Intelligent SME.tech Issue 15 | Page 38

// INDUSTRY UNLOCKED

TRADITIONAL INVENTORY
MANAGEMENT
SYSTEMS COULD NOT OFFER REAL-TIME
INFORMATION ON STOCK LEVELS , BUT
RPA CAN .
Many SME retailers are using these services to complete repetitive , manual , day to day processes . It ’ s saving them hours of time per week , increasing employee satisfaction and delivering valuable business data .
So , let ’ s look in more detail at how RPA can help in specific areas .
Supply chain management
Logistics and supply chain management are at the heart of retail activities . Several processes are involved , such as inventory level monitoring , customer support , shipment , order status tracking and reverse shipment . By deploying RPA to automate logistics and supply chain processes , the positive business outcomes are improved collaboration between suppliers , customers and distributors . and formats faster and more accurately , freeing staff to focus on exception handling . A combination of humans and technology improves speed , mitigates downstream data risk and safeguards intellectual property better than ever before .
Inventory management
Traditional inventory management systems could not offer real-time information on stock levels , but RPA can . By automating inventory processes , retailers can immediately see when stock levels are low , preventing ‘ stock-out ’ situations and allowing them to have better relationships with suppliers and customers .
Order and returns processing
Validation and transfer of documents is an extravagant use of company resources . The necessary information can be relayed to relevant personnel or departments at lightning-fast speeds using RPA . Software robots validate documents of different types
Invoice processing
Processing invoices is often a time-consuming , repetitive task . Automating these tasks with RPA , such as collecting information , segregating data and processing invoices becomes much faster and free of human error .
Business and sales analytics
Data is vital for multiple retail decisions , such as trade promotions , churn rate and product introductions . RPA can provide real-time reports based on customer preferences and user behaviour regarding a product or product features which can then be used to plan and then assess how effective marketing campaigns are in real-time . This ability to gain insights into data in real-time means the
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