Elly Yates-Roberts |
Process automation and document management is getting a boost with the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML).
Organisations that have already embraced robotic process automation have realised the efficiencies of automated processes, but when choosing a process automation or document management solution that has the smart, learning-enabled capabilities of AI and ML functionality, they can boost their efficiency even further. Also, benefits of enhanced cash management, return on investment and the reallocation or resources can be achieved.
One of the main benefits of AI and ML is that they improve optical character recognition, which enables more accurate document reading, classification and processing. AI understands information and performs specific actions based on that data, constantly learning to make processes more efficient.
Another advantage of AI is that it can use ML to learn from the exceptions and the documents that stray from the norm, ensuring it knows what process to follow with non-standard documents in future. This means teams will have fewer exceptions to manage and will only have to deal with the most pertinent exceptions manually.
Thirdly, many traditional document management systems do not have the capabilities to deal with unstructured data. However, AI and ML can collect and analyse additional data, giving customers greater data insight into areas of their business.
Additionally, document management systems are limited in the types of processes that they can automate. However, AI and ML automates complex processes as the technologies are able to become aware of, learn and adjust based on feedback.
Finally, AI and ML drive business intelligence. For example, when a document management system is paired with AI and ML, it has the ability to help employees make more informed business decisions by taking recognisable information and assessing it. This may mean pulling out key invoice data and notifying staff when a payment is overdue, or recognising specific keywords in resumes and filtering those for human resources staff.
When integrated with AI and ML, today’s document management systems become an extension of the capable teams that organisations already have and help to advance and transform business processes, decision-making and automation technology as we know it.
Alyssa Putzer is marketing communications specialist at Metafile Information Systems
This article was originally published in the Spring 2022 issue of Technology Record. To get future issues delivered directly to your inbox, sign up for a free subscription.