Fortra’s Automate vs. IBM Robotic Process Automation

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Fortra’s Automate
Score 9.0 out of 10
N/A
Fortra's Automate (formerly HelpSystems Automate) is a robotic process automation platform for desktop applications. According to the vendor, it offers the ability to automate almost any business process, and no technical expertise is required—IT and business users alike can understand the drag-and-drop interface.N/A
IBM Robotic Process Automation
Score 8.6 out of 10
N/A
IBM Robotic Process Automation with Automation Anywhere is a robotic process automation solution combining business process management tools from IBM with Automation Anywhere's bots and automation capabilities.
$840
per month
Pricing
Fortra’s AutomateIBM Robotic Process Automation
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
IBM RPA On premises
Platform starter pack, starting at USD 840.00 per month
per month
IBM RPA Software as a service (SaaS)
Platform starter pack, starting at USD 840.00 per month
per month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Fortra’s AutomateIBM Robotic Process Automation
Free Trial
YesYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesYes
Entry-level Setup FeeOptionalOptional
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Fortra’s AutomateIBM Robotic Process Automation
Top Pros
Top Cons
Best Alternatives
Fortra’s AutomateIBM Robotic Process Automation
Small Businesses
airSlate SignNow
airSlate SignNow
Score 8.5 out of 10
airSlate SignNow
airSlate SignNow
Score 8.5 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Appian
Appian
Score 8.8 out of 10
Appian
Appian
Score 8.8 out of 10
Enterprises
Appian
Appian
Score 8.8 out of 10
Appian
Appian
Score 8.8 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Fortra’s AutomateIBM Robotic Process Automation
Likelihood to Recommend
10.0
(4 ratings)
8.5
(97 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
8.7
(7 ratings)
Usability
10.0
(1 ratings)
8.7
(18 ratings)
Support Rating
10.0
(1 ratings)
8.8
(19 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
4.5
(1 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
8.8
(2 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
Fortra’s AutomateIBM Robotic Process Automation
Likelihood to Recommend
Fortra
It's great for repetitive or regularly scheduled activities like reports or file transfers. However, it's not so good for on-demand activities. It doesn't support task shortcuts to run specific tasks. If it did it would be perfect.
Read full review
IBM
While it can be applied to various scenarios, its suitability can depend on the specific requirements of a given task or process. Here are some scenarios where IBM RPA is well-suited and scenarios where it may be less appropriate: Well suited: 1.Data Entry and Data Migration: RPA can efficiently automate data entry tasks, such as copying information from one system to another or migrating data between databases, reducing the risk of human error 2. Report Generation: RPA can generate routine reports by extracting data from various sources, formatting it, and delivering the reports to the relevant stakeholders, saving time and effort. 3. Email and Message Handling: RPA can help manage and categorize emails and messages, such as routing customer inquiries to the right department or processing routine email requests.Less suited for: 1. Cases where there is High Variability: RPA may struggle with tasks that have a high degree of variability, where each case is unique and difficult to standardize. 2. For Complex Decision-Making: RPA is rule-based and not designed for complex decision-making processes. It cannot replace the judgment and decision-making capabilities of humans. 3.Tasks Requiring Creativity: RPA is not suitable for tasks that require creativity, innovation, or problem-solving skills, as it operates based on predefined rules and logic.
Read full review
Pros
Fortra
  • Very detailed task builder. Easy to read step by step a task's operation even if you don't have much programming knowledge.
  • Scheduling for automation jobs is very flexible. Allows us to create all kinds of job schedules as needed.
  • Organization of jobs, tasks, conditions is done well. Allows us to easily manage our items.
Read full review
IBM
  • accessing local system
  • It was programmed to navigate to the web page requiring reCAPTCHA verification, locate the reCAPTCHA challenge, and generate a screenshot or other data to present to a user for manual input.
  • It was programmed to extract employee data from emails or forms, update the employee record in Workday, and send automated notifications.
Read full review
Cons
Fortra
  • A reporting capability on tasks: enabled, disabled, by folder, by trigger, etc. Currently there is none.
  • An "OR" in their conditional statements - currently there is only "AND".
  • Some kind of temporary backup when changing a task - separate from the current back up/restore functionality (which works well).
Read full review
IBM
  • Security and data privacy: IBM RPA may not have the strongest security features, which can leave sensitive data vulnerable to breaches or hacking.
  • Scalability: IBM RPA may not scale well to accommodate larger businesses and more complex processes, which can lead to performance issues and increased costs.
  • Customization: IBM RPA may not provide as much customization options as some users would like, making it difficult to tailor the software to specific business needs.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Fortra
No answers on this topic
IBM
By implementing IBM Robotic Process Automation, we realized that they are digital robots with a great impact on our manual tasks, generating good automation capabilities that are beneficial to the entire company.
Read full review
Usability
Fortra
It's just very easy to use, extremely versatile, and very reliable. It's hard to find use cases where it won't work.
Read full review
IBM
IBM RPA is a very powerful tool, it has almost all the features that are necessary to build, implement and manage highly functional robots. The learning curve is very fast, so excellent skills are acquired. It is not necessary to have strong programming knowledge because its use is very easy. It is just drag and drop commands. By adding rules and logic, wonderful robots can be achieved.
Read full review
Support Rating
Fortra
Support is very helpful and responsive, although using the tool is very user-friendly, so I hardly use the service.
Read full review
IBM
IBM has done a great job with enablement for the product. There is documentation for use-cases, development videos for beginners, and a community forum that has proven useful for getting started with the application. Although the resources cannot solve every problem a developer comes across, they have been very beneficial to our technical team.
Read full review
Implementation Rating
Fortra
No answers on this topic
IBM
I am main developer of the this implementation. I have faced many chanllenges in implementation as IBM RPA not provided direct commands to automate Excel. I enjoyed in finding solution and best approach for the implementation
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
Fortra
Read full review
IBM
I love how this tool helps to engage employees with mission-critical work, optimizing their skillsets, instead of focusing on mundane, time-consuming tasks that can be easily automated. Through this we've been able to save time and cut costly operations, free from repetitive work and elevates job satisfaction and creates a more efficient workplace.
Read full review
Return on Investment
Fortra
  • It's been a net positive as AutoMate requires less eyes on specific tasks so that people can focus attention elsewhere and do more analysis.
  • Less manual work also decreases the chances of mistakes and/or missed jobs. Since Automate can schedule everything, send email notifications, etc., there is less time wasted.
Read full review
IBM
  • IBM Robotic Process Automation has helped save on cost and time as it is able to automate tasks that are repetitive and routine tasks.
  • IBM Robotic Process Automation has helped us increase productivity. This is because it is able to perform tasks with a high degree of accuracy and speed.
  • It has enhanced compliance as it is able to automate compliance-related tasks. This has helped us improve our reputation.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Fortra’s Automate Screenshots

Screenshot of Screenshot of

IBM Robotic Process Automation Screenshots

Screenshot of IBM Robotic Process Automation Demo: IBM RPA StudioScreenshot of IBM Robotic Process Automation Demo: Watson Engine in IBM RPA StudioScreenshot of IBM Robotic Process Automation Demo: IVR Debug in IBM RPA StudioScreenshot of IBM Robotic Process Automation Demo: HTTP Request in IBM RPA StudioScreenshot of IBM Robotic Process Automation Demo: Knowledge Base Training in IBM RPA Studio