Maybe it is not precisely automation and more macro-esk, but if a user can do something else while an RPA program runs I’m good calling automation.

By Mike Fitzmaurice  – Robotic Process Automation (RPA) has had a lot of deserved success in businesses seeking to carry out basic, repetitive tasks ordinarily handled manually; think about filling out forms, extracting data from web pages, and so on. For these specific kinds of activities, RPA works great – it accelerates throughput, minimizes errors, and lowers some kinds of costs.

That said, when organizations try to use RPA to automate business processes, they start to run into trouble. There – I said it.

Contrary to its name, RPA is not actually designed for “process” automation at all. The key is the term robotic, as RPA is designed for highly-repetitive manual activities. These micro-workflows are designed to simulate human operations at a computer screen; they’re task-focused far more than they are process-focused. They definitely eliminate manual activity, but their ability to automate anything other than basic decision-making is out of scope.

Contrary to its name, RPA is not actually designed for “process” automation at all. The key is the term robotic, as RPA is designed for highly-repetitive manual activities. These micro-workflows are designed to simulate human operations at a computer screen; they’re task-focused far more than they are process-focused. They definitely eliminate manual activity, but their ability to automate anything other than basic decision-making is out of scope. Read On: