The 10 Major Benefits of Business Process Automation for SMEs

What Is Business Process Automation?

Let's start with the basics. Business process automation (BPA) is a digital-based approach that leverages advanced tech and specialized software to simplify complex workflows that consume valuable time, energy, and resources. According to ReportLinker, the global BPA market size is expected to grow from USD 9.8 billion in 2020 to USD 19.6 billion by 2026.

In simple terms, BPA helps companies boost their efficiency by leveraging high-end digital tools to carry out business processes with minimal human intervention. For instance, this approach can be used to perform payrolls, inventory control, and a wide range of daily activities through an efficient, controlled, and almost flawless methodology. Furthermore, a McKinsey study found that 31% of businesses already have fully automated at least one function of their daily agenda.

While the BPA approach offers a wide range of advantages, such as diminishing the risk of human error, cost savings, and the opportunity to save time by automating repetitive tasks, companies should not rush into randomly automating processes. 

Here are some examples of what high-end solutions can help you automate your processes and boost the efficiency of your business.

What Business Processes Can/Should Be Automated?

Integrating BPA applications into your company can become a daunting task if not proceeded with caution, plus the time and effort required to implement them. While it's true that organizations all over the globe are going through a digital transformation at an incredibly fast pace, it is advisable to take a step back and fully understand that efforts deployed by your brand will benefit the most from automating processes.

To maximize the key benefits of business process automation, you need to first focus on what should and shouldn't be automated:

Consider automating:

When deciding to automate your business processes, think of it as a strategic, high-ROI-oriented investment for your brand. This means that the tasks that deserve this upgrade should propel your business operations to the next level.

Here are a few examples:

• Boost your invoice processing workflow by implementing automation solutions for matching, routing, and coding, significantly reducing operational inefficiencies and accelerating the entire process. For example, Bits Orchestra implemented AI and customizable business rules for a client, enhancing their invoice processing system. Our case study shows that this integration saved over 18 million payments and reduced processing time by 75%, showcasing substantial efficiency improvements in their operations.

• Transform your hiring and onboarding procedures with the aid of cutting-edge workflow software, facilitating seamless management of candidate data and the smooth integration of new hires into your team. There’s also a great example of how automation can make businesses’ lives easier. Bits Orchestra developed the TruTech Test, a sophisticated recruitment tool that significantly enhanced employee quality by identifying and addressing knowledge gaps. In the first month post-launch, 160 companies subscribed, and over 100 group and individual tests were conducted, demonstrating the tool's effectiveness and wide-reaching impact.

• Elevate your customer support services to new heights by deploying chatbots and automated systems, empowering your team to deliver proactive assistance and achieve operational excellence.

• Empower your sales team's productivity by optimizing CRM usage, allowing them to focus on high-value tasks such as prospecting and lead generation while minimizing the burden of manual data entry and finance-derived administrative duties.

• Enhance your marketing strategy by leveraging automation to manage social media activities effectively, ensuring the seamless distribution of engaging content across various digital platforms and maximizing your brand's online presence.

• Automation can greatly improve business processes and data management. For example, the Career Growth Tracker - TruTech, designed to replace complex Excel spreadsheets, effectively centralized data storage and simplified tracking. This application cleared up the confusion of handling numerous spreadsheets by combining ongoing enrollments and historical records into one accessible system. Additionally, it automated notifications and streamlined data access, reducing supervisors' workload by over 40%.

Consider not automating:

First and foremost, resist the urge to automate everything. While automation may seem appealing at face value, it's crucial to stay moderate with new tech before testing its effectiveness.

Even when pursuing to fully exploit the many business process automation benefits, it's essential to maintain a human touch to prevent customers from feeling disconnected.

• Avoid automating phone calls, as poorly automated conversations can frustrate customers and diminish satisfaction levels.

• Automated email blasts, even when triggered by specific actions taken inside your landing page, may feel too impersonal and broad. This may work for B2C-oriented sales conversions, but B2B deal-making still requires emotional and rational triggers driven by real people.

• While chatbots are formidable ice-breakers, they shouldn´t be used to take over sensitive topics, usually involved in deeper stages of the sales funnel. Automate simple FAQ-derived information, and sophisticate your data collection and analysis but allow your sales experts to leverage the juicy details to their advantage. 

How does Business Process Automation Software Work?

Automation software plays a pivotal role in saving time, effort, and resources by standardizing common business procedures, implementing robust security measures, and driving maximum operational efficiency across the organization.

For Bits Orchestra, being able to integrate business process automation software for our partners means working side by side to deeply understand what is the set of actions they require to automate to satisfy their client's needs. Check what our clients say about us.

The following examples illustrate work activities that can benefit from business process automation software:

