Empowers business users to execute bots with AARI, and saves a lot of time for developers and users
What is our primary use case?
I work for a company, and we mainly automate tasks that we deem necessary, which are often repetitive and mundane. Anything that can be automated to save costs, from the finance and manufacturing perspective, is automated.
We are currently considering how to use it for document automation so that we can read unstructured data, such as invoices, that is a little bit messy and hard for a standard rule-based OCR to understand. We are also looking at an AI solution that could do that for us.
In terms of integration, we use tools like SAP. That is a big one. We have integrated Python scripting a lot. We also use Active Directory.
How has it helped my organization?
The advantage of Automation Anywhere is that it automates the mundane jobs that are brainless or take up time out of people's day that they could use to do other tasks. That was the main challenge that we wanted to address by implementing Automation Anywhere. We wanted to free up time in other areas by automating jobs that would make good candidates to do so.
It is built keeping business users in mind. Every single human being who uses a computer uses a UI, so automating those clicks is not a very complicated thing. You are just telling the computer what to do. In that respect, they try to make it as simple as possible to use things like Excel, send emails with Outlook, and automate clicks on a computer. That part is done well.
Allowing business users to trigger the bot means that I do not have to worry about scheduling or triggering the bots. I can just give them the keys to the car and let them do whatever they want to do. It saves time. We spend less time micromanaging and more time developing.
I have heard from people who are using these bots that it is saving them hours every week, every day, or so. They start to see those time savings instantly.
What is most valuable?
AARI allows business users to trigger the bot, so I do not have to schedule everything. This convenience allows users to utilize it as they need. I can set it up to provide users with a form to fill in all required information, and then the bot operates based on those specifications. AARI is very convenient, and that is their biggest selling point.
What needs improvement?
I have found that Automation Anywhere is prone to bugs in handling Excel. It breaks and gives vague error messages. I have had a lot of experience with that and learned that it is better to write a Python script instead of using Automation Anywhere's package when dealing with Excel because it is buggy and tends to break, unfortunately.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have only been using it for about seven months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I do not remember having any problems. It usually does not lag or crash. Some packages, like Excel, can behave unpredictably, but I have never had any issues with the application itself.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I do not have much information about scalability. When use cases come, I just build them and move on.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Before Automation Anywhere, I used Power Automate by Microsoft. I prefer Automation Anywhere because it is more robust. It allows us to build more powerful applications. Power Automate was great for small-scale things, but it had its limitations.
How was the initial setup?
It was already deployed when I got here.
In terms of maintenance, the updates happen monthly. I do not have to do anything, but there is some maintenance when users want to get connected to run bots. There is a little bit of upkeep that happens there. Other developers sometimes do not have the necessary permissions. That process is not particularly painstaking. It is usually painless. There are two or three of us involved in the maintenance. We spend very little time on maintenance. It does not happen too often.
What other advice do I have?
In our organization, there is a fairly steep learning curve because we have a very particular framework in terms of the way that we handle our bots and our processes. This is likely not the case with other organizations that do not have a similar framework. We like to break down our bots in a very particular way, and we like to control our bots' inputs with configuration files and use Python scripting to handle a lot of work rather than using Automation Anywhere's packages because it is more effective, but then there is a little bit of a steeper learning curve.
I never had to train somebody who is not technical on how to use Automation Anywhere, but you could teach someone how to make something super simple in 30 minutes, and then give them an hour. You can quickly teach them how to send themselves email reminders or do something similar, so you could get going pretty quickly.
Overall, I would rate Automation Anywhere an eight out of ten. It does what it does well.
Boosts efficiency in billing management and significantly reduces costs
What is our primary use case?
I am an assistant professor in a DMI institute in our country. In our institute, we have to manage a lot of invoice billing. I have been using the bots to automate and maintain invoicing in our institute.
We have also been using AI. I have created many projects, such as a virtual assistant, to automate tasks in our institute.
How has it helped my organization?
Automation has been playing a significant role in every aspect of our institution. In our institution, it is very difficult to manually manage more than 1,000 people's data. I like the ability to automate and the bot feature in Automation Anywhere.
Previously, we were doing everything manually. We needed a lot of people to do the work manually. We need 20 to 30 people to manage invoice billing every day. With Automation Anywhere, it has become very easy for us to do invoice billing. It has saved us about 80% of the time. We only need 10 people now. Financially, it has helped us a lot because we can manage tasks very easily with few people. The workload has been reduced by using automation.
