Robotic Process Automation

(RPA)

General Introduction &

Implementation Lessons

for APICS Vancouver Chapter

Simon Hughes

Director, Supply Operations, TELUS

1 November 2018

2

Dilbert

3

RPA BOT – is this what you think?

4

Contents

What is RPA Introduction

Where does it work

Is it the same as Artificial Intelligence

Industry Tools/companies

Systems Integrators

Implementation Stages

Best practices

Lessons learnt

Operations Controller

Performance management

5

What is RPA

LOW RISK: non invasive

technology. Uses

existing applications

ACCURACY: the

right result the

first time

RELIABILITY:

available 365x7x24

CONSISTENCY:

identical process

every time

PRODUCTIVITY:

free up humans for

higher value add

AUDIT TRAIL: logs

all transactions

Robotic process

automation (RPA) is an

emerging form of

business process

automation technology

based on the notion of

software robots (Bots)

RPA has been described

as macros on steroids

with the key difference

being that the bots can

move between different

applications e.g. from

outlook to ERP to CRM

6

What is RPA: Where does it work?

• High-volume repetitive transactions

• High levels of manual data capture/entry

• Interaction between multiple applications

• Multiple tasks in the end-to-end process

• Defined business rules and exceptions

Making up reports

by searching and

analysing data from

different sources

Building interfaces

between non-

connected systems

Fast information gathering

e.g. quickly search through

different systems to find

specific records

Data conversion

when launching new

systems

Check large amounts of

data for anomalies and

leave exceptions to human

team members

7

What is RPA: Same as AI?

AI:

Systems

that learn

Chatbots:

RPA or AI?

Amazon Echo

Google Home:

RPA or AI?

RPA:

Systems

based on

rules

8

Industry: RPA Tools

Forrester Q2 2018 Report

9

Industry: System Integrators

Big industry players

Consulting engagements

E2E or partial services: • Business process evaluation

• Use case discovery

• ROI/Business case

• Process documentation

• BOT develop & test

• BOT operations

• Centre Of Excellence

Forrester: The RPA Market Will Reach $2.9B By

2021 ($250M in 2016)

Global Market Insights: Robotic Process

Automation market to cross $5B by 2024

Forbes/IDC: Spend on ML/AI will grow from $12B

in 2017 to $57B by 2021

10

Implementation: Staged Approach

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5

Proof of

Concept

(POC) & Pilots

Virtual

Workforce

Advanced

Robotics

Robotics

Centre of

Excellence

(COE)

Robotics

Team

Conduct POC

for a specific

activity with

small user

group

Robotic

automation

treated as a

normal part of

business.

Included in

strategy &

budgeting

Expand across

business units

and explore

advanced

capabilities

like OCR

Expand

automation

within a

business unit

using a

standardised

approach

Automate

additional

processes

within a single

functional area

Can take 3-6 months but depends heavily on whether you develop in-house capabilities

or engage external support through an RPA consultant or Systems Integrator

11

Implementation: Best Practices

Most System

Integrators are happy to

share their version of

RPA deployment best

practices

Fairly similar value

propositions

Other Best Practices: • Process optimisation

• BOT Documentation

• Define IT & Business roles

• Security & Privacy

12

Implementation: Lessons Learnt

Process

viability

Proof of

value

Operational

readiness

Build

capability

Centre of

Excellence

BOT Identity (Naming

convention, ID, email)

– establish as early as

possible

Too many RPA tools

dilutes focus – slows

down skills

development

Security & Privacy

teams playing catch-

up – lack of

understanding

RPA tools have

different license

models & costs – need

to factor into ROI tools

Fragmented IT support

– no consistent

engagement model

Isolated Business Unit

RPA initiatives –

limited awareness or

collaboration

Too many poor ROI

use cases – no

measurable benefits

Poor infrastructure

support – best options

unclear (laptop, VDI,

server)

RPA tool license

optimisation –

inefficient usage

across business units

Different cost models

for external vs internal

BOT development

13

Operations: Controller

Initial BOT deployment can be managed by the BOT developers but this is not a scalable model

Many RPA tool licenses run on the principal of a 20-24 hour cycle. A controller can optimise the BOT run schedule to maximise each license

BOT can be set to run unattended, 24x7x365, using appropriate scheduling tools

Could a BOT be the controller of other BOT?

BOT 1 BOT 2

BOT 3

Controller

14

Operations: Performance Mgmt

Manage BOT like digital team members Transactions completed and/or failed

Increasing failure rates may point to a change in process or input that the BOT doesn’t recognise

Could monitor multiple business unit controllers

Monitor IT core system changes and modify BOT as required

Thank You

Questions?