What Is Cognitive Automation? A Primer

For example, they might only enable processing of one type of document — i.e., an invoice or a claim — or struggle with noisy and inconsistent data from IT applications and system logs. Additionally, modern enterprise technology like chatbots built with cognitive automation can act as a first line of defense for IT and perform basic troubleshooting when end users run into a problem. As the digital agenda becomes more democratized in companies and cognitive automation more systemically applied, the relationship and integration of IT and the business functions will become much more complex. Yet the way companies respond to these shifts has remained oddly similar–using organizational data to inform business decisions, in the hopes of getting the right products in the right place at the best time to optimize revenue.

Cognitive automation tools such as employee onboarding bots can help by taking care of many required tasks in a fast, efficient, predictable and error-free manner. This can include automatically creating computer credentials and Slack logins, enrolling new hires into trainings based on their department and scheduling recurring meetings with their managers all before they sit at their desk for the first time. “Cognitive automation is not just a different name for intelligent automation and hyper-automation,” said Amardeep Modi, practice director at Everest Group, a technology analysis firm.

What are the differences between RPA and cognitive automation?

Like our brains’ neural networks creating pathways as we take in new information, cognitive automation makes connections in patterns and uses that information to make decisions. ‍RPA is a phenomenal method for automating structure, low-complexity, high-volume tasks. It can take the burden cognitive process automation of simple data entry off your team, leading to improved employee satisfaction and engagement. Cognitive automation is also starting to enhance operational excellence by complementing RPA bots, conversational AI chatbots, virtual assistants and business intelligence dashboards.

In more recent years, robotics process automation (RPA), or IPA (intelligent process automation), has been helping out businesses by providing much-needed relief from doing mundane and repetitive tasks. Given its potential, companies are starting to embrace this new technology in their processes. According to a 2019 global business survey by Statista, around 39 percent of respondents confirmed that they have already integrated cognitive automation at a functional level in their businesses. Also, 32 percent of respondents said they will be implementing it in some form by the end of 2020. ‍Roots Automation was founded specifically to bring Digital Coworkers to the market at scale and reduce the barrier to entry to insurance, banking, and healthcare organizations around the globe.

About this article

IA or cognitive automation has a ton of real-world applications across sectors and departments, from automating HR employee onboarding and payroll to financial loan processing and accounts payable. “To achieve this level of automation, CIOs are realizing there’s a big difference between automating manual data entry and digitally changing how entire processes are executed,” Macciola said. He observed that traditional automation has a limited scope of the types of tasks that it can automate.

He sees cognitive automation improving other areas like healthcare, where providers must handle millions of forms of all shapes and sizes. Employee time would be better spent caring for people rather than tending to processes and paperwork. Cognitive automation has a place in most technologies built in the cloud, said John Samuel, executive vice president at CGS, an applications, enterprise learning and business process outsourcing company.