People in Robotics

Marina Bill has been appointed as new Vice President of the International Federation of Robotics with immediate effect. She represents IFR along with IFR President Milton Guerry.

CFOs know the potential of automation—indeed, some think an estimate that at least 30% of existing business processes could be done by robots is an under-estimate—and many are indeed taking the first steps to roll them out across their organizations.  But a lack of easily identifiable, standardized automation targets, combined with calls on their attention from the rest of the business trying to cope with other kinds of digital transformation, is definitely slowing adoption.

Recently IDC has published the whitepaper  Automation as a Force for Good – 6 Steps to Transform Theory into Practice. In this study authors Angela Salmeron and Neil Ward-Dutton discuss the role of automation in supporting companies with their ESG programs, given the trend that 47% of organizations are planning to introduce Robotic Process Automation (RPA) to the workplace in the next 18 months, 39%  intend to implement other process automation technologies (including workflow automation), and 63% are planning to add task-focused apps on mobile devices.

Manutan, the European leader in B to B e-commerce specialising in the distribution of equipment and supplies to companies and local authorities, has deployed a Robotic Process Automation solution in its Finance Department.

Manutan, leader européen du e-commerce BtoB spécialisé dans la distribution d’équipements et de fournitures aux entreprises et aux collectivités, a déployé une solution de Robotic Process Automatisation au sein de son département Finances.

At Aarbakke in Norway, the Norwegian machine manufacturer that is over 100 years old and which sells parts and equipment worth billions to the global oil and gas industry, the company has created a culture where all employees love to conceive great ideas for improvements, optimisation and automation. This means that Aarbakke’s CFO John Lende receives a lot of valuable input about how to fine-tune the company’s processes even more.

Everyone is fed up of hearing about the pandemic and the catastrophic impact it has had on the world. But the fact is, although statistics confirm Covid-19 is waning, the rise of new variants including Omicron means the virus is still very much present and working its way through the population, continuing to leave its destruction behind it. 

Building a team of digital employees successfully is more complex than putting one or two software robots in place. More and more organisations aspire to scale up, but run into challenges when attempting to do so and do not know how to tackle them. Ciphix has created the Digital Workforce Journey Framework for that very reason. Rocking Robots discussed this matter with managing director Marijn van de Poel.

The vision of Rocking Robots is to report on the interaction between humans and robots. The interviews we published this year show that we as humans are increasingly successful in making robots work for us. However, it remains important to pay attention to pre-eminently human issues such as ethics, acceptance and safety. Where that happens, applications of technology arise that actually help us as humans.

This is the time for HR to step up and claim a more strategic role in the organization. Automation enables HR professionals to gain valuable time by freeing them from day to day routine tasks, making them a partner for the business. Adding technology like AI can even lead to HR better serving their internal customers. Rocking Robot discussed the opportunities for HR in automation with Hamish Taylor, who has an impressive track record in brand management.