Thousands of working hours saved each year thanks to software robots
Local authorities are under increasing pressure to automate processes in order to make them more efficient and offer modern services. The city of Nuremberg shows how this can be achieved.
Wolfgang Landmann (City of Nuremberg) and his fellow panellists will present to a packed audience how software robots make administrative processes more efficient. Image: Messe Berlin
Building permits, registration registers or applications for naturalisation – the automation of administrative processes using digital technologies not only promises to reduce the workload for employees, but also faster processes, greater transparency and less bureaucracy. Wolfgang Landmann, Head of IT Business Services at the City of Nuremberg, demonstrated what this can look like in practice at the event ‘From files to algorithms: process automation in local government’, a session of the Innovators Club, the think tank of the German Association of Towns and Municipalities.
In this Franconian city with 544,000 inhabitants and around 12,000 employees in the administration, rising numbers of applications, an increasingly tight budget situation, a shortage of skilled workers and citizens' demands for faster, more digital services are driving the need for innovative automation solutions. ‘RPA, or Robotic Process Automation, is a central component of digital transformation in city administration for us,’ said Landmann. Software robots take on standardised tasks in Nuremberg.
A win-win situation for everyone
Landmann gives the example of online applications for naturalisation. ‘The robot checks that the application is complete, enters the application and makes security checks with external agencies.’ Without it, an employee would have to handle the application five to ten times before making a decision on naturalisation. ‘It's a win-win situation for everyone involved. The employee is relieved of monotonous, time-consuming work and the application is processed more quickly,’ says IT department head Landmann.
Processes with simple, rule-based tasks and high application volumes that can also be automated within the legal framework are selected for automation. According to Landmann, the minimum hourly savings per year are 500 hours for smaller processes and 2,500 to 9,000 hours per year for larger ones. ‘The return on investment should be achieved within the first twelve months.’ There is great demand within the administration for process automation: ‘We have a very long pipeline from various departments, which we are gradually reviewing to see what we can tackle.’