I like to make use of Co-Pilot with every task because it is very reliable. They have improved it a lot. I like to use it every day and integrate it with my software. A task that takes months can be done in weeks with the help of Co-Pilot. It helps us save time and do other tasks. It saves a lot of time for employees to do or prioritize other tasks.
In terms of integration, some of our staff have been using the integration of Automation Anywhere with Microsoft 365, but I have not integrated it.
What is most valuable?
The interface is really nice and user-friendly. Anyone can start right away.
What needs improvement?
I have been using IQ Bot, and its accuracy can be improved. It could be more accurate.
Managing all the bots in the control room can be a difficult task for a large organization. The control room features could be enhanced for better performance.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Automation Anywhere for around one year in my institute.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
At times, I faced some issues with Internet connectivity, even though I had a good Internet connection. This happened at the initial stage, but over the last five to six months, they have improved a lot. Other than that, everything is perfect. I would rate it a nine out of ten for stability.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It is scalable. I would rate it a nine out of ten for scalability.
The automation is used by 60 to 100 people on a regular basis. Around 50 to 100 people use it at intervals. They are not using it regularly in our institute. Overall, there are about 200 to 250 users.
Around 30 to 40 people are involved in maintaining the bots that we have been using. We usually assign them tasks to maintain the bots weekly. It takes a few hours. It is not a big deal.
How are customer service and support?
Support is really good and genuine. I would rate their support a nine out of ten.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We have not used anything other than Automation Anywhere. We were introduced to this by an employee of one of my friends, and we have been using it. We have not used any other solution.
How was the initial setup?
For a non-technical person, it can be a little bit complex, but it gets easier with time. A couple of days are enough to learn and deploy it.
We have five to six people involved in its deployment.
What was our ROI?
It has helped us save a lot of time and money. It helped us a lot financially.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
It is reasonable and affordable. If you consider the tasks that we can get done using this, the pricing is reasonable and affordable.
What other advice do I have?
Overall, it is not very difficult, but initially, it can be a bit difficult to understand how the bot works. Over time, even a non-technical person can manage it. A week or ten days would be enough to learn everything and start using Automation Anywhere.
I would suggest starting small for anyone new to Automation Anywhere. I would also recommend learning and gaining experience from those who are already experienced. Other than that, it is fine. I would definitely recommend Automation Anywhere to everyone.
I would rate Automation Anywhere a solid eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
Bots using AA
What do you like best about the product?
It is easy to learn the tool even for people with no programming/coding experience. It is a drag-and-drop interface. Speaking specifically about AA360, it is supported on both Windows and Linux systems and the bots can be controlled from anywhere. There are more actions available in AA360 compared to AA v11.
What do you dislike about the product?
There are limitations in the complexity of the logic that can be built using AA. Transitioning from Automation Anywhere v11 to AA360 is a challenge and there is a lot of the bot that would have to be reworked. Some actions in the Image recognition package need not capture the data accurately the first time.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
You can easily learn the tool and make bots for a wide range of processes. These processes can be scheduled in the control room and monitored easily. It significantly reduces the time taken to do tasks manually.
Simplifies automation with Recorder and ease of use, and their licensing is also favourable
What is our primary use case?
My use case essentially involves in-house projects centered around invoice automation. They have their own mailbox where the client uploads invoices and payment information. My responsibilities include downloading, storing, and reviewing these invoices using automation. Additionally, I am tasked with automating scenarios that were previously manual processes. I am responsible for structuring the tasks, handling exceptions for efficiency, and ensuring automated email notifications are sent to clients if there are any discrepancies or missing values.
Previously, I worked with hospital automation. I had to create automation for hospital care to store patient data in some databases.
I have also designed a solution for document or file transfers and backups, as well as intelligent document processing, where I had to extract meaningful data from unstructured or semi-structured invoices. I had to train my bot to extract the required details from the invoices and store them in a database or a CSV file.
Going forward, I see a potential use of AI for automation related to chatbots, websites, and data visualization. I also see potential in doing repetitive tasks in a more thorough and error-free way.
How has it helped my organization?
It is pretty simple to learn. It is user-friendly, so people can learn it quickly. A person without a basic knowledge of IT or programming logic would need at least a month to understand how it works and how to code in Automation Anywhere. An experienced person would just require about 15 days.
I was previously a backend software developer, so I am good with coding. I work with multiple RPA tools such as UiPath, Automation Anywhere, and Power Automate. I find these low-code or no-code solutions to be very easy. Automation Anywhere is pretty simple. It is UI-based with just the drag-and-drop functionalities. If I want to use any of the functionalities, I just have to search for that functionality and drag and drop it. After that, I only need to take care of the logic. It has been very helpful for me. It is very easy to use.
