Automating the Financial Services Industry: Opportunities Abound, and APAC Firms Are Leading the Way

Why Automate?

In addition to delivering faster processing speeds and reducing incidences of human error, automated processes produce a complete audit trail aligned with compliance, enhanced data-processing accuracy, cost savings and an increase in employee productivity. Another significant benefit is the ability to monitor and test a larger amount of data than traditionally possible, i.e., the entire population as opposed to a sample.

Benefits of RPA

Common Applications of RPA

Examples of Day-to-Day Manual Tasks Suitable for RPA

• Reading documents (scanning for key words)
• Opening and reading email
• Screen scraping and tabulating of data
• Applying formulas
• Toggling between systems
• Orchestrating processes
• Preparing documents using templates
• Storing and retrieving data
• Applying business rules
• Drafting and sending email
• Recording keystrokes
• Downloading files

Implementing RPA in Financial Institutions

The best way to begin an RPA programme is to select a process that is manually intensive, structured, repetitive, requires minimal judgment, involves fewer systems and is located in a single geography end-to-end. The selected processes should be ranked in descending order of priority, based on the benefits and returns on investment that are expected to be gained by the business, and not just because they can be automated.

There are three main phases of implementation:

1. RPA PILOT/PROOF OF CONCEPT : Financial institutions embarking on the journey of digital transformation for the first time should consider implementing a pilot or proof of concept, which can be used to demonstrate the value of automation for this and other processes and gain stakeholder buy-in. A pilot can involve one or two processes — ideally, those that can be automated in a short time frame and whose results, such as operational performance and productivity, can be reviewed and verified fairly quickly. A pilot will also allow any organisational challenges to be identified, so that subsequent automations proceed more smoothly.
2. DEVELOPING THE RPA ROAD MAP : Following the outcome of the RPA pilot, companies can start to shortlist the different processes identified as suitable for automation. Each process is analysed for viability based on the attributes mentioned in the beginning of this section and then prioritised according to its importance to the business and the expected ROI. Thereafter, the technical team, in collaboration with the business, prepares a project timeline, as well as a catalogue of other relevant functions and processes that would be affected by the transformation. With each step process-mapped in detail in this way, the organisation is able to create a clear and transparent transformation plan that makes sense to the business and ensures acceptance of the improvements. It is recommended that proper documentation is maintained at every step of the planning stage for audit purposes, including details of the considerations and options explored, and the budget and employee resources involved in the various projects.
3. PREPARING FOR RPA IMPLEMENTATION : Based on the RPA road map, stakeholders agree on the shortlisted processes to be automated. The implementation team analyses and eliminates any gaps between existing processes and RPA technology functionality and redesigns and standardises processes before automating them. It is important to complete this step so that the automated processes are integrated seamlessly into the organisation’s workflow upon completion. The process owner tests the redesigned process and approves it, after which the implementation work can commence.

RPA SOFTWARE SELECTION

Selecting RPA software is part of the implementation process. Selection should take into account the objectives of the RPA strategy (e.g., effort saved, accuracy improved) and whether the software can accomplish these goals. It is also important to understand and compare features in the different software options to determine suitability for the selected process (e.g., the software’s ability to read documents of different formats and cater to variability of a process, such as invoices received in multiple layouts). Another consideration is the ability of the software to deliver on strategy objectives in the long term, such as the ability to scale up quickly to meet the demands of the business, as well as capabilities involving cognitive technology and AI.

Measuring Success

To assess the effectiveness of the RPA implementation, qualitative and quantitative measurements (key performance indicators, or KPIs) should be established by the implementation team and agreed upon by senior management. KPIs can include the length of time between submission and output, output accuracy, and number of cases closed within a predetermined time frame when compared to a human full-time employee. Processes that are switched to RPA should be measured against these KPIs to gauge success and reveal any shortcomings of the automation. Finally, as with any change programme, the essential elements for success include effective and robust project management, contingency planning, risk and change management, and communication.

How Protiviti Can Help

Most business leaders would agree that digital transformations, which often include an RPA component, are important in helping organisations stay ahead of competitors and keep pace with ever-growing customer demands. Like any transformation, it is important to view RPA as an evolving and expanding process that is integrated with the long-term goals and growth strategy of the business, not as a one-time event serving a single, limited purpose.

Protiviti helps organisations implement effective RPA programmes that meet their long-term strategic goals. Our services include:

[1] Robotic Process Automation: Ten Early Adopters in Asia Pacific Realize Hefty Cost Savings, According to Study, CFO Innovation, April 18, 2018. 

[2] Robotic Process Automation in Banking to Generate $900M Revenues [press release], Juniper Research, February 6, 2018.

[3] Robotic Process Automation Market to 2025 - Global Analysis and Forecasts, The Insight Partners, June 2018.