Robotic Process Automation

When I started this blog in 2010 it was pretty technical and centred around the uptake of virtualisation in the IT industry. Since then virtualisation has become mainstream and as my role has changed the blog has become more of a personal technology diary.

However, there is a new technology in town, which promises to change the industry, and the world. Robotics. Or to be precise Process Automation. The first hurdle the industry faces is to get away from the image of a “Robot”, which is essentially a machine. It doesn’t do itself any favours by using the word, not to mention 90% of articles contain a picture of one.

It’s just software. And what it our icon for software? Well, that’s the problem…we don’t really have one. It’s always difficult to have images for non-tangible things. Use Google to search for software and specify “Images”. See what you get. Nothing useful I bet.

Nevertheless, process automation is crossing the chasm and I hope to blog more about it. I’ll put the problem of an icon for process automation on the back burner. There is an IEEE working group chaired by Lee Coulter. Not sure if the IEEE use logos on standards though.