factor. Modern tools such as the nscale Process Automation Platform (nscale PAP) provide important support for business process automation and workflow management.
It is not only the ever-increasing amount of information and documents and the requirement to use them profitably that presents companies with challenges. The number of workflows is also constantly increasing, and more and more processors and different departments are involved in business processes. In addition, it is anything but unusual for several different applications and systems to be involved in a process – which results in additional media disruptions. The resulting complexity makes analog process management increasingly difficult. Process automation, in which as many steps as possible run without human intervention thanks to process automation software, provides a remedy.
Using process modeling to automate business processes
Process modeling forms the basis for efficient process automation. Here, the entire workflow is represented from start to finish in the form of a diagram. The full value of the diagrams is achieved through annotations – i.e. textual or graphical additions – which provide additional information for a better understanding of the process, but do not have a direct impact on its flow. In this way, employees and any software integrated into process automation can understand even complex processes, analyse them and thus identify potential for improvement and optimize workflows.
What is process automation?
Process automation refers to the digitalization and automation of regularly recurring processes in day-to-day business – with the aim of carrying them out efficiently, error-free and with as little human intervention as possible.
Why process automation?
The key reason for business process automation is the ability to make workflows more efficient: Ideally, all process steps run digitally and automatically, eliminating inefficient manual processing steps. In addition, the automation of business processes guarantees that they run without media discontinuity, which results in an extremely low susceptibility to errors. Thanks to comprehensive documentation and logging, those responsible always have an overview of current process statuses and the processors involved – and can make well-founded operational decisions based on this.
Central storage also ensures that information or documents can be found without time-consuming searches and do not get lost. All of this leads to significant savings in time and personal resources – and significantly lower costs. Last but not least, employees, customers and partners also benefit from process automation: while some are relieved of time-consuming manual administrative tasks and can concentrate on value-adding core tasks instead, others benefit from fast decision-making processes and a transparent flow of information.
The high configuration standards and numerous preconfigured workflows offered by professional process automation software such as nscale PAP guarantee intuitive and efficient process design. In addition, thanks to simply designed layouts and clear user guidance, processors are guided quickly and reliably through all process steps. nscale PAP is therefore the perfect basis for cross-company and visualized process automation. In addition, the solution is able to provide all information for task management and processing in a clear manner, so that workflows can be continuously optimized and adapted to new requirements. The process automation platform therefore offers companies everything they need to digitize and automate their business processes.
Examples of process automation: BPMN and DMN in practice
Modern and powerful process automation software uses standardized methods to efficiently model digital processes. Ceyoniq’s nscale PAP solution is based on the leading Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN ) standard. What makes it special: Thanks to a low-code approach and an intuitive graphical interface, even employees without programming knowledge can model process automation by dragging and dropping individual workflow elements into the corresponding diagram, linking them together and adjusting them until the visualization corresponds to the real workflow.
Decision rules are integrated using Decision Model and Notation (DMN), an internationally established standard for decision tables, which enables the precise documentation of complex decisions as well as the traceability of all processes for all process participants through transparent and easy-to-maintain responsibility regulations.
The individual steps of process automation
Companies that want to drive forward the automation of their business processes should plan this project carefully and base it on a long-term digitalization and process automation strategy that ensures the company’s long-term competitiveness.
Indispensable: professional process automation software and tools
As a first step, companies should analyze their existing – analogue and digital – processes and process modules as part of process mining and identify potential for process automation. This is because it is often not immediately apparent where this potential lies – and how it can be effectively exploited. This is particularly the case with complex workflows that involve several departments, company locations or even external process participants. In addition, companies should check whether the analogue processes to be digitized are necessary, well-organized and error-free. Otherwise, there is a risk of a GIGO scenario (garbage in – garbage out) – and bad analog processes become bad digital processes.
The industry association of the German information and telecommunications sector (Bitkom) has developed a maturity model that companies can use to assess the status quo of their digital business processes without major effort. The model is based on four dimensions that can be used to measure the maturity level of workflows:
- Technology: the technological environment in which the processes take place (IT infrastructure, compatibility, etc.)
- Data: the handling of data within the workflows (provision, analysis, etc.)
- Quality: the quality of the processes themselves (correct description, legal conformity, etc.)
- Organization: organizational framework conditions under which process management is organized (employee skills, support for digitalization projects in the company, etc.)
Define workflows to be automated
The results of process mining form the basis for the next step in the automation of business processes: defining the workflows to be automated. These should first be standardized and simplified company-wide, insofar as this is possible. In addition, companies should define clear objectives for specific process automation, weigh up the costs and benefits and consider other company-specific requirements before embarking on process automation.
Modeling and automation of processes
Modeling and business process automation can then begin. It is advisable to proceed step by step and automate individual workflows one by one. Before going live, it should also be borne in mind that the employees concerned need to be trained: Ideally, they should be able to model simple workflows independently and implement them in day-to-day business as well as work safely and efficiently in the redesigned digital process environment.
Workflow monitoring and continuous process optimization
After process automation is before process optimization! Companies should continuously monitor their automated workflows and use this to identify optimization potential to help achieve maximum efficiency levels in the automation of business processes.
When is it worth automating processes?
Whether process automation is worthwhile depends on several individual factors. Before implementation, companies should carefully discuss the extent to which their workflows are already digitized and automated – and which processes lend themselves to automation. Financial considerations also play a role, as special tools and interfaces are usually required to implement company-wide process automation. Generally speaking, the more often a certain process is repeated, the more resources it saves and the higher the quality of the database, the more worthwhile business process automation is.
Which processes can companies automate?
In principle, companies can automate all operational workflows. Examples include data entry and transfer, forwarding of information, keywording of documents, rule-based data analysis, business processes such as quotation approvals or contract reviews and other repetitive processes.
What types of process automation are there?
The most important types of process automation are simple, rule-based and intelligent process automation. Depending on the specific requirements profile, companies can choose the right approach for automating processes.
Simple process automation: A possible, fixed process route exists here.
Rule-based process automation: There are several possible process paths that are dependent on variables and decisions.
Intelligent process automation: For processes in which exceptions occur that cannot be processed (conclusively) with the predefined rules; artificial intelligence and robotics process automation (RPA) are used here to automate processes.
What are the requirements for process automation?
As already indicated, automation does not make sense for all business processes. It is particularly useful where processes…
- are currently carried out manually, but are more efficient digitally,
- are repeated regularly,
- The process can be standardized or rule-based,
- a high volume of data processing or transactions and
- high process quality is ensured in accordance with the maturity model.
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Ceyoniq Technology GmbH is a group company of Kyocera Document Solutions.
Ceyoniq Technology GmbH
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