• Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Youtube
  • Rss
  • Savings Calculator
  • Get a Demo
  • Contact
IntelliChief
  • Why IntelliChief?
      • The IntelliChief Difference
        • Proven Solutions
        • ECM Across Departments
        • Process and Industry Expertise
        • Best Practices Expertise
        • ERP Integrations
        • Reliability and Security
        • Customer Success Stories

        • See how much you can save with AP Automation

          Find out exactly how much you're spending to process invoices with the IntelliChief Savings Calculator. Then, see how much you can save by implementing Enterprise Content Management and Process Automation for Accounts Payable. Savings Calculator >

    • Introducing IntelliChief
      Industry leaders choose IntelliChief to reduce costs and increase efficiency in Accounts Payable, Order Management, HR, and more. Here's why:
      Watch
  • Solutions
    • Enterprise Content Management
      • Document Management
      • Capture and Imaging
      • Storage and Retrieval
      • Retention Management
      • Lifecycle Management
      • Disaster Recovery
    • Process Automation
      • AP Automation
      • GL Coding
      • Sales Order Automation
      • Order Management
      • Data Entry Automation
      • AR Automation
      • HR Automation
    • Solutions By Department
      • Accounts Payable
      • Customer Service
      • Human Resources
      • Accounts Receivable
      • Shared Services
      • Fulfillment
    • Solutions By Industry
      • Manufacturing
      • Distribution
      • Transportation
      • Insurance
      • Construction
      • Logistics
      • Senior Living
  • Technology
      • ECM Platform
        Enhance your operations with a single, integrated platform for all your business needs.
      • OCR Capture
        Automatically capture and convert data from incoming documents.
      • Workflow
        Ensure that your business rules and processes are followed without error, every time.
      • Integration Link
        Connect IntelliChief to any ERP system (or multiple ERPs) to unlock advanced capabilities.
      • Digital Repository
        Archival made easy. Store and retrieve documents in seconds with full search capabilities.
      • Analytics
        Gain insight into your team’s productivity with customizable analytics dashboards.
      • Mobile Access
        Expand your operational footprint with reliable mobile solutions that integrate with your ERP system.
      • Email Import
        Automatically capture documents from emails to maximize touchless processing rates.

    • Artificial Intelligence
      Empower your organization with automation that continues to get smarter over time. > Click Here
  • ERP Integrations
    • What Does Integration Mean?
      • Straight-Through Processing
      • Real-Time Data
      • Single Source of Truth (SSOT)
      • Enhanced Security
      • User-Friendly Interfaces
    • Oracle
      • Oracle EBS
      • Oracle PeopleSoft
      • Other Oracle ERPs
    • JD Edwards
      • JD Edwards EnterpriseOne
      • JD Edwards World
    • Infor
      • Infor XA
      • Infor LX
      • Infor System21
      • Other Infor ERPs
    • Other ERPs
      • IBM
      • SAP
      • Microsoft
      • B&L
      • All ERP Integrations
  • Resources
    • Learn
      • Blog
      • FAQ
      • Events
      • Reviews
      • System Requirements
    • Resource Library
      • Webinars
      • Case Studies
      • Guides
      • Product Sheets
      • Savings Calculator
    • Customers
      • Sign In
      • Sign Up
      • Support
      • Remote Assistance
      • Optimization Help
  • Our Company
    • About Us
      • Company Overview
      • Our Leadership
      • Careers
      • Press
    • Partners
      • Integration Partners
      • Technology Partners
      • User Groups
      • Become a Partner
    • Connect
      • Contact Us
      • Request a Demo
      • LinkedIn
      • Twitter
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
Paper-Based Customer Service Challenges

Overcoming Paper-Based Customer Service Challenges

September 17, 2020

Paper-Based Customer Service Challenges

Businesses need customers to survive. No matter how good your product is, if you can’t serve your customers’ needs in an efficient manner, there’s no guarantee that they will remain loyal to your business. All it takes is ONE small mistake or slip-up to turn a 5-star customer into a 1-star review.

 

High-quality Customer Service is determined by a number of factors, but speed is paramount if you want to keep customers satisfied. Even the most gracious and eloquent apology can’t make up for slow response times when your customers come calling. Your Customer Service team needs to be quick on their feet, and that’s impossible if your business still relies on paper-based Customer Service processes that leave your customers on hold listening to a repetitive tune while they shuffle through a cluttered file cabinet for information. Even companies that have already started implementing digital solutions to enhance Customer Service will find themselves at a disadvantage when compared to companies that have automated Customer Service capabilities. Do you know where your company stands?

