Any tour of the kitchen of a modern McDonald’s restaurant will demonstrate the strange times we live in. Once the training ground for generations of employees, many of the functions of the typical McDonald’s kitchen have been taken over by electronic processes. No longer are burger flippers required in the chain- in fact, there isn’t even a need for human hands to operate the grill at all. Instead, computer chips inside the grills tell the instruments how hot to get, how long to stay down, and transfer the cooked burgers into a holding unit to await assembly.

Process automation is the term used to refer to the use of software applications and/or computers to assist or replace human intervention. The utilization of process automation is a reality in virtually all aspects of life in North America, in services that once relied solely upon human expertise or labor. At the same time, one of the greatest benefits of process automation is the elimination of human error and avoiding delays caused waiting for human intervention.

Security companies once relied on an extensive force of personnel to patrol their contracted areas, report and respond to emergencies. Now, most security procedures are carried out by process automation. Before the last employed leaves a business at night, they usually have the duty of programming the security system. This system is generally set up by the company who was contracted by the business to maintain the security. The employee will type in a closing code, and there is no further need for humans throughout the night.

The systems are designed to detect any movement within the store, to sound the alarm, and to send a signal back to the security operations headquarters. Sometimes, a human at the headquarters will receive the alert, but usually this too is handled by computers. The system identifies the point of entry and waits a certain amount of time, and then automatically contacts both law enforcement and a contact person whose information is stored in the system’s mainframe. No human at the company is ever needed, except to maintain the system.

Process automation is being used extensively in many areas. It is a beneficial tool in different business and industries, as it eliminates the need for human risk in many situations. However, as with any technological advancement, it does have a price in terms of human jobs available.