Blue Prism Reviews

In one of the use cases, we import Excel tables. We extract the Excel data from the output of a proprietary application. This application produces Excel tables as an output, and we then create PDFs for certificates for the people who are flying. They have to do training, flying hours, and things like this. In this project, we closed the gap between the proprietary application, provided by a different team, and the HR application.

It is deployed on-premises. Due to security issues, we are not allowed to use cloud services. We only have centralized application servers that are operated by the central operations team. It is not on users' desktops, which is possible, but it is not our focus.

RPA processes are helpful when we need interaction with different applications and close the technical gaps between them. In one of the use cases that we evaluated, there was a single Excel template from a vendor. The Excel file has 7,000 objects, and it included information about the part numbers, prices, and some of the details about each object of a complex maschine. This file had to be input to SAP, so a human had to enter these 7,000 objects one by one, which is a pretty mechanical and uninteresting task. The RPA bot was easily able to import this file. Without RPA, this import had to be done by a person who had to do the same task 7,000 times just to import one contract. This is where RPA processes and RPA tools are very helpful. RPA tools have the possibility to close media gaps. RPA tools are like macros on steroids. They now have got the maturity level for big data centers.

We see some security issues in Blue Prism. The German vendor Servicetrace is better at this point. This is also reflected in the Gartner report where Servicetrace is mentioned as the tool of choice in high-security environments. So, security, particularly in terms of administration, needs to be improved. We must have the possibility to prevent the administration from taking a look at the ongoing process. When we have restricted data flow, the operations team should not be able to take a look at the data that is processed.

I have been using this solution for about three years.

It has been pretty stable. Most errors are human errors in the input files. When we have issues, they are usually because of the content of the input file. There are no technical issues with the product.

It is not currently an issue on our side because the company has pretty strong and fast machines. Because these machines do only RPA and nothing else, they can handle the work of a lot of employees and do a great job with that.

I'm not sure if our contractor has many tasks to handle with the vendor itself. During the software evaluation, we had discussions with the vendor about product details, but the support is taken care of by the contractors, and I'm not sure how often it is required.

The installation itself was pretty straightforward. The installation of the software is pretty easy, but it can get tricky when you go into bot development and have to close the gaps between different applications. The most complex use case took us about two and a half years.

We have a project team of five to six people for implementation. Operations are handled by three people. The project team is extended by external persons or contractors. The basic operations are done internally.

We definitely save money by using RPA.

Due to our financial structure, we need fixed costs. So, a license based on the usage would not be feasible. If we have a license model that is based on tasks per year or something else, it could create a very dynamic range of costs. Due to our public financial input, we have to know what it will cost. So, we have licenses per server. This helps us in planning, and we know exactly when we need additional servers. We can then request additional money for them.

It is a pretty good solution. I would rate it an eight out of 10.

Our primary use for this solution is to automate and run our mundane operational processes.

This solution has helped us become more efficient, as we have been able to automate certain processes, up to 85% of the work in some claims processing areas. We've been able to use it to very successfully transform data from one system to another. We have also used it for underwriting new client take-ons.

The most valuable feature is the design studio and its ease of use. The security and control room features are also very good.

I would like to see it better integrated with, or layered over, Java-based systems.

A feature that I would like to see in the next release is the ability to easily call on the robots to fulfill part of the process, and be run by the users in the business, where the robot can simply be activated rather than running mass processes from a control room. Essentially, I think that keeping the human in the loop is important. Blue Prism does have some vendors that partner to accomplish this, but it would be nice to have it built-in, rather than have a separate vendor with a separate license contract.

We don't have problems with stability. It is one's own IT infrastructure that lets you down, whether it is networking or otherwise. The system itself hasn't been a problem.

We're only in the process of scaling so it is difficult to say. One of the things that the developers have said is that it's quite slow, and quite cumbersome when layered over Java-based solutions. Whether it is scalable in that space, or not, is to be determined.

We have fifteen robots running.

We have had to contact technical support from time to time, and they are responsive. We've always received feedback from them. Typically, the only time that we've needed them is when our own IT support has had problems in the Blue Prism space. Sometimes, after we've contacted them, they pointed us in the right direction and actually found that the problem was on our end. These are some of the types of problems that they have helped us to solve.

We did not use another solution prior to this one.

The initial setup was relatively straightforward. The system itself is not overly complex. Rather, it's more of how you get your own internal IT infrastructure geared to be able to handle the new technology.

Deployment can take between four and six weeks per process.

Our implementation strategy has been to first focus on those processes that are going to deliver the greatest return on investment to ourselves and our clients. Typically, it's a small team that is supported by a vendor. Over time, they take over the development of the robots and they manage the control room.

The number of staff required for deployment and maintenance depends on the number of robots that you have running. Our entire team is six people, including business analysts, an engineer, a control room operator, and two developers. One of the developers is a senior developer who is able to validate and sign off on what is developed.

We used a consultant for the deployment.

We did not evaluate other solutions. We chose this one based on recommendations from the consultants that we had.

For anybody who is implementing this solution, it is important that you do not implement a process that is inherently flawed. Especially for more complex processes, you have to figure out how to solve those and re-engineer them. You want to enhance the processes.

Secondly, ensure that your design team is allowed to complete the design and move onto the next process. You do not want to have them repeatedly called back to enhance the process, because that slows down your rollout strategy.

You need to get buy-in from the business around what you're going to automate, and how you're going to do it. That is how you're going to leverage it going forward. If you don't have that then you can automate and put bots out there, but if the business doesn't support them or doesn't adopt them as co-workers then you're going to be battling against scaling. Anybody who sets out on this journey should be looking to use them on a large scale, and not just as a point solution.

I have not used other solutions so it is difficult to compare. However, in terms of support and the ability for us to start using the solution, it was quite easy. 

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.

Blue Prism is used by my clients mostly in the financial sector. We do a lot of bank reconciliations.

The performance is very good and it is a valuable feature.

In Nigeria, I don't know what their marketing is like. However, they're losing market shares to other solutions. Most customers know UiPath more than Blue Prism. 

They have partners in Nigeria, for example, gold platinum partners. They are not doing well in the environment they've gone into and I don't know how Blue Prism evaluates them. Smaller companies do not like Plue Prism.  It's not because of Blue Prism's technology, but they're platinum partners among the four big consulting firms, they have not done a great job.

In a future release, Blue Prism should have an entry-level solution for smaller organizations with low-code capabilities. You need more technical knowledge to use Blue Prism compared to other solutions.

I have been using Blue Prism for approximately three years.

Blue Prism is a stable solution.

I have found Blue Prism is easy to scale.

Blue Prism is not suitable for small companies. They have a solution that covers partners, it's suitable for enterprises.

We have found it difficult to receive support from Blue Prism.

I have used UiPath previously and the licensing is more complex than Blue Prism. 

UiPath has built a solution that can engage across small, medium, and enterprise levels companies. It can operate in not only enterprises. UiPath has a free solution where very small businesses can use it called the community edition. They can use it for a period of time for free and I believe it is for two or three. It encourages people to adopt UiPath.

The initial implementation is straightforward.

The full process does not take more than one day. However, it can depend on the environment. It typically can be done in a couple of hours.

The solution could require a varying level of maintenance depending on the method of deployment.

The license for Blue Prism is very straightforward, we only need one license.

Overall Blue Prism is less expensive than competitors. If you look UiPath, they have different kinds of licenses which you need a combination of them to work for example, at the enterprise level, and it's more expensive. However, if you're only doing entry-level operations it is less expensive.

Blue Prism has a cloud version now and  I would advise others to evaluate what they want to get to achieve first, before starting the RPA journey.

I rate Blue Prism an eight out of ten.

We implemented Blue Prism some time back. I'm not using it right now. 

I get most involved during the evaluation and the deployment phase.

With Blue Prism, we automated back-end processes. Blue Prism is more like service-side automation. It is not good for attended automation.

Blue Prism can lower the average handling time immediately by 20-40%.

You also need to look at what is the long term goal. A long term goal could be that you want to keep, not integrate, with anything else. 

Blue Prism has a long learning curve because the coding is complicated. You need to be a very highly skilled developer. Blue Prism has a high coding skill and certification requirement that hinders your ability to automate quickly. 

Blue Prism moves out new versions very fast and their back-up compatibility is not good as compared to their competition. Essentially, this means you spend a lot of money just upgrading the bots.

Blue Prism is quite stable. It has the interactive client that is really good. The licensing model is very simple as well.

The user interface is okay. I don't think there is much of a problem.They need to also have a better capability in attended automation. Blue Prism has not invested enough in AI development.

They need to have a Bot store. If they can introduce AI bots that will automatically diagnose why something failed and keep sending data back to admins, it would be an improvement.

We have been using the Blue Prism RPA ( /categories/robotic-process-automation-rpa ) solution for almost one year.

Blue Prism is quite stable.

When you need to run more processes, you buy more licenses, but you will spin up more VM. Scaling not is a problem for Blue Prism.

We started with Blue Prism.

The initial setup of Blue Prism is standard and not difficult. The instructions are very clear and easy. It doesn't take long to implement. The setup is not difficult.

Changing the board and getting it deployed didn't take too long. The deployment into production and moving to the environment took somewhere between eight to ten weeks. It could have been a little less.

reduction of Operations effort

These prices are deal-specific, it will probably not be right to review negotiations with the vendor. Currently, there are no new licensing agreement changes for us.

We evaluated Automation Anywhere.

If you need only server-side back-end process automation, use Blue Prism. If you need assisted automation or services automation, use Automation Anywhere or UiPath. On a scale from 1 to 10, I would rate Blue Prism with an 8.

The first automated processes were mainly backoffice procedures. Accordingly, unattended robots have been used to do the job. To me however, a big portion of the potential value added from RPA comes from attended automation, especially in a people-intensive professional services company like the one I`m working at. Typical examples for solutions desired by the staff are digital assistants taking care of the tedious and error-prone data transfer processes reaching from HR and Marketing to Finance.

Of course, Blue Prism is capable of improving one´s processes, especially in terms of efficiency. I´m not saying that it didn´t improve things at all at my company. However, my personal opinion is that improvement is behind what´s possible nowadays. As desribed before, attended automation and digital assistants keep becoming more important - if not crucial for a company´s RPA journey. And that´s exactly where Blue Prism in my opinion fails. Developing processes, you can feel that the solution is not made for attended automation. 

Valuable feature are for sure the modelers. They are quite easy to understand and use. I think they are what people mean when they say Blue Prism is a bit easier than UiPath. Whereas I definitely like the ease of use, this comes at a cost. In direct comparison to UiPath, the Studios feel like Kindergarden to me. Trying to make robot development accessible to people with limited technical understanding, they are taking away the endless possibilities resulting from the fact that a software robot is still a mature computer program. Not being able to insert code - or even complex expressions - is not a feature to me. Summing up, I like the ease of use of BP but to me, the sacrifice is too high.

When I am comparing Blue Prism to UiPath, it lacks many features. For example, I am missing all variable types that I am used to having in UiPath.

I don't like that it is so limited, anything that you do feels limited in your capabilities.

Usually, you have dropdown menus with 10 choices but if you need that 11th or 12th one it is so difficult to work around it. 

For me, I feel that it is lacking in features.

It consists of simple actions that work quite well together, and the integration is good but the scope of things that you can do is too narrow.

The interface could be brought to a more modern state of the art interface. It still has this gray Windows 95 style, which is outdated.

The way that humans interact with robots is a feature that is very poor in Blue Prism. 

The focus is on the unattended automation, for example, robots running in the background at some bank. If you have more digital assistance, assisting humans in their daily work is something that is very difficult and I would like to see this improved.

I have been using Blue Prism for two months.

The stability is quite good.

This solution is scalable, but I don't have a lot of experience with this area. I am basing this only on what I have heard.

We have approximately 500 end-users.

Due to the limitations, we don't have plans to increase our usage. We are considering a change.

I don't have a lot of experience with technical support. At this time, I cannot say anything good or bad.

Previously, I was using UiPath and because of a change in job, I started using Blue Prism.

This solution was already in place when I joined the company. 

The setup and deployment were already complete.

We have a team of five to maintain this solution.

We did the implementation internally.

We have a three-year contract that is paid on a yearly basis.

To my knowledge, there are no additional costs other than the standard licensing fee.

I don't think that I could recommend this solution. I prefer working with UiPath.

We use this solution in all area of our business. The most common use case is related to our financial sector and loan applications.

The most valuable improvement in utilizing process automation is the cost savings, but we have also had cases where the customer experience is enhanced.

The most valuable feature for us is that our developers find it quite simple to develop processes, and they like to use this solution.

The licensing models for this product need improvement. Compared to other tools on the market, it is one of the most expensive.

