Nowadays, where tech industry is looking to create new and innovative ways to build non-intrusive technologies that help manage data and interactions in an accurate, efficient, and secure manner, the current wave of Robotics appears to be bringing this change to the industry through the realms of AI (Artificial Intelligence) and RPA (Robotic Process Automation).
As this new wave unfolds, people appear to regard it as ‘The Age of the Terminator Dawning,’ with a sense of hesitation in adjusting to the technology, as well as unsolved issues such as: ‘How safe is the data being processed by a machine?’ Is this a long-term solution? Sustainable?’ And so forth…
Now that we have seen both functions from both sides of the fence, here is our take on what it is doing and what it may do for businesses.
With origins deep in the Service Business, where implications such as “The Customer is Always Right” are deeply embedded in our value systems, we have and will continue to think that AI will never be able to outperform a human connection, particularly in a service-oriented industry. Call me old-fashioned, but no matter how much AI has advanced with things like emotional intelligence integrated in it, it has never been able to deliver an experience comparable to a human contact.
However, we believe AI and RPA can perform a fantastic job for a consumer in non-interactive sectors and industries where data accuracy, turnaround speed, and data security are crucial, such as:
Accuracy
BOTs, as we call them, are designed to follow a preset of rules that are generated based on the process that the client wants it to follow. Now, if there are 10 stages to be performed logically, once programmed, that is exactly what the BOT will do and, in the process, will not skip a step, become distracted, or even exhausted after processing hundreds or even thousands of interactions.
Interactions 1 to 1000 with a BOT are the same, with no variation in the quality or accuracy of service delivered, and no slowing down due to weariness. These are features that, while we would like to see in a person, may not be feasible because the human body can only do/take so much and may make mistakes at times, but a BOT will not.
Turn-Around Time, or as we call TAT
The Turn Around Time of a transaction is a crucial aspect in many sectors. If a transaction is not completed within the time frame specified, the entire engagement may fail, leaving the consumer disappointed. This problem is eliminated by a BOT, since duties as basic as sending payment reminders to processing complex insurance claims may all be handled and completed even before you have had the chance to think about it.
Data Security
BOTs are not only more precise and faster than a bullet, but they are also more secure. The concern on everyone’s mind, however, is how can something based off computer code be safe, especially because nearly anyone with a laptop or smartphone and a rudimentary comprehension of programming can hack into a system.
Well, here’s the truth: unless someone gets to hack into your organization’s firewalls, then into your secure servers, and gain access to your core data, hacking into the BOT’s code achieves nothing, because the code designed for a BOT, when done correctly, stores nothing at all.
What a BOT essentially does is access just the information you have granted it access to and then utilises it to execute an interaction, throughout which it does NOT STORE ANYTHING and leaves no record of what it has touched. So, if there really is a leak of any important, organisational data, it is not due to the BOT, but to a larger hole in the security system that requires rapid attention.
Summing Up
In conclusion, robotics, like any other technology, has limitations, such as the inability of BOTs to automatically adapt to change, the inability of BOTs to make non-programmed judgments, and so on. It will be interesting to see how Robotics and AI grow and overcome their existing limitations.
With that in mind, we can now boldly declare that we are now believers, and that robotics (AI & RPA) are here to stay and here to stay for good. So, prepare yourselves, because this one is going to knock us off our feet.
