KATHMANDU UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT

(KUSOM)
Balkumari, Lalitpur, Nepal

Management Information System

EMBA 2021 (2nd Sem)

Term Paper

Submitted by:
Mr. Raju Shrestha
Mr. Nirmal Thapa

Submitted to:
Mr. Sanjay pudasaini

November 27, 2021

Table of Contents

Executive Summary 3
Introduction - Robotic Process Automation (RPA) 3
Reason for selecting the RPA 3
History and development of RPA 4
Business benefits of RPA 5
Issues / Challenges of RPA for business 6
Success Stories of companies using RPA 8
Nepalese scenario 8
Conclusion and Recommendation 9
References 9

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1. Executive Summary
In today's globalized world, many firms have to compete with multinational companies at the
local level too. Firms have to perform certain functions repetitively in the process of
accomplishing the task. And while doing so there is always a risk of error and also hike the
cost of operations which in turn increase the price tag of product or service. Robotic Process
Automation (RPA) is the computerized automatic process which helps to reduce the risk of
error and can perform several coded tasks fastly as well as efficiently too. Especially in the
production sector and in the telecommunication sector RPA can be used effectively. With the
help of RPA, human resources can concentrate their knowledge in innovation and quality of
task rather than in performing similar tasks repetitively.

2. Introduction - Robotic Process Automation (RPA)

Robotic Process Automation is a type of dynamic business process that allows anyone to
define a set of instructions for the development of a robot or 'bot'. RPA robots are able to
mimic many human interactions with computers to create a ton of flawless tasks, with high
volume and speed. RPA ultimately is about automatically performing some of the most
common and repetitive computer-based tasks and processes in the workplace. The RPA
automatically performs daily procedures that once required human action - most of which are
usually done in a rational, time-consuming manner and allows human workers to focus on
high-value work. That is also how the RPA promises to improve the efficiency of
organizations with reducing cost of operations.

3. Reason for selecting the RPA

Robotic Process Automation or RPA is one of the fastest-growing segments in the global
enterprise software category and is quite a new field which is getting popularized so much
that large organizations (mainly in western countries) have already started investing in this
technology.

This is a very fascinating field as something that we could have never imagined a few
decades back and is now actually happening. Getting the work done through robots sounded
amazing to us and definitely the use of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning revolution
will surely change the phase of the future world. Manufacturing (the way that used to
happen in the 19th and 20th century) is already in the midst of a period of unprecedented
change, as we transition from the industrial age to the information age.

Research analyst Gartner says that the market growth rate of RPA was a whopping 63% in
2019. The productivity potential of RPA is too promising to ignore. With more enterprises
using this innovative technology, RPA’s market value is also set to increase in future. Early
adopters of the RPA software are already raking in benefits as RPA streamlines workflows,
automates tasks and allows human workers to focus on high-value work. Due to the
unprecedented benefits associated with RPA and a promising future ahead, we chose this
topic for the project.

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 Robotic process automation (RPA) market size worldwide from 2020 to 2030(in billion
U.S. dollars)

Source: Statistica 2021; The global robotic process automation (RPA) market is forecast to grow to more than 13
billion U.S. dollars by 2030, an increase of more than 12 billion compared to 2020. RPA is a type of business
process automation based on software robots or bots that perform menial business tasks to expedite enterprise
operations and reduce costs.

4. History and development of RPA

Since the advent of the Age of Information, many automation systems have gone through
such things as Computerized Automation (occurring between the 70s and 90s), Business
Process Management (BPM) in the 90s, and RPA in the 2000s.

BPM is just a combination of many ways for business processes to be effective. In the 90s,
a number of technology companies including IBM and Oracle introduced a variety of
automated technologies to improve business processes, later called business process
automation. After that, the digital transformation movement encouraged the development of
the RPA.

Back in the early 2000s, RPA was a growing technology. However, it depended on the
ingenuity of the design, the screen design, and the automation of the workflow. Despite the
division of its ancestors, the RPA has since advanced to a higher level and improved their
skills in some ways.
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 The term “Workflow Automation and Management Tools” was first introduced in the 1920's
and later became popular in the 1990's. Due to the ability to process based on specific areas
of interest, this type of software eliminates the need to enter data directly and increases the
speed, efficiency and accuracy of the business.

