Robots and Humans. A Marriage Made In Heaven Or Hell?
This article is co-written by Mark Smith and Anders Liu-Lindberg
The robots are coming into almost every profession and it’s a fact that by now we’ve accepted. That begs the next question though of…
“…how robots and humans can work together for the most optimal result?”
There are no clear-cut answers at this point since most people have only just started to feel the impact of the robots. We will tackle this question though in the last article in our RPA mini-series to better prepare employees in the finance function for how to get the most out of working with the robots.
Full end-to-end (e2e) automation is rare
Through this series we’ve been looking at examples from the AtR process. Despite us arguing that you need to look at automating your e2e process post having standardized it across entities there’s probably still a need for a human element in the process. While some processes require no judgment calls and can be executed without any human intervention it’s not always the case for AtR. Here’s why we believe there still needs to be a human touch.
- 80/20 Rule – Using RPA in a full e2e process within AtR is rare. And that’s a good thing. Maintaining a human element to the process benefits everyone. The robot doesn’t have the intelligence to make judgments (at least not yet), and that is usually required when preparing inputs for reconciliations, provisions or journal entries. 20% human work for the judgement calls and let the robot take the other 80% “non-value” added processing activities.
- Maintains awareness of process – keeping human involvement keeps the process at the forefront of the accountant’s mind. There might come a time when we realize we need to change the process or re-think how we are performing it.
- Peace of mind – having human inputs retain an element of control over the process, which gives peace of mind that your reporting will not spiral out of control – this is especially important during the initial stages of RPA. When things are stable then potentially RPA can take more of the process.
So, what we really argue is that the humans should remain in control of the process but leverage RPA to execute all standard non-judgmental processes. In addition, it will help the transition phase from human to robot that we’re not fully letting go.
It’s a win-win for everyone
What the robot will do is to take the standard routine tasks and you should be happy about that. Why? Because let’s be honest no one enjoys doing them anyway. Of course, it will change job content for accountants across the world, but it doesn’t seem like the end of accounting either. If you’re looking for input on what it means for your accounting career you can look at a series that Anders has recently published titled “The Accounting Profession Paradox”. It will help you create a career plan for navigating the times of the robot.
This was the last article in a mini-series about RPA. You can read the previous ones below. If you would like to contribute with examples of RPA implementations and your learnings, then don’t hesitate to reach out. We would love to showcase them! Further below you can find many articles related to RPA, Digital Finance, and Finance Transformation.
This is the third article in a mini-series about RPA. Read previous articles in the series below. From next week we bridge the gap between RPA and AI and then begin to discuss how to succeed with AI.
How To Make Robots A Part Of The Finance Family?
Why You Should Only Robotize Standard Processes
You can read previous articles about robotics and other stories about finance transformation below.
Blip. Blop. Accounting Robot. Are You Ready?
Are You Ready For Robotics Process Automation?
Have You Met Your Robot Accountant Yet?
Robots Are The Future Of Analytics
Your Robot Accountant Has A Name, It's Dixie
What Defines A Finance Master?
The CFOs Roadmap To Transforming Finance
How Finance People Can Be More Successful
The New Career Path For Finance Professionals
I also encourage you to take a tour of my past articles on finance transformation, finance business partnering and not least “Introducing The Finance Transformation Nine Box” which is really the starting point for the transformation. You should join our Finance Business Partner Forum which is part of the Business Partnering Institute's online community where we will continue to discuss this topic and you can click here to follow me on Twitter.
Anders Liu-Lindberg is a Senior Finance Business Partner at Maersk supporting our largest product and I have more than 10 years of experience working with Finance at Maersk both in Denmark and abroad. I am also the co-founder of the Business Partnering Institute and owner of the largest group dedicated to Finance Business Partnering on LinkedIn with close to 7,000 members. My main goal at Maersk is to show how to be successful with business partnering and drive value creation as a trusted partner. I am the co-author of the book “Create Value as a Finance Business Partner” and a long-time Finance Blogger with 27.000+ followers.
Helping Businesses Grow | Financial Strategist with a Passion for Innovation
5yC.C. Catch already answered this question in her prophetic song, "...we make own Heaven and Hell...". We cannot give full answer, because we simply do not know large fraction of outcome of AI development. We are know our poor ability to predict future even when simple learning lessons from history is sufficient. I am cautious optimistic because, for the difference, we are asking moral questions before we truly plunged in to another technological revolution. We can prosper or go to self-destructive path, conditionally. Will we restrain our governments from becoming increasingly totalitarian? Will we stop violent, radical groups from using AI? Will we restrain our greed and its vehicles from run us over? Just like Salma R. I am question 80/20 concept. It always being with us, however, after GO champion was defeated, we know, AI is better than human not just in calculation, but also in applying intuition. That means that AI will be better in applying judgment, especially well defined ones, like professional judgement. We are facing not 80/20 issue, but .001/99.99 one...