• Invoice management: Utilizing automation can streamline the entire invoicing process, from creation and delivery to tracking and payment, thereby minimizing manual errors and enhancing operational efficiency.
•  New employee onboarding: Workflow automation can seamlessly guide new hires through the onboarding journey, encompassing tasks such as paperwork completion, training modules, and more.
• Customer service: Automation offers instant responses to frequently asked customer queries, effectively manages support tickets, and tracks customer interactions for improved service.
• Sales and CRM operations: Sales teams can leverage automation to manage leads effectively, follow up with prospects, and nurture existing customer relationships, enhancing sales productivity.
• Social media administration: Businesses can automate social media activities such as scheduling posts, monitoring engagement metrics, and responding to audience interactions, ensuring consistent online presence.
•  Expense management: Automation simplifies the process of submitting, approving, and reimbursing expenses, streamlining financial operations and reducing administrative burdens.
•  Inventory control: Automated systems efficiently monitor inventory levels, issue alerts for low stock, and facilitate automatic reordering of products, optimizing inventory management processes.
•  Employee shift scheduling: BPA facilitates the creation and adjustment of employee schedules, minimizing conflicts and enhancing communication within the workforce.
•  Approval workflows: Workflow automation streamlines the submission and approval of various requests, including time off requests, budget expenditures, and more, ensuring swift decision-making.
•  Vendor relations: BPA vendor selection, performance evaluation, and payment processes save time and foster stronger vendor relationships, contributing to smoother operations.
•  Payroll management: Payroll software automates tasks such as payroll calculation, tax deductions, and paycheck distribution, ensuring accurate and timely payments to employees.
•  Bookkeeping and accounting: Automation aids in tasks like expense tracking, transaction reconciliation, and financial reporting and analytics, enhancing accuracy and efficiency in bookkeeping and accounting processes.

Top 10 Advantages of Business Process Automation

The benefits of automating business processes go wide and far. While many SMEs focus on its time and resource-saving features; the BPA methodology is truly about unleashing your team's full potential and transforming your organization from the ground up.

It’s a core goal to help our partners meet all their key performance indicators (KPIs) organically and effortlessly. For this reason, we believe it is particularly important to share relevant highlights about the benefits of business process automation, so more leaders can bring their businesses to the next level and make more informed decisions.

Here are some of the most impactful benefits of business process automation:

1. Allows you to focus on your core business

By automating repetitive tasks, such as data entry or invoice processing, you give your team the precious gift of time to focus on strategic initiatives, brainstorm mold-breaking ideas, and nurture client relationships. With machines handling the most practical tasks, your employees can channel their energy into high-value activities that drive growth and innovation, ultimately propelling your organization forward.

2. Increases your profit

Don't let manual processes eat into your potential revenue. By automating routine operations, you free up resources that can be redirected to revenue-generating activities, such as product development, marketing campaigns, or customer acquisition strategies. With automation driving efficiency and productivity, you'll see a tangible impact on your bottom line, with increased profitability and sustained growth over time.

3. Boosts your productivity

Embrace automation and unlock a new level of productivity within your organization. By streamlining workflows and eliminating manual bottlenecks, automation empowers your team to accomplish more in less time. With tasks automated, employees can focus on strategic initiatives, creative problem-solving, and collaborative projects that drive innovation and propel your business forward in the competitive landscape.

4. Forsters your efficiency

Embrace streamlined operations. Automation optimizes processes, delivering faster results with fewer resources. Whether it's automating document workflows, optimizing supply chain management, or streamlining customer support, automation enhances operational efficiency across the board, allowing your organization to achieve more with less and stay ahead of the curve.

5. Reduced errors in every sector

Flawless executions are served 24/7. By removing the human element from repetitive tasks prone to error, automation ensures consistent and accurate results every time. From data entry to financial reporting, automation minimizes the risk of human error, enhancing data accuracy, compliance, and decision-making within your organization.

6. Implements standardized procedures 

Achieve uniformity and consistency across your organization. By standardizing processes and workflows, automation ensures that tasks are executed the same way every time, regardless of individual preferences or human error. With standardized processes in place, you can drive operational excellence, improve quality control, and enhance customer satisfaction by delivering a consistent experience at every touchpoint.

7. Tracks every record 

Access unprecedented visibility into your operations with automation's built-in tracking and monitoring capabilities. By providing a detailed audit trail of every action and decision, automation promotes accountability, transparency, and compliance within your organization. With transparent tracking, you can easily identify bottlenecks, track performance metrics, and ensure adherence to regulatory requirements, giving you peace of mind and confidence in your operations.

8. Improves your compliance levels

Navigate complex regulatory landscapes with ease. By incorporating compliance requirements into automated workflows and processes, you can ensure that your organization remains compliant with industry regulations, data protection laws, and internal policies. With automation handling compliance tasks such as data encryption, access controls, and audit trails, you can mitigate risk, protect sensitive information, and maintain the trust of your customers and stakeholders.

9. Enhances your customer experience 

Impress your customers with exceptional service and personalized experiences. By automating routine customer interactions, such as email responses, order processing, and support ticket routing, you can deliver faster response times, proactive assistance, and tailored recommendations that delight and retain customers. 

10. Takes your scalability to the next level 

Prepare your organization for future growth. Whether you're handling increased demand, expanding into new markets, or scaling your operations, automation adapts effortlessly to changing business needs and evolving customer expectations. With BPA driving scalability, you can confidently pursue new opportunities, enter new markets, and seize growth opportunities without being limited by manual tasks or resource constraints.

Integrate Business Process Automation Solutions with Bits Orchestra

Business Process Automation is rapidly becoming a crucial necessity for modern businesses. Implementing BPA across key functions like operations, sales and marketing, client onboarding, and software development, is becoming a key factor for brands that wish to meet their key performance indicators (KPIs) and keep on adding success stories to their record.

In the current dynamic business environment, BPA stands as a beacon of operational excellence and strategic advantage, and Bits Orchestra is fully aware of its impact. For this reason, we continue to test and integrate the various benefits of business process automation to provide the agile and efficient outsourced solutions that our partners' clients deserve. we can also develop custom automating solutions according to the company's needs.

Want to know more about how to integrate BPA into your company? Feel free to reach Bits Orchestra experts at any time on our website or Linkedin and we'll gladly walk you through our process.