Why SaaS Vendors Need a Definitive Robotic Process Automation Strategy

Much of the dialogue around the value of Robotic Process Automation (RPA) in the last several years has focused on how RPA can help streamline more effective processes build around on-premise or hosted ERP and system of record applications. 

In some quarters, it’s even being assumed that the need for RPA will eventually go away, once enterprises moves away from these legacy applications and modernized Digital applications are implemented in their place. We believe that may be one reason why in a recent survey of 178 enterprise buyers, 23% of respondents saw RPA as a technology with an indefinite lifespan in their organization, so long as the discussion around whether RPA is also of value to streamline processes built around newer SaaS solutions as well. 

The reality is that the processes SaaS applications are built to support are often still inefficient and manual process steps that could be automated have been left untouched. This is especially the case in functions such as Human Resources, where many hire-to-retire processes are obsolete in today’s work environment. Many simply fail to support the significant changes with contingent workers, health insurance regulations and evolving global workforce needs.

Therefore, there is reason to believe, in the coming years, that enterprises will look to deploy RPA around their SaaS implementations just as they are, today, around legacy on-premise systems. Simply put, while the technology delivery has improved, the processes are sill evolving, and many will continue to evolve for years to come.

Recently, SAP SuccessFactors, one of the leading SaaS platform vendors announced at their SuccessConnect 15 conference what is in our view a pre-emptive approach to reduce the applicability of third party RPA tools around Human Capital Management (HCM) processes. This solution – Intelligent Services – built around three components: An Event Bus; OData APIs and simple process rules is intended to automate process steps in SuccessFactors that are currently done by employees with manual steps.  

It is still early days and Intelligent Services is still limited to an initially identified 16 services around the SuccessFactors in the August 2015 release but this is still a good start. HfS has questions about how easy it will be to add additional services especially by service providers and end user enterprises but that is something we will monitor going into 2016.

By recognizing that employees engage in extra activities to complete processes outside of the SaaS application and then moving to automate those steps, SuccessFactors is responding to the value proposition of RPA within its own suite.

This is an example of how SaaS vendors need to disaggregate RPA, before it moves into this world at scale and is a potential model for other SaaS vendors to follow in 2016.