Learn More About Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Software
What is RPA Software?
Robotic process automation (RPA) may sound intimidating and ominous, but in reality, it is an extremely practical solution for traditionally time-consuming tasks. The purpose of RPA tools is to automate processes that have always required a human to physically perform the task but do not necessarily require strategic thinking.
RPA isn’t necessarily a new concept. In the early 2000s, emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), workflow automation, and screen scraping were explored to reduce time spent on simple tasks. The combination of these technologies gave way to RPA—a more efficient method of automation.
What Does RPA Stand For?
RPA stands for ”robotic process automation.” However, when deployed properly, it is anything but robotic. Sellers have added and are continuing to add advanced features such as machine learning, natural language processing (NLP), and process mining in order to streamline the automation process.
What Types of RPA Software Exist?
There are a couple of different types and use cases of RPA, but each helps an organization streamline their business. Although all of these tools automate processes, they differ in terms of how hands-on one must be with the automation.
Attended automation
Attended automation is aimed at tasks that can be augmented by software robots but still requires human intervention in one way or another. During instances of attended automation, users have bots that run in the background while they perform their normal tasks; however, the bots are triggered by human actions and work in collaboration with a human employee. These actions performed by the bots help simplify workflows for the human, empowering them to focus more on the critical, strategic task at hand. This can include assisting a customer on the phone or creating financial reports, among many other uses.
Unattended automation
Unattended automation is used during processes that require no human intervention. Businesses can deploy robots to run particular functions without paying an employee to carry out the task and be assured that there won’t be human errors that will throw off the entire process. Unattended bots are scheduled by the administrator of RPA software and run essentially unnoticed by company employees. Some processes that are commonly automated with unattended bots include generating financial reports or laborious data entry.
What are the Common Features of RPA Software?
RPA software can facilitate the creation of the robots themselves, the workflows and processes that bots will ultimately carry out, and the management and deployment of those bots. Across those three areas of RPA tools, there are a number of common features:
Drag-and-drop workflows: Many RPA solutions allow users to build workflows with drag-and-drop visual editors. There is no need to code actions for the bots to perform. This benefits administrators who do not have a highly technical background. Instead, they can create flowchart-like visualizations that outline each step in a process that will eventually be performed by a bot.
Workflow recording: Another way RPA tools help simplify the building of processes is by allowing users to record themselves performing manual tasks. The software robots can mimic the exact actions performed by the user and perform the repeatable tasks usually conducted by a human employee.
Prebuilt templates: To make it easier on RPA developers and administrators, many tools offer prebuilt workflow templates so that users can quickly and efficiently build processes for bots to act on. These templates are a part of the drag and drop and workflow recording environment to ensure simplicity for users.
Computer vision: Most RPA vendors have AI and machine learning capabilities embedded within their tools. These deep learning features may include computer vision, which can help to identify images as well as words in documents through optical character recognition (OCR). This feature is important as it allows the system to “see” and understand documents.
Natural language understanding (NLU): Other machine learning capabilities include NLU, a subset of NLP. With this functionality, the software can read and “understand” words and use that knowledge to more intelligently automate processes. For example, a media organization could use these NLU capabilities to detect spelling errors in a journalist’s work. If a spelling error were detected, it could route the work to an editor. If no spelling errors were detected, it could route the work to the publishing division.
Integrations: Companies often implement RPA tools to perform tasks inside other types of business applications, including CRMs, ERP systems, and accounting software, among many others. The ability to integrate and work in conjunction with these systems is an important feature for RPA software.
Bot scheduling: Being able to schedule out bot deployments in advance is a critical feature of RPA software. Users can set the bot to start the process by using triggers such as the timing of an event or a specific human action.
Analytics: Not only is deployment and scheduling of robots important, but being able to track the performance of bots is a critical aspect of RPA software. Many RPA solutions offer analytics and dashboards to ensure the bots are conducting processes correctly and efficiently.
Many robotic process automation software tools will also offer the following features:
What are the Benefits of RPA Software?
