The telecommunications industry is changing at a rapid pace, driven by amplified consumer demands, increased price competition as well the rise of new technologies. Despite the increase in data consumption and mobile broadband subscriptions the overall revenue growth has stagnated as Communication Service Providers (CSPs) are struggling to convert the rise of mobile data services into revenue growth. This has pressurised the CSPs to identify new digital business models that can provide alternative sources of revenue growth. Network transformation is therefore necessary to enable new business opportunities and allow CSPs to remain relevant and have value share in the overall mobile communications market.
It has been well documented that 5G presents a significant opportunity for CSPs, leveraging the higher performance capabilities over 4G to enable new services for all their customers across traditional and non-traditional market segments, generating new revenue streams and profits. A report by Ericsson entitled ‘The 5G Business Potential’ estimates the 5G-enabled revenue potential to be $1.3 Trillion for ICT players, of which $619 Billion is revenue that can be addressed directly by CSPs.
However, many CSPs are burdened with legacy IT platforms/architecture, siloed processes and a lack of digital skills - inhibiting them to truly harness the commercial opportunity of 5G. A recent EY study identified process automation as a principal technology enabler that can help build long term operational excellence for CSPs, along their digital transformation journey. The same study suggests one of the key pillars of process automation (along with back-end automation and business process management) is Robotic Process Automation (RPA).
With mobile data traffic estimated to grow by around 50 percent annually through to 2023, existing business processes are expected to suffer from further strain. CSPs could leverage RPA to automate the bulk of their employees’ repetitive, rules-based, high-volume tasks for front and back office systems, freeing them up to perform more strategic, business-critical activities. Combining RPA with built-in cognitive intelligence technologies (such as AI and ML) CSPs can take advantage of a Connected RPA platform to dramatically lower their operational costs, reduce time-to-market for introducing new products/services and increase efficiency and productivity to accelerate the performance of their workforce - ultimately improving the overall customer experience and drive monetization and growth.
A key differentiation of having RPA as one of the ‘cogs’ in the machine of digital transformation is that it provides a non-intrusive framework. A Connected RPA platform is deployed as a layer on top of an existing IT stack, integrating with underlying systems without disruption - a tactic to allow process transformation to be de-coupled from the overall design and infrastructure of a CSP's IT architecture. This key differentiation allows enterprises to balance short-term gains with a longer-term vision, as-well as helping them adopt a more experimental culture in their organisation.
The concept of process automation is already well valued in the telecommunications marketplace, with many CSPs investing in business-led strategic programs to automate manual tasks across different functions. So, in the age of 5G, why specifically should these operators look further to enhance their automation capabilities?
The consensus in the telecommunications industry is that an increase in data consumption and consumer mobile subscriptions has so far not translated into revenue growth; and that simply increasing consumer subscription charges will not suffice in justifying the capital expenditure investment in 5G. Thus, CSPs are pivoting their revenue growth focus away from the consumer market and are progressing their 5G monetization strategy towards business users and specialised industries. As a result, a Connected RPA platform (essentially a Digital Workforce) which is customer-centric can help operators extend their automation possibilities to the next level in key areas of the business that are impacted by consumers; areas of which are more likely to be severely disrupted by the expected surge in the data traffic on the network - for example contact centres, revenue assurance and sales departments, and the main process that has touchpoints with these functions is Lead-to-Cash.
The Lead-to-Cash process is traditionally a key indicator for a CSPs operational efficiency; most steps and activities within this process are customer-centric and as such imperative for an organisation to automate in the world of 5G. The process is often highly manual, repetitive and complex, and it typically encapsulates order fulfilment, credit check, order validation, service activation, revenue management - all closely coupled with legacy systems. Below are a few examples that describe how some of these functions can be automated to drive a more intelligent Lead-to-Cash process.
Example 1: Drive Sales Intelligence
During the sales ‘capture’ stage a Digital Worker with embedded Cognitive Services can be used to provide “data-driven” decision making, guiding the customer service representatives to present targeted Cross-Selling/Up-Selling/Next-Best Action/Next Best Offer services, based upon user insights which improves over time.
Example 2: Improving Customer Satisfaction
During a customer request call a Digital Workforce can help reduce average call handling time by automating key customer processes/tasks in the background - which includes aggregating and harmonizing customer data from their data sources, enabling a better customer experience.
Example 3: Streamlining Revenue Assurance
A Digital Worker can automatically detect and remediate billing errors - providing a ‘self-healing’ revenue assurance solution that minimizes fraud and improves the efficiently of the billing department
Example 4: Accelerating Order Activations
Enable quick and efficient activation of services on the network, reducing customer on-boarding time drives better customer sentiments towards the operator, as-well as improving bill cycle management.
Additionally, a Digital Worker could automate processes and transactions for entirely new charging models, matching the rise of 5G services that will advance more innovative billing solutions, dynamic enough to cater for more complex service subscription models - which in the world of 5G is shifting away from the ‘bucket model’ and expected to be driven by Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and Quality of Service (QoS).
We are now entering the 5G era as we kick off the new decade, with overall mobile data traffic expected to rise at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 50%. Operators must look to introduce a sustainable ecosystem with intelligent automation as part of its nervous system, enabling them to meet and service new market demands in 2020 and beyond. A Connected RPA solution with a scalable Digital Workforce can transform telecom processes to become more agile and efficient, affording the operators the opportunity to purpose their human workforce towards more complex orders and higher value activities - specifically in introducing new services to non-traditional market segments in emerging industries, untapping the full commercial opportunity of 5G.
