CIOs, IT managers, and CTOs work in a challenging environment where there are many demands from the IT department daily. While automation tools have been around for decades and have helped ease the pressure and maintain sanity, automation is critical today more than ever.
As the world moves forward and technology evolves so does the way we do business. One new trend in automation is hyperautomation—an approach that allows IT managers to evaluate and quickly automate several processes at a go by making use of several technologies that include but aren’t limited to robotic process automation (RPA), machine learning (ML), artificial intelligence (AI), virtual assistants, low-code application platforms (LCAP), and process discovery and mining. With hyperautomation, IT departments and organizations as a whole can reduce manual tasks, increase efficiency, and take back control.
The following are the five top hyperautomation software tools and what they can offer your business.
What is Hyperautomation?
Hyperautomation is a term used to describe the ability of a software solution to automate tasks that are considered repetitive, mundane, and “a commodity” in nature in several systems.
In contrast to robotic process automation, where you automate repetitive tasks, hyperautomation is when you simultaneously automate many business systems and processes at a go.
Using the hyperautomation approach in an organization means boosting productivity levels while also freeing up valuable resources for more strategic business initiatives. In essence, the goal is to give organizations complete control over operations, so they can put their people where they matter most, doing what humans do best: thinking creatively and innovating new ideas using their experience and expertise.
As a concept, hyperautomation has been around for decades, but it’s just recently started gaining momentum as a technical revolution, transforming the way we run organizations.
To truly maximize hyperautomation, it’s imperative for enterprises first to identify and define which processes are ideal candidates for automation. This means taking a holistic approach toward getting rid of manual workflows and standardizing business processes across teams and departments by deploying software solutions that are capable of handling business process management (BPM).
Also read: Bringing Hyperautomation to ITOps
Top Hyperautomation Software Tools
There are many hyperautomation software solutions on the market. There is one for every need and purpose. Here’s a list of five of the top hyperautomation software tools you should consider trying out.
Automation Anywhere: Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
Automation Anywhere is a worldwide leader in robotic process automation, allowing clients to automate entire business processes using intelligent software bots—AI-powered digital workers that execute repetitive and manual activities, resulting in significant productivity gains, improved customer experience, and more engaged employees.
The company has built the only cloud-native and web-based automation platform that combines RPA, AI, ML, and analytics to deliver far lower total cost of ownership (TCO) and more security and scale faster than would be possible on legacy monolithic platforms.
Automation Anywhere also offers pre-built intelligent automation solutions through its Bot Store, which is the first and largest marketplace of its kind. In addition, the company has deployed almost 2.9 million bots to support some of the world’s largest organizations in more than 90 countries across a variety of industries.
Key Features
- Discovery Bot: Discover and document the best ROI automation possibilities in your organization with Discovery Bot. With the Private Bot Store, you may crowdsource your company’s most exemplary bot ideas and best practices.
- IQ Bot: With IQ Bot, you may double the number of automated processes by turning every piece of structured and unstructured data in any document into a consumable digital asset using AI and ML.
- Bot Insight: Take a real-time pulse check on every bot and access critical findings on each process to make data-driven decisions and improvements with Bot Insight.
- AARI digital assistants: At the core of the platform, RPA Workspace securely automates your repetitive operations. With AARI digital assistants in a single at-scale deployment, you can easily distribute automation power to everyone.
Pros
- Automation Anywhere has an intuitive UI and simple design, making it easy to build bots.
- IT administrators can manage permissions across all users in the organization without having to create separate accounts.
- Automation Anywhere offers good integration support with numerous other business applications.
- It provides a comprehensive RPA support ecosystem, which includes the Automation Anywhere University, A-People online community, a Developer Portal, and 24/7 technical support.
Cons
- Some users have complained about the lack of advanced optical character recognition (OCR) usability.
- Control room features can be confusing due to too many roles and therefore needs some improvement.