RPA started out as a combination of many technologies that deal with business problems.
Nowadays, with the advent of AI, RPA is developed with integrated cognitive capabilities. As
a result, many RPA providers have created alternative software to enhance their digital
capabilities and bot offerings.

5. Business benefits of RPA

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) continues to garner significant attention from businesses
for a multitude of reasons. Not only does it boost profit, but it also makes employees more
productive. An average back-office employee has to carry out lots of repetitive,
time-consuming and dreary tasks such as producing reports, filling out forms, updating
records and other high-volume transactions that do not require judgment or reasoning. RPA
simply offers an easy way to perform these tasks more accurately and quickly.

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 According to the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM),
organizations that implement RPA can reduce costs from 35-65% for onshore process
operations and 10-30% in offshore delivery, McKinsey and Co. suggest that around 45% of
the tasks in a business can be automated. According to the Annual Global RPA survey by
Deloitee, the Return on Investment was reported at less than 12 months with an average of
20% full-time equivalent capacity provided by robots. The Deloitte RPA survey respondents
also reported an improvement in compliance (92%), quality/accuracy(90%),
productivity(86%) and a reduction in costs(59%).
The Institute for Robotic Process Automation claims that RPA software robots cost about
one-third of the price of an off-shore employee and one-fifth of the price of an onshore
worker. Hence benefits of RPA could be summarized as follows :
❖ Invest resources in core business operations
❖ Encourage employees to learn and take up more critical functions
❖ Save huge costs by automating mundane day-to-day functions
❖ Minimize chances of error
❖ Increase the overall efficiency of organization by boosting in Scalability Opportunities
❖ Increased security and enhanced customer service
❖ Improved Communication, Automated Responses & Triggers
❖ Hassle-Free Implementation as Implementing RPA does not require API setup and also
requires little technical expertise.

6. Issues / Challenges of RPA for business

Not all business processes are candidates for robotic process automation. Change
Management is the most common challenge of RPA for business. Some of the most
common pitfalls that lead to gaps between reality and expectations are Organizational
pitfalls, process pitfalls, implementation pitfalls, technical pitfalls and post-implementation
pitfalls. The challenges can be summarized as follows :

a. Incidents of automatic abuse: Identifying cases of automatic abuse is a common

mistake that challenges the implementation of the RPA and leads to a decrease in ROI.
For example, companies that choose to use RPA in high-volume departments to make more
savings fail due to the heavy burden of changing processes and different management.
Companies that aim to reduce the population with the immediate cost of FTE (Full-Time
Employee) fail because they do not have the resources needed to build a solid RPA solution.

b. Wrong forum: One of the top challenges to implementing an RPA is choosing the wrong
forum due to a lack of knowledge of all the processes. Sometimes, the determining factor is
cost, which can lead to companies choosing a platform that does not suit their business
needs.

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c. Lack of skilled resources: With the growing popularity of the RPA, the demand for skilled
resources has been growing. RPA submissions may block the road if there is a shortage of
competent resources in your team.

d. Automatic processes are terminated: Sometimes there are processes that can be
completely automated with RPA. These processes therefore require the use of Machine
Learning algorithms, which can be an additional cost to the company and the project.

e. There is insufficient support from the Business: Many RPA implementations have
failed due to lack of necessary support from businesses for workflow diagrams, plan B for all
situations - as it were, and business rules for a few types of data processing by bot.

f. Cultural change: The implementation of the RPA requires cultural and intellectual change
within the organization, starting with the top leadership. Often, misinformation about the RPA
and its effects can create fears among people that they may lose their jobs.

g. Non-compliance with best practices: If the team ignores best practices during RPA
implementation, then this may result in more time being invested in correcting the error and
making it harder for teams to reuse workflow.

h. Sufficient support from the vendor: As with any other technology, having support from
the RPA platform vendor is essential to the success of your project as they have the
experience to use the tool and work with several clients on different RPA applications.

i. Uncertain expectations: Ignorance of expectations of the team, management and other

stakeholders involved in the implementation of the RPA may impede its progress. Without a
clear goal, it is difficult to measure technological success.

