Automation of Business Processes Through Software Solutions

A look at the typical business computer may not show a lot of software installations as compared to previous decades. Even the in-house custom solutions are no longer built as client-server solutions and hence do not need a physical installation on the business desktops and laptops. The browser has become the default option to launch an application whether it is hosted within the office or outside the office. Since, the access is via a website URL, we don’t actually realize the growth in the software solutions to automate the various aspects of the business.

Slowly but surely, the software tools have provided better functionality and added convenience to the business user.  If you need to monitor the uptime of your website you have specialized website monitoring software services that does this for you.  They have enhanced their functionality over the years to avoid false reporting by having multiple servers monitor the site and compare the data from multiple servers before alerting the client.  They also have enhanced functionality for alerting a specific person(s) at the client organization about a downtime as per predefined rules. Some of the paid services do API monitoring and can also monitor specific components of the site.  This allows for quicker trouble shooting and faster restoration of uptime.

Like the above, many specialized software have come up that allow for better efficiency and smoother execution of the business functions. If you need to raise an invoice, there are many invoicing software that not only allow to quickly raising invoices by copying the content of the previous invoice as well as generate the next invoice number automatically.   They also can be configured to send out follow-up emails at preset intervals. Some even provide the status reports of the invoice payments.  This offers great flexibility and freedom to the business owner or the concerned officer.

Similarly, wide varieties of business processes have been automated. This allows employees, managers and owners of businesses to not only do their responsibilities easily but to focus their energies on more strategic matters.

Enterprising people have successfully created software solution companies that enable their client businesses to better manage or run their business processes using their enterprise apps. Some of the business process software serves the large businesses while others focus on SMBs. These founders of software solution companies that do business process automation, have used their expertise and knowledge of the process and with the use of creative thinking and innovative design, have come up with solutions that have been rapidly adopted. While earlier, only the accounting, office and anti-virus software was available off-the shelf. The majority of other software was custom built; today the trend is very different.  There has been a tremendous explosion of the various off-the shelf business software solutions especially using SAAS model.

An organization may be using dozens of tools that are available as an off-the shelf solution that is hosted online. Since the various departments work in their own silos, this fact is not easily obvious. But if an organization makes a list of the software services used by the various departments you will notice that such an exercise will produce a long list.  These software solutions are not just replacing manual processes with automated methods; they are actually enhancing the capabilities of the process.  

A software company offering specific business process software builds its system to accommodate the different processes in hundreds of companies.  When the client signs up, many times they discover superior or additional functionality in the business process software that is very useful for their business but something that they are not doing in their organization.  As a result, the new business software allows the business to enhance its processes by using the automated solution.  The same happens when a business entity signs-up for a website monitoring software service, the business suddenly realizes that they are now equipped with a lot more tools and options that they did not have before.