Automation Anywhere allows us to create unattended bots. These bots can work 24/7 with high accuracy and reduced costs. Last year, we made significant advancements with IQ Bots processing financial documents. It offered cost efficiency and reduced the errors typical of manual processes.
For our use cases, I integrated Automation Anywhere with Salesforce and some CRMs such as Zoho CRM. I also integrated the ChatGPT API. Automation Anywhere and other RPA solutions do a great job when it comes to integration.
They have done a good job in terms of licensing and cloud performance. They keep evolving with new technologies such as Generative AI. It works very well for processing any unstructured or semi-structured data. With OCR, we can extract meaningful data from hundreds or thousands of invoices.
What is most valuable?
The recorders are highly beneficial when automating web scraping or web automation tasks. With the recorder, I can capture all the XPath and HTML data, which can be selected in different forms like a dropdown list, radio buttons, or a click event. In Automation Anywhere, the recorder is one of the most valuable and used functionalities.
Additionally, it includes features supporting PDF handling, Advanced Excel, Basic Excel, and XML Path. In a recent project, I integrated ChatGPT APIs with Automation Anywhere to manage email responses, enhancing communication with clients.
Automation Anywhere has done a pretty good job with Automation Anywhere Academy. There are some certifications and basic courses in the academy. If you are working as a developer, as a business analyst, or as an RPA lead, there are separate courses for that.
What needs improvement?
There are occasional technical issues, particularly with cloud operations. Sometimes, the bot struggles to initiate on the cloud, even when everything appears in place. This issue occasionally requires uninstalling and reinstalling a component on my PC, although I cannot recall the specific component involved. I often need to stop and restart system services to get the bot process working correctly, which can be frustrating.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have four years of overall experience, including two and a half years as an RPA developer.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Occasionally, there are initial startup issues. Other than that, the platform runs smoothly, and the deployment process is user-friendly in both UAT and production environments. Assigning tasks to runner machines and developers is efficient.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The platform excels in scalability.
How are customer service and support?
Automation Anywhere community support is helpful. They are not always quick to respond, but they provide solutions.
At times, some issues require additional research due to inadequate documentation. Some errors were not yet encountered by others, so I could not find any solutions in their community. It required extra effort on my part to find a solution.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I use Automation Anywhere, UiPath, and Power Automate. I have good hands-on experience with Automation Anywhere.
Drawing on my experience with UiPath and other RPA tools, Automation Anywhere is user-friendly and less complex. It ranks second or third in the RPA market, while UiPath holds the top spot. Automation Anywhere is effectively capturing market share through favorable licensing terms, and it continues to expand.
How was the initial setup?
It is deployed in the cloud.
The initial setup was handled by the system team in my current company. In my previous company, I manually set up the system, assigning roles like bot runner and creator through the control board. The process is easy. You just need to remember the steps.
In terms of bot deployment, you can deploy a fully functional bot in less than 15 minutes if you have a clear understanding of which machine is the bot runner, which machine is free, and which machine is already logged in. You also have to take care of the credentials. After deployment, you also need to test the bot.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Automation Anywhere has an advantage in terms of licensing. It is more cost-efficient compared to all other RPA platforms. It is a recommended solution when clients need a cost-efficient automation tool to perform unattended automation.
What other advice do I have?
When it comes to user experience, Automation Anywhere scores a nine out of ten for ease of use, even for those new to the tool. Non-technical staff can quickly learn it with the help of Automation Anywhere Academy. However, improvements are needed for lagging issues and undocumented problems.
Overall, based on my experience with Automation Anywhere, I would rate it a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Other
Review about automation anywhere
What do you like best about the product?
The most used tool for daily business task automation which saved time and effort of a human. Automation anywhere offers the best integration with different applications to automate business process. The ease of use of the automation anywhere tool makes developers to work with tool more comfortably.
What do you dislike about the product?
The user interface design of the tool could have been more better and it would be better if it offers flexibility in connecting to other applications frequent updates required in the tool.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Automation anywhere had limited Ai and ML capabilities and now this is being solved, lack of support from the community team and automation anywhere team is working on this aspect also.
Empowers organizations with the most advanced OCR capabilities
What is our primary use case?
I see opportunities to utilize AI in banking, mainly check validation and customer churn prediction. Additionally, my work with a Pharmaceutical focused on R&D and supply chain presents further opportunities for AI implementation.