We understand that they will be launching an OCR tool, and we are looking forward to this.

We would like to see some desktop automation, although we have been told that the product is not going to be taken in that direction. Rather, they will continue to focus on product automation and we will have to incorporate other solutions.

We have had some problems in the Blue Prism environment. For the tasks our robots are doing, our success rate is between ninety-two and ninety-eight percent. So, there are some things that are not being successfully created.

We have managed to scale it up quite well, so scalability is ok.

There are approximately twelve thousand people who benefit from this solution. We have around twenty developers, and there are between one and two hundred people who have a direct connection to the RPA deployments.

We have had problems with the solution, but between our vendor and the Blue Prism technical support, we have managed to solve them.

This was the first tool that we started to utilize when it comes to RPA deployments.

I found this initial setup to be complex.

Our implementation was done using both our in-house experts and some external manpower.

My advice for anybody who is implementing this solution is to have some expertise in-house, and not rely solely on the vendor. Similarly, I don't think that it is a good idea to develop and manage your infrastructure based entirely on advice or direction from the vendor.

This is the first RPA tool that we have implemented, and we do not have a lot of experience with other tools. We are satisfied, but there is room for improvement. 

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.

We are a service provider and I develop RPA solutions for my clients.

Blue Prism is one of the RPA products that I develop bots for.

Most of our clients are interested in automating processes that are related to payroll and other aspects of finance.

Using Blue Prism takes away from the work required to complete manual tasks. Also, repetitive tasks that are completed using RPA are more accurate, compared to those done manually.

The most valuable feature is that people with zero coding knowledge can use Blue Prism very well.

The user interface is good.

Blue Prism is lacking in document processing capabilities.

The addition of better testing tools, or some kind of test suite, would be an improvement.

If this solution had a framework for exception handling then it would be very helpful. As a developer, we have to put exceptions in as the first step.

This product does not have AI Fabric or process mining tools.

I have been using Blue Prism for about a year and a half.

There are no issues in terms of stability. It is as stable as any other tool.

The scalability depends on the code that we write. For example, there are business objects as well as processes. If they are architected and coded properly then it is very easy to scale with less effort. I have no complaints regarding scalability and it is as good as other tools.

I have only been in contact with technical support one time when I had some issues writing Blue Prism certifications. They responded within one day.

For any technical questions that we have, we look at the forums for answers. Blue Prism have their own community and the forums are very good.

I am proficient in UiPath as well as Blue Prism, and I have just started using Kofax RPA. I am also looking into Automation Anywhere.

Of all of these solutions, I prefer to work with UiPath. Blue Prism does have an advantage that non-coders can work with it. However, it lacks in document processing features that are available in Automation Anywhere and UiPath.

I am not involved in the installation of the RPA tools, although my understanding is that the initial setup is quite easy and doesn't take long.

My IT team handles the deployment of Blue Prism.

The licensing fees are low compared to other tools.

The suitability of this product depends on the use cases. For example, if you are looking into processing invoices then Blue Prism is not the tool that I would choose because the others have better OCR capabilities.

If document processing capabilities and a test suite were added then it would be great because our customers who need these features would not be forced to use other products.

If I were to rate this tool in isolation then I would score it a six or seven out of ten. However, as I am comparing it to other similar solutions, I have to score it less.

I would rate this solution a four out of ten.

The solution was deployed on-prem. We have about 100 users.

We were partners with Blue Prism.

There has been a huge amount of cost savings and freeing up. Employees got more vacation time allotted. That was a direct result of the time saved by RPA.

As a developer, I liked the layout and UI, specifically when it came to testing. Dragging and dropping stages and actions made development quick and easy to learn. The UI, allows you to watch as the bot moves through each step of the process at the same time it launches, interacts and closes applications, which really aids development and troubleshooting, unlike with AA and UiPath.  

I don't have an suggestions for improvement, at this time.

I used Blue Prism for five years. The last time I used it was a year ago.

The solution was stable.

Scalability was easy.

Technical support wasn't great. On a scale of 1 to 5, I would give it a 3.

Initial setup was straightforward. On a scale of 1 to 5, I would rate the difficulty of setup a 4.

Deployment took a couple of months from development to publishing it into production. We didn't have an implementation strategy. 

We had 25 developers for deployment and maintenance. We had about a dozen in production for support.

Deployment was done in-house.

I would rate this solution 7 out of 10.