Welcome to Your Paperless Office

If you want to overcome the paper-based Customer Service challenges that plague most businesses, you will need to focus on the following two objectives:

Digitizing Your Customer Service Documents

Paper-based Customer Service challenges stem from the physical limitations of paper. Paper takes up space and must be moved manually to transfer information from one person or department to the next. As a result, paper-based Customer Service processes are tedious, time-consuming, and ripe for error. By digitizing your documents, you can create precise digital replicas that allow you to store and retrieve documents instantaneously from a computer, tablet, or even mobile phone if you want to expand your Customer Service team to incorporate remote work. OCR software is the technology used to capture documents and import them into a Document Management system. Advanced OCR software can even recognize the numbers and characters on a document and use them to perform automated tasks, which should be your second goal if you want to overcome the challenges of paper-based Customer Service.

Digitize all of your Customer Service documents, including:

  • Product Literature
  • Orders
  • Invoices
  • Shipping Documents
  • Return Documents
  • Manuals
  • Parts Lists
  • Maintenance Histories
  • Customer Correspondence
  • RFPs
  • RFQs
  • Quotes

Automating Your Customer Service Processes

OCR software will help you digitize your documents, allowing you to finally get rid of those filing cabinets that take up valuable real estate in your office. Furthermore, a paperless office will never require additional offsite storage to accommodate paper loads, which means no more spending exorbitant amounts of capital on storage that yields no tangible return for your organization. However, this is only the beginning. If you want to truly eliminate all of the inefficiencies that result in Customer Service slowdowns, digitizing your Customer Service documents should be followed with Business Process Automation. By automating your Customer Service processes, you can serve customers faster and more efficiently while focusing your human capital on improving customer relations and tackling nuanced problems that require a human touch.

Customer Service Touchpoints Give You a Chance to Improve Customer Retention

While the statistics quoted by industry analysts vary, it is generally accepted that it costs as much as 10 times more to win a new customer than to keep an existing one. Expanding your customer base is crucial, but not at the expense of your existing customers. Winning customers and, more importantly, keeping them, are critical business requirements. But what keeps customers loyal? Price, quality, availability, relationships, and inertia all play a part, but Customer Service is the touchpoint where your business and your customers meet. It’s a make-or-break environment where great service is your only option if you want to maintain positive sentiment.

It’s no secret that customers respond favorably to good service. In fact, it affects their purchase decisions. According to Accenture, poor customer service has, at one point, caused nearly half of all U.S. consumers to switch at least one of their service providers.  To add insult to injury, recent reports suggest that Customer Service expectations are rising at a faster rate than companies can (or are willing) to adapt to. In a separate survey by Accenture, which canvassed 1,200 technology consumers in North America, Europe, and Asia. It was revealed that consumer technology companies that offer average – not poor, just average – Customer Service alienated consumers and risked losing almost three-quarters of their customers to competitors. The results are clear. Customer service is critical to customer loyalty and company profitability. It can’t be viewed as a cost, but it should be viewed as a prudent investment.

Paper-Based Customer Service Challenges

One important difference between Customer Service and other areas of your business is that resolving customer issues often requires access to information that is spread across multiple departments.

Consider, for example, a standard Customer Service call:

  1. A customer telephones to complain that they did not receive everything they ordered.
  2. To ensure that the customer did, in fact, order everything they recall ordering, the CSR first examines the original order document that is likely located in a filing cabinet in the sales office.
  3. If the items and quantities match, the CSR then has to verify that none of the requested items are on backorder by referring to a copy of the packing slip that is filed away in the warehouse.
  4. If that doesn’t resolve the issue, the CSR must then review the shipping documents to see if everything was shipped in one box or in
    multiple boxes.
  5. If there were multiple boxes, the CSR has to verify that they all made it onto the truck and were delivered.
  6. Depending on the company’s shipping policies, the boxes may have been delivered by the company’s own truck or by one owned by a third-party shipping company.
  7. Finally, the CSR is ready to assist the customer — except wait, the customer has moved on.

Most Customer Service interactions aren’t this tedious, but this example does serve to show how the dispersal of information across an organization can send your CSRs into a tailspin.  When some or all of this information exists on paper, providing high-quality Customer Service becomes a costly and oftentimes futile endeavor.

