As organizations explore ways to achieve greater efficiency and productivity while reducing costs and errors, they turn to automation solutions. But not every automation software is created equal. Compared to traditional automation, intelligent automation allows organizations to leverage technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to expedite smart decision-making, drive new levels of productivity, and cultivate a happier customer base.
In this article, we dive into intelligent automation software to reveal how it works and how it transforms operations for businesses across industries.
What Is Intelligent Automation?
Intelligent automation is the application of technologies including robotic process automation (RPA), AI, ML, and natural language processing (NLP) to business processes. It introduces automation across workflows to reduce manual tasks and errors while driving up efficiency.
Compared to traditional automation, intelligent automation has several more-evolved capabilities, including the ability to learn from historical data and improve itself. Traditional automation cannot adapt as it takes in data. Its similarities to intelligent automation only go as far as its ability to reduce manual work and its incorporation of RPA. Beyond that, it’s more of a rules-based solution that’s useful for completing repetitive processes. Intelligent automation is suited for more complex tasks that require real-time decision-making.
How Intelligent Automation Software Works
There are four main components to the inner workings of intelligent automation software.
Data Collection and Analysis
The software collects data from various tools across a business, including documents, emails, and devices. It’s capable of gathering and analyzing both structured data like Excel files as well as unstructured data like images.
AI enables the software to collect large swaths of data and then perform analysis in real time after it has cleaned any raw data. ML algorithms in intelligent automation software identify anomalies within data to support data integrity and quality.
Decision-Making Capabilities
By interpreting and analyzing the data in real time, the software makes decisions instantly without human intervention. For example, if the software recognizes a potentially fraudulent transaction, it can automatically freeze the account and allow the organization to respond quickly.
AI and ML allow intelligent automation software to continuously learn from information it ingests and decisions made to improve its ability to forecast and provide intelligence and analysis.
Integration With Existing Systems
Using APIs and other tools, intelligent automation software can integrate with business systems such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) and customer relationship management solutions. When these softwares are seamlessly integrated, an organization is able to securely share data across systems and departments for more efficient work and smarter decision-making.
Continuous Learning and Improvement
A hallmark of intelligent automation software is its ability to continuously improve itself through ongoing feedback and data loops. The more data the software processes, the more information it leverages to refine its models.
Key Benefits of Intelligent Automation Software
While there are dozens of benefits to using intelligent automation software, here are the top five:
Increased Efficiency
With software performing mountains of manual tasks, human workers can devote their time to more strategic work and projects that drive growth. You’ll offload certain needs onto the software to make those processes more efficient while your staff gets more meaningful work done.
Cost Reduction
Intelligent automation software cuts operational costs for a business in a few ways. You can complete more billable work in less time, you reduce the costs associated with errors, and you can save on labor by giving tasks to the software instead of hiring more people.
Enhanced Accuracy
With software automating many error-prone processes, you’ll slash mistakes and the bottlenecks that come with them. You’ll also improve the accuracy of decision-making in more complex processes as those decisions are backed by real-time data.
Scalability
The same cost saving benefit of handing off tasks to software instead of people translates into greater scalability for your organization. As you take on more customers and work, the software handles tasks in a limitless capacity so you don’t have to spend time adding headcount or managing more employees.
Improved Customer Experience
As your organization experiences better efficiency across the board, your customers will feel it. You’ll be able to complete work faster, and your customers will appreciate the speed and accuracy. Intelligent automation software also helps you provide more personalized customer service through AI-based responses and automated processes that expedite ticket resolution.
How to Choose the Right Intelligent Automation Software
Consider these factors when selecting an intelligent automation solution:
- Your software should be flexible with your business and be able to automate the processes you need so you can achieve your desired outcomes. Make sure you establish goals before choosing a solution so you can identify software that aligns with those goals.
- The software should be compatible with your existing systems and make it easy to integrate across your organization.
- Look for software that leverages the core benefits of AI and ML technologies such as predictive analytics, AI-based decision-making, the ability to process high volumes of data, and continuous learning.
Start Your Intelligent Automation Software Journey With All Star
Organizations are discovering the power of intelligent automation as they digitally transform. From newfound efficiency to happier customers, the benefits abound for any business leveraging this valuable solution. All Star helps businesses of all sizes explore and adopt intelligent automation software. Get in touch to learn more from one of our experts.