Studies such as McKinsey’s “Jobs Losts, Jobs Gained” state that it is possible to automate up to 50% of current work activity . In other words, we can transfer what we work on to a process without human intervention, through one or more of the existing technologies, such as RPA, AI, Robots… (in fact, this same article could have been left in the hands of artificial intelligence, and dedicated my time to other tasks, using tools such as ChatGPT).
It is feasible to automate 50% of our work, but it is not always profitable
The profitability of Process Automation depends on factors such as:
- The cost of technology. In general, if the automation is based on a new technology, it will have a high cost. The price will decrease as the technology becomes more commonplace, produced in greater quantity, and as more professionals are knowledgeable in it.
- The cost of change management. We are talking about the set of efforts necessary to carry out a change in an organization. Introducing changes in the existing business processes can sometimes be very expensive, we are talking about activities such as the necessary consultancy, the learning by the employees in the new technology or the stoppages in the company’s own activity that can cause a change.
- The magnitude of the process to be automated. Logically, automating a process that is performed 100 times is not the same as 1,000,000. For example, in the automobile industry, robotic arms are used massively, but is this technology equally profitable for everyone? No, it is not as profitable for a company like Toyota, which manufactures more than 8 million vehicles a year, than for brands like Ferrari, which only produce 11,000 units.
According to this, the automation of the billing process should be profitable. There are technologies available for years, with solutions for all budgets, which have a generally low implementation cost, and which eliminate thousands of repetitive tasks (some companies even manage millions of supplier invoices).
The importance of choosing the right software
Choosing the right tool is complicated, it is not only about considering basic software characteristics such as ease of use, scalability or price, but we also have to carefully weigh the circumstances of each company, such as:
- ERP in use.
- Number of received invoices.
- Existence of Approval Processes.
- Number of vendors.
- Document Management Solution in use.
- Received invoice format (paper, PDF, XML…).
There are a few factors to consider, to which we have to add that there are a wide variety of solutions available on the market, so it is easy to err.
Due to this complexity, and to guarantee the profitability of our investment, it is always advisable to get professional advice when choosing the most appropriate software.
At Brait, we are specialists in automating invoices. We work with the main solutions on the market and integrate them with any business tool or system. After studying your case, we will advise you on the most suitable tool for your company, and we will assess the ROI, thus guaranteeing the profitability of your investment.
Do not hesitate to contact us, we will help you choose the best solution for you and your business.
