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The Triple Titans of Modern Retail - AI, RPA & OCR
Discover the New Age of Efficiency and Innovation
Casper Larsen
October 29, 2023
Hey Everyone,
Let's cut right to the chase. You might love 'em, you might think they're the bane of your workday, but there's no denying their silent power - I'm talking about processes. Much like the unsung bassist in a rock band, processes set the rhythm, often unnoticed, but without them, everything's off. In this week's deep dive, we're peeling back the curtain on these backstage heroes.
Whether they're your jam or just a necessary tune you dance to, processes are the unsung maestros of our business symphony. They're orchestrating those million tiny things that, when done right, culminate in the crescendo of success. If you've ever wondered about the magic behind the scenes or why certain tasks feel like a never-ending loop of the same old song, stick with me. We're about to turn the volume up on the exciting world of processes.
Ready? Let’s go!
In an ever-evolving retail landscape, the call for agility and innovation has never been louder. The champions of this era are not just those who stock the best products but those who harness the potent trio of AI (Artificial Intelligence), RPA (Robotic Process Automation), and OCR (Optical Character Recognition). This isn’t just about cutting-edge technology. It’s about reshaping the very fabric of business processes to save countless hours, reduce human error, and propel efficiencies.
The Power of Three
1. AI (Artificial Intelligence): At its core, AI simulates human intelligence. It’s not just about algorithms; it's about learning and reasoning, about predicting patterns and making decisions. Think about chatbots assisting customers 24/7 or predictive analysis to optimise stock levels. In retail, AI can be the difference between a missed sales opportunity and a loyal, returning customer.
2. RPA (Robotic Process Automation): RPA is the unsung hero that works tirelessly behind the scenes. These software robots mimic human actions and automate repetitive tasks without fatigue. Think of it as giving your most mundane tasks to an efficient intern who never needs a coffee break.
3. OCR (Optical Character Recognition): OCR translates images of typed, handwritten, or printed text into machine-encoded text. This is transformative for retailers, particularly when handling heaps of invoices, forms, or any paper-based processes. No more manual entries, just streamlined data at your fingertips.
Why is this a big deal?
RPA? That's the future, folks. Now, don't get me wrong, on its own, it's already a game-changer. Streamlining operations, cutting down tedious tasks, and allowing businesses to pivot to value-driven strategies? That's a win in any entrepreneur's playbook. But let me lay down the real magic for you. Pair RPA with AI, and you've just upgraded from a speedboat to a super cruiser. This isn't about just crunching numbers faster; it's about redefining the entire playbook. With AI in the mix, you're not only automating tasks—you're making decisions, intricate, human-level decisions, at the speed of light. It's like giving your business a brain upgrade. If you're not on this train yet, you better hop on, because this combo is redefining the limits of what technology can do in the business world. Don't just take part, lead the way!
Practicality in Play - A Usecase
Imagine a retail chain that receives thousands of supplier invoices weekly. Traditionally, a team would manually input data, cross-check prices, and process payments—a labor-intensive ordeal with room for human error.
Enter our potent trio:
AI can predict which suppliers are likely to send invoices based on past patterns, even flagging any anomalies or potential issues.
RPA bots then access the invoicing system, retrieve these documents, and process them, mimicking human actions but at a speed and consistency unmatched by manual labor.
OCR steps in when these invoices are in varying formats, perhaps some handwritten notes or different layouts. It extracts the necessary data, ensuring nothing is overlooked.
What once took a week, now takes mere hours. The saved time can be refocused on strategic activities, customer engagement, or even new market exploration.
When businesses deploy AI, RPA, and OCR effectively, the implications go far beyond simple process automation. Let's dive into what this technological triad can truly catalyse for an organisation:
Employee Empowerment and Creativity
Time as a Canvas for Innovation: Freeing employees from repetitive tasks gives them back a resource more valuable than gold—time. With this newfound time, employees can engage in more strategic, value-driven activities. They can brainstorm new products, devise impactful marketing strategies, or build deeper customer relationships.
Fuelling Passion Over Paperwork: When individuals are not bogged down by the mundane, they can harness their passion and creativity. In a retail setting, this could mean devising new in-store experiences, reimagining the digital shopping journey, or even exploring sustainability initiatives. This is where true innovation sparks.
Enhancing Non-Standard Processes: Not all processes fit neatly into a box. There are complex, irregular tasks that require a unique blend of human intuition and technological precision. By automating the standard, businesses can allocate more resources to refining and optimising these non-standard processes, ensuring they're as efficient and effective as possible.
The ROI of Digital Transformation
For retailers, the ROI isn’t just in hours saved. It's in the drastic reduction of errors, the agility to respond to market changes, and the enhanced customer experience. The journey may start by identifying heavy and repetitive processes but culminates in a complete transformation of operations and service delivery.
The recipe, as it stands, is deceptively simple. Identify your company's time-intensive, repetitive tasks. Integrate AI, RPA, and OCR. Then watch as operational magic unfolds. In the competitive world of retail, those who adapt and harness these technologies are not just surviving; they’re thriving.