The Financial (and Operational) Costs of Paper

The following are among the characteristics and costs of paper that hinder your CSRs:

  • Paper is costly to store, handle, copy, and distribute.  On the enterprise level, warehouses may be required to store the paper required to resolve customer issues. That paper has to be manually filed when it comes in (or is created) and then retrieved when needed. For collaborative purposes,  the necessary documents may need to be photocopied at a cost of several cents per page in addition to the related labor costs.
  • Paper storage leads to human error. In physical storage environments, documents may be misfiled or accidentally destroyed, resulting in hours spent hunting them down or trying to recreate lost information. This is not a trivial cost. Research from Price Waterhouse Coopers suggests that the average cost to search for a misfiled document is $120. In the meantime, increasingly frustrated customers are kept on hold awaiting an answer to their questions.
  • Paper is difficult to backup or recreate. Fires, floods, vandalism, there are countless ways for a paper document to become lost, damaged, or destroyed. Most companies lack a true disaster recovery plan, so it’s not until the unexpected occurs that they understand the danger of paper documents. If the only copies of valuable customer information are destroyed, it would be impossible to serve customers, and other ongoing operations may also be obstructed. In addition, failing to adequately protect customer and transactional data against such destruction, accidental or not, may place your company in breach of a number of regulations.
  • Paper can’t meet customer expectations. A shift in customer expectations over the years has further increased the drawbacks of using paper to support customer service. Web-based technologies have resulted in a greater expectation for rapid CSR responses from vendors. Customers no longer readily accept “I’ll have to put you on hold” or “I’ll have to call you back” when they call with a question. Yet that is exactly what they hear when a CSR has to track down information that exists only on paper.
  • Paper doesn’t support self-serve options. Customers today often expect, and industry economics frequently demand, new alternatives for customer service, including 24/7 self-serve support options. Paper-based information makes it impossible to offer this level of convenience. Plus, by refusing to offer self-serve options, you are funneling all support requests directly to a Customer Service department that is already overwhelmed by a lack of digitization and automation.

Say Goodbye to Paper-Based Customer Service Challenges

Despite the predictions a decade or two ago that we would by now be enjoying the benefits of paperless offices, most businesses are still dependent on paper because going paperless requires help — and good help is hard to find. If your organization, like many organizations, is still buried under mountains of paper, it will affect every corner of your business, from Accounts Payable to Human Resources and, of course, Customer Service. Once a paperless office has been established, automating customer service functions and offering Web-based self-serve options becomes simple. You can speed-up customer interactions and add value to those interactions while lowering their costs.

Are you ready to see how Enterprise Content Management and Workflow Automation can help your business overcome paper-based Customer Service challenges? Contact IntelliChief today, our experts are standing by to answer your questions and help guide your search for the right solution!

https://www.intellichief.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Paper-Based-Customer-Service-Challenges-1.jpg 1080 1920 IntelliChief https://www.intellichief.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/IntelliChief-Paperless-Process-Management.png IntelliChief2020-09-17 14:11:532021-03-03 14:38:48Overcoming Paper-Based Customer Service Challenges
Paperless Logistics

3 Reasons to Support Paperless Logistics and Customs Clearance in 2020 and Beyond

September 16, 2020

Paperless Logistics

Following the precipitous spread of the coronavirus pandemic, there’s never been a better time for companies to reduce their reliance on paper-based processes that only serve to stimulate the spread of germs and disease. One industry that can greatly benefit at this time is logistics and customs clearance. This article will cover three important reasons paperless logistics and customs clearance should be embraced universally in 2020 and beyond, including:

 

  • Create safer working conditions
  • Support faster and more transparent clearances
  • Work remotely with confidence

1. Create Contactless Clearances With Paperless Logistics

If the coronavirus has taught the logistics industry anything, it’s that achieving a paperless logistics system that works for you and your customers has never been more crucial. Logistics and customs clearance historically rely on paper-intensive processes to keep imports and exports flowing to their rightful locations.  There are many documents involved in customs clearance, including:

  • Documents for Exports: Buyer Purchase Order, Sales Invoice, Packing List, Shipping Bill, Bill of Lading, Certificate of Origin, and more.
  • Documents for Imports: Buyer Purchase Order, Supplier Sales Invoice, Bill of Entry, Bill of Lading, Packing List, Certificate of Origin, and more.
  • Country-Specific Documentation

Logistics companies realize that by going paperless, they are establishing a safer workplace with fewer operational restrictions. What was once considered a time-consuming and cumbersome process can be transformed with paper solutions for Document Management, Workflow Automation, Data Entry Automation, and more.

Lancy Barboza, Managing Director of Flomic Freight Services, notes that by incorporating the “best available technology and work processes,” they have been able to set a new benchmark for service standards, enabling Flomic to “consistently deliver a timely and relevant response to our clients’ demands.”

And despite the fact that coronavirus has ushered in disruption after disruption for cross-border trading and freight movement, Barboza believes it has also revealed an opportunity to leverage technology for efficient paperless logistics processes that mitigate face-to-face interactions. Safety has become a top priority for most companies looking to go paperless, but it’s only one of many reasons for businesses to migrate to a more comprehensive paperless solution, such as an Enterprise Content Management (ECM) system.

