Human and Machine: The Synergy of Process Automation

1. Purely technical process (shadow process)
2. Combination of manual and machine processing
3. Human Task Workflow

This process runs completely in the background, without any interaction with an employee. As a rule, such a process is triggered by another system and executes the task automatically based on previously defined rules. Human intervention only takes place during monitoring or in the event of error messages.

Example

A marketing automation tool evaluates leads based on their interactions with the touchpoints defined by the company, such as website visit, web form, social media engagement, email engagement, etc., and forwards them directly to sales without any intervention from marketing.

Advantages

• High-efficiency and time savings
  
• Reduced error rate
  
• Saves resources
  

Disadvantages

• Low flexibility of employees in their tasks
  
• Technical effort often required to adapt to new requirements
  
• Exceptions to the implemented workflow, only possible through customization

This type of process automation combines the strengths of humans and machines. Humans are mainly used for data input, approval, and control. They are relieved of administrative tasks and automatically guided through their process.

Example

Part of the lead generation takes place via automated forms on your website. The customer data entered is forwarded directly to your CRM system and saved. The sales employee is automatically informed, checks the contact data and approves it. After approval, the new contact is automatically contacted.

Advantages

• Increased efficiency and productivity
  
• Reduction in the error rate
  
• Relieves employees of monotonous tasks
  

Disadvantages

• Graphical user interface required to manage tasks
  
• More complex implementation and maintenance
  
• Possible bottlenecks due to human interaction

With this type of process automation, the focus is on people. The machine supports the employees during execution and ensures that the correct sequence of steps is followed and that all the necessary information is available. All actions are carried out by the employees themselves.

Example

You use a tool to plan, publish and analyze your social media posts. This tool supports marketing in organizing the work and guides you through the process. Uploading the image, writing the post, tagging certain profiles or scheduling the publication is carried out by Marketing itself.
Advantages:

• Simple and intuitive operation
  
• High level of acceptance among employees
  
• Increased quality thanks to standardized processes
  

Disadvantages:

• No reduction in resources
  
• Can lead to an increase in administrative tasks
  
• Susceptibility to errors due to manual data entry

Process automation provides companies with numerous benefits such as increased efficiency, error reduction and cost savings. However, implementation can be time-consuming. To find the optimal solution, it is crucial to understand the different types of process automation and to clearly define the objectives in advance. With the right strategy, companies can optimize their processes and thus strengthen their competitiveness. It is important to remember that technology should support people, not replace them, and enable them to work more efficiently and relieve them of simple and repetitive tasks.