Research Data Management
100+ Workflow Automation Statistics
Discover 100+ workflow automation statistics that reveal key trends, benefits, and insights to streamline processes and boost efficiency.
Dec 11, 2024
Workflow automation statistics might sound like a dry topic, but they’re essential in research data management. Consider trying to keep track of all your research data manually; it’s a nightmare. Automation can help you streamline your workflow and make your research more efficient. In this article, we’ll explore some of the most important statistics about workflow automation.
If you want to improve your research and writing efficiency, consider Otio’s AI research and writing partner. It can help you automate your workflow and finish more quickly.
Table Of Contents
What is Workflow Automation?
Workflow automation is like having an intelligent assistant that handles your routine tasks. It shifts the burden of repetitive activities from people to software, ensuring things get done faster and with fewer mistakes. At its core, workflow automation is about making tasks, documents, and information move seamlessly from start to finish without human intervention. You set up rules, often in the form of if-then statements, to guide the software on what to do each step of the way.
Who’s Using Workflow Automation?
Everyone can benefit from workflow automation, especially those bogged down by repetitive tasks. A report by Zapier found that 94% of workers in small and medium-sized businesses deal with time-consuming, repetitive tasks. The same report highlights that 90% of knowledge workers see automation as a job improvement tool, with 66% reporting a boost in productivity. Departments like finance, HR, marketing, operations, and sales are significant users of workflow automation, freeing employees to focus on tasks requiring human insight.
Why Automate Workflows?
Organizations turn to workflow automation for several reasons: to increase efficiency, reduce errors, boost productivity, and speed up processes. Employees who spend less time on repetitive tasks have more time for work that requires human intellect. Many automation tools today are user-friendly, with drag-and-drop features that let employees automate their processes without needing a developer. Some tools even incorporate AI to handle tasks that require some decision-making. Workflow automation is beneficial for repetitive tasks requiring accuracy or involving simple steps.
Importance of Workflow Automation
Minimizing Mistakes: The Impact of Automation
Workflow automation significantly reduces errors by taking over repetitive tasks prone to human mistakes. This automation prevents errors from happening and pinpoints where they occur when they do slip through. Employees gain more time to focus on creative and complex tasks, boosting overall productivity and reducing stress.
Smoothing Out Operations for Task Completion
Various tasks can be performed simultaneously, causing confusion and errors. Automation streamlines these tasks, allowing businesses to reduce human effort and focus on priority projects. A single workflow management system can handle everything from IT requirements to approving trip reimbursements, eliminating the need for multiple emails and chat tools.
Boosting Collaboration and Connectivity
For remote or hybrid workers, workflow automation tools keep track of interactions and organize them efficiently, reducing the pile of pending emails and messages. This enables employees to work more collaboratively and productively, aligning processes with company goals and work ethics.
Building Transparency, Control, and Trust
Workflow automation provides greater transparency and control over tasks and processes. This fosters trust and accountability among employees and employers, who can confidently delegate tasks. Data accessibility remains under the admin’s control, ensuring security and privacy.
Enhancing Business Processes
Automation is key to improving business processes, from data entry operations to approval workflows. It reduces human error, saves time and resources, and allows businesses to scale more reliably. Automation also simplifies task management, making processes more efficient and effective.
Increasing Productivity
Automated workflows allow employees to focus on more critical tasks, increasing job satisfaction and productivity. Employees can work more efficiently and effectively with fewer manual tasks, contributing to the company’s overall success.
Improving DevOps
Automation improves communication and collaboration between developers and operations. It eliminates barriers that can slow progress, such as follow-ups and bottlenecks, leading to faster releases and smoother operations.
Eliminating Unnecessary Manual Tasks
Repetitive manual tasks are costly and time-consuming. Workflow automation reduces these tasks by automating jobs with predefined business rules. This saves time and resources, allowing employees to focus on more valuable work.
Managing IT Networks
Workflow automation provides superior oversight over IT networks, from clouds to operating systems. It creates a visualization sheet for better configuration and identification of the network’s health, deficiencies, and security, ensuring networks run smoothly and efficiently. In a world where content overload is the norm, Otio provides a single AI-native workspace for researchers to streamline their workflows. As your AI research and writing partner, Otio helps you collect data from various sources, extract key takeaways, and create draft outputs faster. Try Otio for free today!
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100+ Workflow Automation Statistics
94% of corporate company executives prefer to utilize a unified platform to integrate their apps and implement process automation rather than rely on several platforms.
More than 1/3 of businesses have five or more automated divisions.
45% of corporate teams are involved in the automation process.
At least one function in 31% of organizations is automated.
Almost 70% of employees agree that automation will allow them to qualify for higher-paying jobs.
57% of organizations want to use automation to boost employee productivity and performance.
According to 50% of respondents, marketers want seamless connectivity with existing content management, CRM, and ERP systems.
In a Gartner poll, over 85% of CIOs were active in their organization’s sustainability activities.
In the United States, one-third of new employment is for occupations that didn’t exist 25 years ago.
No-Code Low-Code process automation solutions have been implemented by 24% of businesses.
Over 80% of corporate executives said they were speeding up work process automation and expanding their use of remote workers.
94% of companies perform repetitive, time-consuming tasks.
Automation has improved the jobs of 90% of knowledge workers and their productivity by 66%.
83% of IT leaders believe workflow automation is necessary for digital transformation.48% of organizations currently install automation solutions to automate manual tasks.
68% of employees have too much work to handle daily, so companies are adopting business process automation. Without automation, these workers can reach a breaking point.
36% of organizations already use business process management software to automate workflows. 50% of business leaders plan to automate more repetitive organizational tasks.
The Industrial Automation Services Market is expected to grow from $147.06 Billion in 2019 to $264.69 Billion by 2026.
There’s a 14% annual increase in automated jobs; junior workers are the most affected. By 2024, 69% of all managerial work will be automated. Automation is likely to affect more men than women.
By 2023, 28% of currently employed men and 24% of women could lose their jobs. 38% of jobs in the US, 35% in Germany, 30% in the UK, and 21% in Japan may be affected.
73% of respondents in a PwC survey said they believe technology can never replace the human mind, while 37% were worried that automation would put their jobs at risk. Automation may force 40 to 160 million women to switch careers.
A McKinsey survey showed respondents are 3 times more likely to have at least 80% of their customer interactions in digital form.
60% of customer service professionals give automated recommendations for the following best action. 37% of IT customer service departments have higher automation ROI than others.
86% of employees believe automation will help them do their work more efficiently, while 65% believe technology will improve their future job prospects. 51% of businesses implement automation initiatives to boost efficiency.
73% of IT leaders credit automation for helping employees save 10-50% of the time they previously spent on manual tasks. 85% of managers believe automating some tasks will give them and their employees extra time to focus on goals that matter to the company.
75% of organizations use marketing automation software. Scheduling social media posts is the most popular digital marketing element. 83% of marketers automate social media posting, 75% email marketing, 58% social media advertising, and 36% social media engagement.
Over 80% of managers are speeding up workflow automation and encouraging employees to work remotely. 74% of employees are ready to learn new skills or retrain to remain employable. They believe it’s their responsibility to upskill rather than rely on employers.
McKinsey surveyed businesses in 2020 and discovered that 66% have automated processes in multiple functions. In 2018, only 57% had automated several functions.
24% of companies use low-code process automation systems, while 29% plan to start soon. These platforms help companies streamline workflows, better use their data, and save time and money.
90% of automation projects fail because of technical issues, 37% because of implementation costs, and 25% because there is no overall vision or strategy. The third most significant challenge to implementing automation is resistance to change.
50% of work today is automatable.
37% of human resource job functions are frequently automated.
57% of companies use HR automation to improve employee experiences.
56% of companies employ AI in HR to automate repetitive tasks.
51% of companies use automation for cost savings.
97% of employers plan to increase the use of recruiting technology.
54% of HR professionals view automation as a tool for better task focus, not a job threat.
80% of job seekers are discouraged by the lack of application status updates but 3.5 times more likely to reapply if updated.
78% of executives say scaling AI use cases to create business value is a top priority.
93% of millennials prioritize up-to-date technology in job choices.
45% of HR professionals believe automation will enhance future recruitment.
40% of companies using HR automation reports provide transparency in combating bias.
36% of HR professionals need onboarding automation to improve the process.
Automating onboarding increases new hire retention by 16%.
Automation could increase global productivity growth by 0.8-1.4% annually.
31% of businesses have fully automated at least one function.
76% use automation for standardizing daily workflows, 58% for data reporting, and 36% for regulation and compliance.
88% of small business owners say automation enables competition with larger companies.
65% of knowledge workers are less stressed due to automating manual tasks.
15.7% of 20-24 year olds are in jobs with high automation risk.
According to 97 % of corporate executives, a Lack of alignment influences the outcome of a job.
Office workers manually hunt for files for over 50% of their time.
