Since the Great Recession, businesses have been pushing to become leaner, more efficient and more operationally productive to remain competitive in highly saturated markets. This effort has been largely catalyzed by the availability and utilization of new technologies, which have combined to help companies in virtually every industry and of all size classifications reduce their expenditures and simultaneously drive the power of their IT capabilities.

Automation, in many ways, has stood at the center of this trend, stepping in to reduce the volume of expenditures and resources that need to be allocated to traditional operational areas. From data and document capture to workflow and beyond, automation has been a critical capability to increase the accuracy and integrity of myriad core responsibilities all the while lowering the time and expense it takes to complete these tasks.

Automated risk management
Wall Street and Technology recently reported that one investment firm, Janus Capital Group, has seen significant improvements in its risk management and general operational efficiency through the use of automation software. According to the news provider, officials from the firm have gone so far as to say that they have automated 98 percent of its operational procedures and has enjoyed several advantages as a result.

The fundamental tenet of automating processes is finding areas of operations that do not necessarily need a human touch, at least not all the time, and then incorporating software that will keep these tasks moving along with little staff member involvement in the day-to-day perspective. The source explained that through the use of this automation strategy, Janus Capital Group saw several aspects of its labor management efficiency improve. 

Notably, Wall Street and Technology pointed out that transparency, audits and compliance-related procedures have all been streamlined, reducing risk and driving the overall profitability and continuity of the company. 

Similar applications abound
Automation was, at least at first, mostly used for tasks that would not necessarily be attached to risk management, especially as companies sought to keep a close eye on the relevant frameworks involved. However, because of how advanced automation software has become, as well as how arduous the connected data entry procedures continue to be, this match has led to success on a large scale. 

Companies can eliminate data entry to reduce error, strengthen transparency of operations and simultaneously lower overhead for stronger, more consistent financial performances over time.