There are a number of reasons to use RPA tools, but the main reason is so companies can save time and resources, freeing up their employees to perform more strategic, business-critical tasks. Automation is becoming a key aspect of overall digital transformation, and RPA software has the ability to streamline process automation for businesses. By deploying bots to rapidly perform repetitive tasks, companies have the luxury of prioritizing work and projects that require human brainpower.
Automation software is most valuable for manual, time-consuming tasks such as data entry that may take hours of time and hundreds of clicks on a computer for a human employee to complete. The bots deployed in RPA tools can perform these laborious tasks in a fraction of the time that humans can. Not only does this save businesses employee time, but it also saves them money by not having to pay for human labor.
Additionally, RPA bots can cut down on human error when performing certain tasks. For example, when generating financial reports based on general ledger data, ensuring precise accuracy is critical. Inputting even one incorrect number can throw off budgeting and forecasting projections and mislead stakeholders. By leveraging RPA software, users can ensure that human error is taken out of this process entirely and eliminate this particular risk. One important note—RPA software is not a substitute for a business’ IT infrastructure. Instead, RPA sits on top and acts as a complement to existing systems.
Efficiency: At any business, processes often develop to include multiple people and multiple steps. Although humans can work together to improve these processes, RPA can help to make them more efficient. For example, HR professionals frequently need to upload identification documents for new employees. Then they might need to copy information from those documents and input it into human resource management systems. This HR employee can use RPA to remove steps and make this easier. In this case, all they would need to do would be to upload the relevant documents, and the bot could proceed to input the information into various systems and programs.
Accuracy: As smart and capable as humans are, they make mistakes. When trained properly, RPA bots can imitate human actions perfectly. That is, if a human allows RPA software to capture his screen and clicks, the bot can subsequently copy that action and repeat it infinitely, The flipside of this should be considered as well: if RPA software is trained poorly on poor processes, the bot will copy this as well, leading to the repetition of bad work.
Return on investment (ROI): RPA software is a tool that streamlines work and, when done correctly, leads to fewer errors. As such, it can have tremendous ROI. Improved work leads to improved outcomes, which can easily lead to increased revenue. It should be noted that there are ethical considerations around this. Namely, to what extent should a company reorganize their business, deploying RPA bots as opposed to human employees?
Who Uses RPA Software?
Traditionally, RPA tools are used by mid-market and enterprise-sized companies. Larger companies tend to have more siloed departments, and when repetitive business actions need to become integrated to be efficient, RPA software is an easy solution. However, small businesses can also reap the benefits of RPA technology, as, after all, they have repetitive processes as well.
Within companies, RPA tools are frequently leveraged by operations and IT administrators, and even CIOs, but can expand to really any department that needs to automate business processes. Some companies may have dedicated business analysts or process directors who ensure that internal processes are as streamlined as possible. Here are some department-specific examples:
Human resources (HR): One of the more tiresome tasks in business admin is the procurement process, or the process of planning, monitoring, and purchasing a good or service. Using RPA software, businesses can automate many of the administrative tasks associated with procurement. For example, robots can be deployed to monitor inventory levels and trigger a response when inventory is low. Spending too much time on invoice processing? Using RPA with OCR capabilities, robots can scan and extract invoice data accurately and post it to the accounting system.
Sales: RPA software can help automate actions performed by a sales team, specifically when it comes to contract creation and approval. Many RPA tools offer document management features specifically built for contract creation. Once a sales representative convinces a prospect to buy, the next step in the workflow is to send a contract.
Supply chain: Once a deal is finalized, the next step in a workflow may be to ship the goods purchased. If a document is signed, RPA software can help place the exact order bought by the customer. This is where the tool goes from working with a business’ CRM software to working with their supply chain software. The order is automatically entered into a company’s ERP system and the goods are manufactured and shipped.
Accounting: Now that the goods are shipped and received, the accounting department needs to note the exact exchange of goods (i.e., how much was shipped, how much did they pay for it, etc.). This information can be inputted into an accounting system using RPA software.