Pricing
Pricing information is not available on the website, but the company offers a 30-day free trial.
Alteryx: AI and Machine Learning
Businesses are using AI to create new possibilities for utilizing their data. Instead of staring at a sea of disconnected data points, they can now discover valuable insights. Alteryx speeds up the activities involved in organizing and analyzing data, allowing teams to focus on creating more accurate models faster.
Alteryx can help you extract information from all of your company’s documents, including PDFs, images, and unstructured data, using sophisticated natural language processing (NLP) and OCR.
Low-code solutions like Alteryx give non-technical business users and citizen developers the power of expert data analysts. You can use ML to delve into vast quantities of data that humans cannot handle, find the optimal methods to complete a process, and experiment with new options simultaneously.
Key Features
- Quickly create ML pipelines: Upload your data, draw insights with simple drag-and-drop tools, and create an ML model in just minutes.
- Turn raw data into actionable intelligence: Use pre-built connectors to access all of the structured and unstructured information needed for advanced analytics without writing a single line of code.
- Easily integrate models across platforms: Alteryx’s unique approach to ML pipelines makes it simple to work with models created on other platforms.
- Text extraction: Easily extract text from PDFs, images, and other documents using OCR and Computer Vision.
- Automated feature engineering: Automatically create and test variables to discover hidden relationships embedded in data.
- Topic modeling and sentiment analysis: Predict future trends or discover hidden patterns in your text with AI-based algorithms.
Pros
- Alteryx is a low-code platform that is extremely easy for non-technical users, citizen developers, and business analysts alike.
- The platform’s user interface saves time by streamlining the process of data discovery through ML algorithms that understand humans.
- Alteryx provides users with an easy-to-use platform that can be accessed anywhere in the world via a web browser without any coding knowledge required.
- Alteryx offers good integration support with numerous other business applications.
- The platform has an active user community to help with any problem.
Cons
- Some users have complained about limitations in uploading .xlxb files.
Pricing
Alteryx has several pricing tiers depending on the product package, as shown in the extract from its pricing page below.
There is a 30-day free trial, and all prices are billed annually per user.
Zendesk Support Suite: Chatbots
Zendesk Support Suite helps your organization automate its support. With this tool, you can have natural conversations with customers. It’s sophisticated enough to address complicated demands yet easy enough to get up and running right away.
To assist your clients with more brain power, Zendesk employs the Answer Bot—an AI program that works in tandem with your support team to assist consumers. This tool can answer common queries and determine whether or not an agent should be called in for help.
Key Features
- Omnichannel support: Agents can interact with customers quickly through email, phone, chat, social media, and many other collaboration platforms within one dashboard.
- Flow Builder: The solution to setting up your Answer Bot is Flow Builder, which gives you the ability to control the conversation between it and clients. You can publish a flow in multiple languages after you’ve set it up. All of this is achieved in a few clicks using no code at all.
- Bring your own bot: Zendesk offers an open and flexible platform that allows you to bring your bot into the platform.
- Integrations: Through its marketplace, you can find perfect pre-built chatbots.
Pros
- The customizable support platform is for all client needs.
- Create reporting/metrics via third-party vendors.
- Zendesk Support Suite offers integrations with numerous other automation applications.
- Managers can use macros, triggers, and automation to build workflows that make it easier for agents to respond to clients in a standard and organized way.
- Answer Bot is always on duty and ready to assist agents, whether they’re logged in or not.
- Answer Bot can solve low-priority issues. The bot passes all customer information to the agent if an agent is required.
- It requires little effort to get started. You can have Answer Bot up and running in a matter of minutes.
Cons
- Customers have complained that the support system and knowledge base need improvement.
Pricing
Zendesk has four pricing tiers billed per agent per month as follows:
- Foundational Support: $19 (Answer Bot not included)
- Suite Team: $49
- Suite Growth: $79
- Suite Professional: $99
- Suite Enterprise $150
Tailored plans are also available from $215 per user per month.