How has it helped my organization?
For each full-time employee, we can deploy one bot, automating approximately 75 percent of their tasks.
Automation Anywhere makes tasks more cost-efficient.
Automation Anywhere enables us to achieve a 90 percent compliance rate.
For organizations with technical teams, Automation Anywhere serves as an excellent tool.
The learning curve is generally beneficial, especially with the rise of remote learning opportunities. However, businesses may find the transition challenging. Automation Anywhere is a valuable tool for technical teams, although it currently lacks generative AI capabilities like those offered by OpenAI and Azure. While RPA continues to evolve, it remains a strong asset for those with technical expertise.
Non-technical personnel can be trained to use Automation Anywhere in approximately two weeks. The training involves a standard checklist, a knowledge transfer session, a reverse KT session, and supervised practice. This approach ensures that individuals are fully prepared to use Automation Anywhere effectively within two weeks.
Our automation and AI strategy prioritizes delivering immediate value to customers. We begin by identifying and addressing their most pressing issues to demonstrate the benefits of Automation Anywhere. This approach allows us to establish credibility and build strong customer relationships, paving the way for tackling more complex challenges later on.
In the six months since integrating Azure with OpenAI, security teams have granted initial approval for using generative AI, leading to productive discussions on its implementation.
I have worked with the core banking system, which is fully integrated with Automation Anywhere. This includes call management, voice integration, and check validation using OCR scanning. Through this system, the entire core banking process is end-to-end and automated.
The integration is successful, demonstrating consistent accuracy rates exceeding 80 percent. Utilizing Automation Anywhere OCR scanning has proven effective and beneficial for our operations.
Automation Anywhere is easy to upgrade.
What is most valuable?
The OCR feature in Automation Anywhere is the best I have encountered, even better than Google.
What needs improvement?
The initial cost of Automation Anywhere, including license fees and integration costs, is high. It is challenging for business users to operationalize the tool independently. Improving features linked to Gen AI and data processing could reduce dependency on ETL processes, allowing more tasks to be handled within Automation Anywhere.
Although Automation Anywhere is a GUI-based platform with drag-and-drop functionality, non-technical business users struggle to implement it due to the complexities of operationalizing automation within a business context. While a technical user can bridge the gap between the platform and specific business needs by collaborating with domain experts, non-technical users lack the understanding to effectively utilize the platform's features, resulting in a low success rate for independent implementation.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Automation Anywhere for six to seven years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Automation Anywhere is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Automation Anywhere is highly scalable for both horizontal and vertical expansions.
How are customer service and support?
Customer service is good. Our internal COE provides support, and if needed, Automation Anywhere engineers are involved directly.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Previously, I used Blue Prism and Watson. Watson was primarily for the healthcare domain.
How was the initial setup?
The initial deployment of Automation Anywhere is straightforward and can be completed in one week, assuming prompt support from the infrastructure team. The only potential delays stem from internal bureaucracy, not the tool's limitations.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The initial setup and licensing fees are high, and although it saves costs in the long run, reaching the break-even point can take at least six months. This means an initial investment may not yield returns for a year, which is often not feasible due to budget constraints. To address this, we offer amortization options, bearing the initial cost to help clients get started and then transitioning those costs into ongoing implementation support. This approach allows us to win contracts despite the high initial investment.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Automation Anywhere an eight out of ten. While it's a robust tool, costs could be more competitive.
Automation Anywhere requires a dedicated maintenance team, with a recommended ratio of ten technicians for every hundred users, to ensure optimal performance and stability.
The automation team handles bot maintenance directly, eliminating the need for a separate maintenance team.
Eliminates extensive coding and integrates well with enterprise applications
What is our primary use case?
I am working specifically in the finance sector of every single business. Currently, I am collaborating with the finance department of a company to automate their reconciliation and other processes. It works well with ERP automation and similar tasks.
How has it helped my organization?
Before Automation Anywhere, we had Python automation packages. The challenging part about that was it required a lot of coding and error handling. That becomes very complicated, whereas in Automation Anywhere, we already have the framework. We just need to put the logic and all the error handling is done by the Automation Anywhere framework. It is quite good. The availability of frameworks for error handling allowing users to insert logic without additional handling is valuable.
They have an AI platform with GenAI implemented to help us generate anything that is necessary for automation.
Co-Pilot is an interface between a human and a bot. It helps us to give basic instructions or human-related intelligence to a particular bot to complete certain processes. It is quite an important part of automation when we need a human to decide what to do.