2. Support Faster and More Transparent Clearances

Paperless logistics opens the door to faster and more transparent customs clearances. It facilitates the type of contactless and paperless environment that all industry leaders are shifting to in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Going paperless and digitizing documentation accelerates clearances by eliminating the need for manual document retrieval. It also improves business intelligence to help employees make better decisions backed by real-time information. Furthermore, it allows business leaders to track productivity and decision-making to address lapses in judgment or operational inefficiencies. Slowdowns in the logistics industry are largely the result of outdated, manual processes — many of which can be eliminated altogether by going paperless.

3. Work Remotely With Confidence

Going paperless and going remote are two entirely different processes, but companies that decide to go paperless will find that transitioning to remote work is much easier when paper documents have already been removed from the equation. With paperless logistics, you can facilitate remote access to applications for importers and exporters to file shipment details from the office, home, or on the road. This greatly reduces the need to move personnel from the office to the customs station and vice-versa. The world of logistics and customs clearance are changing, and business leaders will need to acclimate to these changes in short order to maintain a frictionless workplace that isn’t constrained by physical boundaries.

Getting Started With Paperless Logistics and Customs Clearance

No matter where you are located in the world, every port requires a customs clearance process that is safe and functional. By transitioning to paperless logistics and customs clearance, you can provide an unrivaled experience that allows you to manage more imports and exports than ever before. Whether your distribution channels comprise the air, the road, the sea, or all of the above, you can benefit by going paperless.

To learn more about paperless logistics and customs clearance, contact IntelliChief today.

https://www.intellichief.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Paperless-Logistics.jpg 1080 1920 IntelliChief https://www.intellichief.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/IntelliChief-Paperless-Process-Management.png IntelliChief2020-09-16 16:33:282021-03-03 14:39:153 Reasons to Support Paperless Logistics and Customs Clearance in 2020 and Beyond
Enterprise Automation Statistics

10 Enterprise Automation Statistics for the Cost-Conscious Executive

September 16, 2020

Enterprise Automation Statistics

Industry 4.0 is here, which means top executives are taking it upon themselves to equip their businesses with the tools and resources necessary to stay competitive and improve profitability. Although there are several ways to improve operational efficiency across the enterprise, there are only a handful of solutions that can generate appreciable ROI from the outset, and among these, Enterprise Automation reigns supreme. Are you still performing your due diligence on automation? These 10 Enterprise Automation statistics will help you obtain a better understanding of why the time to automate is now.

 

For business leaders, it can feel like the goalposts are constantly being moved when it comes to Enterprise Automation. Innovation is at an all-time high, which means new features, functions, integrations, and products are always on the horizon. A quick search online might yield dozens of potential vendors. Due diligence could take weeks, even months, to complete. It’s easy to get overwhelmed, but that doesn’t mean you should stall your Digital Transformation; instead, consider these ten Enterprise Automation statistics!

1. It Takes Employees an Average of 18 Minutes to Locate a Document Manually

Before you can automate, you must first digitize. Digitization of your business-critical documents ensures that they are never lost or destroyed. They can be recalled on demand without a trip to the file cabinet or warehouse, allowing you to establish a frictionless work environment where productivity is prioritized. It takes employees an average of 18 minutes to locate a document manually, which can account for up to 50 percent of their time. When you digitize your documents, you reclaim this time lost and set the stage for the real game-changer: Enterprise Automation.

2. 60% of Occupations Could Save 30% of Their Time With Automation

Once you’ve performed your due diligence and identified your ideal solution, it’s time to identify which business processes are best suited for automation. When automating workflows, you want to zero in on departments that process a large volume of paper and/or information. In our experience, some of the best departments to automate include:

  • Accounts Payable
  • Accounts Receivable
  • Customer Service
  • Human Resources
  • Finance
  • Shared Services

There is no “wrong” answer when you start to automate business processes; however, there are certain departments that will yield a higher ROI than others due to a number of factors. Here’s the good news. According to a McKinsey Study, 60 percent of occupations could save 30 percent of their time with automation, which means the potential for automation within your organization is largely untapped.

3. Employees Spend 69 Workdays Each Year on Manual Administration-Related Tasks Instead of Their Primary Job Duties

Businesses that automate drastically reduce wasteful spending by eliminating repetitive, time-consuming tasks that lead to productivity issues. In a study conducted by DJS Research on behalf of Unit 4, it was revealed that people spend 69 workdays each year performing manual administration-related tasks instead of their primary job duties. Enterprise Automation helps you reclaim this time and put it to use however you see fit. Can you imagine how much more your employees could accomplish with an extra 552 hours per year?