The Revenue Revolution
Minimised Errors, Maximised Profits: Human errors, whether in data entry or process execution, can be costly. By reducing these errors through automation, companies not only save on rectification costs but also enhance customer trust. Fewer mistakes mean fewer returns, fewer compensations, and a more consistent brand experience.
Scalability and Growth: Automation equips businesses with the agility to scale. As the company grows, these technologies can easily adapt without the need for proportional increases in manpower or resources. This means that as sales volume increases, operational costs don't necessarily follow suit—resulting in a healthier bottom line.
Data-Driven Decision Making: With AI's predictive analysis and the data processing capabilities of RPA and OCR, businesses can glean actionable insights. Whether it's recognising emerging market trends, optimising pricing strategies, or identifying inventory inefficiencies, these insights can directly influence revenue streams.
In the ever-evolving realm of healthcare diagnostics, efficiency and innovation are paramount. Quest Diagnostics, a trailblazer in this field, offers a compelling success story. Over a mere span of four years, they astoundingly saved over $50 million, not by cutting corners, but by meticulously optimising their internal processes. The linchpins of this remarkable achievement? The strategic deployment of AI, RPA, and OCR technologies. Their journey underscores the transformative potential of converging technologies when wielded with vision and precision.
Obvious Use Cases Combining AI, RPA, and OCR
In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, the marvels of digitalization offer transformative solutions. Yet, a surprising revelation unfolds when diving deep into organisational structures - many companies remain blissfully unaware of the cumbersome, repetitive tasks bogging down their workflows.
Over years or even decades, these processes have become so entrenched in their operational DNA that they often go unchallenged. Employees, in their resilience, have adapted, overcome, and integrated these tasks into the tapestry of their daily work, often without realising that there might be a better way.
Below are some simple usecases, that are a perfect match for the technologies of AI, OCR and RPA. These are just a tiny bit, of the enormous ocean of possibilities.
Invoice and Expense Management:
A company receives invoices in various formats from multiple vendors. OCR scans and extracts data from these diverse invoices, turning images or handwritten notes into structured data. AI then cross-references this data with the company's procurement database, identifying discrepancies or predicting future payment schedules. RPA bots automatically update the financial systems, schedule payments, and even send confirmation emails to vendors, ensuring seamless end-to-end invoice processing.
Onboarding New Employees:
HR departments receive a slew of documents when onboarding new employees, from IDs to qualification certificates. OCR extracts essential data from these documents, AI analyses this data against the company's criteria or flags any anomalies (like an expired document). RPA then populates the company's HR systems with the new employee’s information, schedules orientation sessions, and sends welcome emails, making the entire onboarding process smooth and efficient.
Banking Loan Applications:
When a customer applies for a loan, banks receive a variety of documents from credit reports to salary slips. OCR reads and extracts this data, while AI assesses the customer’s creditworthiness, checks for fraud, and predicts loan default probabilities. RPA can then auto-populate loan agreements, schedule further steps like property valuations, or even initiate background checks.
Retail Product Listings:
Retailers often update their online product catalogs with information and images from suppliers. OCR can scan product details and specifications from supplier documents, AI can then categorize, tag, and even set initial price points based on market trends, and RPA bots can then automatically update the online store with these new products, ensuring timely and accurate product listings.
Healthcare Patient Records:
Hospitals and clinics receive patient-related documents from various sources, such as referral letters, lab reports, or previous medical histories. OCR extracts data from these documents, AI then analyses the patient's medical history, flags potential issues, or recommends specific tests or treatments. RPA bots can then update the hospital’s Electronic Health Records (EHR) system, schedule appointments, or notify doctors of crucial updates.
In each of these use cases, the combined strengths of AI, RPA, and OCR create an integrated solution that maximizes efficiency, reduces errors, and streamlines processes in a manner that neither of these technologies could achieve on their own.
In essence, integrating AI, RPA, and OCR is not just a technological shift; it's a paradigm shift. It's about moving from manual to monumental, from transactional to transformational. Companies that recognise and harness this potential are not just streamlining operations; they're setting the stage for exponential growth and market leadership. In the retail realm, where margins are tight and competition fierce, this could be the distinguishing factor between those who lead and those who follow.
However, the tools alone aren't the magic wand. The true alchemy lies in recognising opportunities, strategically implementing these technologies, and fostering an organisational culture that embraces change. In a world where every second counts, and innovation is the lifeblood of success, there’s no better time for companies to embark on their own digital renaissance. The question for businesses now - Are you ready to harness it?
/Casper
ChatGPT Prompt of the week
Copy & paste ⬇️
“Assume the role of an IT Specialist for me. I'll detail my tech issues, and your job is to troubleshoot them. Draw from your expertise in computer science, networking, and IT security. It would be great if you could communicate solutions clearly and simply for everyone to grasp. Lay out your answers in a straightforward manner, perhaps with bullet points. While it's best to keep jargon to a minimum, don't hesitate to get technical when essential. Please get straight to the resolution without lengthy preambles. To kick off: I'm seeing a blue screen error on my laptop.”
