Workflow Automation: A Technological Marvel Committed to Ease Work

What is Workflow Automation?

Automation is a term used to describe technological applications that require little or no human input. This includes business process automation (BPA), IT automation, and personal applications such as home automation, among others.

Every business attempts to increase the efficiency of its workflow and the outcomes of that workflow. And when they are stuck with manual workflows, it becomes difficult to enhance efficiency and effectiveness resulting in disgruntled staff and dissatisfied customers. Manual workflows are slow, labour-heavy and prone to human error. Now, if these workflows are automated, then more processing can be done in less time and less work needs to be redone as a result of fewer errors (1).

Workflow automation refers to the design, execution and automation of workflow processes. It is where human jobs, data or files are connected or routed across individuals or computers based on pre-defined business criteria(2).

How is it Beneficial?

• Increases the speed with which tasks are managed and completed

• Reduces your labour costs

• Reduces processing errors

• Simplifies approval processes

• Enhances customer satisfaction

• Increases the scalability of workflows(3)

Implementation of an Automated Workflow

Implementing an automated workflow typically consists of five steps represented in the flowchart below(1):

Workflow Automation in Banking

Banks and financial institutions were among the first to incorporate technology, and since then, the banking industry has witnessed significant transformations. By incorporating workflow automation into their initiatives to automate their manual workflow, financial institutions can gain immediate benefits while also developing a crucial competence.

Now, let's look at some use cases of workflow automation in banking to better understand this(4)(5).

Client Orientation: Once an application is received, workflow automation can be used to set up the accounts or services, notify the account manager and quickly create a task to email or deliver the relevant paperwork to the client.

Know Your Customer (KYC): While some KYC processes can be automated, critical parts must be determined manually. To comply with regulatory requirements, incoming applications can be automatically screened and identity verified. Any “flagged” applications can then be submitted to the human decision-maker.

Requests for CapEx Approval: By automating CapEx approval, one may avoid errors that might stall the approval process. This allows for error-free CapEx data entry to be streamlined against a set of parameters before being distributed to the appropriate stakeholders for faster approvals.

Expense Reports: Automated expense processing allows forms to be filled out electronically instead of manually, saving time. Workflow triggers can be set up so that when a claim is made, the appropriate person or department is notified, resulting in faster reimbursement.

Generating reports and furnishing a well-organised database: Report generation can be automated by sending data to Excel. Tax records and driver's licence information, for example, can be processed and sorted into relevant categories using automation, resulting in a well-organised database.

Loan Processing: Loan applications can be evaluated and approved using a set of guidelines. Exceptions can be passed along to a human decision-maker for final approval.

Mortgages: Using an integrated mortgage lending workflow, loan papers can be extracted and validated quickly and efficiently, allowing loan applications to be approved or denied.

Credit Card Applications: Integrating a computerised credit card form into workflows allows for faster processing. Customer data can be forwarded to the appropriate departments, resulting in shorter approval periods. Candidates can also be automatically notified when their application is approved.

Account Termination: Before process automation, cancellations had to be done manually, with interest fees and funds transfers in mind. This task can now be conducted quickly and efficiently thanks to automation(6).

References

1. What is Workflow Automation and Why is it Important? [Internet]. [cited 2022 Jan 7]. Available from: https://searchcontentmanagement.techtarget.com/definition/workflow-automation

2. Workflow Automation | Definition, Examples, and Tools [Internet]. [cited 2022 Jan 7]. Available from: https://www.integrify.com/workflow-automation/

3. 6 Benefits of Workflow Automation - frevvo Blog [Internet]. [cited 2022 Jan 7]. Available from: https://www.frevvo.com/blog/workflow-automation-benefits/

4. 6 MISSING PIECES OF DIGITAL BANKING THAT COULD BRING TRANSFORMATION : profinch-Seo [Internet]. [cited 2022 Jan 7]. Available from: https://www.reddit.com/user/profinch-Seo/comments/pcj8ih/6_missing_pieces_of_digital_banking_that_could/

5. Credit Risk Workflow Automation in Banking | Overview and Tech Solutions [Internet]. [cited 2022 Jan 7]. Available from: https://www.processmaker.com/blog/credit-risk-workflow-automation/

6. 101 Use Cases for Workflow Automation | Pyramid Solutions [Internet]. [cited 2022 Jan 7]. Available from: https://pyramidsolutions.com/enterprise-content-management/blog-ecm/101-use-cases-for-workflow-automation/