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RPA (Robotic Process Automation).
RPA (Robotic Process Automation) is software that automatically carries out recurring, rule-based office work on screen — it clicks, copies, types and reads data between programs the way a person would. The 'robots' are pure software, not physical machines.
RPA (Robotic Process Automation) — Explained in Detail
RPA comes in where systems do not talk to each other. A typical case: orders arrive by email as PDFs, are typed into the ERP by hand, and a confirmation is then sent back from the ERP. An RPA bot can take over these steps by operating the user interfaces — it opens the email, reads the data, fills in the form and clicks Save.
The advantage is that existing systems do not need to be changed. That makes RPA attractive for older software without an interface. The drawback is fragility: if a field, a button or a layout changes, the bot breaks. RPA is therefore often a stopgap. Where an interface (API) exists, a direct connection is more stable, faster and cheaper to maintain.
Classic RPA bots work strictly by rules and fail on exceptions, such as a delivery note laid out differently. This is where AI is changing the discipline: language and vision models can read unstructured documents, recognise intent in emails and classify exceptions. RPA then becomes a combination of fixed automation and AI decisions, often called intelligent automation or an agent workflow.
Well-known RPA platforms include UiPath, Microsoft Power Automate and Automation Anywhere. For SMEs the question is usually not which tool, but whether the effort pays off: the frequency, duration and error-proneness of a task decide. A task that takes ten minutes once a month is not a case for RPA.
Example: transferring delivery notes into the ERP
Suppose a plumbing wholesaler receives around 80 delivery notes a day from various suppliers as PDFs. An employee types item numbers, quantities and prices into the ERP. An automation reads the PDFs with an AI model, checks the item numbers against the master data and enters the data through the ERP's interface. Discrepancies land on a review list.
Where the ERP has no interface, an RPA bot takes over the input through the user interface. Which solution is more stable in a given case is something we clarify as part of AI automation for SMEs. We do not have a named RPA reference; for tailor-made solutions see custom software Switzerland.
Related Page
AI Automation for SMEsFrequently Asked Questions About RPA (Robotic Process Automation)
RPA carries out fixed steps without understanding what it is doing. AI can interpret content, for example read a document or recognise an intent. Modern solutions combine the two: AI understands, and RPA or an interface carries out the action.
When a task occurs frequently, follows clear rules, takes place between systems without an interface, and the user interfaces rarely change. Where an interface exists, direct integration is almost always the better solution.
Large RPA platforms are designed for corporations. For SMEs, simpler tools such as Power Automate or a small, tailor-made integration are often enough. What matters is whether the time saved covers the cost of setting it up and maintaining it.
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