In 90% of accidents, human error is a contributing factor.
Since 85 % of data is unstructured, workflow automation is critical for a business to save time and minimize mistakes.
According to McKinsey, automation may boost global productivity by 0.8-1.4 % annually.
To cut operational expenses, 24% of businesses would use job automation.
Task switching costs 40% of productivity, which may be decreased by automating most processes.
According to HBR, poor data costs US businesses $3 trillion annually.
Automation software reduces labor costs, agrees 31% of business leaders.
50% of sales time is wasted on unproductive prospecting.
40% of productivity is lost to task-switching.
70% of business leaders report spending 45 minutes to 3 hours on repetitive tasks during an 8-hour workday.
Employees estimate that automating tasks might save them 240 hours per year, while company leaders feel it could save them 360 hours.
56% believe governments should protect jobs from automation.
Estimates indicate that 9% and 47% of jobs could be automated.
Only 2% of respondents have all business processes modeled for large-scale automation readiness.
Business process automation is widely deployed, with 57% beyond piloting.
The most common automation tasks are data entry (38%), document creation and organization (32%), lead management (30%), and inventory management (27%).
IT departments are responsible for 40% of business automation.
In 2024, 69% of managerial work will be automated.
75% of companies will have set up several data hubs by 2024.
69% of HR managers say that using automation in hiring saves time for other tasks.
36% of HR workers claimed that the absence of automation impedes onboarding workflows.
76% of HR leaders think they should implement AI to be on the same level as other departments.
73% of finance leaders attest that automating functions improves work efficiency.
66% of banking and financial markets CEOs believe gains from automation and AI outweigh risks.
60% to 80% of backward-looking accounting can be automated with limited human intervention.
The worldwide industrial automation market was valued at USD 196.6 billion in 2021 and is expected to exceed USD 412.8 billion by 2030, growing at an anticipated CAGR of 8.59% from 2022 to 2030.
An Oxford report estimates that implementing automation in the manufacturing industry could increase the market by $4.9 trillion annually by 2030. The market is estimated to grow at a 6.6% CAGR between 2023 and 2028.
When asked what business process automation is, 81% of the State of Process Orchestration Report decision-makers said they knew. When given a definition, 90% said their business is doing it, with half (49%) stating they certainly are.
Gartner said investment in hyper-automation-enabling software solutions would exceed $720 billion.
According to an Accenture survey, using AI to automate or enhance operations would result in considerable profit increases across a wide range of businesses by 2035.
91% of the State of Process Orchestration Report respondents indicate their firm intends to expand investment in process automation over the next 24 months, up from 88% last year.
40% of those who aren’t utilizing marketing automation aim to do it soon.
Conversions increased for 77 % of marketers that used marketing automation solutions.
51% of companies are now using marketing automation.
Marketing automation is presently used by 51 % of businesses.
More than half of B2B enterprises (58%) want to implement the technology.
According to Research and Markets, the worldwide marketing automation industry will be worth USD 8.42 billion by 2027.
80% of marketers saw increased leads after using marketing automation software.
On average, B2B marketers who use marketing automation raised their sales pipeline rate by 10%.
More than 60% of businesses outsource marketing automation in some form or another.
43% of marketers say optimizing productivity is the most crucial objective of a marketing automation plan.
63% of marketers expect to increase their marketing automation spending shortly.
At least 1 type of marketing automation technology is used by 75% of all businesses.
Marketing automation significantly boosts sales productivity by 14.5%, alongside a 12.2% decrease in marketing expenses.
Estimated revenue for the Business Process Automation (BPA) market in 2023: $13.7 billion. The BPA market is expected to grow to $41.8 billion by 2033, at a CAGR of 11.8% from 2023 to 2033.
Due to its cost-saving and efficiency benefits, cloud-based BPA software is projected to lead the market by 2033, with an estimated $22.9 billion.
In 2022, on-premises BPA software deployments accounted for over 60.1% of the market share globally.
North America currently leads the adoption of automation solutions, dominating the global BPA market.
South Asia & Pacific is predicted to be the fastest-growing region in the BPA market, with demand expected to increase four times from 2023 to 2033.
Automation impacts nearly all industry sectors in India, with at least 30% of activities automated.
The US BPA market is forecasted to represent about 84.3% of the global market share by 2033, driven by factory automation and industry 4.0 technologies.
