RPA And API – All The Details You Should Know About

Businesses across industries have started to adopt automation technologies. This is the reason why new automation softwares/technologies are being introduced in the market every now and then. But with an abundance of potential options, businesses might feel overwhelmed choosing one automation service.

RPA and API are two popularly used automation technologies. According to experts, 64% of companies have started introducing RPA into their businesses. Moreover, more than 45% of companies have API as their top concern. So instead of spending time discovering other options, make a choice from these two.

But before you get started with choosing between RPA and API, you must have a detailed understanding of both. Don’t worry if you have minimal knowledge about RPA and API. In today’s blog, we are going to understand both of these automation technologies in detail. Without any further ado, let’s get started.

What is RPA?

The acronym for RPA is Robotic Process Automation. It refers to robots specifically designed to perform one or more tasks performed in software without the intervention of a human. Artificial intelligence (AI) can support the automation process. Depending on their complexity, the resources requested vary in importance.

The principle is based on a learning system which modulates the involvement of RPA within a given digital environment. The use cases of RPA are very diverse. They can range from the automatic management of replies to certain emails to more complex processing. For example, accounting reconciliation, opening customer contracts, daily reporting from multiple sources, etc.

What Are The Benefits of RPA?

RPA is increasingly being used in organisations in both the public and private sectors. It helps to work more effectively and efficiently and to put the customer more centrally. But what does RPA bring you? We discuss the seven most essential advantages of the software below.

• Save Costs And Time
By automating repetitive actions, robotic automation not only performs these actions a lot faster than employees, but it can also work 24/7. This reduces the time spent plausibly, which also reduces the costs.

• Prevention of Errors
In processes carried out by employees, the risk of human error is high. Mistakes are human, and nothing can be changed. However, if an RPA takes over the process, it eliminates these errors. Robotic automation acts precisely as it is configured and will always follow the established rules. As long as he is set up properly, he will not make any mistakes in this.

• Increased Quality
Eliminating these types of errors then logically increases the quality of your processes and products. In addition, the time employees have left on innovation and process improvements can be spent, which will also increase quality.

• Improved Results
This increased quality then ensures improved results. Because if you have a higher quality of products and services, more people will want to buy them from you. And because your employees have more time for more substantive tasks, which add more value for your organisation and customers, the business results will also increase.

• Higher Employee Satisfaction
Firstly, the workload decreases due to the elimination of RPA, which benefits employee satisfaction. Secondly, employees have more time for more substantive, more complex tasks that they get more pleasure out of. They often find these kinds of time-consuming, repetitive actions boring and not challenging. If they no longer have to carry it out, their job satisfaction will also increase. They can spend this time, for example, working on their own competencies or further developing skills.

• Increased Manoeuvrability
By applying RPA, new applications can be added to the existing IT architecture faster without the need for drastic changes. This way, new products can be brought to market more quickly, and you ensure that you as an organisation are agile.

• Easy to Integrate
The last of the many benefits of RPA is the way of integrating the software worth mentioning. It can easily be integrated with your current systems, so you don’t have to make major changes to your IT architecture. This not only ensures that RPA can be implemented quickly but also that you save time and the ROI is achieved quickly.

What is API?

The abbreviation API stands for ‘application programming interface’, but this does not say much about what an API does. We give here the explanation of an API for use within application Integration. A simple way to understand what an API does is to compare it to a translator at the United Nations. Almost all countries talk to each other during a meeting and speak largely in their own language.

Imagine that each representative of the different countries has to learn all the languages before they can participate in a consultation. Everyone spends more time learning languages than they are there for and the threshold for a new country to participate is hugely high. The solution is, of course, to create translators who can translate everything very specifically.

The result is that all countries can participate in their own language, and for a new country, the threshold to participate falls away. Chances are that several countries speak the same language, and you only need a few translators to provide multiple countries with participation.

Benefits of API links

Connecting programs through API has several interesting advantages. Some of those advantages are as follows:

• Integration:
Separate systems become one whole through links together. This provides more insight and efficiency.

• Possibility of Automation:
By linking PostNL to your webshop, for example, a shipping label can be automatically created as soon as a new order arrives. And by linking with your accounting package, an invoice is automatically created and processed.

• Save Time And Costs:
An API link makes it possible to change data in one system and automatically update it in another system. That saves a lot of time (and therefore money!). And, of course, automation of repetitive tasks also saves a lot of time.

• Prevents Human Error:
Typing data with a link is a thing of the past. This greatly prevents the risk of human error.

• Interesting For Customers:
Do you make an API available for your software? Or have you even built links with other packages? That gives your solution a nice advantage over competitors.

Creative Processing:
By linking data from Buienradar to Mailchimp, you can, for example, send your newsletter (about rainwear) as soon as it rains. That’s just one example of creative ways of linking data.

Final Words

So this is a basic overview of what exactly RPA and API are. We hope you now have a good understanding of both of these automation technologies. With the above information consumed, you can now continue to make a choice for your business. Lastly, do let us know what automation software you choose.