Retail

In 2019, almost $3 trillion was generated online in global retail spending. Top categories included electronics, airline and events, shoes and other commodity items. This opportunity is expanding rapidly as the global retail economy is valued at $27 trillion.

But the retail industry is facing high pressure today. Digital natives have higher buyer expectations for personalized service. E-Commerce players and other disruptors continue to change the way retail businesses operate. Supply chains face constant increases in cost due to inflation and other market factors. These are a few key reasons why retailers today race to explore automation. It is not about replacing jobs (in fact only 5% of jobs in retail are said to be fully automatable) in retail. The objective is to upskill existing jobs using automation.

Amazon was first to launch “Amazon Go,” which used automation to drive sales and operational efficiency. It cut customer waiting time and generated customer insights to understand which product assortment works best, as well as personalizing promotions.

Aeon and Ocado are using automation in warehouses to better fulfill customer orders and make them ready for home delivery. Known as a popular online grocery business in Japan, Ocado is changing the way retailers approach fulfillment centers by building warehouses closer to buyers for faster home deliveries.

Target and Walmart are using automation to save employee time. From stocking inventory, cleaning warehouses and processing store backrooms, Walmart has continuously invested in automation to drive efficiency.
But automation extends far beyond retail operations. How can retail benefit from automation?

• 1

  Inventory Management System

  Automation and predictive analytics can help retailers forecast demand to better manage inventory levels. Order quantities can be identified to identify which products to purchase and at which date or time. Real-time notifications can be generated to alert the teams when to replenish a particular item for a given store.
• 2

  Pricing and Promotion

  Artificial intelligence can build an intelligent, rule-based system to help retailers with pricing strategy. The optimal price can be obtained based on data such as cost triggers, gross margin targets, competitor pricing, among other variables. Also, promotional strategies can be created based on seasonal fluctuation of demand or turnover.
• 3

  Conversational Commerce

  Conversational automation can help retailers by building a 24/7 digital channel to speak with audiences. Whether it is an internal communications channel for store employees or a customer facing channel for end shoppers, retailers can use messaging platforms such as Facebook messenger to create automated conversations for various stakeholders.

• 4

  Repetitive data entry

  Retailers who use multiple information systems and customer relationship management platforms can automate majority of the data entry. A string of information passed onto one platform from another can be quickly automated through robotic process automation, which will save time and effort for employees. Data entry can also be automated upon customer interaction (purchase or inquiry), ensuring the next interaction with the customer is relevant based on updated customer information in the retailer's system.

• 5

  Customer Handling

  Automation can create business rules within the retailer's CRM to detect and resolve any customer escalations or issues as they happen in real time. The respective store staff or branch team can be automatically alerted based on any trigger defined. This will help provide relevant and personalized service without extra work and effort for the employees.

Logistics

Logistics is becoming central to the world economy as more and more consumers purchase online. Any logistics company today aims to bring speed and variety for its retailer clients, and ultimately, end consumers. Same-day delivery and availability of multiple SKUs will ultimately differentiate one player from another.

Enterprises in this sector, as well as in transportation and warehousing, are looking for automation and emerging technology to rewire warehouse operations. From smart storage, a warehouse management system, multi-shuttle systems or conveyor tech, automation is a top priority among these enterprises globally.

• 1

  Warehouse Management System

  Automation driven systems that integrate analytics, performance reporting and forecasting to create more efficient warehousing processes.
• 2

  Smart Storage

  Using digital technology to manage storage spaces, thereby managing operating costs better. Intelligent automation tools with embedded analytics can help enterprises better store and retrieve items when needed, as well as give insights in designing a warehouse space.
• 3

  Multishuttle System

  Using an intelligent platform that automates both storage and retrieval of goods, enterprises can easily move items with no human intervention needed.

Financial Services and Banking

Prior to the health crisis, digital banking was a matter of convenience and efficiency alone. Today, it is already about personal safety. The retail banking business model is changing radically as more consumers expect a digital and mobile banking experience.

Optimized and self-service websites, online apps, and a user friendly customer journey are part of the blueprint of a progressive bank. The operations support behind these channels require automating business activities and tasks. RPA can streamline internal operations easily, allowing working teams to focus on the more strategic work.

• 1

  Automate repetitive banking tasks

  Automation of repetitive tasks, easy-to-access account information, and digitized customer experience will improve efficiency, data privacy, and monitoring data information. Shifting from a traditional to a digital process cuts down on processing time for transactions and enables the enterprise to serve a customer better.
• 2

  Capitalize On Your RPA Investments With New Use Cases

  Define your own use case based on your own requirement. No need to have a technical team build the RPA solution for you.
• 3

  Reduce Fraudulent Actions

  Increase data privacy measures to ensure early detection and prevention of risks.
• 4

  Control In Bank’s Compliance

  Have a pragmatic and intelligent process to reduce compliance backlogs and manage data to meet the bank requirements.