j. Technical Comprehension: Sometimes the submission of an RPA does not lead to the
expected results due to the ambiguity of the technical staff. If people fail to ask important
questions related to operational requirements during implementation, then automation
submissions can go a long way.

k. Lack of ownership: When people are unaware of their roles and responsibilities in the
new default setting, it can create broken dots. This leads to a lack of ownership and
accountability between the various groups.

l. Lack of infrastructure: Companies fail to consider their infrastructure and choose to

invest in RPA. This is one of the biggest challenges of implementing an RPA as, without
proper RPA submission infrastructure, you may not get the results you want.
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 Hence, RPA can not replace humans completely, also it can not improve flawed business
processes, and automate all kinds of business processes.

7. Success Stories of companies using RPA

There are several companies which are using RPA and getting higher success rate than
pre RPA. Banking and financial institutions are widely using RPA for the process of
account opening, information processing and restoring, loan approval and credit level
expansions as well as in ATM also. Likewise in call centers also RPA provides a high level of
effectiveness and efficiency through RPA application. Manufacturing industries are also using
RPA for error less multiple task performance. In short we can take examples of Cocacola
companies which are getting a higher degree of success via application of RPA for
procurement process, bottling process. Dell computers, Tata consultancy services, Tech
Mahindra, IBM, etc are some of other companies which are getting success in terms of
performance because of application of Robotic Automation Process (RPA).

CEO at Carter Bank & Trust, a relatively small bank with about $4 billion in assets and 100
branches expects RPA use case in banking to save about $5 million a year while improving
their customer service in the process.

CFO of Houston Methodist Hospital estimates that 30-35% of the work in healthcare
organizations is administrative overhead that does not add any direct value to patient care
and RPA is just really beginning to touch the tip of the iceberg with 10 live bots that are
delivering about $2 million in annual savings and they have another 100 ideas in the pipeline

8. Nepalese scenario
In Nepalies scenario it's still to apply RPA in either manufacturing sector or in service sector.
But there are few of the applications in the Banking sector but yet to use in an advanced
way.
For the first time in banking and financial institutions in Nepal, NMB Bank has launched a
loan service operated by an artificial intelligence called NMB Sapti 2.0. The entire loan
process from application for loan disbursement under this service can be done digitally
without any kind of manual intervention and loan will be provided automatically in 24х7 days.
In this service, any person can get a loan within 5 minutes of applying by using his mobile
phone without going to the bank. In this, customers will be able to choose their loan
repayment period, type of loan repayment, loan amount based on their convenience.
The number of customers taking NMB loan service has reached over one thousand. The
bank has so far disbursed more than 60 million loans under the scheme. The System auto
rates the customer based on his past 6 months transaction and customer information based
on his KYC form from the database. However, RPA use could be extended in the banking
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 sector for Credit Processing, Anti Money Laundering purposes, Fraud Detection, day cheque
clearing and other operational issues. For better RPA implementation, regulatory policies
need to be amended accordingly.

9. Conclusion and Recommendation

RPA is one of the most important tools to handle mundane repetitive tasks and scale up
business efficiency. Before embarking on a campaign to incorporate RPA into the business,
we must identify which processes are most likely to offer the most benefits, and consult with
relevant RPA partners to determine the impact of Robotic Process Automation on people,
processes, and policies. We should also explore various departments and services that can
do better with automation and may consider human resources, finance and accounting,
marketing, and supply chain management to adopt RPA. However it is to be noted that not
all processes could be automated and there are some similarities between AI and RPA but
these are not the same.
It is important to make a case for proof of reason (POC) before moving forward to automate
it. As well as researching the interior of the business, choosing the best RPA provider that
can provide the complete solution to the needs of the business is very important. We can do
this by recording the strengths and weaknesses of each trader and making an informed
decision. Only then should we plan and implement RPA implementation strategies.

10. References
a. https://datametrics.com/
b. Uipath.com
c. www.blueprism.com
d. Statistica.com
e. https://www.theserverside.com/blog/Coffee-Talk-Java-News-Stories-and-Opinions/R
PA-examples-and-use-cases-that-prove-robotic-automation-works
f. https://www.uipath.com/resources/automation-case-studies/rpa-revolution-at-isbank