RPA can be easily integrated with a business’ accounting software. One of the benefits of this integration is faster invoice processing. First, bots will be deployed using OCR to scan and extract structured data from invoices. Then, they’ll assemble the data in a template and run it through an ERP system to validate the invoices. Invalidated invoices will be archived for a human operator to send back to the customer.
Is It Difficult to Learn How to Use RPA Software?
RPA technologies are designed to be simple to use and train for non-developers, and improvements are being made by RPA companies each release to allow for an even greater number of tasks to be completed as easily as possible. With that being said, the difficulty of RPA is almost entirely dependent on the existing systems your company relies on, and the complexity of tasks and processes that you wish to use RPA to automate. While most tasks can be trained through simple screen recording, there will always be more customized solutions required by each business that need more complex logic or programming to accomplish.
What are the Alternatives to RPA Software?
Alternatives to RPA software can replace this type of software, either partially or completely:
Business process management (BPM) software: Both RPA software and BPM software can be implemented simultaneously by a business to perform different functions of process automation. However, a business might also decide to go with one or the other. BPM software, which has been around for some time, is used to analyze processes at a very high level, while RPA tools perform those processes. Users may even use a BPM tool to outline and brainstorm processes that go across teams and departments and then implement an RPA tool to carry out those tasks.
Software Related to Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Software
Related solutions that can be used together with RPA software include:
Process mining software: While RPA carries out workflows and processes instead of a human employee, process mining software monitors those processes to ensure that steps are not being skipped or bypassed. Additionally, it can help operations leaders and RPA administrators better understand each unique step in a process. It can help identify gaps or vulnerabilities within the overall process and streamline as necessary. A number of RPA tools include process mining features, helping to assess which processes are best to automate.
Business process simulation software: Similar to process mining, business process simulation software allows businesses to assess business processes. This software provides more robust tools for simulating these processes and is focused on testing and validating what-if scenarios. It provides tools for creating models as well as visualizing the models and outcomes. It’s typically used by executives, managers, and external consultants looking to get a better understanding of a company’s business processes. It can also be used by consultants to help companies.
Challenges with RPA Software
Software solutions can come with their own set of challenges. It must always be kept in mind that RPA, like any other digital transformation or automation solution, is not a magic bullet. Therefore, keep these pitfalls and issues in mind:
Integrations: One concern that users of RPA software should be aware of is the type of software that RPA tools can integrate with to automate processes. Often, companies will deploy RPA tools on top of ERP systems, contact center infrastructure tools, or accounting software, among many other types of software. If the software that a business is hoping to automate processes within is not compatible with the RPA tool of their choice, then there is no point in purchasing that specific product.
Compatibility: Buyers should go as far as to ensure that the RPA solution can run on either Windows or MacOS, or any other operating system they may run at their business. Many RPA tools are platform agnostic and can work across many different software vendors; however, it is always best to double check when buying RPA software.
Unexpected costs: Just as with any software solution, it is important to consider all the potential costs involved. With RPA software, users might discover that they end up spending more than they thought they would. For example, after purchasing it, they might subsequently decide to purchase process mining software or external consultants in order to properly determine the right processes to automate.
Which Companies Should Buy RPA Software?
Each industry can benefit in some way from RPA software and implementing an automation strategy. Here are five industry examples where the benefits of RPA are paying off:
Healthcare: Shifts at the hospital can be mentally and physically draining, and the last thing a med tech needs is to stay up on repetitive, low-priority tasks. RPA software can easily keep medical records up to date, automate order entry, decision support, and claim processing. This could free up time for med techs, allowing them to accomplish more throughout the day.
Finance: Accurate credit scoring and fraud detection are some of the more tedious but necessary tasks in the financial services industry. Fortunately, many bots can be deployed at once to comb through accounts and transaction data to detect fraudulent behavior. In banking, RPA software is successfully reducing the need for pricey human analysts through the automation of account closures, direct debit cancellations, audit reports, and much more.