Telco

For telecommunication providers to remain relevant in an increasingly digital space, they must pivot their core business to become cost effective and agile. RPA enables telecom players to automate and save time whether through a digital service delivery layer or a software defined network.

Just as important, RPA and automation helps these enterprises to identify new growth opportunities. This technology enables these players to explore parallel businesses while taking advantage of their core competencies as seen in global telcos launching digital businesses in media, mobile payments, content, among others.

• 1

  Opportunities

  RPA in telecommunications helps overcome chronic issues that slow down the business and thrive in the digital era. Streamlining execution of labor-extensive processes such as data entry, product inquiries, billing, order processing, and customer engagement will boost the revenue and provide steep growth in the company.
• 2

  Reliable 24/7 Customer Support

  Minimize customer waiting time and provide solutions anytime with an always-on digital assistant. Ensure seamless transactions and faster turn-around time to complete a satisfactory customer experience.
• 3

  Disparate Systems

  Automate solution in adapting multiple systems for different products and services. Automation of ticketing system, notification management, and real-time analytics to reduce errors and have faster business outcomes.

FMCG / Consumer Packaged Goods

The fast moving consumer goods industry built its legacy on a wide portfolio of mass brands. The FMCG giants have a wide ranging portfolio of consumer goods that also cross multiple geographies. However, to succeed in the 2020s, these enterprises need a new growth model.

An agile operating model is crucial to survive the next decades as well as creating new brands that remain relevant to changing customer behaviors.  RPA and automation enable FMCG players to operate much more efficiently and enable enterprises to engage better with their audiences.

• 1

  Trade Promotion

  Increase the demand in products by collecting strategies and tactics to improve trade promotion. Spreadsheets and manual effort are improved by machine learning making it 10x faster and convenient. Provide real-time analytics and enhancing reports that the sales team can extract immediately.
• 2

  Enhanced Customer Experience

  Simplify order management, resonate with the customer’s needs, attend to their queries real-time, and automate multiple rule-based processes for a better customer service experience
• 3

  Payment Reconciliation

  Reduce manual labor by interfacing between multiple systems directly.
• 4

  Procurement of Inventory and Quality Control

  Streamline data processing that will help in securing the right volume of goods depending on the consumer demand. Ensure quality control through strict quality checking and approval.

Pharmaceuticals

Armed with digital technology and a keen awareness in overall health and wellness, consumers today take greater control of their own health. Using online tools and apps, as well as wearable health tech, consumers have easy access to health information. This means that pharmaceutical products are more easily compared, and patients expect to engage easily with these enterprises, whether to purchase or inquire about medications.

Pharmaceutical enterprise commercial models need to compete both on a customer facing delivery layer, as well as streamlining internal processes to remain agile and efficient. Advanced analytics, sensors and automation can help these enterprises better meet expectations of their stakeholders – whether they are customers, employees, patients or suppliers.

• 1

  Data analysis and research

  Data analysis and research will improve significantly and experience 95% less processing time. With enhanced methods and strategies in data collection, clients can explore more profitable approaches and paradigms leading to a more improved customer experience.
• 2

  Sales Representative Task Reduction

  71% of sales representatives waste time on data management. RPA can track inventory, record data, and tend to customer queries unattended and at a faster time. This will amplify the responsiveness and skills of the sales representatives.
• 3

  Accelerate Clinical Development

  Time-sensitive processes that increase consistency in data entry, audit readiness, and quality control that will reduce operational costs.
• 4

  Individualized and Modernized Marketing

  Providing tailored knowledge to customers and act as an always-on digital companion on patients 24/7

BPO

The Philippine IT-BPO market employs almost 2M workers and is expected to generate nearly $40B in revenue by 2022. The traditional focus for this industry was to provide low-cost benefits from labor opportunities. However, these enterprises are witnessing a shift as their clients are expecting more technical and innovative solutions aside from cost savings.

A key difference today is the need to provide new services quickly and seamlessly using emerging technology such as robotics and artificial intelligence, data analytics and agile software development. Cost-effective service factories need to transform themselves into centers of excellence in technology and innovation using digital tools to rapidly improve their service delivery.

• 1

  Outcome based contracts

  Improve outdated models into outcome-based contracts that will upskill talent to drive innovation internally. Create processes that will help the client and user monitor and make decisions based on data, transparency, and analytics. As a result, both will have a value-driven partnership, faster cycle times, and grow in number of customers.
• 2

  Conduct Heavy Data Exchange

  BPO is fueled by data-driven information & systems and performance-scaling is of standard. Hasten processes and reduce human errors with intelligent data exchange that provide business value to customers.
• 3

  Reduction of Cost and Increase in Productivity

  Automation of repetitive tasks to reduce time-consuming activities and channel employee’s skillsets to a more critical performance tasks.
• 4

  Meeting Service Level Agreement On Time

  Improve customer experience with less turn-around time and with a digital assistant 24/7.