It definitely increases productivity. If a human takes six to seven hours to complete a process, a bot can do it within two to three hours with the help of a human if we include Co-Pilot.
When it comes to integration, I have integrated Automation Anywhere with Microsoft Dynamics, Excel, SAP, and Salesforce. All business and enterprise applications are pretty compatible with Automation Anywhere.
The benefits of Automation Anywhere can be seen immediately.
What is most valuable?
Automation Anywhere has a drag-and-drop feature eliminating the need for extensive coding.
It has a large supportive community. They support you at every single step. Their Apeople community is similar to the GitHub community. They are immensely helpful in developing automation bots.
What needs improvement?
One area requiring improvement is the debugging process. When I use a multi-structure with conditions to switch from one bot to another, successful debugging of the entire process is not feasible. Each bot has to be debugged individually.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Automation Anywhere for almost four and a half years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability of the automation depends on the applications being automated. For very old or legacy applications, there may be crashes. However, with the latest applications, there are no significant issues like freezing or crashing.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It is quite flexible. For cloud-based applications, there is the option of APIs. For Windows-based applications, it provides UI interface automation, which enhances its scalability.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support is quite good, offering silver, gold, and diamond levels depending on the license. I have had instances of contacting support for compatibility issues, and they provide solutions such as patches. On a scale of one to ten, I would rate the support as eight.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have used Microsoft's Power Automate, which is excellent for automation processes within Microsoft-related products. However, it lacks efficacy with other applications such as SAP, Salesforce, and others.
How was the initial setup?
The setup varies with the deployment type. Cloud deployment is straightforward with only a few steps. Dealing with on-premises can be more complex due to customization for specific organizational needs.
The upgrades are quite easy. You just need to select the appropriate version suitable for your business. You need to contact Automation Anywhere, and they will do it for you. There are no hidden charges.
It requires maintenance. If you update your basic application, you also need to update Automation Anywhere to that level. If your application is old or not compatible with Automation Anywhere, they can create some sort of patch to link those applications together.
What about the implementation team?
A single person can manage the deployment if they are purchasing the correct license with support. Alternatively, without direct support, an organization might need at least one professional and one developer.
What other advice do I have?
For business users, there is a separate dashboard and UI to help automate their process. If you are very new to Automation Anywhere but have a basic knowledge of your processes, you can directly automate with Automation Anywhere. If you have basic knowledge of any programming language, it is easy. You can also go to Automation Anywhere University and go through some basic videos. A new person can get started with it within 15 days.
I would rate Automation Anywhere an eight out of ten overall.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Approachable platform allows automation across multiple virtual devices
What is our primary use case?
Our company uses Automation Anywhere for enterprise automation of various finance tasks, focusing on accounting. This includes processing accounts payable invoices, managing oil and gas revenue, extracting data from text, and downloading files from our ERP system. These automated processes, some of which are business-critical and complex, enhance efficiency and accuracy within our finance operations.
How has it helped my organization?
Automation Anywhere has helped to address process bottlenecks and departmental inefficiency. It is used as an attempt to streamline operations.
It simplifies the management of complex workloads.
Automation Anywhere has a significant learning curve, but it is understandable and reasonable. Having a support team makes the process easier compared to learning it independently.
The training for non-technical users takes one to two months.
We've integrated numerous tools with Automation Anywhere, most notably our accounting system, which is interfaced via SQL and terminal. Additionally, we utilize RPA to interact with various systems employed by other departments.
What is most valuable?
One of the strengths of Automation Anywhere is its user-friendly interface, which makes it accessible even to those without a development background. As someone who began with no coding knowledge, I found it a great entry point into the world of automation. This accessibility, compared to tools like UiPath, stems from its intuitive design. Furthermore, the capacity to deploy RPA solutions across various virtual devices, a common feature in RPA, is invaluable for streamlining and scaling automation efforts.
Automation Anywhere's API feature is a fantastic offering, providing the valuable ability to call or execute tasks.
What needs improvement?
As a developer, I find Automation Anywhere's bot editor riddled with minor workflow issues that hinder productivity. For instance, the broken bot package versioning system prevents copying and pasting code between bots with different package versions, a stark contrast to the flexibility of Python. This inconvenience arises even when transferring code between bots within the same process, significantly disrupting workflow. While there are other minor improvements I could suggest, Automation Anywhere has been, albeit slowly, addressing our concerns.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Automation Anywhere for five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability of Automation Anywhere is quite good, with few outages from the platform itself.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Automation Anywhere is a very scalable product capable of handling large-scale automation operations.
