Keith Richardson

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Automation: Is it really a problem?

It is human nature to try to find a better, or easier way, to accomplish a task. Innovation has lead to many great inventions - including the wheel, the assembly line, and the modern computer. As modern computers have become more accessible, it has helped us become more accurate with tasks, such as mapping guidance through a GPS system, to a drink fountain system that fills the cups of soda to the exact size required. In today’s competitive marketplace, we find that business drives more innovation. You can increase profit by either reducing cost or increasing the price, which is not always feasible.

Many jobs can be automated by technology, from machinery to software tasks. I have previously worked for Frontier Communications in Rochester, NY. I was hired to help automate the processing of onboarding and the termination of employees. Employees' access was manually requested and provisioned. A ticket had to be placed in the help desk system, processed and assigned to a person, who reached out to verify the information, complete the tasks, and pass the information back onto the manager. When the employee was to be terminated, the process was also manual, and relied upon someone notifying IT in a company of tens of thousands of people.

I was able to automate the importing of user accounts from multiple systems on a regular interval to be sent and processed through Dell One Identity Manager (D1IM). We configured D1IM to automate provisioning of Active Directory accounts, Office 365 licensing, support ticket access, and many other systems. We also managed distribution groups based on where the employee was located, and what department they were in. This helped improve efficiency so the help desk could focus on other support issues.. It gave the credentials to the hiring manager as soon as their employee was set to be hired, helping get more use out of the new employee with their  first day, rather than waiting for access. Users were automatically disabled the night of their last day, which could have been pre-loaded into the system. I watched the system on my last day at Frontier as my name was listed on the to be terminated list, and then my access was lost minutes later. We also were able to complete onboarding tasks that took weeks. Through one data load, we were able to provision accounts for over 10,000 new employees for an acquisition. It ran overnight and completed everything that previously took weeks for a team to do manually. This automation allowed the Security Access team, the help desk team, and others to focus on more important tasks. Rather than letting employees go, Frontier was able to get more accomplished with the same staff, as well as complete tasks that may not have always been done. Many people felt that our team was looking to replace jobs, we were just there to allow everyone to do more with the same effort.

Not all automation has the same intentions. Panera Bread has been at the forefront of the automation debate. Panera has been increasing their use of touch screen terminals for ordering in stores. In 2015, Panera CEO Ron Shaich said that “Labor is going to go down” during an earnings call (Peterson). Many people believed that this was the continuing trend. Online ordering has reduced the need for front end workers as well. Panera used their technology to expand their business, and needed to hire more workers due to their automation. In 2017, Panera announced plans to create 10,000 new delivery and retail jobs by the end of the year (Forrest). Even though Panera has found a way to reduce human workers, they still have a need for them in different ways. In my opinion, it will be a very long time until Panera could be completely run by automation.

Automation brings other benefits. The coronavirus pandemic has created many factories that rely on human workers to shut down. Vietnam has been hit hard and has had to shut down many factories that make apparel and shoes (Mody). With automation, these types of companies would be able to keep producing goods without needing the same number of people. David’s Bridal had to deal with the surge of customer service questions during the initial shutdown. Due to a chatbot software, they were able to handle the flood of requests and have been able to spend 35% less on call centers due to the chatbot (Semuels).  

While the coronavirus pandemic’s future is uncertain, we can see one thing is, and that is automation is here to stay. There are many examples where it reduces jobs, such as the removal of toll booths from the New York State Thruway. There are many benefits as well, such as allowing factories to stay open during times when they cannot be running due to health concerns. I feel we should all embrace automation and find a way to continue making our work more efficient and find ways to spend the time we have gained back to enjoy some of the better things in our lives.

Works Cited

Forrest, Conner. “Panera Bread increases automation, leads to hiring 10000 workers.” TechRepublic, 26 April 2017, https://www.techrepublic.com/article/panera-bread-increases-automation-leads-to-hiring-10000-workers/. Accessed 6 December 2021.

Mody, Seema. “Companies scramble to shift manufacturing out of Covid-crushed Vietnam in time for holidays.” CNBC, 22 September 2021, https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/22/companies-race-to-shift-manufacturing-out-of-covid-crushed-vietnam-for-holidays.html. Accessed 6 December 2021.

Peterson, Hayley. “The 12 jobs most at risk of being replaced by robots.” The World Economic Forum, 2 November 2015, https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/11/the-12-jobs-most-at-risk-of-being-replaced-by-robots/. Accessed 6 December 2021.

Semuels, Alana. “Machines and AI Are Taking Over Jobs Lost to Coronavirus | Time.” Time Magazine, 6 August 2020, https://time.com/5876604/machines-jobs-coronavirus/. Accessed 6 December 2021.