Financial institutions have long been at the forefront of adopting automation to drive efficiency, reduce costs, and improve accuracy. Robotic Process Automation (RPA) has played a pivotal role in this journey, automating repetitive, rule-based tasks and freeing up human capital for more strategic work. However, as the financial services landscape grows more complex and customer expectations continue to rise, the next evolution is underway: Intelligent Process Automation (IPA). By integrating RPA with artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and advanced analytics, financial institutions can move beyond basic task automation to enable autonomous decision-making and unlock new levels of operational agility.
RPA has delivered significant value to financial services organizations by automating high-volume, manual processes such as data entry, exception management, and compliance reporting. These solutions have proven especially effective in environments characterized by legacy systems, siloed data, and fragmented workflows. Yet, the true potential of automation is realized when RPA is combined with cognitive technologies—ushering in the era of IPA.
Intelligent Process Automation leverages AI and ML to interpret unstructured data, learn from historical patterns, and make context-aware decisions. This enables financial institutions to automate not just routine tasks, but also complex processes that require judgment, adaptation, and continuous improvement. For example, IPA can:
Publicis Sapient has been instrumental in guiding financial services clients through the full automation maturity curve. Our partnership with leading RPA providers, such as UiPath, has enabled us to deliver end-to-end automation solutions that address the unique challenges of the sector—including legacy integration, data quality, and regulatory compliance.
In one example, Publicis Sapient implemented RPA to process and manage unstructured data for a major financial institution, significantly reducing manual effort and error rates. By layering AI-driven analytics on top of RPA, the solution evolved into an IPA platform capable of making autonomous decisions based on sophisticated rules engines and learning algorithms. This not only accelerated time to business value but also provided transparency into key performance indicators for business executives and ensured robust security and manageability for IT leaders.
Our work with wealth management firms further illustrates the power of IPA. By building contextual search experiences that ingest real-time financial data from multiple sources, we enabled advisors to deliver more personalized guidance to clients. Migrating these solutions to the cloud allowed for greater scalability, enhanced security, and faster response times—demonstrating how IPA can transform both customer experience and operational efficiency.
The financial services sector operates under some of the most stringent regulatory and security requirements. As automation becomes more intelligent and pervasive, institutions must ensure that their IPA solutions are designed with compliance, data privacy, and risk management at the core.
Publicis Sapient’s methodology emphasizes:
As financial institutions look to future-proof their operations, the shift from RPA to IPA is not just a technological upgrade—it’s a strategic imperative. IPA enables organizations to:
Publicis Sapient’s deep expertise in AI, data science, and digital business transformation positions us as a trusted partner for financial services leaders navigating this journey. Our SPEED framework—Strategy, Product, Experience, Engineering, and Data & AI—ensures that automation initiatives are aligned with business goals, customer needs, and regulatory requirements.
In a world where efficiency, agility, and innovation are paramount, embracing Intelligent Process Automation is the next logical step for financial institutions seeking to lead in the digital age. With the right partner and a holistic approach, the journey from RPA to IPA can unlock unprecedented opportunities for growth, resilience, and competitive advantage.