RPA as a Challenge Beyond Technology: Self-Learning and Attitude Needed for Successful RPA Implementation in the Workplace

Abstract

Companies are immersed in a process of digitalization that transforms business models and creates value due to the increase in technology. The adoption of new technologies has a great impact on organizations, not only at an economic level but also on their products, processes, and human resources. This process will result in a series of necessary changes to align with their internal competencies and optimize the investment made. This digitalization generates a digital transformation that affects both large companies and SMEs, with the result that new technologies are subject to continuous change, requiring the development and training of workers with the necessary skills to cope with it. Within this transformation, the automation of processes is a constantly growing topic in the business world, as it generates a series of benefits for organizations that they would not otherwise be able to acquire. Process automation reduces the workload in repetitive processes and provides more time for employees to attend to end-customer requests. The adoption of this technology will provide the company to be adapted to a changing world experiencing an increase in productivity, effectiveness, and efficiency. This research focuses on how the process automation provides the organization with a wide range of benefits such as workload reduction and increased productivity for most of the company. Although process automation can bring many benefits to the workplace, it is important to recognize that its use does not always automatically lead to a systematic improvement of workers’ skills. In this context, it is also important to note how employee training is necessary to face this new reality. Employee training and adaptation is critical to the organization’s sustainability. Training will need to be aimed at equipping the employee with technical skills to enable them to effectively use and implement technology and to assimilate it as a complement and not as a threat. To analyse the individual’s awareness of the digitization of the workplace, the automation of tasks and the advantages or disadvantages that may result from the introduction of technology, a questionnaire was developed, and 103 valid responses were obtained and analysed. This has resulted in a series of hypotheses that have been tried to be validate throughout the research work. These results have important implications for organizations seeking to implement automation and provide a basis for future research in this constantly evolving field.