George Mason University Center and UiPath Partner to Form Robotic Process Automation Initiative

Initiative to research, educate, and communicate how the adoption of RPA can improve productivity, operations, and service delivery of public sector organizations.

ARLINGTON, VA & NEW YORK, NY, January 11, 2021 – The Center for Business Civic Engagement (CBCE) at George Mason University (Mason) announced today the establishment of the Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Initiative in partnership with leading enterprise RPA software company UiPath to determine the impact of RPA on government effectiveness and efficiency.

The mission of the RPA Initiative is to research, educate, and communicate how the adoption of this emerging technology can improve productivity, operations and service delivery of public sector organizations. The RPA Initiative will also study and recommend possible governance models and public policy initiatives for RPA deployment in the context of the broader economic outlook and the future of work.

We are excited to partner with UiPath, a leader and innovator, and look forward to helping determine how RPA usage can improve the working of public sector organizations and succeed in meeting the ever-growing demand for services among stakeholders. The RPA industry has risen to the occasion to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic through civic engagement. This is a critical endeavor and timely moment in our history.

Dr. David K. Rehr , Director of the Center and a faculty member at the Schar School of Policy and Government at Mason

Mason has a history of innovation, technology, and studying public policy. We believe the partnership is a great fit and will benefit citizens seeking greater value in public sector programs and initiatives.

Bobby Patrick, CMO, UiPath

Our Center at Mason focuses on researching ways to make government more effective and efficient. We have seen recent examples of RPA deployments throughout federal, local and state governments helping to confront the COVID pandemic while protecting the safety of our citizens.

Dr. David K. Rehr

These mission-enabling technologies offer great help in making government programs more impactful and release government employees from tedious, mundane work, allowing them to be more imaginative and creative in this new normal.

The RPA Initiative in the weeks and months ahead looks to:

• Promote public understanding and education of the RPA industry.

• Engage in case study research of applications and results.

• Survey the general awareness of RPA.

• Educate, from an academic perspective, policy makers to assist them in understanding and evaluating benefits of RPA.

• Engage in webinars on assorted subjects to discuss industry initiatives.

• Provide an academic stage for discussion of public policy issues relating to RPA uses across different levels of government.

About the Center for Business Civic Engagement at George Mason University (GMU)

The mission of the Center for Business Civic Engagement is to study the impact of the application of business theory and principles to government to determine if government can be both more effective and efficient for its stakeholders.