Why Manual Labor on Repetitive Tasks Is Dangerous to Your Company
It is a sad reality that many companies are still relying on manual processes. Many opportunities are wasted, and business growth is limited. Repetitive manual labor is hurting these businesses. And it can hurt yours too.
So Why Should You Consider Manual Repetitive Tasks as a Threat?
- Repetitive Tasks Affects Employee Morale
Here’s the truth: repetitive manual tasks feel more like a burden than a job. Some people who couldn’t take the redundancy ends up leaving their job. While there are others who just succumb to it. After all, they are paid to do the job.
Employees in routinary work often stressed about how monotonous and boring their work is. Their productivity is not maximized to its fullest potential. In fact, a study showed that 90% of employees are being burdened with boring and repetitive tasks which can actually be automated instead. The lack of diversity in what they do causes them to be disengaged, affecting their morale as an employee.
This just goes to show that having low morale in the organization should not be taken lightly. It may not directly affect the figures, it sure does affect the culture in the company.
2. Manual Labor Leads to Higher Risk of Human-caused Errors
Years before Microsoft introduced Excel, business owners rely on manual inventory tracking. Accounting hundreds and thousands of items were done using a pen and a paper. Data were all handwritten, and it will take you several documents to go through them. This goes over and over again, day by day.
However, in this process, we don’t see the lapses that may have been incurred. These are lapses that are caused by human neglection, or whatever factor it is that influenced the judgment of a person. Of course, it’s a human thing to make mistakes right? But regardless of the reason, a mistake is still a mistake that may cost a lot for the business.
3. Manual Repetitive Tasks Leads to Unwanted Costs
Manual labor on repetitive tasks can cost you a lot.
A person who is neglectful of details usually ends up making these mistakes that could lead to the following expenses: supplies, labor and time.
Expenses in supplies are often caused by mistakes due to carelessness. For example, a person is tasked to print out a hundred copies of a brochure. However, due to negligence, a glaring typo error made into the final printouts. So the brochures were reprinted again with the revisions, wasting the first batch of printed sheets.
Labor expense, on the other hand, can be incurred when you don’t get to maximize your current employees. Chances are, you will be hiring more staff, which is an additional expense at your end. Take note, acquiring new talents can be really costly. The hiring process alone is expensive. What more if you get additional people to be paid monthly?
And of course, there is the expense in time. Manual labor on repetitive tasks consumes a lot of time. Delays can cost your money and business opportunities. And since the process is slow, progress and business growth will also be slow.
So why should you automate?
With the emerging technology and machine learning advancements, companies are able to streamline their business processes to improve and make their day-to-day operations more efficient.
Most companies that have invested in Robotics Process Automation (RPA) are more likely to have high performing people. According to a research by the Goldsmith University of London, 33% of organizations that utilize automation in their processes are more likely to be “human-friendly ”workplaces, in which employees are 31% more productive.
Robotics Process Automation enables companies to automate repetitive tasks which previously requires humans to perform. RPA tools allow organizations to maximize its workforce’s full potential, eliminating redundant tasks to help them focus more on complex assignments. And finally, automation reduces risks of human-errors, cutting off unnecessary costs due to repetition.