4. Businesses That Adopted Big Data Reduced Overall Costs by 10% and Increased Overall Profits by 8%

Another benefit of Enterprise Automation is that it allows you to bolster your analytics efforts to get a clearer view of the nuances of what is (and isn’t) working process-wise within your organization. You can identify operational bottlenecks, inefficient processes, and even track individual performance to make sure each of your team members is putting forth equal input to help you achieve your fiscal goals. You don’t have to wait until the end of the quarter to collect data and generate reports like the old days. You simply click a button and your reports are ready to view or distribute. Improving business intelligence keeps everyone in your organization on the same page and working towards the same objectives, which explains Business Application Research Center (BARC) findings that businesses with big data capabilities are able to reduce overall costs by 10 percent and increase overall profits by 8 percent on average.

5. Bad Data Costs Businesses $600 Billion Annually

Collectively, businesses forfeit $600 billion annually as a result of poor quality data. On a case-by-case basis, this can account for as much as 20-35 percent of operating revenue costs. That’s not a figure to scoff at. The Business Literacy Institute considers a sustained growth rate of 10 percent a year to be “remarkably good,” so if you’re currently losing 20-35 percent of operating revenue costs to bad data, the numbers suggest that your business could be trending in the wrong direction.

6. Manual Business Processes Cost Businesses $5 Trillion Annually

$600 billion in lost operating revenue costs will certainly catch the attention of any executive, but it’s only a small fraction of the revenues lost to manual business processes. Manual business processes cost businesses $5 trillion annually. For reference, that is $2 trillion more than the U.S. deficit for 2020. Of all the Enterprise Automation statistics in this article, this might be the most alarming because it suggests a significant window of opportunity for any executive who is willing to take the leap and automate their company.

7. 75% of Businesses State That AI Will Allow Them to Transition Into New Businesses and Ventures

Businesses that are no longer at a functional disadvantage can do more with the resources available to them. Growth is a key indicator of a company’s overall success. 75 percent of businesses state that AI will allow them to transition into new businesses and ventures, allowing them to expand operations into new and increasingly profitable areas that would be barred off otherwise. For growth-minded executives fueled by ambition, an investment in Enterprise Automation equates to an investment in a growing portfolio of future-proof ventures.

8. 84% of Executives and Analysts Say AI Will Help Them Obtain or Sustain a Competitive Advantage

Executives and analysts alike are keen on automation because there is still a long way to go before this technology has been adopted universally. In other words, companies that automate sooner than later can get a head start in Industry 4.0. Just think, how would your business look today if you were the first to invest in a mobile-friendly website, automated customer service, or paperless process management? There’s a reasonable chance that with earlier adoption of these technologies, many of which were considered big risks at one point, your business would be further along with its Digital Transformation and more resilient to business interruptions. According to Forbes, 84 percent of executives and analysts say AI will help them obtain or sustain a competitive advantage — which means there is no time to waste.

9. 67% of Businesses Believe Implementing Digital or Software Solutions Is Important to Remain Competitive

AI plays an important role in automating business processes, but it’s not the only solution for companies looking to streamline and cut costs. 67 percent of businesses believe implementing digital or software solutions is important to remain competitive. Some examples of software solutions that can help enhance the enterprise include:

  • OCR Software
  • Integration Link
  • Email Import Link
  • Mobile Access Server
  • Enterprise Analytics
  • Document Retention Manager
  • Visual Workflow Designer

10. Automation Projects in Paper-Intensive Departments Generate an ROI of 30-200% in the First Year

According to ThinkAutomation, automation projects in paper-intensive departments, like Accounts Payable, Human Resources, and Customer Service, typically generate an ROI of 30-200 percent in the first year. In Accounts Payable, where Enterprise Automation can increase processing speeds by as much as 70 percent or more, many businesses recoup their initial investment in less than twelve months. Forward-thinking executives tend to leverage these savings to expand their solution across the enterprise to facilitate a more connected, data-savvy work environment.

These Enterprise Automation Statistics Speak for Themselves, Only You Can Speak for Your Business

Are you ready to cut costs, increase operational efficiency, and future-proof your business? These ten Enterprise Automation statistics speak for themselves, but it’s up to you to be the voice of reason at your company. If your team is still entering data to your ERP system manually, shuffling through file cabinets to locate documents, or paying the same invoice more than once, it’s time to make a change.

