In a very short time, Microsoft has catapulted itself to the top of the RPA landshap thanks to a strategy that relies on :
- Integration of their RPA capabilities into the Microsoft Power Platform, Microsoft Power Platform, which consists of Microsoft Power Automate (RPA tool), Power BI, Power Apps and Power Virtual Agents. That Microsoft Power Platform is built around the Power Fx low-code programming language
- Integration with the ubiquitous Microsoft office software that almost every employee is familiar with: Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, GitHub and Teams.
- Inexpensive licensing structure that enables the vision of “every employee’s own virtual assistant.”
Especially the integration with Power Apps allows for clever use cases: the combination Power Automate – Power Apps allows for fully customizing trusted windows screens and feeding them with data from various underlying systems. Workers who have to plow through 5 screens daily to complete 1 order particularly appreciate this type of application.
Because of the massive penetration Microsoft has in the enterprise software and operating system market, coupled with solid marketing, Microsoft Power Platform has rightly catapulted like a comet to the top of the RPA firmament.
And rightly so: its familiar look and feel, wide availability (part of the Office365 suite) and integration with the Microsoft applications used daily in just about every office are unique.