How are customer service and support?
In my experience, Automation Anywhere's technical support has been lacking. Many of their representatives don't understand the product enough to offer effective assistance. As a developer, it's frustrating to encounter issues and try to communicate them to support staff who seem unfamiliar with the underlying technology. This lack of product knowledge hinders effective troubleshooting and resolution.
Our current support plan is the most basic, so I don't anticipate a quick resolution. However, they generally respond within the expected timeframe for this level of support.
How would you rate customer service and support?
How was the initial setup?
Although I wasn't involved in deploying Automation Anywhere, I recall the process being straightforward and immediately successful for the company.
What about the implementation team?
The implementation included a team of four to five individuals supported by a contractor.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We evaluated UiPath and another product that I cannot recall.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Automation Anywhere a nine out of ten.
My experience upgrading Automation Anywhere from an on-premise solution to the cloud was challenging despite some helpful features. While a tool was provided to convert version 11 tasks to 360, it introduced unnecessary code during migration. This inefficiency may be specific to Automation Anywhere or a common issue with automation upgrades. Regardless, the process was lengthy and tedious.
Automation Anywhere requires considerable maintenance due to a combination of factors. Our automation of an older Java-based accounting solution causes some challenges. Additionally, automating browser-based tasks in large oil and gas SaaS companies leads to frequent breakage of bots when the underlying HTML or code changes. Consequently, ongoing maintenance is necessary and will be a permanent responsibility for our maintenance team, which includes our project leader and a group of developers.
Establish consistent policies and procedures before doing anything. This aligns with the Center of Excellence framework. Having clear, consistent policies is important before building bots and implementing solutions.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Other
Is easy to learn and use, even for individuals without technical skills
What is our primary use case?
I use Automation Anywhere for a range of automation tasks, including desktop, web, and SAP automation, as well as handling PDF exceptions and facilitating application-to-application automation. Additionally, I establish database connections to perform database automation.
How has it helped my organization?
Automation Anywhere is easy to learn and use, even for individuals without technical skills, due to its user-friendly interface.
The learning curve for non-technical users of Automation Anywhere is relatively gentle, allowing them to grasp the basic functionalities and build simple automation quickly.
Our goal is to reduce manual labor by 200,000 to 300,000 hours over the next five years. We are currently saving approximately 20,000 hours each year through automation, which will result in a total of 100,000 hours saved over five years. The benefits of using Automation Anywhere can be observed within two weeks of implementation.
Generative AI is used in some of our automation processes to eliminate paperwork within a three-hour timeframe.
I have integrated Automation Anywhere with various applications, including SAP, MySQL, and numerous desktop and web-based applications. My experience spans desktop applications, web-based applications like SAP Ariba and other portals, and automation of buying processes. I am confident that I have worked with the full spectrum of applications available in the current market, from desktop-based to cloud-based solutions.
Automation Anywhere can be easily integrated into our automation workflows.
Automation Anywhere saved directors five to seven hours of manual work daily and, from a business structure perspective, more than five times the savings.
What is most valuable?
Automation Anywhere is easy to use and user-friendly due to its intuitive interface and straightforward implementation architecture, making it accessible even for those without a technical background. Its community edition and clear process workflow make it easier to learn and develop on compared to UiPath or Power Automate, requiring less technical knowledge overall.
What needs improvement?
The AISense recorder in Automation Anywhere needs improvement in resilience and OCR capabilities, particularly in comparison to UiPath's superior OCR functionality. Furthermore, expanding the Automation Anywhere packages to include a wider range of desktop-based applications would enhance its utility.
Automation Anywhere needs to expand its reach across more industries by strengthening its sales team and increasing its market presence in India and globally. This broader approach will allow them to capture diverse sectors, increasing demand and creating more job opportunities within the company. This expansion is crucial, especially since the current client base utilizing Automation Anywhere remains limited.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Automation Anywhere for approximately five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Automation Anywhere is highly stable, and I rate its stability a ten out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Automation Anywhere allows for automation at scale, and I rate its scalability as a nine out of ten.
How are customer service and support?
Automation Anywhere has good support features.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Before using Automation Anywhere, manual methods were used.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was easy and took about a week. Two to three people were involved in the deployment.
What about the implementation team?
The deployment was handled by the IT department which involved two to three people.
What was our ROI?
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Automation Anywhere offers competitive and affordable pricing. However, a slight adjustment to align more closely with Power Automate's pricing structure could help them capture a larger share of the market.