With IntelliChief, you can preserve your existing business processes and enhance them with industry-leading Enterprise Content Management (ECM) and Workflow Automation capabilities. To learn more, contact IntelliChief today.

https://www.intellichief.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/10-Enterprise-Automation-Statistics-for-the-Cost-Conscious-Executive-2.jpg 1080 1920 IntelliChief https://www.intellichief.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/IntelliChief-Paperless-Process-Management.png IntelliChief2020-09-16 14:50:492021-05-12 10:17:3310 Enterprise Automation Statistics for the Cost-Conscious Executive
Automation Skills Gap

How Businesses Can Address the Automation Skills Gap With a Team-First Approach

September 15, 2020

Automation Skills Gap

There is a significant skills gap with automation, one that must be confronted head-on to address deficiencies that could threaten your digital transformation. According to Forbes, “63 percent of business leaders believe the pressure to reduce costs will require their organizations to use AI in the next five years,” which means the clock is ticking on businesses that have yet to start to their automation journey. Don’t worry. This article is the perfect jumping-off point, answering essential questions like:

 

  • What is the automation skills gap?
  • Why is it important to open up a dialogue about automation?
  • Which tasks can be automated to benefit your team?
  • Why does automation give leaders the perfect chance to retrain and upskill their workers?

What Is the Automation Skills Gap?

Any competitor in an industry with a growing skills gap is in danger of losing their market share if they cannot find a way to address their deficiencies. In many cases, these skills gaps are the result of generational shifts in the types of occupations being pursued. For instance, the skills gap in the construction industry is the result of a lack of millennial construction workers. To attract new talent, contractors are investing in technology and software to help bridge the gap between the needs of the industry and the talents of the new generations. That said, generational shifts in the interest toward certain professions aren’t the only catalyst for skills gaps.

In regards to automation, the skills gap is related to technology. Digital Transformation is sweeping the globe, and those who fail to adapt will find themselves fighting an uphill battle against their competitors who have equipped themselves with the tools to work faster and more efficiently. McKinsey surveyed 1,500 executives across a broad range of industries and found that “addressing potential skills gaps related to automation/digitization” was a Top 10 priority for 66 percent of respondents. Furthermore, it was a Top 5 priority for 30 percent of respondents.

Industry 4.0 is here, and businesses are being forced to evolve. It is this evolution that has revealed an opportunity for the next generation to capitalize on the need for talented, automation-savvy workers that possess the soft and technical skills necessary to help businesses thrive in an automated world.

Remember, automation isn’t a substitute for your valued workers; it’s a complementary asset that improves work for everyone. It’s time to transform. For business leaders, that means not only consulting with automation experts to plot your Digital Transformation but also meeting with your team to retool your enterprise for a more profitable future.

Open Up a Dialogue About Automation

If you are already in the process of exploring your options to automate your company, it’s important to take note of three things before you commit to a purchase:

  1. Automation can be implemented to take over tasks, but it’s less effective at taking over jobs.
  2. Automation works best as a complement to your existing team.
  3. Automation can ameliorate working conditions to improve company culture and worker retention.

With these facts in mind, it’s time to open up a dialogue with your team so they are aware of your intentions to automate the company. Whether you’re looking to implement automation in Accounts Payable, Sales Orders, Human Resources, Customer Service, or another department entirely, you want to quell any concerns about automation and help your team understand why automation is important and how it will positively affect your company. You might be surprised to find that they not only take the news well but embrace it and support you. The automation buzz continues to build year-over-year, but not for the reason you might expect.

Adobe Digital Insights analyzed 3 million social mentions related to “future of work” and found that sentiment towards the role of automation in the workplace was overwhelmingly positive. People are more interested in learning about how automation can make their jobs more enjoyable as opposed to how automation could affect employment negatively.

Target the Menial, Time-Consuming Tasks Your Team Loathes

Now, it’s time to address the skills gap preventing you from taking the next step on your automation journey. The skills gap with automation refers to the soft and technical skills required to help employees thrive in a workplace that has incorporated automation in some form or another (i.e., AP Automation, Data Entry Automation, etc.). However, before you can address these skills gaps, you must identify them by mapping out business processes for automation. It is recommended that you undergo an in-person or virtual whiteboarding session with an experienced automation expert so you can target the menial, time-consuming tasks your team loathes — those that are the best fit for automation and tend to be error-prone, such as:

  • Data entry
  • PO/Non-PO invoice processing
  • GL coding
  • Auditing
  • Document routing

Once you have identified the processes suitable for automation, you will have a better understanding of the tasks that can only be completed by your valued team members. During this time, it’s highly recommended that you take a step back to focus on how you can retrain and upskill your workers to create a more resilient and self-sufficient workforce.

Focus on Retraining and Upskilling

Automation helps your business optimize processes that are commonly viewed as tedious and repetitive, but it’s not a panacea for all of your operational woes. As the emerging leader in workflow automation for the enterprise, we speak from firsthand experience when we say that your business will get significantly faster and more efficient, but there’s still work to be done if you want to gain a leg up on your competition. This is where your most important asset, your employees, get a chance to truly shine.

