Specifically, 66% of respondents reported piloting automation initiatives in one or more business units or functions, up from 57% in 2018. According to the study, the most commonly deployed technologies were Business Process Management (BPM) platforms and various artificial intelligence (AI) methodologies, such as Robotic Process Automation (RPA), followed by image recognition, machine learning algorithms, and automated process discovery and documentation toolsets. The adoption of voice assistants and conversational chatbots also gained notable momentum.
Despite this rapid adoption, only 61% of surveyed executives reported that their organizations fully met their automation objectives. This gap highlights the need to analyze the core factors driving sustainable automation success. The findings suggest a clear set of practices: large enterprises that successfully achieved their automation goals established automation as a top strategic priority, focused equally on human talent and technology stacks, and built scalable operating models.
Process Automation – Center of Excellence
By establishing automation as a strategic imperative, successful enterprise organizations aligned automation roadmaps directly with overarching business goals—integrating initiatives into strategic planning frameworks and scaling capabilities enterprise-wide.
Furthermore, by balancing tech stack investments with talent development, leading firms actively upskilled their workforce to bridge automation skill gaps. They integrated employee domain expertise directly into automation solution design while prioritizing transparent, cross-functional communication during rollout phases.
Regarding operational scalability, successful organizations coordinated cross-business unit workflows to dismantle operational silos. These initiatives must be managed through a holistic enterprise framework to enable agile, effective technology adoption—building structured roadmaps spanning strategic planning, implementation, execution, and operational handover.
Strategic Planning
When evaluating mid-market and smaller enterprises, the study revealed a slower initial adoption rate compared to large corporations. However, smaller companies that deployed automation achieved higher success rates: 65% reported meeting their automation targets, compared to 55% in large organizations.
Small and medium-sized firms achieving their automation targets shared several core success factors with large enterprises. However, an additional success factor emerged for smaller organizations: executing a tactical, phased approach with concrete, measurable targets for each automation milestone.
To maximize automation return on investment (ROI), analysts recommend several strategic steps moving forward:
- Target core business processes: Focus initial automation efforts on mission-critical, high-impact business workflows.
- Invest in talent and modern ways of working: Frame automation as a tool to augment human productivity rather than merely replace manual labor. Organizations must foster a culture of continuous learning while defining the specific skill sets required to achieve long-term automation objectives.
- Promote cross-functional collaboration: Successful process automation requires multi-disciplinary expertise—combining customer experience (CX), digital strategy, data analytics, and organizational design—which often resides across disparate enterprise functions.
Has your organization automated its core business processes?