I would rate the price of Automation Anywhere a six out of ten, with ten being the most expensive.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Other solutions evaluated include UiPath and Power Automate. UiPath provides better OCR and capture capabilities.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Automation Anywhere nine out of ten.
When I first became interested in the automation market, Automation Anywhere held a significant presence, especially during its expansion into India. While they continue to grow in the Indian market, they need to increase their market share compared to UiPath. From a developer's perspective, UiPath offers far more job opportunities. To be more competitive, Automation Anywhere should proactively expand its presence in industries like healthcare, telecom, and energy. This would lead to increased adoption of their product and create more job opportunities within the Automation Anywhere sector, ultimately benefiting the entire automation industry.
We have over 25 users of Automation Anywhere in our company.
The maintenance is done automatically by Automation Anywhere.
I would recommend using Automation Anywhere to others. It is a user-friendly tool, and developers can learn it quickly. Implementing automation often requires proof of concept, and Automation Anywhere is a viable option.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Other
Terminal emulator enhances efficiency while error handling needs improvement
What is our primary use case?
I have experience using Automation Anywhere to automate various processes, primarily in the banking domain. I've worked on credit card reconciliation for Citibank in Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia, as well as loan services and contract renewals for CIMB Malaysia. Additionally, I've utilized IQ Bot to analyze Twitter sentiment, identifying positive and negative comments to create service tickets. My experience includes working with ServiceNow, SAP, and mainframe environments, specifically IBM SQL Server.
How has it helped my organization?
Automation Anywhere has significantly transformed its platform. Previously, tasks were created and managed locally through the control room panel. However, with the introduction of cloud technology, users can now build and deploy tasks directly in the cloud. By installing a bot agent runner on their systems, tasks can be executed automatically. Furthermore, the platform now integrates with Git and Azure repositories, enabling version control and collaborative development. This means multiple users can work on a single project simultaneously, enhancing efficiency and promoting agile methodologies. Additionally, the platform offers automated code review capabilities, allowing users to track changes and identify contributors. The control room manager also receives email notifications for any modifications made. This transition to the cloud has been a gradual process, spanning two to three years, and has significantly improved the platform's accessibility and functionality.
Automation Anywhere has a two to three-month learning curve.
Integrating Copilot into our system is straightforward. From a chatbot perspective, we can use it for tasks like sending emails or completing daily assignments. By utilizing Automation Anywhere, we can build an agent that functions as a Copilot, automating tasks for us. Copilot is also integrated with machine learning models, providing prompts and responses that can be modified as needed. Its user-friendly interface and ability to integrate with existing applications make it a valuable tool for streamlining daily tasks and improving efficiency.
Copilot has helped to improve our productivity by up to 30 percent.
With the use of Automation Anywhere, the organization has seen improved efficiency, particularly with the introduction of IQ Bot and Metabot for tasks such as extracting data from invoices and purchase orders. The combination of RPA with AI and cloud solutions has considerably transformed our processes, allowing for intelligent document processing and seamless system integration, thus streamlining operations.
I use a variety of AI technologies for our research and development, including generative AI, custom bit models, GPT-4, and LaMDA. We've also built our own product for GPT-4 called Thor, which utilizes intelligent document processing to extract data from contracts, purchase orders, invoices, and receipts. This data is then integrated with our machine-learning models and downstream systems. Our focus is on transforming our processes using RPA, AI, and cloud technologies, migrating existing systems to the cloud and enhancing them with AI and ML capabilities.
I have integrated Automation Anywhere with numerous applications, including Salesforce, ServiceNow, ITSM, SAP including S4/HANA and Fusion, Oracle including Oracle Fusion, Java Technologies, .NET Platform, Maple's Web Platform, various databases including QLS with dual database configurations, and Power Platform. I am also familiar with backend systems like Data Lake.
I enjoy using applications and API integration tools to efficiently connect systems. Our organization favours API automation, so we developed an ML-based automation product. We prioritize API integration for all applications, leveraging our back-end team and custom APIs for seamless connectivity. While UI automation can be time-consuming, API integration, especially with back-end services, is significantly faster. Our strategy involves collaborating with IT business partners to prioritize API development.
Automation Anywhere helps us save at least 85 percent of our costs.
What is most valuable?
I find the terminal emulator feature very valuable, particularly in how it interacts with IBM mainframe automation. The Control Room and credential vault are also noteworthy features. Control Room ensures security and access management by keeping credentials within a secure vault. The variable panel, with its comprehensive variety list, array, Boolean, and string types, is quite efficient. Additionally, Metabot stands out as an efficient tool for applications that change frequently.