Did you know that 82 percent of executives at companies with annual revenues exceeding $100 million believe retraining and upskilling are the primary solutions to addressing the automation skills gap? It’s time to get to work! Job roles are changing and being redefined, yet 42 percent of US businesses lack a solid understanding of how automation will affect their future hiring processes in relation to specific job skills. Retraining and upskilling workers already under your employ are viewed as urgent matters by most business leaders. When you automate your company, you are presented with the perfect opportunity to assess areas of your business that can be improved and retrain your workers accordingly.

This can be accomplished in a number of ways, but many companies have found success by offering free e-learning content for employees or supporting re-training at institutions of learning. Arguably the best approach, and most hands-on approach, are retraining and upskilling opportunities that occur within the company itself. This approach helps you dial in on specific areas that need to be addressed, ensuring that your employees pick up the skills that will help them flourish at the company for years to come.

Closing the Automation Skills Gap for Good

Learning and development programs and training are highly effective measures if you’re looking to close the automation skills gap and embark on your automation journey. There’s no substitute for the real thing. Your workers have the knowledge, empathy, and unbridled freedom to do things automation could never, which makes liberating them from tedious tasks that much more important.

Are you ready to automate your company? IntelliChief, the emerging leader in Enterprise Automation, makes it easy to transition from manual processes to a fully automated workplace. We even train your team to get the most out of your system so you don’t miss a step during your Digital Transformation.

To learn more about how Enterprise Automation can take your business to the next level, contact IntelliChief today.

 

https://www.intellichief.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Automation-Skills-Gap-1.jpg 1080 1920 IntelliChief https://www.intellichief.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/IntelliChief-Paperless-Process-Management.png IntelliChief2020-09-15 17:08:092021-03-03 14:42:37How Businesses Can Address the Automation Skills Gap With a Team-First Approach
Automation Trends

3 Reasons the Enterprise Automation Buzz Is Building

September 15, 2020

Automation Trends

Automation was once viewed as the future of technology — then it became a reality. Today, automation has been scaled up and down to meet the daily challenges of organizations spanning countless industries across the globe. If you’re still in the camp that believes Enterprise Automation is just a trend, it might be time to take a second look at what Automation can do for you and your business.

Twitter. LinkedIn. Reddit. Wherever public discourse takes place, automation is trending in the @mentions. From 2016 to 2017, Adobe Digital Insights (ADI) performed a comprehensive analysis of 3 million social mentions related to “future of work,” such as automation and RPA. The researchers were able to attribute positive sentiment to the majority of these engagements. They weren’t talking about how automation would affect employment; rather, they were discussing the potential for automation to improve working conditions and increase productivity.

1. Automation Saves Valuable Time

It’s no secret that automation technology works faster than humans. It doesn’t need to “think” or “consider” letters or numbers before taking an action; instead, actions are taken automatically whether or not a human worker is available to push a process through to the next step. Automation doesn’t take sick days or vacations and it’s not limited to 40-hour workweeks or the costly constraints of overtime. Therefore, it’s unsurprising that in the analysis mentioned above, 30 percent of respondents mentioned saving time when discussing automation.

It might be a well-worn cliche, but there’s no hiding from the fact that time is money. With Enterprise Automation, you can assign menial, time-consuming tasks to automation so your team can focus on the things automation isn’t as well-equipped to handle. The days of manual data entry are over, and everyone is talking about it.

2. Automated Business Processes Yield Valuable Analytical Data

Still not convinced that automation is more than a passing trend? Consider this: 25 percent of automation-related conversations taking place on social media reference big data analysis as a primary driver for implementing automation. When business processes are automated, they gain the ability to automatically track productivity from start to finish, allowing C-level executives to glean valuable insights and make informed decisions on a rolling basis. No more waiting for the end of the quarter to figure out what went wrong and why. With real-time analytics guiding you, operational inefficiencies can be nipped in the bud to prevent your team from wasting time and resources that could be better allocated to other tasks or departments.

3. Humans and Automation Can Work in Harmony

Automation is often viewed as the harbinger of death for human jobs, but this is a gross overexaggeration that can be quickly disproven by examining how (and why) automation is being used by businesses all over the world. The average number of daily mentions of automation has doubled year-over-year. During that same period, the number of daily mentions of robots and jobs has increased by a staggering 70 percent year-over-year. However, to truly understand why this bodes well for humans and automation alike, we need to break into the meat and potatoes of these mentions to truly understand their sentiment. Here are a few examples:

 

 
PreviousNext

Contrary to doomsday headlines about widespread job losses, the @pega report findings suggest #AI and automation’s impact will be much more nuanced and could even have a positive impact on how we work. #MachineLearning #DeepLearning #NLP #futureofwork https://t.co/Yva05KE1xN pic.twitter.com/q129bUByXM

— 🟣 Antonio Vieira Santos #EUSocialSummit21 (@AkwyZ) February 7, 2018

I think that the "automation causes mass unemployment" argument is overblown. I think technology just shifts jobs, and these tech advances are a major positive for society. The internet and airplanes killed some old jobs but also created millions of new ones. Will happen again