Telecommunications: Telecommunications companies are always looking to improve their processes and bring the best and fastest services to their customers. As such RPA can help them streamline their work. For example, it can help cut down the time employees spend on data entry. A customer could input their information onto the website of a network provider. With little to no human feedback, that information could be inputted into various systems, such as a CRM, email marketing software, and more. Also, with NLU capabilities, RPA bots can intelligently understand feedback from a customer and send a response based on that feedback.
How to Buy RPA Software
Requirements Gathering (RFI/RFP) for Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Software
When looking to deploy an RPA solution, it is important to start from the beginning. In other words, a business should begin by conducting an overview of business processes. If a company is just starting out and looking to purchase their first RPA software, or wherever a business is in its buying process, g2.com can help select the best option. As mentioned above, one should also consider the related and ancillary software and services one might one to deploy alongside RPA, such as process mining software or RPA consulting services.
Taking a holistic overview of the business systems and processes will help businesses to identify pain points. This will help them to figure out which software to buy (e.g., if it can effectively handle the business’ processes) and to develop buying criteria. A carefully created checklist can help in determining the necessary and nice-to-have features, such as features, budget, integrations, number of users, security requirements, cloud or on-premises solutions, and more.
A request for information (RFI) can be useful, especially if the deployment is large in scale and scope. By producing this, a business can be well placed to gather information from sellers. Depending on the scope of the deployment, it might be helpful to produce an RFI, a one-page list with a few bullet points describing what is needed from RPA software.
Compare Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Software Products
Create a long list
Evaluating vendors should start with a long list, which will help to determine whether or not a given solution is a good fit. Buyers should create a broad list of tools that align with their business goals. So that there is a level playing field, it is important to ask the same set of questions to each seller.
Create a short list
Next, a whittling down should take place. Through pointed questions, demos, and trials, one can go from a long list to a short one. Although this will differ for each business and use case, three to five products is typically a good number. With this list in hand, businesses can produce a matrix to compare the features and pricing of the various solutions.
Conduct demos
To ensure the comparison is thoroughgoing, the user should demo each solution on the short list with the same use case and datasets. This will allow the business to evaluate like for like and see how each vendor stacks up against the competition.
Selection of Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Software
Choose a selection team
Before getting started, it's crucial to create a winning team that will work together throughout the entire process, from identifying pain points to implementation. The software selection team should consist of members of the organization who have the right interest, skills, and time to participate in this process. A good starting point is to aim for three to five people who fill roles such as the main decision maker, project manager, process owner, system owner, or staffing subject matter expert, as well as a technical lead, IT administrator, or security administrator. In smaller companies, the vendor selection team may be smaller, with fewer participants multitasking and taking on more responsibilities.
Negotiation
Just because something is written on a company’s pricing page, does not mean it is fixed (although some companies will not budge). It is imperative to open up a conversation regarding pricing and licensing. For example, the vendor may be willing to give a discount for multi-year contracts or for recommending the product to others.
Final decision
After this stage, and before going all in, it is recommended to roll out a test run or pilot program to test adoption with a small sample size of users. If the tool is well used and well received, the buyer can be confident that the selection was correct. If not, it might be time to go back to the drawing board.
What Does Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Software Cost?
Generally, RPA software will require a license (priced either annually or monthly). In addition, one will often pay extra per bot, with unattended bots being more expensive than attended ones.
Return on Investment (ROI)
Since RPA will frequently take the place of humans’ tasks (or their jobs), one must analyze and compare the cost of deploying bots versus having humans do the same tasks. Although the extent to which the software impacts the company’s bottom line is a key indicator of success, it should not be the only one. One must also investigate the ethical ROI, or the moral impact job displacement will have.
Implementation of RPA Software
How is Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Software Implemented?
Robots are generally low-cost to deploy, and as we learned earlier, they’re quite simple to program tasks since no deep software knowledge is required. However, like any piece of software, it’s always advised to have a human operator on-hand to intervene and troubleshoot when necessary. The same goes for RPA software, especially when dealing with mass automation. In order to determine which processes should be automated, one can use process mining (which can be included in the RPA software) or external consultants.
