In manual data processing, human error is more likely to occur, especially when dealing with numbers. And, finance as an industry is all about numbers and calculations!
The method of chasing numerical accuracy is not only time-consuming but also pricey. This problem of being confused with numbers can be solved by robotic process automation.
RPA has been utilized by banking and financial organizations to automate finance and accounting activities for a long time. Technology is continually evolving, and it now has the ability to manage data more efficiently than humans while saving vast sums of money. So, hands down, automated processes, in contrast to manual operations, run smoothly.
According to Gartner, nearly 80% of finance leaders have either adopted or planned to deploy robotic process automation in their business operations, demonstrating the success of RPA in finance. In finance and accounting, hyper-automation is a great buzzword to use because RPA can do up to 30 times the work that a human slogs with. RPA in finance has progressed from doing simple automation chores to processing full-fledged automated reports, data analysis, and forecasting while connecting with other systems.
Along with reducing human resource costs, large, recurrent data-related tasks can be handled more efficiently, allowing more meaningful outputs to be produced.
To understand this in detail, let’s look at some of the RPA use cases in finance that will undoubtedly be worth your time and money:
1. PO Processing
Cash inflows and outflows are a common occurrence for financial technology enterprises. Manually creating purchase orders for a large number of clients, forwarding them, and gaining approval is not only error-prone but also tiresome.
RPA paired with AI will not only eliminate the possibility of errors but will also intelligently capture data for the creation of POs. Once the automated system is in place, an automatic approval matrix can be created and forwarded for approvals without the need for human intervention. Simple, effective, fast, and cost-effective are some of the most evident benefits of RPA in finance for the PO creation process.
2. Accounts Reconciliation
This is a key business activity that could take the accountant or team of accountants a significant amount of time to guarantee the balance comparisons are right. Back-and-forth references and logins into various systems necessitate a hawk’s eye to ensure no mistakes are made, and the figures are compared appropriately.
To put it another way, an organization with many roles and sub-companies maintains its finances using various structures and processes. Based on the business objectives and client expectations, bringing them all into a uniform processing format may not be practicable. The central team, on the other hand, is having trouble reconciling the accounts of all the departments and sub-companies.
The procedure is time-consuming, error-prone, and monotonous. The central team may benefit from RPA implementation. This is the main advantage of RPA in accounting. RPA bots automate the process by reviewing and reconciling data at each step and procedure, requiring minimal human participation to incorporate the essential parts of these activities. Only when the data shows misalignments do human involvement become necessary.
3. Invoice Processing
Invoice processing is sometimes a tiresome and time-consuming task, especially if invoices are received or generated in a variety of forms. Financial firms struggle to raise the right invoices in the client-required formats on a timely basis as a customer-centric organization.
Furthermore, the approval matrix and procedure may result in a significant amount of rework in terms of correcting formats and data. Automation can handle time-consuming, repetitive tasks while maintaining accuracy and quickly submitting invoices to the appropriate approving authority.
In the finance industry, whole accounts payable and receivables can be completely automated with RPA. The maker and checker processes can almost be eliminated because the machine can match invoices with receipts.
Final Thought
To remain future-proof, many financial institutions are embracing robotic process automation (RPA). RPA is enabling these organizations to automate audit report generation, reconciliation, risk management, invoice processing and other workflows. Things are changing, and each company sector is being compelled to evolve and discover new methods to keep up, especially in the wake of COVID-19. RPA is a game-changing technology that has benefited a slew of banks and financial institutions. Since everything became automated and digitized, a lot has been accomplished, from reduced time to mitigating fraud.
RPA is not only the future of the banking industry, but the revolution is already here now, and AutomationEdge can assist these financial organizations in seamlessly implementing such modern technologies and reducing the complexities that come on the way.