The Core Benefits of RPA for Higher Education
Over the last year, Robotic Process Automation [RPA] grew by a staggering 63.1%, making it the fastest-growing segment of the global software market.
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45
process assessed, 240% ROI
3
successful proof of concepts
The Challenge
The university wanted to leverage the power of automated intelligence technologies including Robotic Process Automation (RPA), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) to increase and improve the speed and availability of student services.
Equantiis was challenged to identify and assess the processes within the university that would be appropriate for RPA and identify the correct technology solutions. With two core goals at the centre of the strategy; 1. to bring tangible and measurable benefit to the student experience and 2. to deliver a sound return on investment, Equantiis had to be thorough, and had to ensure via detailed analysis that RPA was the best way forward.
What we did
Equantiis assessed 45 business processes to identify where automation could work wonders for both staff and students. Equantiis looked down every avenue, from where the systems touched, if they touched, how many times per year they were being used, and how long these processes were taking. This insight showed whether technology could automate these processes or whether they would always need some human intervention.
Equantiis discovered that almost all processes could be significantly improved with automation, and so, conducted a thorough market analysis of RPA vendors and carefully selected the partner of choice, Automation Anywhere (AA), as the company showcased a strong suite of technologies that aligned with the technology and user requirements. This proof of concept revealed that AA’s platform could slash task times by over 75%, from 4 minutes, to under 1 minute.
- Engaged and educated participants about RPA and related technologies
- Allayed fears around the potential impact to staff numbers
- Identified processes that would be appropriate for RPA
- Identified the correct technology options
- Delivered a proof of concept for the identified processes and use cases
- Selected the right processes to form part of the business case for investment
Analysing processes with our proprietary business modelling tool to explore the impact on the student experience and ROI.
Automating the right processes was crucial to demonstrating true value for MMU and see a healthy return on investment. By thoroughly assessing 45 business processes, Equantiis attributed individual complexity scores, benefits, investment costs and the overall ROI.
This data was then fed into our proprietary business modelling tool which allowed the team to easily explore the financials and the benefits for any combination of the 45 processes selected for automation.
This allowed for an iterative approach to automate the tasks that would have the biggest and best impact on the student experience.
Long lasting results
The selected 12 automated processes have delivered a staggering 240% return on investment for the university. Not only is the university seeing such a good return, but the student experience has enhanced dramatically.
To showcase the improvements, students are receiving important documentation in a matter of minutes, in comparison to the 10 days it used to take, and staff have been deployed to work on more meaningful, frontline duties.
Equantiis implemented a solution that could read any student enquiry and kick off an automated process immediately. The time and energy saved, and the significant improvements to the overall student journey, is nothing short of exceptional.
240%
return on investment
"Equantiis provided a proven and independent business focused review on how Manchester Met could invest in AI sensibly that allows us to deliver the best Student Experience whilst also enabling staff to deliver more value-based tasks. This is the beginning of the AI environment that Manchester Met can confidently adopt and lead the way in how HE institutes should deliver the best student experience underpinned with the right processes and technology.”
Andrew KempTransformation Director, Manchester Metropolitan University
Higher Education Success Story
Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU). The biggest transformation project to ever take place in higher education
Our team of 15 worked tirelessly on-site to identify what exactly MMU students desired.
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