The majority of workers (nearly three-quarters) are open to having robot assistants help them with everyday work, and what’s more, many are interested in getting involved in creating bots, either by themselves or as part of larger teams. Workers’ needs sharply contrast with decision makers, however, who disagree with each other about whether there is a benefit to using robots across their workforce (42% agree vs. 58% that disagree).
This mismatch is addressed in the IDC-report A Robot for Every Worker: Are We Ready for a People First Automation Mindset? The root cause of this mismatch in perspectives stems from a key tension between two factors: Workers see first-hand the impact that robots can make on their daily activities. Most decision makers are stuck in a process-first mindset.
RPA
All-in all the report is positive on the benefits and the future of RPA. As the adoption of robotic process automation (RPA) continues to spread across industries, there is increasing talk of a compelling vision — that of a robot for every worker. At first glance, there is clear potential value for workers and businesses in this. Who doesn’t labor under administrative tasks they hate? And given that RPA capabilities are maturing quickly, RPA platforms can address an increasing range of use cases.
See also this interview with the author
