3 Automation Trends You Need To Know
Are you one of the 48% of business utilising automation as part of their processes? If you aren’t already, automation technology can help transform your business and our latest article is here to show you how!
In this article, we will go over the top three automation trends you need to be aware of in 2024 and how you can apply these to your organisation.
Trend 1: Democratisation of Automation
In the world of technology, democratisation is the process in which a certain technology becomes more accessible to new people. Whether through general access or the creation of more accessible and user-friendly interfaces, the democratisation of automation has meant that it’s become far more popular.
· Increased accessibility: Automation technology becoming more accessible to a wider audience is good for a lot of different reasons, mainly due to the increased eyes that are now on automation. As automation becomes the industry standard, more benefits to the whole industry will follow.
· Components: Automation is a key focus for a lot of companies, meaning there is more of a need for new plug-and-play components — to help organisations get the most out of automation. These components are easy to install and exist to counteract the growing skills shortage.
· Narrowing the skill gap: The skills shortage has meant that organisations have struggled to implement new technologies as they’ve emerged — after all, without the knowledge, who’s going to implement them? The democratisation of automation solves that, as it makes it more accessible to those who are not as skilled.
The democratisation of AI is only going to yield increased benefits as time goes on, meaning that organisations can fully take advantage of the power of automation without having to worry about its accessibility.
Trend 2: Integration of AI and Automation
If any technology took over the world in 2023, it was artificial intelligence, and this is no different in 2024. The rise of AI has been unprecedented, and the technology only seems to be getting stronger as time goes on.
For automation specifically, the power of combining the efficiency of automation with the power of AI has meant that it’s easier than ever to unlock new possibilities to take your workplace to the next level.
Here are some of the ways that AI is transforming automation —
· Generative AI: Generative AI is incredibly popular, but it also transforms the way that automation works within your organisation. Unlike traditional automation — known as Robotic Process Automation (RPA) — generative AI lets users find new ways to tackle challenges that would otherwise be difficult to solve.
· Scaling: AI lets you scale your automation and enable more processes to be completed, meaning that your automation setup will become incredibly efficient while also being replicable — letting you cut out repetitive tasks with ease throughout your organisation.
· Ease of use: The ease of use of AI tools such as Microsoft Copilot — which exists within Microsoft Power Automate — means that it’s never been easier to utilise AI to get the most out of automation within your organisation.
Trend 3: Ethical Automation
As new technologies become widely adopted, it’s important that they remain ethical — and that they’re used responsibly.
There are a few different things to consider here —
· Fairness: Avoiding bias in decision-making, and ensuring that no discrimination is used within your organisation’s decision-making process or automated processes.
· Transparency: Ensuring that everyone on a need-to-know basis is always aware of how decisions are being made.
· Privacy: Making sure to look after the data of people within and outside of your organisation.
· Accountability: Ensuring that everyone who is meant to be accountable has their responsibilities clearly defined — this will make sure that if something goes wrong, it’s easy to see where and with whom.
· Social accountability: Ensuring that your organisation is considering the wider social impact of automation — including job displacement and economic implications.
How To Get Started
Automation is a key technology in the modern world and ensuring that you’re up to date with the latest information on automation will let you keep up with key industry trends.
If you’re looking to get started with automation but don’t know where to start, reach out to us today. Our expert team are here to help and will ensure that you’ve got a helping hand along the way.