Automation Anywhere's Metabot and IQ Bot have become increasingly efficient tools for automating tasks. IQ Bot, in particular, has evolved significantly since its launch. Initially, it struggled to effectively extract data from various document types like invoices and purchase orders. However, with the integration of built-in machine learning models, IQ Bot now excels at data extraction and processing. Furthermore, users can build custom models to suit their specific needs, leveraging Automation Anywhere's pre-trained models and readily available tools. This continuous development has made IQ Bot far more user-friendly and efficient than its earlier versions.
What needs improvement?
There are improvements needed in error handling processes, as currently, they rely on start and end error commands. A more strategic approach could enhance efficiency. While the implementation of a structured development approach has been introduced, further enhancements could be made to accommodate non-technical users better, perhaps by making the platform more accessible and user-friendly through a flowchart or diagram-based setup.
Automation Anywhere can be moderately challenging for business users without technical skills. While the platform offers some drag-and-drop functionality, building automation requires a strong understanding of logical operations and scripting. To become proficient, users may need to invest time in learning basic coding concepts or pursuing relevant certifications. This learning curve can mean that users typically require a few months of training before they can effectively build and implement automation.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Automation Anywhere for approximately eight years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I would rate the stability of Automation Anywhere as eight out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I would rate the scalability of Automation Anywhere as eight out of ten. Automation Anywhere is capable of scaling to automate multiple processes and tasks.
How are customer service and support?
Support for Automation Anywhere includes L1, L2, and L3 tiers, which respectively handle various levels of issues from preliminary checks to development challenges.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have used various other automation solutions including UiPath, Blue Prism, and NICE. Each of them offers different strengths, but Automation Anywhere stands out for its terminal emulator and credential vault.
How was the initial setup?
The initial deployment of Automation Anywhere is straightforward, conducted through the Control Room, where understanding task scheduling is vital for effectiveness. While verifying production readiness takes one day, the actual transition to production is a simple switch.
What was our ROI?
The implementation of Automation Anywhere has yielded substantial financial and time savings, effectively reducing the workforce by approximately 16 full-time equivalents within six months.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Automation Anywhere's pricing falls within the mid-range, but the long-term benefits outweigh the initial investment. After a year, significant cost savings and efficiency gains become apparent, justifying the expense.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Automation Anywhere a seven out of ten. The process of building a script is difficult due to the lack of clarity in identifying the problematic stages. While the code highlights issues, the studio's interface is not user-friendly, especially for those unfamiliar with scripting languages. This lack of intuitive design can make it challenging to utilize the solution effectively.
I started using Automation Anywhere during its beta version and continue to use the latest version for both cloud and desktop deployments. One challenge I faced was the extensive number of default commands, 545 in scripting, 2,565 in web and the need for scripting knowledge, particularly when interacting with other services or adjusting system settings. While Automation Anywhere promotes itself as scriptless, understanding coding concepts is beneficial, especially for tasks like connection manipulation. Although the platform offers a vast array of pre-built commands and drag-and-drop functionality, creating custom activities requires building DLLs, which can be complex. Overall, despite some tricky aspects, Automation Anywhere remains a robust tool for both scripting and scriptless automation development.
Upgrading Automation Anywhere can be complex because its products rely on the .NET framework. When namespaces, components, or libraries within the framework are updated, the entire system isn't always fully adjusted to these changes. This necessitates careful analysis of the specific modifications and their impact on the overall system, allowing for a comprehensive understanding of the upgrade's effects.
Our organization has over 45 users of Automation Anywhere.
Automation Anywhere requires monthly maintenance. While patching the virtual machines only requires a reboot with minimal impact on the production environment, any changes to the environment itself, such as modifications to personal systems or processes, will significantly impact production.
The time spent on bot maintenance varies based on the complexity of the tasks. Simple cloud server or production changes require minimal time, approximately two to three hours. Application changes are more involved, with L3 or L2 tickets potentially taking three to four days depending on the service level agreement and impact. Minor L1 tickets, such as troubleshooting malfunctioning ML or server downtime, can involve either small or large changes. Migrating environments, like transitioning from on-premise to cloud, constitutes a major change that can take a month or even a couple of months.
Automation Anywhere offers a robust infrastructure with advanced features like Metabot, IQ Bot, and seamless integration capabilities with AI technologies, making it a commendable choice for automation needs. However, users should have some technical knowledge before using the platform.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Other