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14 Tips for Efficient Workflow Automation
1. Streamline Your Workflow with Otio
Managing content overload is a growing concern for researchers, knowledge workers, and students. Many resort to using fragmented tools, complicating their workflow. Otio offers a solution by providing a unified AI-native workspace. It helps users gather diverse data sources, extract key insights with AI-generated notes, and create drafts from collected resources. By simplifying the transition from reading material to drafting, Otio speeds up the research and writing process. Features like AI-generated notes, source-grounded Q&A chats, and AI-assisted writing make it an invaluable partner for researchers. Try Otio for free and experience efficient workflow automation.
2. Set Clear Goals and Objectives
Every successful initiative starts with precise objectives. Clarify your business aims, considering individual team or department goals. Whether it's a campaign, product launch, or long-term project, you can tailor workflows to achieve these goals. Identify key performance indicators (KPIs) that will help you track the success of automated workflows. These KPIs will evolve as you gather more data and insights.
3. Spot Workflow Automation Opportunities
The first step in enhancing efficiency through workflow automation is identifying suitable tasks or processes. Look for repetitive tasks such as manual data entry or routine data processing. Procedures that can be broken down into rule-based steps are ideal candidates for automation. Multi-step procedures involving multiple stakeholders offer excellent opportunities for automation. For example, online meetings can be streamlined by automating calendar invites, meeting notes, and policies.
4. Select the Right Automation Tool
Choosing the right workflow automation tool is crucial. Your choice depends on the complexity of your processes and specific needs. Consider tools like Otio, Zapier, Microsoft Power Automate, or EFT for simple, single-task automation. For more complex processes involving multiple stakeholders, robust platforms like Microsoft Power Automate, Nintex, or Kissflow may be necessary. Ensure your choice aligns with your objectives and workflow intricacies.
5. Understand Existing Workflows
Before automating, you need a deep understanding of your current workflows. Document each step, the roles involved, and the data flow within manual processes. This comprehensive view helps identify bottlenecks where tasks are delayed, or errors are common. These bottlenecks are prime candidates for automation and offer significant efficiency gains.
6. Visualize Your Processes
Understanding your current workflows is a great starting point for improvement. If you're updating existing systems, look for areas to enhance the process before automating. This can remove unnecessary steps. Use visual maps to illustrate workflows and pinpoint automation opportunities. Experiment with diagrams and flowcharts to create a master blueprint of your workflows.
7. Map Out Automated Processes
With a clear understanding of existing workflows, map out automated processes. Design a new workflow incorporating automated steps, decision points, and human intervention when needed. Define specific triggers and conditions dictating when tasks are automated and when they require human attention. This mapping ensures your automated workflow is efficient and aligned with your objectives.
8. Provide Comprehensive Training
Ensure all team members and departments are familiar with new initiatives and workflows through training. Hands-on sessions allow employees to work directly with new software and explore learning curves. Encourage ongoing learning by offering resources and support. Create a library of training material and tutorials, updating them as workflows change to keep everyone informed about best practices.
9. Integrate with Current Systems
Effective integration with existing systems is key. Your workflow automation tool should seamlessly connect with CRM, ERP, databases, and other applications. Ensure smooth data flow and synchronization, especially when integrating with Salesforce. This reduces manual data entry and ensures automation operates harmoniously with existing tools. Event-driven automation can enhance efficiency by triggering based on specific events.
10. Prioritize Security and Compliance
The automation software you choose must comply with industry standards and security regulations. This protects your company's information and customer data from unauthorized access. Many automated processes handle sensitive information, from customer data collection to employee records management. Safeguard all data and take measures to prevent breaches.
11. Utilize Workflow Templates
Many automation tools offer pre-designed templates for standard processes. These templates save time during setup. Utilize them to kickstart automation efforts and quickly deploy solutions for frequently performed tasks. Customize templates to suit your needs and streamline the setup process.
12. Stay Flexible and Adaptable
Successful business owners and managers recognize that markets and industries change. Prepare for these changes and continue meeting market and audience demands. Agility, or the ability to adapt, gives you a competitive advantage. Embrace flexibility to remain relevant in your industry.
13. Test and Ensure Quality
Thorough testing is crucial before fully deploying automated workflows. Ensure automation functions as expected without errors. Involve end-users in testing to gather feedback and insights. Their perspective helps fine-tune solutions and align with their needs. Rigorous quality assurance is critical for successful automation efforts.
14. Safeguard Data and Ensure Compliance
Security and compliance are non-negotiable for workflow automation. Ensure systems comply with data security and privacy regulations like GDPR and SOC-2. Implement access controls, encryption, and other security measures. Your automated solution should align with your organization's compliance and security standards.
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