At its very core, the goal of automation is to take routine, repetitive tasks off the hands of time-strapped employees. Robotic process automation (RPA) solutions are designed to do this, but some lack an important feature that can make simplifying your tasks much harder than it needs to be—API connectivity. Integration with third-party software APIs—application programming interfaces—provides simplified communication between applications. Unlike graphical interfaces, this form of integration takes place in the background.
As you consider RPA vendors, it’s important to find a solution that provides simplified native API integration—like Automate from Fortra. Here are just some of the reasons why your RPA tool needs built-in API connectivity.
Easier Application Integration
Like most businesses, you probably use many different applications and systems throughout the day. Automation takes out the time-consuming and often error-prone work of getting data back and forth between these systems. And while you can achieve automated application integration through coding and other means, a solution that offers API connectivity natively makes it even easier. Using APIs, you can connect your critical business applications with your automation solution directly within the automation script.
Set It and Forget It
Connecting applications to your automation tool with code can get messy and complicated. First off, if you don’t have code-writing skills, you need to get a developer involved. And from there, it needs to be coded from scratch, and if there are changes to any applications, you could be met with errors until you update your code. Using native API integration ensures you’ll be able to connect to applications without writing code. The connection is made behind the scenes so you don’t have to key anything into a graphical interface. And if there’s a change to how an application looks, the API integration isn’t affected. You can just set it and forget it.
Connect Modern Applications with Legacy Applications
Application integration extends beyond just your newer business software. Some companies still have legacy applications that are still working well for their needs, but need a better way to get information from these systems into the modern applications. An automation solution with API capabilities helps take your data from old to new so you don't have to change everything and replace things. API integration can act as middleware to bridge these gaps and keep everything working in sync.
Give an RPA Tool with API Connectivity a Try
With Automate Plus, easily connect your disparate business applications with built-in API connectivity.