Scaling automation through agile outsourcing

Marcin Nowakowski
Program Manager, Change Manager, ABSL Audit Committee Member
BNP Paribas Securities Services

As you are reading this piece — every few minutes — a project is kicked off to automate processes in a particular outsourcing organization. Vendors are preparing sales pitches, operational teams are choosing processes to be automated, and the outsourcing world is evolving. What will be the result of this evolution?

I strongly believe that we are missing the honest, fact-based and open debate on the impact of automation on the outsourcing ecosystem. Yes, we’ve all seen headlines like, “Robots Will Cannibalize Your Jobs” and “99% of Accountants Will Be Jobless.” And we’ve seen provider sales pitches, “RPA Will Allow Humans To Do More Human-Related Jobs.” But each of those standpoints are biased, one-sided opinions - either too optimistic or to gloomy. Therefore if debate is missing there is no better way to react than to start it…

Fact number one is that future of the industry is inevitably connected with digital revolution. The basic result being that organizations will need access to specific hardware and software but primarily need access to specific upskilled digital transformation talents. Those talents (executing professions - which might not even exist today) will evolve around digital tools and specific, automation-related change or transformation methodologies. Even today, at the early stage of automation, the available pool of those talents is very limited. Soon organizations will learn that the only way to get those skills is through “compact outsourcing” or “micro outsourcing.”

Fact number two is that unprecedented velocity of change, which is happening in and around outsourcing industry, will force the ecosystem to search for solutions. The ecosystem must manage constant change understanding that there is a shortage of talent who can quickly develop the internal digital skills needed for true enterprise agility. The current approach of “develop internal skills” versus “find a big vendor” will not be enough to digest the amount of transformation required.

Fact number three is that while creating posts for digital and transformation talents, automation will gradually cut the jobs from the low end of the pyramid — manual, repetitive tasks. Although a lot is said about need of “up skilling” and preparing the workforce for the digital revolution, not much is visibly done on the actual ‘battlefield.’ Governments, outsourcing organizations, corporations nor employees are kick-starting the “digital upskilling storm.” And having in mind the size of the industry, “storm” is the most appropriate word that comes to mind.
Those three facts — difficulty to acquire people having relevant digital or transformation skills, unpreceded velocity of change in the industry, and decline of manual repetitive tasks will — as a mix with other factors of the digital revolution — bring different results for different geo–zones, industries and employee groups.

Service process outsourcing will be (is) highly prone to this “change cocktail” as it is built around repetitive tasks which are prone to be best delivered and organized in big groups of employees. Geo-zones housing most of outsourcing industry will see an impact of a different scope to the geo-zones housing digital revolution resources.

As you are reading this article, every few minutes, a project is kicked off to automate processes in an outsourcing organization. Vendors are preparing sales pitches, operational teams are choosing processes to be automated, and the outsourcing world is changing. What should be our answer to that?