All plans come with a free trial, and early-stage startups can get free access for six months if they meet the qualifying criteria.
Celonis: Process Discovery and Mining
Celonis is an execution management system (EMS) that fully automates several business processes to help you gain a competitive edge. It can perform complex data and business process analytics that could take days or weeks in just seconds. This makes it easier for users to identify problem areas, errors, or other issues in your business processes that may be slowing down your business’s performance with simple visualizations.
Key Features
- Real-time data ingestion: Celonis gives you the ability to gather time-stamped event logs and desktop clicks in real time to understand your processes like never before.
- Process and task mining: Actively identify bottlenecks and inefficiencies to take proactive steps towards process improvement.
- Planning and simulation: The Celonis EMS is designed to look ahead, allowing you to make better judgments and devise your approach. Simulate how adjustments in your procedures will affect business results, and prepare for them.
- Visual and daily management: Everyone can utilize data and intelligence in their daily operations. These views offer proactive insights, prioritized activities, next-best-action recommendations, and suggested automations to help ensure that everyone on the team can complete each step in a process for the best possible result.
Pros
- Quickly understand existing processes and identify process gaps and bottlenecks.
- Celonis allows you to zero in on processes that move the needle.
- Avoid information overload with intelligent insights.
- The software eliminates mistakes made by humans when performing repetitive tasks.
- You can make an impact at every level of the organization using Celonis.
Cons
- Celonis requires a high level of expertise; therefore, the solution is only as good as its users. Users must have an advanced understanding of how business process analytics work, which may be difficult for those with less extensive knowledge or lack the necessary time to acquire it if they want to use this platform effectively.
Pricing
Celonis does not provide pricing information on its website. However, the company offers a free plan to test the platform. You can also book a demo.
ProcessMaker: Intelligent Business Process Management Software (iBPMS)
At the heart of a hyperautomation ecosystem is the iBPMS that holds it all together. ProcessMaker is an all-in-one BPM software that allows companies to automate their workflow and improve efficiency, effectiveness, and security by bringing together hyperautomation tools in a fully coordinated system.
Low-code tools allow your organization’s success to be driven by anyone on the team—even novice coders with little coding expertise.
Key Features
- Low-code BPM software: This includes a drag-and-drop process modeler, form builder, and Actions by Email, which allows decision-makers to approve requests directly from email or Slack.
- Third-party system support: Connect to dozens of legacy software systems via API.
- Connectors: The tool has authentication, document, processes, and SAP connectors to integrate numerous tools.
- Robotic process automation: Use ProcessMaker’s out-of-the-box connectors with popular RPA vendors, like Automation Anywhere, to leverage RPA bots in your processes.
Pros
- ProcessMaker has an easy-to-use dashboard and an overall gentle learning curve.
- The low-code approach is appreciated by citizen developers.
- ProcessMaker allows white-labeling (rebranding) for software providers.
- You can use several automation platforms from within ProcessMaker to help automate and orchestrate all your processes.
Cons
- Complex processes require some basic knowledge of coding.
Pricing
ProcessMaker has two pricing tiers:
- Standard: $1,495 per month billed annually plus per user pricing
- Enterprise: $2,479 per month billed annually plus per user pricing
Custom pricing is available for Single Process Application, White Label, OEM, and others.
Customers can also request a free demo by completing an online form. A free trial is also available upon request.
Getting Started with Hyperautomation Tools
The time has come for a hyperautomation revolution. However, with so many tools to choose from and such incredible potential, it can be hard to know where to start with selecting the right software.
The best approach is to begin by defining your business problem and selecting the tool that solves it. A hyperautomation strategy must be guided by a comprehensive corporate strategy. When automation is included in the overall strategy, all the stakeholders can collaborate to transform the organization.
Read next: Top RPA Tools 2021: Robotic Process Automation Software
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