— Marcus H. Johnson (@marcushjohnson) November 24, 2018

“We can do this man, it’s gonna be great.” @BillNye has a positive take on automation and jobs. https://t.co/SdXe2OkdWD pic.twitter.com/JUfXQLIU7S

— WorkingNation (@WorkingNation) April 19, 2017

Next week: @gjouret will be at #reMARS talking about the future of job #automation with #robotics and the positive impacts this will have on our #society and #careers. @AmazonreMARS pic.twitter.com/5VBwNjcRtb

— ABB Ability (@ABB_Ability) May 31, 2019

Despite rather pessimistic media reporting regarding workplace and jobs, most people feel positive about future #technology, automation and #ArtificialInteligence at work. pic.twitter.com/6nObFI3Y4V

— Hasso Plattner Institute NYC (@HPI_NYC) October 8, 2018

As anxiety about job loss and #automation looms, careful planning for the development of #tech can yield positive outcomes.

1. Machines will change jobs, not take them
2. Re-skilling should take advantage of existing strengths
3. Don’t fear the digital future, but be cautious pic.twitter.com/NgbFfZR1S6

— DynamicCIO (@DynamicCIO) January 23, 2020

Needless to say, the automation buzz is building — and for good reason. The automation “trend” has taken root and it’s not going away anytime soon. Organizations that can work faster and more efficiently while simultaneously cutting costs and improving work-life balance for employees have already taken the necessary steps to prepare for a future where traditional working arrangements are no longer viable.

Enterprise Automation: Once a Trend, Now a Requirement

Before the automation trend really took off, it was considered a luxury for enterprise leaders who not only had the infrastructure to support it but also the growth capabilities to afford it. Today, this is no longer the case. Automation technology and software have been retooled to boost business across all marketplaces. From start-ups to SMEs and beyond, automation is a difference-maker the likes of which we’ve never seen before, especially for large enterprises that can benefit from an integrated solution across multiple departments and locations. The automation trend is here to stay, and IntelliChief’s experts are standing by to ensure that your automation project capably addresses your challenges and helps you become more resilient (and profitable).

To learn more about Enterprise Automation or to see our products in action, contact IntelliChief today.

https://www.intellichief.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Automation-Buzz.jpg 1080 1920 IntelliChief https://www.intellichief.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/IntelliChief-Paperless-Process-Management.png IntelliChief2020-09-15 12:47:532021-05-12 10:21:203 Reasons the Enterprise Automation Buzz Is Building

Latest From The Blog

  • Seven Signs You Have the Right AP Automation SolutionMarch 16, 2022 - 8:00 AM
  • AP Automation key features: data capture, ERP import, straight-through processing, measurement normalization and mobile access5 Must-Haves in Accounts Payable Automation SoftwareMarch 9, 2022 - 2:50 AM
  • The 5 Accounts Payable KPIs Your Business Should Be MeasuringNovember 18, 2021 - 9:26 AM
  • Why It’s Time for Your Organization to Consider Accounts Payable Invoice AutomationNovember 8, 2021 - 4:17 PM
  • An Overview of AP Automation Objectives Among Project StakeholdersNovember 3, 2021 - 11:59 AM

Next Steps:

Request Demo
Contact Us
Download Whitepaper
Watch Recorded Webinar

Experience IntelliChief

Request a customized demo to see how IntelliChief addresses your organization’s most pressing challenges. Simply provide some preliminary information about your project and our experts will handle the rest.

Get a Demo

World Headquarters

13095 Telecom Parkway N.
Tampa, FL 33637

813-971-9500

U.S. Headquarters

120 Forbes Boulevard
Mansfield, MA 02048

508-594-2800

info@intellichief.com

Getting Started

Why IntelliChief?
What is ECM?
Solutions
ERP Integrations
Customer Success Stories
FAQ

Resources

Blog
Case Studies
Whitepapers
Product Sheets
Webinars
Savings Calculator

Copyright © 2022 IntelliChief™, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Website Hosting by K.Tek Systems Inc.

Privacy Policy | Terms of Use and Disclaimers | Sitemap | Support Portal

Scroll to top

This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies.

Accept Settings

Cookie and Privacy Settings



How we use cookies

We may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website.

Click on the different category headings to find out more. You can also change some of your preferences. Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer.

Essential Website Cookies

These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features.

Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site.

We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain.

We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. You can check these in your browser security settings.

Other external services

We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Changes will take effect once you reload the page.

Google Webfont Settings:

Google Map Settings:

Google reCaptcha Settings:

Vimeo and Youtube video embeds:

Accept SettingsHide Notification