Who is Responsible for Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Software Implementation?
Although some RPA solutions require significant IT support, most solutions can be deployed directly by business leaders. These business leaders will have the best visibility into their team’s processes. For more complex deployments, one will likely need support from the IT team. The IT team might also be involved in regard to security. Since RPA software can get access to the most sensitive information, IT might get involved in order to test how secure the software is.
What Does the Implementation Process Look Like for Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Software?
Do not jump into the deep end. When one seeks to automate their processes, start with a deep analysis of those processes. It need not start with expensive software or an external team. It can begin with pen and paper or on a whiteboard, digital or otherwise. The company, or team, can pinpoint the most broken processes or those which are ripe for automation, such as the most repetitive ones. Only after this hard work can the actual automation begin.
When Should You Implement Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Software?
Many solutions provide free trials that can be used to test the effectiveness of the technology. This can help a business determine whether or not the solution is right for them. If the decision has been made to deploy RPA, it is key that it does not get siloed into one department, or else its very deployment may lead to further complication and confusion around processes.
What Are the Most Common Programming Languages for RPA Software?
While programming skills are not a required prerequisite for using RPA technologies, they can help with training for some of the more advanced functions by bridging the gap between human processes and computer language. The specific programming language being used by a given RPA software solution is determined by the base language the application was built on, but some of the more common languages include: Java, Python, C++, C#, Visual Basic, and SQL and JavaScript. The language you need is based on both the type of task to perform, and the base language of your RPA software.
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Software Trends
Artificial intelligence (AI)
RPA vendors are striving to implement elements of AI and machine learning into their solutions to allow bots to learn and better understand the functions they are performing. However, most RPA solutions already use some form of computer vision (image recognition) or NLP to carry out their tasks.
These AI capabilities allow RPA tools to visually watch processes and carry them out on their own, without human intervention. As with most AI initiatives, the use cases in RPA software are relatively raw. However, to achieve true automation, the two technologies will need to work seamlessly. This will help businesses with their overall digital transformation.
Process mining
As previously mentioned, the starting place for RPA must be with the processes themselves. Therefore, more and more RPA players are either partnering with or incorporating (through acquisitions or development) process mining features into their software. This helps buyers use the software in the most optimized way possible, since they are being led to automate the processes which have the highest potential for automation. It is also beneficial to the sellers, as the more processes they can help their customers automate, the more money they can get.
What Risks Are Associated with Deploying RPA Software?
While RPA software can be a valuable tool in automating a company’s most tedious processes, and saving employee time - it is not without its risks. The first risk to be aware of with RPA tools is the initial assumptions and expectations for the tool - many companies approach RPA as a magic solution that will be able to perform any function, sometimes with the assumption that it can replace entire teams of people at a company. This approach can lead to disappointment by company leaders, low perceived ROI from the tools, and even loss of top talent and institutional knowledge from a business. To mitigate this risk, companies adopting RPA should start small by automating just a few key processes, have realistic expectations for what the tools can accomplish, and dedicate time to plan how teams performing current processes will adapt to their new modified functions post RPA. RPA should not be implemented simply to cut costs by reducing full-time employees (FTEs), but rather leveraged as a way to allow those FTEs to focus on the strategic and creative aspects of their roles.
The second inherent challenge of RPA is providing clear communication to teams about the responsibilities they used to have (and have shifted to RPA), versus the responsibilities they still have alongside RPA. This challenge appears when RPA is first adopted, but also during the changes to underlying software and systems that the RPA tool has been trained on. Using RPA can mean that these core business processes become less transparent to non-technical leaders and managers, and a business that uses RPA for these tasks often requires specialists to determine what went wrong when changing over to a new system or tool. As the complexity and scope of RPA solutions increase, the risks increase as well.
While there are risks associated with RPA, most companies gain much more value from process automation than they risk with the scenarios above, however by understanding the risks of utilizing RPA, and setting clear and realistic expectations for your company’s leadership and execution teams, your business will be all the more likely to benefit from the amazing benefits that robotic process automation has to offer.
