The COVID-19 pandemic has painted a sharp performance contrast between companies that are digitally mature and those that are not. These distinctions are likely to grow even sharper in the period following the global health crisis, with some companies permanently crossing into the world of intelligent process automation (IPA) — necessitated during the lockdown by furloughs, remote work, a rise in cyber attacks, and a higher work volume in some instances — and others struggling to keep up without the benefit of automated processes.

This article explains how IPA can help companies manage their costs better and increase resilience for future ‘‘black swan’’ events.