Market giants open up about their move towards automation

Analysing the 2017/2018 annual reports of all 100 publically listed companies, 39 per cent mentioned the use of automation across the business, 34 per cent cited AI and 21 per cent of the reports nodded to the use of robotics. In comparison to last year’s results, mentions of robotics were up 162 per cent, while references to AI more than tripled, highlighting a 386 per cent increase year-on-year.  

While all three technologies were raised across the reports for a variety of reasons, insurance company Aviva said it was looking to both AI and robotic automation to increasingly transform the efficiency of operations, as well as transform the customer experience. Meanwhile, online British supermarket Ocado mentioned AI, robotics and automation are helping drive innovation and create a sustainable technological advantage in an increasingly competitive market. 

Neil Kinson, Chief of Staff at Redwood Software said, “As organisations continue to evolve, so will their need for robotics, making it unsurprising we’re seeing these changes occur. However, automation tools alone can only do so much – the real success lies in how businesses manage them, and how they work to ensure employees only have positive interactions with them.” 

“Surrounded by a constant barrage of hype, it can be challenging for organisations to pinpoint exactly how to deploy these technologies to add value, rather than deploying them just to be seen to. Technology will change over the coming years, but the work we do today will lay the groundwork for the future. If businesses think strategically and engage with stakeholders, they will be in a much better place to exploit the ecosystem of automation that is emerging.” 

Out of the reports studied, just six organisations highlighted the use of all three types of technology, spanning the insurance, retail, personal good, telecoms and utilities industries.